The idea of traveling alone can be really daunting and nerve-wracking — especially if you've never done it before.
But it's also super empowering and eye-opening. These 17 female travel bloggers are all the evidence you need — they're pros at adventuring solo. Follow their expert advice if you're thinking about taking a trip by yourself.
1. Tausha Cowan, 30, The Globe Getter
Favorite post about solo travel: What Years of Solo Travel Have Taught Me
Why she loves traveling alone: "Aside from the freedom, solo travel puts you out of your comfort zone. You become more confident and independent, and you learn to trust your gut more."
Best advice on traveling solo: "Test the waters first — start with a few days in a place where you feel you would be comfortable and see how you feel. I started my solo travels in London then continued with other large cities in Europe before going to more 'adventurous' places like Mexico by myself."
2. Elizabeth Carlson, 27, Young Adventuress
Favorite post about solo travel: The Solo Female Traveler's Manifesto
Why she loves traveling alone: "I've always been quite introverted, and I enjoy getting to experience a place on my own. I also find it's much easier to meet locals and make friends on the road when you are by yourself."
Best advice for solo travel: "The hardest part is taking that first step out the door, especially since friends and family can sometimes be unsupportive. Just book the ticket where you dream of going and make it happen."
3. Kristin Addis, 29, Be My Travel Muse
Favorite post about solo travel: Why You Shouldn't Be Scared To Travel Alone
Why she loves traveling alone: "It's helped me know ME. It's showed me that I'm brave, a capable problem-solver, and more outgoing than I ever imagined. I'm not special, either—every girl can discover this about herself."
Best advice on traveling solo: "The hardest part is just getting over the initial fear and deciding to go."
4. Kate McCulley, 31, Adventurous Kate
Favorite post about solo travel: Top 10 Travel Safety Tips for Solo Female Travelers
Why she loves traveling alone: "Having independence is empowering and teaches you quite a bit about yourself. The better you know yourself, the better life you can create for yourself, and that's beneficial to everybody."
Best advice on traveling solo: "For first-time solo female travelers, I recommend doing a short trip to a destination not too far from home (like an overnight or weekend in a city a few hours away). After a successful first trip, you'll be ready to tackle something bigger and more epic!"
5. Jessie Festa, 28, Jessie On A Journey
Favorite post about solo travel: The Unofficial Official Solo Female Traveler's Manifesto
Why she loves traveling alone: "You get the chance to realize your true potential and strengthen your relationship with yourself. It's also very simple to make friends while traveling alone, whether you're at a hostel, using CouchSurfing forums to attend meetups, or simply sitting alone at the bar and being approachable."
Best advice on traveling solo: "Believe in yourself. Know that you'll figure it out. And when you travel solo for the first time, book your first few nights of accommodation ahead of time. Once you get used to being on your own, you can relax the planning and let the journey take you."
6. Edna Zhou, 26, Expat Edna
Favorite post about solo travel: How I moved abroad after college and built a career through travel
Why she loves traveling alone: "Going solo makes it much easier to strike up conversations with fellow travelers. You never know where your new friendship with that stranger at the bar/hostel/bus might lead!"
Best advice for solo travel: "Sometimes the biggest hurdle to a trip is a mental one. When you buy your flight, everything else will fall into place, because you're forcing yourself to take action, and it starts with that first step."
7. Ashley Fleckenstein, 25, Ashley Abroad
Favorite post about solo travel: How to DIY a Budget Yoga Retreat in Bali
Why she loves traveling alone: "I love how often both locals and travelers take you under their wing and invite you places. I've found that when you travel alone, you usually meet more locals and are able to have more unique experiences."
Best advice for solo travel: "I recommend Ireland for women who are about to embark on their first solo trip. It's small, safe, English-speaking and full of friendly locals. And of course, it's just a wonderful place to visit!"
8. Diana Edelman, 35, D Travels 'Round
Favorite post about solo travel: 10 Things Traveling Solo Taught Me About Life
Why she loves traveling alone: "It forces you to look inside and seek happiness from within. You discover how awesome you can really be when you are alone and in a foreign country."
Best advice on traveling solo: "Do it for the right reasons. Running from something or seeking happiness in the form of a foreign place only lasts so long, until you are eventually back confronting (or ignoring) what is going on inside."
9. Oneika Raymond, 33, Oneika The Traveller
Favorite post about solo travel: 9 Tips For Solo Travel If You're A Girl
Why she loves traveling alone: "Why not? Traveling makes you the Head Chica in Charge of your travel experience."
