What makes a place great for solo travel?
Whether it’s because you want to experience more, find it more convenient, or want to know yourself better through your own Eat, Pray, Love journey, we travel alone for many reasons. As for myself, it’s usually because I either want to immerse myself in a place without the comfort of having a friend to fall back on, or I simply want to get away and be alone for awhile (blog: why i travel solo). This also means that the ideal places for solo travel will have to either:
- Have really friendly people so you can make friends easily and get to know a place through local knowledge;
- Be away from crowds but yet safe enough for you to relax without worrying too much.
Here’s my attempt at curating 10 awesome places for solo travel with lots of help from my big brother Google. The list is based largely on where I thought was cool, WEF’s Friendliest Country survey and Vision for Humanity’s Safety Index.
*edit: This article was also featured on Thought Catalog under 11 Absolute Best Places To Travel Alone.
(10) Hallstat, Austria
One of the most photographed view of Hallstatt (Pic Credit: Huffingtonpost)
View of the lake (Pic Credit: claudesz)
Central square (Pic Credit: Adam Palaski)
Other than visiting the famous capital at Vienna, there is a picturesque postcard village found in the Salzkammergut lake region that is quaint and lovely to be at. Hallstat has a rich salt mining history that’s worth checking out as well.
(9) Kenting, Taiwan
View of Kenting from above (Pic Credit: Taiwan.net)
Nan Wan Beach (Pic Credit: kudumomo)
Night market along the main street (Pic Credit: ibausu)
Kenting is one of those places that fulfills my criteria for an ideal solo travel location. There is a main street with lots of friendly locals (and food), beaches to relax, and plenty of quieter scenic sights a scooter or cab ride away. My only qualm is that it is a little too touristy.
(8) Quebec City, Canada
Le Chateau Frontenac (Pic Credit: shotkal)
Streets of Vieux Quebec (Pic Credit: Yacosta)
Winter (Pic Credit: Quebec City)
More French than American, the cobblestone streets within the old fortified city of Vieux Quebec brings back the old World charm that has disappeared from North America since the industrial revolution. I always find places that have some form of identity dissonance the most interesting.
(7) Uruguay
Explore gaucho county at one of the many Estancias or horse ranches. (Pic Credit: Insightguides)Crowded beaches of Piriapolis (Pic Credit: Justin Kays)
The carnival of Uruguay in Montevideo (Pic Credit: Teakdoor)
With high literacy rates and urbanisation, Uruguay is probably the safest place to get a small taste of Latin America. Explore the countryside on horseback with the gauchos, experience the carnival culture or simply kick back with the locals at one of the many beaches.
(6) Kyoto, Japan
Daigo-Ji in autumn (Pic Credit: eswalls)
Lanterns announcing Kyo Odori and the cherry blossoms (Pic Credit: fdi images)
Row of torii gates on the trail to Fushimi Inari (Pic Credit: youinjapan.net)
The former capital of Japan is often touted as the most beautiful city in the country. As with most cities in Japan, the charm is in appreciating how modern day society interacts with the traditional. There are plenty of gems sprinkled all across the city.
(Also see Vid: 12days in Tokyo)
(5) Kangaroo Island, Australia
The Remarkable Rocks (Pic Credit: theplanetd)
Cape Du Couedic Lighthouse (Pic Credit: Leah Kennedy)
Kangaroos (Pic Credit: Amazetour)
From getting close to wildlife, savouring gourmet food and partaking in outdoor adventure activities, Kangaroo Island has something for almost everyone. For the solo traveller, it’s a nice contained environment with everything you need from a vacation.
(4) Interlaken, Switzerland
Scenic train rides around the Jungfrau region (Pic Credit: Jacob Polomski)Residential estates in Interlaken (Pic Credit: The Vine)One of the safest and best places to do canyoning (Pic Credit: Ausflugsziele)
Interlaken has a backpackers atmosphere and is at the heart of the beautiful Jungfrau region. The town itself isn’t too scenic, but it makes a good base as it’s only a short journey out to breathtaking scenery. It is also relatively cheaper than other parts of Switzerland, and in my opinion has the best outdoor adventure sports establishments in the World.
(3) Aveiro, Portugal
The wide canals of Aveiro (Pic Credit: Geolocation)
Brightly painted houses along Costa Nova (Pic Credit: Andreas Trepte)
Floating umbrellas installation above a street in Águeda (Pic Credit: Suzana Costa)
Aveiro almost seems like part Venice (Italy) and part Brighton Beach (Australia). Canals, bridges and painted boats called Moliceiros makes up part of the city, alongside the white sandy beaches of Costa Nova with their brightly painted houses. It’s as though you are on two different continents at once!
(2) New Zealand
No shortage of scenic spots around the country (Pic Credit: Bestwallpapersfan)
Bungee jump your fears away. (Pic Credit: Isaiah Hankel)
Experience Maori culture (Pic Credit: Newzealand.com)
New Zealand is a haven for those who love adventure sports and the outdoors. There are dozens of easily accessible activities to get your adrenaline pumping. The best way is to do a road trip from the north to south islands and take your time exploring the different towns and cities. It is very convenient!
