[Belle1979]

Hey there

I got my passport all sorted (after some pushing from the ex) and was meant to be travelling with him...
Anyways I still want to experience the world. I don't have all that many friends and the ones that I do have have different financial circumstances to me or have a family.

Has anyone made the step of travelling alone and what it was like? Or do you know of any good 'group/single' travel websites that I can look at?

I think for the first time that I want not go too far from home (plus I hate flying but know it's a must!).. Bali or some Asian country to start...

I'm 30 and never been outside of Australia... YET!!

I feel that I need to open my mind, my life and see what the world has to offer

[lizardlady]

Belle I traveled with my husband, then my mother in the past. After Mom died last year I put off traveling because I wasn't sure I wanted to go by myself. I tested the waters by going out of town to a two day confernce earlier this year. I was sad checking in by myself, but OK after that. I'm going to take a slightly longer trip just for fun when I can. My thinking is that if I don't travel too far from home and absolutely hate going on my own I can pack up and go home again.

Can't recommend any singles travel planners. My experience is that most "singles" trips are meant for people to meet and hook up. I'm older than dirt and not interested in meeting a new mate.

[CliveWild]

Belle, I have felt very much the same about travelling alone. The result is that I hardly leave my home town, let alone the country (which is England). I got the courage to go on a holiday 3 years ago. I went with an English group called Spice UK. They organize activities in the UK and also run a lot of holidays. There are a lot of singles but it is not a "singles" holiday. Despite my worries before I went, I had a good time and made some friends. If you can find a similar activity group in Australia, it might be your best option.

I am going to the same place on Thursday with the same group. Of course, I am as nervous as ever. I have been suffering a lot of anxiety and it is making it harder this time. Everyone was very friendly last time and I hope it is the same this time. I am going to Lanzarote in the Canary Islands.

I wish you the best of luck in finding the courage. I have an on-line friend who has the same concerns as you. He really wants to travel but has the same doubts.

[RomanSunburn]

Hey Belle,
My mother used to be afraid to travel alone. She never went anywhere without me or my sister or my dad. Actually, the first time she had to fly to see her father with just one of her daughters to go with her, she got really nervous! But she slowly built her way up to traveling alone (we couldn't always travel with her because of school or work or taking care of the cats or something). She started to go see her dad on her own. And then, when she was in law school a few years ago, she applied for a study abroad in Europe (we're in the US). It was a great opportunity and we discussed it as a family; we all decided she shouldn't have to give up such an opportunity for both work and because she had always wanted to go to Europe and hadn't been yet. Well, she applied, and she got in. My dad couldn't go with her for 6 months because of work. So, even though she was nervous, she went. The good out weighed the bad. Sure, she was scared and nervous, but afterwards she felt so empowered. Even while she was there, she pushed herself to take weekend trips by herself. It was a great experience for her and she was able to grow a lot, even in her 50's. You're always capable of growing and achieving what you really want. Believe in your self and you can do it!

Also, my aunt who is single goes on a lot of day trips by herself also. She's in a Catholic singles group and I think an Irish singles group as well. I don't think it's at all about finding a mate, it's about a bunch of single people getting together, making friends, having fun. She does a lot of activities with them as well and has made a lot of good female friends.

Good luck!

[venusss]

Originally Posted by Belle1979

Hey there

I got my passport all sorted (after some pushing from the ex) and was meant to be travelling with him...
Anyways I still want to experience the world. I don't have all that many friends and the ones that I do have have different financial circumstances to me or have a family.

Has anyone made the step of travelling alone and what it was like? Or do you know of any good 'group/single' travel websites that I can look at?

I think for the first time that I want not go too far from home (plus I hate flying but know it's a must!).. Bali or some Asian country to start...

I'm 30 and never been outside of Australia... YET!!

I feel that I need to open my mind, my life and see what the world has to offer

Oh, I am a bagpacker... I travelled alone in Russia (I speak like 100 words in Russian). If you stay at hostels, you meet people and most of us travelers are nice people.

You go for it. Throw your worries aside and enjoy the vacation.

[hugs46]

I would love to travel too. Check out the places you want to visit and make sure you have a plan. I would be nervous too, but I think once I got to the destination I would be ok. Take an anxiety drug like xanx or something to bring with you just in case the anxiety gets too bad. I would love to visit England at Christmas time. I have visions of Charles Dickens stories when I think about it. Well hope you do go. Good luck.

[Belle1979]

Thanks everyone

So far i haven't made any 'plans' but am looking at a few websites. I don't want a singles "hook" up type trip.. just a trip with peole around my age that I can have fun with and time to just do what I want to do as well.

Contiki tours seem a good option. Also Solotraveller.

I would love to go on a cruise but then you have to pay the singles suppliments etc as with most things when travelling alone.

One option that i have though of is that we are (as a family) traveling to queensland (Australia) for my Mum's 70th B'day next year. I figure that while I am there it would be a good chance to do small tours or day trips (nothing much like that exists in Perth) or even head to Fiji from there.. but it's so far away tme wise.. not until June.. and I really want to just DO IT before I really chicken out completely!

belle, i didn't go abroad til my early 30s but once i started it's hard to stop. getting sick did stop me but now that i'm getting my health back i'm sure i'll start again when i have some money. i did travel with a friend (we've gone twice to europe together) but i spent 4 days in paris alone before meeting back up with her in ireland. one idea is to put something out to your facebook friends and see if anyone would like to go traveling or you can ask if they know of a friend who would make a good traveling companion for you. chances are someone has a friend in the same situation. also, i think you're young enough that you might enjoy the hostels. i've never done that but it sounds like it can be fun. i'm guessing there must be some good travel sites for singles out there too. bon voyage!

[Princess_Obsidian]

Greetings,

Go for it. Many people enjoy traveling alone. Just make sure you plan well, as they do.

Have a good one.

[splitimage]

Belle,

I'm single and love travelling when I can afford it. I've gone on many Bus tours and thoroughly enjoyed them. It's a bit more expensive than doing it yourself might be, but you have company and the reassurance of knowing that all the details are being handled. I've always met other interesting people of the tours.

I've never done a Contiki tour, but I've seen them when I've been travelling, and everyone always looks like they're having a blast. Two other companies I can reccommend are Insight and Globus. They're a bit more expensive than Contiki and tend to attract a slightly older crowd, but I've travelled with them both multiple times and had a great time.

I've also gone to a club med on my own. That was expensive due to the single supplement, but I wanted to try a beach vacation. I met lots of people when I was there, and wound up regularly having dinner with a couple of other women.

I've also travelled to Ireland on my own for a music festival, and had a great time, and again met some really amazing people that I wound up hanging out with.

If you're friendly you'll meet people, and you can talk about what you've seen that day, so you don't have to worry about making small talk, if that's an issue for you.

I can't wait to take my next trip. I just need to find a job first.

--splitimage