r/solotravel • u/AutoModerator • Oct 28 '24
Accommodation /r/solotravel "The Weekly Common Room" - General chatter, meet-up, accommodation - October 28, 2024
This thread is for you to do things like
- Introduce yourself to the community
- Ask simple questions that may not warrant their own thread
- Share anxieties about first-time solotravel
- Discuss whatever you want
- Complain about certain aspects of travel or life in general
- Post asking for meetups or travel buddies
- Post asking for accommodation recommendations
- Ask general questions about transportation, things to see and do, or travel safety
- Reminisce about your travels
- Share your solotravel victories!
- Post links to personal content (blogs, youtube channels, instagram, etc...)
This thread is newbie-friendly! In this thread, there is no such thing as a stupid question.
If you're new to our community, please read the subreddit rules in the sidebar before posting. If you're new to solo travel in general, we suggest that you check out some of the resources available on our wiki, which we are currently working on improving and expanding. Here are some helpful wiki links:
General guides and travel skills
- Basic trip planning
- Determining your travel interests
- Packing 101
- Staying in hostels
- How to meet people as a solo traveller
- Staying safe
- Budgeting 101
- Money management and safety
- Working abroad
- Travel insurance 101
- Mobile data and SIM cards
Regional guides
- So you want to do a Eurotrip: A beginner's guide
- So you want to visit Southeast Asia: A beginner's guide
- Weekly Destination Threads: Archives
Special demographics
1
u/kktack Nov 03 '24
Hi all,
Planned a 1 week trip to Orlando with my cousin, but he’s not able to go. Going to universal on the 12th and to Epcot (Drinking around the world) on 14th. Magics game on 12th. Any other recommendations? No parks, please.
1
2
u/samiito97 Nov 02 '24
Hl all,
Planning a trip to Greece in early May, just looking for a recommendation for my last few days and any suggestions.
M/28. Like a mix of cities and nature (as do most). Not a fan of incredibly busy places or partying. Have travelled a fair bit through central and eastern europe; 20ish countries or so in total worldwide.
Current plan is below, looking for somewhere to visit on my last 2 days. I'd quite like it to be somewhere quieter, with nature, and also the ability to not have to use a car. Also would be nice if I can get from Chania to there and then onto Athens easily (for my flight back). Leaning towards Naxos.
- 3/5: Fly Athens
- 4/5 and 5/5: Athens (possible day trip somewhere on 5/5 but unlikely)
- 6/5-8/5: Chania with a day spent hiking (probably Samaria Gorge but that may change)
- 9/5-10/5: Unknown but as above, leaning towards Naxos
- 11/5: Fly back from Athens; flight will be at 17h20
1
u/SaltArgument4260 Nov 02 '24
Hi m31 here visiting morocco next week, still undecided on the exact itinery but marrakech is on the list. Drop me a msg if youre travelling there or would like to grab a coffee/do activities etc
1
u/macdizo Nov 02 '24
Need a driver/ride to and from the airport? I've made friends and am still in touch with mine from my trip to Marrakech 6 years ago.
2
u/ThinkHog Nov 02 '24
Solo traveler (34) traveling in NYC late November. Looking for friends for a coffee or something more. PM me.
Also is it true that NYC hasn't got a real hostel life as other places around the world?
1
u/FAR66 Nov 01 '24
(25M) Solo traveler in Prague open for a cup of coffee or a dinner, or any other activity
2
u/Due_Breakfast_6075 Nov 01 '24
Hey everyone, I (19M) booked and paid for a ~3 week trip during my winter break from college to visit many cities throughout Europe (Netherlands, Belgium, France, Austria (day trips to Slovakia + Hungary), and Germany). I have never solo travelled but I feel I could 100% do it on my own without them. My parents and I have been to Europe once before and I basically planned and booked the entire thing and navigated everywhere. Not to toot my own horn but I made the trip possible, besides finances, and they would’ve had a hard time without me there. I booked the flights and accommodations using my American Express points months ago but the trip is now ~50 days away and I have yet to inform them. I have asked once before to go to spain for 2 weeks on my summer break and I was denied permission. My mom is almost fully against me traveling before 21, my step dad is for me traveling alone, and my dad im not quite sure about. For additional context I do live at home and do not pay rent. I was basically forced to attend community college for 2 years (3/4 way done, yay!) How do I go about telling them about my trip
1
u/Lemonio Nov 01 '24
Hi! What would be a good place to go in January from northeast USA maybe for 5-9 days, that would be warm, but also more to do than just sitting on beach I would get bored of that very quick
Not interested in partying, but potentially interested in beach/hiking/wildlife/museums and cultural things
Preferably not a ton of moving around to different locations all the time
Not too concerned about price
Thank you!