(I did a trip to NZ in 2008 so feel free to ask if you need more ideas!)
(1) Iceland
Mount Kirkjufell (Pic Credit: Andreas Wonisch)
Ice caves in Skaftafell National Park (Pic Credit: Erez Marom)
Taking a dip in the famous Blue Lagoon (Pic Credit: Worldmostbeautifulplaces.com)
Whale watching at Husavik (Pic Credit: The Traveling Viking)
Northern Lights (Pic Credit: Conor MacNeill)
Surveyed as being the most welcoming to foreigners and the most peaceful country on planet Earth, Iceland tops this list. Friendly people, safe environment and a low population density makes it an ideal place to visit for solo travelers get away from it all and immerse in Icelandic culture. Probably not for city lovers though!
Extra
Singapore
Compilation of local food (Pic Credit: SFBA)
I cannot talk about the 10 most awesome places to travel without mentioning Singapore. Most people visit Singapore while transiting or for specific events only, but I think it’s worth a stop just for the food and mash of cultures. Unfortunately despite being a safe and friendly place, the high population density doesn’t make it an ideal getaway location.
Hope you enjoyed this list. Drop me a comment if you agree/disagree (I haven’t been to most of these places) or have a suggestion that I can add to my more adventurous personal list too! :)
I think Vietnam is also worth mentioning in this list, especially for female solo travellers :)
Hey,
I hope you are well.
I’ve been offered to go for an exchange to Victoria University of Wellington for the next semester. Meaning, I’ll probably be there from July till New Year. It’s still paperworks and I’ll only get the confirmation in late April. But I’m planning ahead regardless. I hope you could share with me more of what I can do in New Zealand.
I have a two weeks recess break (25th Aug-7th Sep) and a longer one after exams (17th Nov onwards.)
I’m currently planning an itinerary of what to do there. I don’t know, I’m hoping you could help me out here based on your experience there. I definitely want to do something adrenaline-rushed (bungee jumping/skydiving, haha YOLO) and I also want to visit the LOTR and Hobbit museum (I’m not sure what it’s called but it’s a must for me because I read the books!). And I’m very much an arts and culture so I would want to visit some arty-farty places there, watch some plays and probably a music festival if there’s one too. Probably a road trip too and visit the mountains.
Since I have time, I want to visit some nearby islands too, even possibly Tasmania to visit a friend.
I hope to hear from you soon and hopefully, you could enlIghten me. Cheers.
Hey Hafiz,
Glad to hear that you’re heading to NZ for exchange. It’s a great place! NZ is perfect for road tripping and I think it’ll be fun if you have the opportunity to head out together with some of your mates from exchange during the break. I guess the best way for me to share now… (until I get a post about it up) is to share my itinerary here!
I did a 3-week road trip with my friends from the North to South Island, bringing the car across by ferry and dropping it off at Christchurch before flying back to Auckland. It’s a pretty packed adventure-led itinerary and if I have the chance to do it again, will definitely slow it down and check out more of the art scene. Anyway here’s a rough breakdown of what we had planned –
Day 1-2: Flying to Auckland transit and boring stuff.
Day 3: Auckland (rented our car)
Day 4: Blackwater rafting @ Waitomo Caves
Day 5: Whitewater rafting & Zorbing @ Rotorua
Day 6: Taupo Tandem Skydive
Day 7: Taupo Bungy
Day 8: Tongariro Great Walk
Day 9: Explore Wellington
Day 10-12: Kayaking Expedition at Abel Tasman National Park. (Please check this out if you can kayak. It was beautiful and so peaceful)
Day 13: Fox Glacier
Day 14: Explore Queenstown
Day 15: Clyde Rail Trail Cycling (highly recommended!)
Day 16-17: Explore Christchurch
Day 18: Flew back to Auckland
Day 19: Explore Auckland
Day 20-21: Fly back home
Hope this helps in giving you more ideas! :)
Thank you for the photo credit! Uruguay is wonderful, highly recommended to all. And a great article, you’ve inspired me to start planning my next trip!
Thank you for the really nice picture! :)
Hello Hendric,
I love solo trips, but can you advise if Iceland is safe for a lady to travel all by herself?
Hey Jane,
I haven’t been there before but believe Iceland is one of the safest places to go! Scandanavian Europe is pretty safe in general. :)
Hey I have been to Iceland twice and I must say I still love there despite being at the geksai period where it is the transition period between winter and spring. Ice has melted partially, roads haven’t opened, and grasses are still yellow etc. Nonetheless it is really an awesome place for people to go. My only advice is that it is not quite good for solo travellers (despite me going solo on my second trip…) because it is preferred to drive around and it gets super expensive because of car rentals/petrol.
Thanks for sharing Jaren! This post was written namely based on safety and friendliness so it’s biased towards that! Will be heading to Iceland end of this year so I’m really looking forward! :)
The Netherlands definitely should be on that list! It’s so easy to get around, people are really friendly and speak multiple languages (someone even started a conversation with me in Mandarin – beyond the pleasantries). And it’s just such a beautiful country! Btw, I love your blog :)
Thanks Lin! And yes I think you are right!