The pandemic outbreak last year cut off the travel plans for millions of people. The holidays we wanted to take, the chances to migrate we wanted to take – they all fell by the wayside because COVID-19 got in the way. We’re now in 2021, and we’re at the cusp of learning to live with this new normal, so why not start planning the rest of your travels for this year?
You might not have considered going away by yourself before, but solo travel can be wonderfully empowering. Going it alone means planning to be safe, planning to reach the destinations you’re safely able to reach and enjoying every single moment of it. You might even finally get to look into how to apply for an ETA so that you can add Canada to your list of destinations. Below, we’ve got nine clear reasons you should start considering travelling alone this year – and don’t wait on it!
Nine Reasons to Travel Alone in 2021
You call the shots
Travelling alone is going to change your life. When was the last time you thought about going away by yourself? Probably never! There is a lot of control you get to retain when you travel alone. Whatever you want to eat, you can eat it. Whatever you want to do, you can do it. You’re not pandering to the desires of anyone else when you go away by yourself. Every single activity is your choice, when you want to do it. There are no compromises, and it’s pretty much the best thing about solo travel.
A bucket list item
Your list of things to achieve before you die? That’s your bucket list. You need to make sure that you tick this one off the list so that you can say “yes, I did that!” There is no need to continue to push off travel: we don’t know the direction in which life is going to take us. You don’t have to wade through life as if you have nothing to do; your bucket list of travel places can be ticked off and you can go it alone! This year has taught us that life is short and we need to grab it with both hands.
You can be selfish
If you want to spend hours away on a beach somewhere, you’re able to do it because you have all the time in the world to make the best decisions for you – you get to be totally selfish. If you don’t want to talk to anyone except waiters, you can. You don’t have to manage a bag of snacks for the kids, extra towels, bottles of water for anyone other than you – you get to be completely selfish and put yourself first for a change.
Escape
Being inside for a year is tough, but it does give you time to plan a trip of a lifetime and this can be it – and you don’t have to share it. Yes, it’s lovely to go on a holiday and bring the kids and your partner, but when you are alone you can make it a total adventure by yourself. You can escape all the worries of the past year, and travelling alone isn’t as lonely as it sounds on paper. You can – if you want – meet new people, or you can just escape to new pastures with a new book to enjoy. Your time is yours to do what you will – and it’s invigorating to do it.
One budget to consider
When you travel with friends, you all come with different budgets. There might be awkward conversations about who pays what and when, who can afford certain things and who can’t. Those who can’t afford to go on specific excursions may then feel as if they can’t enjoy themselves, leaving those who can afford it feeling awkward. When you travel online, you only have your own budget to think about. Whatever you want to eat, you can eat. You don’t have to ask anyone else to enjoy something with you, you can just do what you want and think about your own finances.
It’s a confidence builder!
There is something so wonderful about solo travel – it makes you a more self-reliant person, more than you ever thought you could be. You have to rely on yourself when it comes to your hotels, movement, tickets for destinations and more. If you get lost, it’s up to you to figure it out. If anything, you’re going to really work on your people skills when you travel alone because if you need help, you have to swallow any anxiety and go and get it! Travelling by yourself can feed your confidence and make you know that you can do anything that you put your mind to.
Making friends
You may be travelling alone but you certainly don’t have to stay that way. When you travel alone, you are far more likely to meet new people as there’s no one travelling with you. You could find yourself being more conversational and chatty and more willing to approach people. It’s a breath of fresh air if you’re used to keeping yourself to yourself.
The chance to engage with your surroundings is higher
When you travel with other people, you don’t often have the chance to interact with your surroundings without a distraction. When you travel alone, you can truly immerse yourself in your destination. You can watch the locals and observe their customs. You can read everything in the museum when you’re walking around, and you engage more with everything around you, which is a huge deal!
You get to be just you
You don’t have to be anything but yourself when you travel alone. You can dictate everything and you don’t have to put on a face as you may have done during the pandemic. It’s up to you to just be yourself and enjoy everything you want to enjoy. Your time is now to travel, to be yourself and to enjoy life in the moment.