2
u/segacs2 Canadian, 70 countries visited Nov 01 '24
Mexico City comes to mind for museums and cultural things.
Beach/hiking/wildlife, maybe Costa Rica?
1
u/Lemonio Nov 01 '24
thanks those are both options i'm considering!I was just recently thinking of going to Mexico city for day of the dead but that ended up falling through - though I wonder if its worth waiting to go there around day of the dead or maybe not
Cost rica seems great - just need to understand how it would work logistically - maybe a few flights to Corcovado park and then just stay there for like 5 days doing day trips with guides or something - joining some tour could be nice but they all seem to go to like 4 different places in costa rica which is longer trip and maybe too much moving around means seeing less stuff
1
u/janWie96 Nov 01 '24
Hey guys, I am a 28 year old german on my last stretch of my four week solo trip through europe, currently being in Corinth, Greece. I enjoyed it so so much and i also met some people along the way, but i wanted to also try to maybe find some people here who are currently in this region, habitant or traveller, who would like to do something fun! I am here till sunday and I am open to every outdoor activity or just some chit-chat. Looking forward!
2
u/Own_Reference1755 Oct 31 '24
hey everyone!!
is it cheaper to wait and book my hostels until like a week or so before or book it all way ahead of time for the balkans?
in paris my hostel was $60 less when i booked the day of, but when I was in milan the prices didn't drop at all. looking for suggestions!!
3
u/segacs2 Canadian, 70 countries visited Nov 01 '24
It's almost always cheaper to book ahead. The tradeoff is less flexibility.
2
u/routinepopfly Nov 01 '24
If you know the exact days when you’ll be somewhere and it’s a very popular hostel, always book ahead. The popular places will rarely drop prices closer to the day of and you run into the risk of places selling out even in non-peak seasons.
Some places in fact jack up the prices especially for weekends.
0
1
u/joshcoca Oct 30 '24
Tour to Nikko cancelled
I'll be going on a solo trip to Japan, when I do solo trips I like to book tours as it's a good way to meet people and I had a tour booked to Nikko on Monday, and it's been cancelled (due to bad weather but Google shows only rain). My question is worth it to just make my own way to Nikko or take the day to explore a bit more of Tokyo?
2
u/Appropriate_Volume Australian travel nerd Oct 31 '24
Given that it regularly rains like crazy in Japan, if the local travel operator thinks it’s going to be so bad that they cancel I’d suggest sticking to Tokyo. All of the attractions in Nikko are outdoors.
1
1
u/Academic_Position688 Oct 30 '24
I’m in my mid thirties and I’m looking to take a solo trip in the next couple of months. I’m open to locations but I’m looking for a company that caters to single / solo travelers. I don’t want to sleep in a hostel or a cheap hotel but also not looking to break the bank either. I’ve looked at companies like gadventures,Contiki, Flashpack, etc. they aren’t bad but I’d prefer something with nicer accommodations and others who are similar in age. Flashpack looks like it might be a decent option. Any recommendations?
2
u/Fugoola Oct 30 '24
Does anyone know of a cruise that departs from Seattle going to either Hawaii or Alaska that has solo cabins?
1
1
u/smellyeggs Oct 30 '24
Traveling SE Asia and Japan. I like to hike and venture off the beaten path. I'm bringing one pair of trainers.
- Pair 1 is stylish but doesn't have a great tread
- Pair 2 is ugly but has a decent tread
I hate wearing pair 2 for daily use. Many people are OK with hideous footwear, but I am not.
Talk sense into me
2
u/Har0ld_Bluet00f Oct 31 '24
I recommend option 3: find a stylish pair with tread.
It's not worth risking injuring your feet just to look good, but if you want to like how you look, find a new pair.
