Advantages of Travelling Alone

Many people wouldn't dream of going on holiday by themselves, much less travelling for a sustained period, but in actual fact, you'd be surprised at the advantages to be had at not having all that excess baggage.

Escape

We all dream of getting away from time to time, some of us more than others, but all too often from the moment you start planning your escape with your partner in crime you find that he or she was planning on tunnelling out while you had your heart set on vaulting the wall. You fancy cherry picking in France; she wants to be an Au Pair in Italy. You dream of pipes in the Andes; he dreams of the beaches of Brazil.

Well, life is full of compromises, and chances are it'll be the experience of a lifetime wherever you go, but a lot of people don't realise just how different it is when you go it alone - just how much better it can be! Now, we're not trying to convince you that your partner or friends are a waste of space but most people never even contemplate the idea of going alone and the thrill that such an adventure can bring.

Just think about it for a moment. You want an adventure. You want to get away from it all. You want to see what life throws at you, test yourself and feel the buzz of having grown because of it. Then consider, what makes you think that all of this wouldn't be ten times better if you set out there all on your lonesome? Travelling for a sustained period always results in meeting new people so it's not as if you'd be too lonely, and in today's world your family and friends are only as far as the nearest internet café anyway.

Hell is Other People

Your options aren't just cut in half by subjecting yourself to the preferences of another person, they're massively reduced. When you're travelling alone you can literally walk off into the sunset on the slightest whim without the faintest excuse of an explanation. There'll be nobody to argue with over money, the smell in the tent or whose fault it was you missed the train either!

Hitch-hiking is not often recommended in today's messed up world, but if it is your chosen mode of transport, you're far more likely to get a ride if you're alone. You'll have the time and space to keep a full and inspired journal too - you could be the next Jack Kerouac!

There's the possibility you'll meet somebody special while you're travelling and suddenly three becomes a crowd. You couldn't possibly ditch your friend, so you'll just spend the rest of your life wondering - not an issue if you're free as a solitary bird. Ok, that may seem a little optimistic and there's no reason why you won't find romance whatever the circumstances, but the point is you really can leave it all behind and explore yourself much more deeply when it's just you and the big wide world.

So many people are bewildered by the thought of travelling alone but really, it's not as scary as you think and it's very likely you'll have a much better time. The recommendation is baby steps - take a week to travel somewhere and see how you get on. You'll be planning your next trip before you even get back - if you even come back that is.