“Single women should never travel alone”
Years ago, my best friend said that to me and tried to convince me not to take my first solo trip. Thankfully, I ignored her and took my first solo adventure to Rome.
Doing things alone can be immensely therapeutic! Especially traveling by yourself. It can be an incredible opportunity for self-discovery and personal growth. Booking.com did a survey in 2014 and found that 72% of American women have traveled alone either for business or pleasure. Of these women, “65% say that these experiences have improved their confidence.” Below are my top four places for an adventurous solo trip:
Sydney, Australia
Head to the “Land Down Under”! Sydney is a perfect hotspot for solo travelers. The city lies in New South Wales and although it is not the country’s capital it has everything you would expect to find in one.
Sydney makes solo travel in Australia so easy with so much to see and do such as exploring the phenomenal Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. Take a boat or jet ride around the harbor or travel across to Taronga Zoo for spectacular pictures of giraffes against a Sydney backdrop. Also, if you are adventurous, you can do the Bridge Climb.
As a matter of fact, you can even walk around there at night on your own. But just like any major city just be aware of your surroundings. Oh, did I forget to mention it? Australia is an English-speaking country, meaning it is so easy for solo travelers to get around and navigate in Sydney.
Read all about my 48 hours in Sydney. Boy did I have a great time with me, myself, and I.
https://www.internationalcaty.com/48-hours-sydney/
New Zealand
New Zealand is one of the most visited countries by solo travelers. It is extremely safe, easy to meet other people and so much to do and see with breathtaking beauty at every corner. Outdoor adventure is available everywhere (the first commercial bungee jump originated in New Zealand!). I couldn’t just pick one place in New Zealand and so I give you two:
Auckland
Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand and it is known as the “City of Sails” because of the large number of yachts in its harbor. At the heart of the city centre is the Sky Tower. There you can do the skywalk or the sky-jump. I ended up doing the skywalk which is one of the most thrilling adventurous activities.
South Island
With about 20 cities/towns, the beautiful South Island of New Zealand is the most insanely beautiful area in the world. With jaw-dropping landscapes and mind-blowing experiences, it offers a myriad of exciting activities to solo travelers including whitewater rafting, jet boating, skydiving, bungy jumping, kayaking, hiking, and/or relaxing exploration at every turn. While there are plenty of places I could recommend in New Zealand, Queenstown is one of my favorites—it’s simply magnificent.
The bustling city attracts a plethora of travelers young and old keen to soak up its untouched beauty. Lake Wanaka, the nation’s fourth-largest lake, is reason enough to visit, with activities from alpine treks to leisurely lakeside strolls. I even took the plunge and went bungy jumping. Adventure is out there, girls!
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Amsterdam, well-regarded as one of the best places to travel alone in Europe, is a vibrant, friendly, and safe city that has so much to offer to female solo travelers. Known colloquially as the “Venice of the North”, Amsterdam charms solo travelers with its magnificent canals, globally renowned museums, charming bridges, and stunning architecture. Whether you want to dive into its culture and history or just enjoy the relaxing feel of an old European city, there’s something for every solo traveler’s taste in the Dutch capital.
Lastly, it would be remiss of me not to mention their transportation system. The heart of the city is the Amsterdam Centraal station which will transport you to other parts of The Netherlands in under an hour for less than a $20 round-trip ticket. What other cities have that to offer? Boy, did I take advantage of by exploring both Haarlem and Utrecht!
Rome, Italy
Rome is truly a fabulous destination that will indulge all your five senses. As a female solo traveler and the first city I explored, walking around this vibrant Italian city will let you feel empowered and fully present. There are a lot of cool and exciting things to do in Rome for female solo travelers. While there, you can visualize the Roman Empire, in its full glory, by visiting the city’s ancient sites, such as the Pantheon, Roman Forum and Coliseum. Likewise, you can see the Pope’s home at The Vatican City and Saint Peter’s Basilica. Then, put on a pair of comfortable shoes and explore the piazzas and cobble lane-ways, while drinking sterile water from the city’s eye-catching fountains.