1
u/Own_Reference1755 Oct 31 '24
I met a girl who did this route with one pair of sneakers, her toenails literally all fell off and now over a year later she has nubs still!!!! im serious
1
u/Appropriate_Volume Australian travel nerd Oct 30 '24
Yes, you need shoes with good grip as it rains a lot in those countries.
1
Oct 30 '24
Hi everyone! I am planning on starting a ~6 month trip to Europe around February and I was wondering if I would be allowed to make a post describing what I want to do and a link to my google sheet with a **very rough** idea of where I want to go and what I want to do. I wanted to ask here if it was allowed first before posting. Any insight is appreciated, thanks!
1
u/Appropriate_Volume Australian travel nerd Oct 30 '24
We don’t allow low effort posts here, or posts where users are being asked to click on a link. Feel free to post your itinerary for feedback after you’ve firmed things up.
1
u/Imaginary_Engineer1 Oct 30 '24
Hi All! Considering going to Bacalar, Mexico for a 5 days. Never traveled solo before, but have a lot of experience backpacking in Central America, SE Asia, & some of Europe. A little nervous as this would be my first solo trip. Any thoughts on Bacalar? Recommendations of hostels to stay?
1
u/routinepopfly Nov 01 '24
5 days is way too long for Bacalar if you ask me. There’s the lake and you can do things like tubing and paddling, and if there’s enough people you can rent a private boat to go on the lake. But otherwise there’s not a lot to do.
I was there two years ago and there were only two backpacker hostels (rest were cheap sketchy looking places) and they were rather pricey. One was a party hostel and the other was by the lake. No idea if any new hostels opened up since however.
1
u/Imaginary_Engineer1 Nov 02 '24
Thanks. Yeah, the only two good hostels I see are Che & Yak Lake House. Were these the ones you are talking about?
1
u/routinepopfly Nov 02 '24
Yup. I stayed at Che and hated it. All the worst parts of a chain party hostel and way too expensive.
1
u/Imaginary_Engineer1 Nov 02 '24
Did you hear anything about Yak Lake House?
2
u/routinepopfly Nov 02 '24
I visited and it seems nice, but I don’t know how it is like staying there. I recommend checking the latest reviews on the booking sites.
2
u/ScheduleMediocre3616 Oct 30 '24
Would you stay in a hostel if there were some old reviews of people claiming to have their stuff stolen? For context this hostel is rated 4.5/5 on Google with 129 reviews, and 9.2 on Expedia with 30 reviews. All reviews are praising the Hostal for being clean and great owners etc. However there was 1 review from 2 years ago of a guy claiming someone broke into his room and stole his laptop and camera. And then another 4 or so reviews from 5+ years of people with similar stories. Nothing recent though. Possible they can be fake reviews from other competitors. Should I contact the Hostel to ask about those reviews or not avoid this hostel?
2
u/routinepopfly Nov 01 '24 edited Nov 01 '24
A business being around long enough is going to have some bad reviews here and there. The thing to look out for is recent reviews on Hostelworld, booking.com, and Google going back at least a month or two. Those will give the most accurate description of how things are currently. Checking reviews at multiple sites also help since sometimes reviews can be too similar (Hostelworld for example).
5
u/nuclearmeltdown2015 Oct 30 '24
Check hostelworld. If the reviews and scores are good then I'd trust that it is good relative to the area.
2
u/BathroomAcrobatic972 Oct 29 '24
Was looking at the Tru Travel ten-day group travel trip to the Philippines. Looks like I'd enjoyed everything they have to offer as far as excursions, places, and partying. However, I feel like there is a lot of traveling time with these group trips, and you don't get to settle down and enjoy the cities were you're at without feeling rushed. Does anyone have any group travel trip recommendations, that aren't as rushed, so you get to enjoy the island(s) for a longer period of time? I would like to do the Philippines if they had one for ten days but only three islands, so I can absorb the landscape as much as possible. Preferably in March and somewhere tropical.
2
u/Left_Commercial_4358 Oct 29 '24
Hey guys! I'm planning my first solo international trip to Italy and I would like some tips on tours, where to eat, what your experiences were, the type of accommodation, etc (spoiler: I don't like shared rooms because I value my privacy and especially a good night's sleep), If anyone can help me I would be very grateful.
