Whenever I tell people I like to travel by myself, I get one of two reactions. It’s always either “Wow, I could never do that” or “Are you sure that’s safe?”, and I’m frankly tired of explaining to people that I don’t travel solo because I have no friends or because nobody wants to travel with me.

Here are some reasons why I wouldn’t recommend travelling alone, because it’s really not for everyone.

Don’t travel solo if you’re too introverted

Solo travel is for people who are not afraid to talk to strangers. People who feel comfortable initiating a conversation with someone they’ve never talked to and who don’t fear rejection and embarrassment.

If you would self-identify as an introvert, don’t travel by yourself. If you would rather curl up on your couch and immerse yourself in the newest J.K. Rowling novel than be out at the club, sipping on a G&T and showing off your dance moves, don’t travel solo.

Don’t travel solo if you’re poor

Solo travel is expensive. There. I said it.

Eating out for one is more expensive. You’ll have to deal with the single supplement. You won’t be able to take advantage of certain deals.

If you don’t have a bit of money saved up to splurge on a nice trip to treat yourself, don’t travel alone. Because the fact is that you will need that money, especially as a solo traveller. You’ll be more prone to unexpected situations that could cost you a lot of money and you won’t have anybody else to fall back on to solve those problems.

All I’m saying is you shouldn’t trust resources like my free ebook about cheap solo travel. They’re empty words and all they’re doing is selling a pipe dream that is too good to be true.

Don’t travel solo if you’re a woman

When I talk to women about travelling alone, they tell me they’re too concerned about their safety abroad to take the leap and travel solo.

Honestly, I don’t blame them.

I’m not going to sit here at my desk while writing this blog post and tell you that solo travel is safe, let alone for a woman travelling alone. You are absolutely taking a risk and anyone who tries to convince you otherwise is either very naive or just plain ignorant.

There are plenty of blog posts that give solo female travellers tips to stay safe. Why do you think there are so many of them? (Answer: because they’re needed.)

Don’t travel solo if you’re selfless

The most selfish thing you can do as a traveller is leave everyone you care about behind.

What do you mean, you’re not taking anyone else on this trip? Do you really want to deprive your family and all your friends of a wonderful holiday with you?

Solo travel is really only for selfish people. So please don’t embark on a solo adventure if you’re selfless. You’ll hate yourself for making that decision and you’ll hurt the ones you care about most.

Don’t travel solo if you get homesick

Speaking from experience, you’ll get lonely as a solo traveller. Especially if you’re an introverted solo traveller.

I’ve written about making friends as a solo traveller and made it seem like that wasn’t hard. But it is. Making friends with strangers is one of the most difficult things I had to face on my first solo trip to Dublin.

And don’t even get me started on getting homesick. I know it’s counterintuitive for a travel blogger to get homesick when travelling, but it’s the reality. If you’re even a tiny bit like me, you’ll want to go back home the moment your trip starts. Don’t travel alone.

Don’t travel solo if your career is important to you

You will have to sacrifice time and money to travel alone. That’s not an opinion, it’s just a fact.

You’ll need to take time off. Precious time during which you could be working on your next project or starting new projects. You’ll be letting everyone at work down by leaving them for a certain amount of time, disrupting the natural flow of things.

You’ll need to have some money saved up, as I mentioned above. But just saving the money isn’t enough – you need to be comfortable with using that money to finance your trip. Gone are the hours of work you put in to make that money. I’m just saying.

So, if you really think your career is important to you, you might want to reconsider taking this solo trip.

Don’t travel solo if you’re older than 25

It’s a tough world out there, and that statement only gets more true the older you get.

You’ll find that your accommodation options get more limited as you grow older and expect, or even need, more comfort.

The general rule of thumb is this: if you’re older than 25, it’s not worth it. You can get a sense of adventure from somewhere else, but please don’t travel on your own.

Do travel solo if …

You understand sarcasm.

If it wasn’t clear yet, the main point I was trying to get across in this blog post was that solo travel is absolutely a possibility for everyone. Not everyone will want to be on the road alone, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have the option.

Every reason I mentioned here has been debunked.

Solo travel is not inherently expensive.

Travelling by yourself is not selfish.

Women can absolutely travel alone. In fact, female solo travel is one of the most popular branches of the blogging world, with great bloggers like The Blonde Abroad, Be My Travel Muse, Adventurous Kate and Young Adventuress, among many others. Just throwing it out there.

If you really want to embark on a solo adventure, don’t listen to all the people who try to bring up arguments why you shouldn’t do it. If your heart is telling you to take the leap, do it.

Note: this blog post is based on a chapter of the Solo Travel Handbook (Lonely Planet). If you are considering solo travel, this book is a great starting point.

In case this blog post hasn’t made the idea of solo travel completely unappealing to you, sign up to my newsletter below and you’ll get 10 of my best tips to help you rock your first solo trip.

Thanks for reading!

-S