Going It Alone for the First Time: What Actually Helps

Preparing a first solo trip is less about gear than about confidence, and confidence comes from a hundred small decisions made in advance. I have travelled alone often enough now to know that the nerves before departure rarely match the reality, and that most of the useful work happens before you leave. If you are happy in your own company, the rest is logistics. If you are not yet, start there; here is my take on being alone without being lonely.

Start with a day trip

If you have never travelled alone, take a bus or train to a town one to three hours from home and spend the day there. Ask for a map and suggestions at the tourist office, walk an unfamiliar high street, eat lunch on your own. This is where you learn your own pace: how long you like to stay somewhere, what you enjoy doing, whether a museum or a market holds your attention. It is also the cheapest way to find out how you feel about a table for one. On my first such day I realised I liked eating early, before a restaurant fills, and that has shaped every trip since. For inspiration, here are five scenic day trips you can take in Switzerland.

The Bellini in the photograph – peach puree and Prosecco – is a classic in Venice, and it reminds me of my own lesson: staying alert and trusting your instincts matters as much in a crowded square as in an empty station.

Do the boring research

Know where you are staying, how far it is from the airport or station, which currency you need, roughly what things cost, how you will contact family, and whether anything is happening in town while you are there. None of it is exciting, and all of it removes a source of anxiety.

Before you fly, ask your phone provider about international offers. In Europe it is usually easy to buy a prepaid sim when you arrive. On a recent two-week solo trip to the US I was very glad to have offline Google Maps downloaded: prepaid sims are less common there, and you do not want to spend a day going from shop to shop asking why a card will not work. Some people rent an internet hotspot instead; I wrote about travelling with a wifi hotspot in Paris. There is also a useful map of wifi passwords at airports around the world.

Keep someone at home in the loop

Put your travel information in one place, whether that is TripIt, another app or a plain document, and share it with a family member or close friend. TripIt pulls booking details from your email and builds an itinerary. The point is not the software but the sharing: someone you trust should know where you are and how to reach you, and you will relax knowing they do. The travel accessories I rely on are mostly about this kind of quiet reassurance.

Put a safety net on your phone

There are simple tools for the moments when you want backup. Bsafe lets you share your location and send SOS alerts or recordings to trusted contacts. If you need to leave a situation politely, the Fake Call feature makes your phone ring and gives you an excuse. Other options include My Safetipin, which rates the safety of an area using several factors, and Guardian Circle, which alerts a network of chosen guardians. None replaces judgement; they just shorten the distance between you and help.

Find company when you want it

Solitude is the point until it is not. A hostel is an easy way to meet other travellers, and free walking tours or group tours give you company for an afternoon without committing to a whole day. You can be sociable when you feel like it and independent the rest of the time. Couchsurfing is another route to local company, and you can read reviews of hosts before you contact them. Making friends as an adult is difficult, but these ways to meet people while travelling or moving somewhere new help.

If you are in Florence, this guide to exploring the city on foot with free walking tours is a good place to start.

A short checklist

• One day trip completed before the real one.
• Accommodation address and the route from the station saved offline.
• Currency, rough prices and a backup payment card.
• Itinerary shared with someone at home.
• Emergency numbers and one safety app installed.

That is most of it. The rest you learn by going. Tell me about your own solo trips, and if you have a story worth sharing, send it in for the Travellers' Tales series.

Other posts you might like

• Practical tips for planning your Europe trip
• Northern Sweden solo travel story
• 10 ways to work and travel around the world
• Cheapest ways to travel in Germany
• What to eat in 25 countries in Europe
• Paris to Bologna: my expensive travel mistake
• Lost in Translation, part one
• Lost in Translation, part two
• Visiting Paris when you do not speak French

This post is linked to Faraway Files.