I’m so happy to see you guys. So these are just a couple of tips that have helped me along my solo travel journeys and the tips that I’ve used to help keep me safe, and I would like to share them with you.
All right, so let’s jump into these safety travel tips for women.
Research
I know, I’ve said this so many times before, but the thing is, honestly, research is probably going to be my number one item on almost every travel list that I make, because that is how important research is. If you’re anxious about traveling alone for the first time and you’re a new solo traveler, research is going to help you out big time.
Have you ever had a crush? Or someone new that you’re dating and you kind of do a little Facebook stalking? A little Instagram deep dive? A little look at that LinkedIn? That’s what you want to do with your destination. You want to research the heck out of it. You want to know every single thing that you can. Is there public transportation? What are the cultural norms?
These are all things that you want to know ahead of time, because the more you know these things and the more you know about your destination before you’re actually there, that’s going to set you up for success, and that’s going to ease your anxiety a little bit, because you’re going to feel a little bit more prepared, especially if you’ve never been there before and if you’re alone for the first time.
I just want wanna drive this point home so hard because it is so important to research. A good way to do research is to reach out to your community and find out if anyone you know has been to that destination.
I personally love Facebook groups. I am on a ton of travel Facebook groups, solo travel Facebook groups, and those are really good places to get a little bit more background on the place that you’re going. There’s a lot of people who are from those places. They give you tips and tricks; you can find out what to expect; you can find out things that you may not be able to find with a quick Google search or by just looking at a guide book.
Read forums, Reddit, Reddit’s also a really good source. I like to say that research is kind of like your foundation, and then you’re building upon that.
Get Organized
Have all of your docks in a row. So, what has helped me is that I like to have digital and physical copies of my passport and other travel documents, my photo ID, addresses of where I’m staying, and any other travel documents that you may need, kind of on a little external hard drive, a zip drive, or on your laptop.
Backup chargers and batteries, like one of those portable chargers, so you can charge your phone if you’re on the go, because nowadays we use GPS a lot to get around, but that drains your battery a lot. I cannot even tell you how many times my phone has died on a trip, even if I started out at 100 percent, but thank God, I have had a physical copy of the addresses of where I’m going or where I’m staying, so I can look at a local map. and somehow navigate my way back to where I’m staying, and kind of starting from there.
The thing you’re going to want to do is have all of the emergency numbers for where you’re going. So, for example, in America, our emergency number is 911, so if you’re traveling abroad, you’re going to want to find out what the emergency number is. If you’re ever in danger and need help or immediate medical assistance, you can go ahead and dial that number on your phone. You just want them to be accessible.
Communicate With Your Friends And Family
So, when you’re traveling alone, it’s really important that you let at least one or two people know where you’re going. So, I usually share my information with about three or four people. I usually tell my parents, my brother, and a couple of friends, and I let them know my movements.
So, I send those digital copies of my travel information to my friends and family. Another thing that I like to do is communicate with my friends and family throughout my trip. So, a really good way to do this is through WhatsApp. I have a few WhatsApp groups, and it’s great because it’s international and it’s free. I love to video chat and call my friends and family from WhatsApp. I send them photos.
So, communicating with your friends and family is super important, especially when you’re traveling alone. You want to keep yourself safe, and you want to let your friends and family know where you are.
Update Your Contacts
It’s also really important to go ahead and update the ICE on your phone before you head out on your trip. So, ICE stands for In Case of Emergency, and I actually can’t take credit for this tip. This comes from my mother, who has been a registered nurse for over 30 years. She handed this tip down to me.
ICE is a program; I believe it started in the UK. It’s a program that allows first responders, such as paramedics, firefighters, police officers, and hospital personnel, to contact the next of kin for the owner of the phone. Comment below if you’re an EMT or if you are in the medical industry.
So, if you’re in an English-speaking country, I believe ICE is pretty much used in all English-speaking countries. However, if you’re going to a country where English is not the first language, you may want to look up what the equivalent of ICE is in that country.
In your contacts, you wanna put in, for example, my mom and my dad are two of my ICE, so I’ll put in “Mom ICE,” I-C-E, “Dad ICE,” I put in my brother’s name, ICE, I-C-E. That way, those first responders are able to contact my emergency contacts.
Another thing that you can do is keep a list of emergency contacts, and don’t forget, if you’re traveling abroad, you’re going to want to include the country code. So, if you are American like me, you’re going to want to put +1, the area code, and then the phone number.
Plan Your Arrival Wisely
You’re going to want to plan your arrival and departure times wisely. You should know the main operating hours of your destination. your arrival and departure within those hours. So, I would advise that when you’re traveling alone for the first time, especially if you’re worried and you have a lot of anxiety, I would avoid planning red-eye flights, coming in, or leaving your destination really early or really late at night, when there’s not a lot of sun out.
There are a few cities in the world that kind of shut down in the middle of the day, between, I don’t know, two and four, or three and five. Every destination is different. So, for example, if you’re flying into Barcelona, Spain, it’s probably okay to arrive around eight or 9:00 PM, ’cause the sun is still out.
Crime can happen at all times of the day, and of course, it’s important that you blend in and know the cultural norms. You don’t want to stand out. You don’t want to wear flashy jewelry. It’s also important that you try to minimize the risk as much as you can, and part of doing that is arriving and leaving your destination when the sun is out, when the hustle and bustle is going on.
Stash Cash
Another safety tip that I love to use is to stash cash. It doesn’t have to be a ton of money; I’m not talking hundreds of dollars. Small purchases, unexpected purchases—these are all really good things to pay for in cash.
So, not a lot of people are going to like this, but this is what I do. I try to make sure to divvy it up. You can put a little bit in your bra, a little bit in your sock, a little bit in your wallet, store it, and hide it, but don’t forget where it is.
It’s also really great, because if you’re going to a destination where pick pocketing is high, if you happen to get your stuff stolen, you won’t have all of your money and all of your cash in one place. You can also get super creative with your hiding spot, an empty chap stick tube, gum wrappers, behind your cell phone case, and tons of other places.
Trust Your Gut
And finally, trust your gut. You know yourself better than anybody else. If something feels sketchy or off, it’s probably because it is. Get out of there as fast as you can. As women, we’re socialized to be nice and polite; don’t make a fuss; don’t cause a scene; forget all that, seriously.
Use the innate skills that you have. Do not compromise your safety. to save a little bit of money, to be strong, to trust your gut, to trust your instinct, to know yourself, to get out of there if you feel weird or sketchy, and to know your limits. Self-awareness is a beautiful thing.
If you know that two drinks are enough for you, only have two drinks. I don’t like to take drinks from someone unless I can see them being poured in front of my face, so that way, I know exactly where they’re coming from and what’s inside that glass. Don’t let people know you’re traveling alone, and certainly don’t tell people where you’re staying.
Conclusion
So, those are a couple of the safety tips that I have used to personally keep myself safe when I’m traveling alone. I actually have a ton more safety tips; I want to hear from you guys. What are your favorite solo travel tips?
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