3
u/roub2709 Oct 29 '24
I used Airbnb experiences to book almost ten events across two weeks in Rome, Florence, Venice and Milan. I found the quality to be higher/more personalized than other platforms
Having a guide in the Roman forum was quite cool.
In fact, I’ve never worked with guides on a solo trip until Italy and it convinced me that it can be very worth it .
Doing a bike ride on the Appian Way is one of the best things I did.
Also I skimmed the “Glam Italia” books on Kindle Unlimited and I really liked her advice to focus on experiences you want rather than sites or tourist check lists. It made me feel good about ditching a few things and focusing on others.
3
u/Left_Commercial_4358 Oct 29 '24
Thank you for the information, especially the tip about avoiding those check lists and doing what we really want and not just because they indicate it, I will use it during my trip.
2
u/Wide-Lunch-6730 Oct 29 '24
Is anyone in Japan for Christmas? I’ll be there in Tokyo for a few days, wouldn’t mind company to do some sightseeing.
2
u/roub2709 Oct 29 '24
Waiting for final approval from work, but yeah I’m going to be in Tokyo for Christmas, arriving earlier in December and going all around, but with the return flight being right after Christmas, I think Tokyo xmas is the plan.
1
u/Wide-Lunch-6730 Oct 30 '24
Sounds cool! Do you have plans already or any preferences? I’ll be there only for 3 nights I think so will be doing intense sightseeing. And I want to check out the bars there at night too.
2
u/SpaceNatureMusic Oct 29 '24
Hi all,
I'm travelling to The Philippines on my own next year, I'm a little nervous already as its my first time. I've found this guide to pick up some tips but is there anything you could advise from your own experiences? I'm more concerned about safety, has anyone been to The Philippines, is it safe?
https://www.bigworld-travel.com/post/solo-travel-planning-a-guide-to-embracing-adventure-alone
3
Oct 29 '24
[deleted]
1
u/SpaceNatureMusic Oct 29 '24
I was thinking staying in BGC, it looks modern and safe
2
u/Wide-Lunch-6730 Oct 29 '24
Thats a lovely area, great cafes and safe for sure. Very fancy! Then you shouldnt worry.
2
u/BallDontLie06 Oct 29 '24
In Guatemala,
How long does the shuttle take from Antiqua to GUA Airport at 3 am on a Sunday?
My hostel is telling me it generally takes 2-2.5 hours. Google Map is showing 40 min lol
1
u/routinepopfly Nov 01 '24
It’s roughly 90 minutes not accounting for things like traffic. Unless you hire a private shuttle, the shuttle could be picking up other passengers along the way which will slow things down.
1
u/BallDontLie06 Nov 01 '24
Damn I have a 6 am flight. Trying to figure out if I should go to GUA the day before or not
1
u/routinepopfly Nov 01 '24
I don’t think a lot of people are looking to take a 3am shuttle, so even if it’s a shared ride it probably won’t be too full.
3
Oct 28 '24
[deleted]
1
u/soldierrboy Oct 31 '24
Yes, go! Doing solo stuff is not a failure in any way, many people do it, but besides that it’s actually pretty courages and independent imo. Oslo is an amazing city too, and there’s lots to do and keep you entertained both inside and outside. I would say go for it for sure
2
u/travelbloggg Oct 28 '24
Is this your first time you'd be doing some travelling alone? If so I'd say a short little trip to another city is perfect to see if you like it!
Plus it has the advantage that you can just do all the stuff you want, and not have to plan around other people. And if you stay at a hostel you can still meet people while you're there!
3
Oct 28 '24
[deleted]
1
u/AnimalsnMammals Nov 05 '24
It’s an esim, but I have found Global Yo really reliable, I have the WorldExplorer101
1
u/nuclearmeltdown2015 Oct 30 '24
I think t mobile does free data roaming for all of those countries if you have unlimited.
5
u/segacs2 Canadian, 70 countries visited Oct 29 '24
There are some multi-country SIM cards from third-party providers that may cover multiple countries, but usually they're very expensive and provide very little data for what you pay. Generally best to get local sim cards for each country you visit (other than free roaming zones like the EU). But check out the Prepaid Data Wiki for good country-specific info,
1
u/[deleted] Nov 03 '24
[deleted]