How To Meet People While Traveling?
Solo traveling has the potential to be quite enlightening and life-changing. But for first-timers, it will look scary and terribly lonely as well. However, if you want to travel solo, but are too shy to interact with locals during your solo trip, we got you covered. You can chat & connect with like-minded locals or travelers to further meet while traveling solo.
Ways to meet people while traveling solo
Solo traveling can prove to be one of the most precious experiences of your life. But it’s the people who you meet during these trips that truly make it a rewarding experience. If you are an introvert and don’t really know how to talk to random strangers, do not worry. You don’t have to be a social king or queen to make travel friends.
We want you to have a great time while solo traveling and so we did the research for you. Read on for a few tricks that you can follow to meet people while traveling:
Stay in hostels — Living in hostels while traveling is a good way to meet other people. Ask any solo traveler and he/ she will agree with us. Usually, hostels arrange group trips and activities you can participate in. You can check the notice board for the same or ask at the reception. Hostels also have bars and communal spaces where you can meet people. Don’t sit alone in your room with a book or your mobile phone, this will make you look unapproachable. You are there to make memories, not just spend time by yourself.
Talk to strangers — Let us give you an honest tip for solo traveling which is you ought to keep an open mind. You need to talk to random locals/strangers, interact with them, share food & drinks, and create memories & experiences. You will end up having a memorable trip and hopefully make some good travel buddies for life. Traveling alone will teach you that there are interesting people at every cafe, bus stop, beach or pub. All you have to do is keep aside your inhibitions and say the first hello. If you give strangers a chance, you will be surprised at how much they have to offer to you.
You don’t have to worry too much, just enjoy yourself. Don’t try too hard to be friendly as well, not everyone you meet would want to be your friend. But some would, and that’s enough.
Couchsurfing — Couchsurfing means temporarily staying at other people’s homes which can be free or paid (but a much nominal price compared to a hotel) while traveling. This is a great concept, particularly when you are traveling with a limited budget. You will easily find people online who allow couchsurfing in their homes. You guys can share good times together and make long-lasting connections. If you are a solo female traveler who is concerned about the safety of this idea, you can always opt to couch surf at a place owned by a woman. But we’d advise having a one on one chat with the person before accepting the invitation to crash at their place. This will help you understand what they want out of this whole situation and whether they are a great fit for you or not. Always remember that while traveling solo, safety is your top priority and you should always be careful. Don’t talk to someone or go anywhere with them if you are even a little skeptical.
Try online travel dating apps — Social travel or travel dating apps such as Xoxo Tours allow you to connect with other travelers with similar interests and you can chat with travel friends before deciding to take a trip together. This way you can decide whether they give you the right vibes and they are a good match for you or not. If you are a female traveler who is traveling alone and is in search of a female travel partner, these apps are the best choice for you. It’s 2019, don’t be afraid to use the power of the internet to find yourself a travel buddy. Solo traveling is a thing of the past, now it’s all about social traveling.
Use travel dating apps — As we already mentioned above, don’t be afraid to use the power of the internet to find a travel partner. Travel dating apps such as Tourbar & Miss Travel are great tools to find like-minded people or even a romantic connection while traveling. You will be able to chat with and meet locals who can show you around and help make your trip way better than what you originally planned. Hey, we all agree that experiences are better when shared, right? And even if you are not looking for anything romantic, you can use these apps. As awkward as it might sound, there are numerous people who use such dating apps to find new friends. But just make sure that you are clear with them regarding your expectations.
Sign up for a local event — Before traveling to a place, find out online if there happens to be a local event or activity at that time in which you are interested. Similar interests work strongly like a magnet in bringing people together. In these events, you will meet people who love the same thing/s as you do. If there is no local event happening, go to a local pub and try to start conversations with people there. You don’t have to use smart pick up lines to start a chat with people, just have fun, be yourself and you will be fine.
Solo traveling is a fun, exciting and beautiful experience. And this experience gets better when you meet and interact with great people during your trips. If you really want to meet new people, you need to be truly open to this idea, mentally as well as physically. Be open to starting conversations with strangers, you will not connect with everyone you speak to, but there is a great chance that you’d find like-minded amazing people. It’s very important to get out of your comfort zone if you want to have fun.