Best advice for solo travel: "Make like a Nike slogan and 'just do it.' Research your destination thoroughly before going, connect with other solo female travelers online, and plan a few solo excursions closer to home so you can get used to the beauty of your own company. And above all, relax and have fun! Solo travel rocks!"
10. Christine Amorose, 27, C'est Christine
Favorite post about solo travel: Notes On (Still) Solo Traveling
Why she loves traveling alone: "When there's no one to cry to, you have to find a solution — and this truth has made me more self-sufficient in all areas of my life. Also, there's a freedom in being able to explore a new place exactly the way I want to: waking up early, taking long meandering walks with my camera, searching for cool street art, riding a bike around a park, spending all day in the sunshine."
Best advice for traveling solo: "If you're nervous about exploring on your own, book group tours, and stay in hostels. You'll meet plenty of people along the way."
11. Stephanie Yoder, 30, Twenty-Something Travel
Favorite post about solo travel: Female Solo Travel is NOT the Problem
Why she loves traveling alone: "It's both fun and incredibly empowering. You learn a lot about yourself and how you act when nobody else is there to judge or influence you."
Best advice for solo travel: "Expect to feel a certain level of anxiety right up until (or even after) you get on the plane. This is normal and not a sign that you're making a bad decision. Confronting your fears and doing them anyway makes you feel like a superhero!"
12. Jodi Ettenberg, 36, Legal Nomads
Favorite post about solo travel: Revisiting the Solo Female Travel Experience
Why she loves traveling alone: "Traveling alone has forced me out of shyness and away from a lifetime of anxiety, into a version of myself that I am proud of. After relying on myself through misadventures and food poisoning, I can look back on these years and say, 'Wow, I can’t believe I did that alone.' And that itself is a really empowering thing."
Best advice for solo travel: "It's ok to be scared. I was terrified when I first set out, and even now when I head to a new country, I stay awake at night before I leave, wondering how it will be. The Internet lets us portray fearless versions of ourselves but I don't believe there is any shame in a little fear. Also, bring a doorstop and a safety whistle, the former to put into your door if you’re in a solo room, and the latter because it's useful."
13. Brenna Holeman, 31, This Battered Suitcase
Favorite post about solo travel: What Solo Travel Has Taught Me
Why she loves traveling alone: "The best thing is interacting with others. As a solo traveler, you're more likely to put yourself out there and talk to people, as you don't have a travel partner or group to rely on for companionship. Every single day you meet so many new people, and each one is someone who knows something you don't."
Best advice for solo travel: "Just buy the ticket. Don't keep waiting for that perfect time or that perfect travel partner. Plus, I promise you won't be alone for long. How could you be, with the whole world waiting to keep you company?"
14. Angie Orth, 33, Angie Away
Favorite blog post about solo travel: 15 Lessons I Learned From Traveling Around the World
Why she loves traveling alone: "I couldn't help but be transformed by the people I met, the new foods I tasted, and just the daily challenge of waking up and figuring out what I really wanted to do."
Best advice for solo travel: "Don't listen to the folks who will try to scare you out of traveling alone—especially if they've never done it. Save your money, make the sacrifices you need to make, and read all you can on the places you want to go. Commit to a departure date on the calendar and then make it happen."
15. Lucy Hemmings, 27, Lucy'smilesaway
Favorite post about solo travel: 5 Reasons Why Solo Female Travel is the EASIEST Way to Travel
Why she loves traveling alone: "Waking up each day and thinking 'I can go anywhere I want' is one of the most incredible, liberating feelings a person can experience."
Best advice for solo travel: "The hardest part is just booking the ticket. So just click and go...you won't regret it."
16. Hayley Griffiths, 29, Lovepuffin
Favorite post about solo travel: How To Make Friends In Hostels
Why she loves traveling alone: "You have plenty of time to work out who you are, how you react in stressful situations, and how new experiences move and change you."
Best advice for solo travel: "Don't worry about being lonely. You'll soon see that people open up to solo travellers a lot quicker than if you're travelling in a pair or group, so you'll only be alone as much as you want to be."
17. Shannon O'Donnell, 31, A Little Adrift
Favorite post about solo travel: On Safety and Solo Female Travel
Why she loves traveling alone: "I've learned how to better communicate with people from all walks of life, and how to accept kindness from others. Solo travel teaches you to lead each day on the road with an open curiosity of each new place and culture that will profoundly shape your story of the world."
Best advice for solo travel: "Pick a date on the calendar that you could feasibly leave on a solo trip — three months or three years from now — and work toward it. Plot the steps you need to overcome your own obstacles and take an incremental step every week. You'll never regret the decision to head out and discover the world through your own eyes."
Feeling empowered? Now take their advice and just book your ticket. Ready, go!