In addition, with Rome being the central point, you are a couple of hours away from taking advantage of day trips to Florence, Naples, Pompeii, or Capri.
While solo traveling doesn’t lend itself to a one-size-fits-all approach, the places that draw solo travelers are the ones that have the most interesting and unique. They provide opportunities to enjoy different cultures, and nature, and connect with others (and with yourself). Regardless of which place you’re visiting in the world, find the style of travel that suits you. Additionally, consider solo travel!
These days I’m always traveling with my kids but I would love to travel solo one day! I think New Zealand would be my first choice for a solo trip. It looks amazing!
I love this and the way you wrote this up. One of the best things I ever did for myself was traveling alone. It’s good to know these cities are safe. Saving for later. 🙂
Nice blog post. I think each of these cities has something unique to offer for everyone, not just solo female travelers.
A really diverse set of picks and understand why you’ve picked them, as each one is super friendly and interesting to visit. I’ve only travelled solo as an adult female a few times, and whilst it meant taking some extra cautions, it was great. I guess your best friend must have been super super cautious!!!
Good post and a good range of different types of cities here. Glad you picked Amsterdam, thats one of the safest cities in Europe.
Great locations here! I am so excited to head to Australia soon, and hopefully NZ not long after! I agree that Amsterdam is a lovely and very friendly city!
It’s so great that you posted this. The more tips women can get to travel safely by themselves, the better. I haven’t been to New Zealand yet but totally agree with all the other cities you mentioned. Your photos are fantastic, and I love your adventures. You could never get me to bungie jump!
Great locations all of these! I’m quite sure Sydney is amazing for solo females. Absolutely safe and fun!
You can totally add our home town Leuven to this list, very female friendly and easy to visit entire Belgium.
We also visited New Zealand: love your pictures of all activities !
So best for solo travelers is the depth of sights to see and activities to do. I thought safety, accessibility, and the convenience of going around and communicating would be the factors to consider.
I loved traveling solo in Stockholm! Super safe and friendly, easy to use metro system, beautiful and so much to see and do
So glad that you didn’t listen to your friend who tried to talk you out of solo travel! It is a very rewarding experience, I loved my 10 years as a solo traveler. These are great cities, all very safe, so a wonderful way to dip your toes in so to speak if you’re traveling solo for the first time. Rome was one of my first trips as a solo female traveler too – I loved it. I’m from Aus so can totally vouch for Sydney too – everyone’s so friendly, and it’s a very easy city to get around by yourself 🙂
That’s a great (!) shot of you above it all in Auckland. How high was that sky walk? Which museums did you check out in Amsterdam?
Hey yeah! I love this! I’ve been traveling solo for almost a year now! And yes, Sydney is one of the perfect cities for us! The transportation system is awesome that you can just take a bus from the CBD to Bondi. A bit tricky though as Australia is expensive but it’s all worth it. I am targeting New Zealand next. Southeast Asian cities are also amendable for solo travelers. And yes, was also told to not travel solo but just like you, I did not listen and I am happy. Hahaha. Cheers!
When I was just 18 I took my first solo trip to Ireland and Scotland. I had an amazing time and it definitely helps me gain the confidence to start travelling the world whether on my own or with friends/family.
Since then I have always decided where I wanted to go, booked my plane ticket, and then tried to convince other people to join me. I am going there whether they are coming or not!
I agree that all of these cities are completely safe for the solo traveler. New Zealand and Australia are both a piece of cake for any English-speaking first time travelers!
Never been to Roam but I figure almost all of Western Europe is pretty safe. In fact these days I tend to think if you just get out of your comfort zone and visit a place you’ll find it much safer than you were making it out to be in your mind. I have found incredible hospitality in Jordan, Turkey, Myanmar, Cuba and loads of other places that people told me not to go because they were unsafe.
The world isn’t really all that scary once you start to see it — just get out there and experience it!
Great suggestions! I haven’t done too much solo travel, but it’s definitely something I’m open to doing more of in the future. I haven’t been to any of these destinations yet, but would love to visit them all! I think I’d pick Amsterdam for my next solo trip, but all of these would be so great. I would love to do the sky walk in Auckland too—looks like so much fun!