After avoiding a potential scam in Fez, my friends and I set off in a run-down minivan towards Chefchaouen, our last stop in Morocco. Given the early wake-up and departure, most of us had expected to sleep during the four hour journey. The driver’s scary driving and the winding roads meant that this wasn’t the case. Conversation flowed and quickly turned towards travel – where have we gone in the past?, where did we want to go next?, what do we like to see? I asked my friends how they usually travelled and the answer surprised me. Out of the six people in the car, I was the only person who liked to travel by myself, and regularly did so.

I have travelled around the world by myself. From my first solo-backpacking trip in SE Asia to Europe to the Middle East, solo travel is something that I do and enjoy. During my time in business school, I have travelled in smaller groups of 6-8 people and the experience has been completely different but surprisingly enjoyable. Here are some of my thoughts on the benefits of travelling by yourself and in groups.

 

On travelling alone

 

Flexibility

When travelling alone, you have an incredible level of flexibility. You can do whatever you want, whenever you want, at your own pace. Not having other people to think about means that you aren’t constrained by what others want or need to do.

This occurs both on a daily level as well as a macro-trip level. Within a single day, travelling alone could allow you to spend more time at an art gallery or a café that you really enjoy. Across a trip, travelling alone makes it far easier to switch your travel plans if required. Given that it is much easier to book last minute accommodation for one person, compared to a larger group, solo travel means that you often have fewer things booked in when you start the trip, allowing you to have a lot of flexibility. Additionally, it’s far easier to switch accommodation and transport for one person, compared to a group, allowing you to have more flexibility once the trip actually starts.

An example of this is my first backpacking trip in Vietnam and Cambodia. All I had booked was a flight to Hanoi, a flight between Vietnam/Cambodia and Cambodia/Singapore and a flight home from Singapore. Everything else during my 5 weeks there was often booked last minute, as I moved through the countries and heard about things to do. I wouldn’t have had this level of flexibility if I was travelling in a group.

 

Learn to be comfortable with being alone

Too many people are uncomfortable with being alone. Many of my friends have never seen a movie or eaten a meal in a restaurant by themselves, and can’t imagine doing so. This leads to an unfortunate situation where people miss out on experiences they want because they can’t find other people to keep them company on that experience.

I too used to have this mindset. When I was on exchange at NYU, I had the opportunity to see Joshua Bell play at Carnegie Hall. The seats were great and at a very reasonable price. However, I waited to see if any friends wanted to go and see the concert with me. By the time I came back to buy the tickets, all the good seats were sold out and I didn’t end up seeing Bell play. After this , I promised myself that I wouldn’t miss anything I wanted to do because I couldn’t find people to go with.

 

Meet a lot of different people 

One of the greatest things about travelling alone is the ability to easily meet a lot of different people, many of whom you would not otherwise meet. When I travel by myself, I generally stay at hostels, which are filled with young travellers looking to get to know other people. People in hostels are very welcoming and you would have to try very hard to not meet anybody. Many of these travellers are from different walks of life from countries across the world – not everybody is a management consultant from Australia. Additionally, people in hostels make great temporary travel companions. In countless cities around the world, I’ve spent a day or two exploring and partying with a group of people, never to see them again when we all inevitably move on.

Solo travel make you a more open person. It breaks the mental barrier that prevents us from going up to complete strangers and talking to them. Travelling alone makes it easier to empathise and connect with people, especially from different countries and where you don’t have a robust common language.

 

On travelling in a group

 

You can do group activities

A lot of great activities require a group of people, or are more economical in a group. These include things such as my recent Sahara Desert tour in Morocco, hiring a guide for a national park tour in Costa Rica or renting a car for a road trip. Being in a group provides you with the flexibility to do these larger activities while also having the flexibility to do any other activity that a solo traveller might do.

 

You are never alone

When travelling in a group, you will always have people with you. This especially makes meals and evenings more enjoyable, as you will always have company (and more often than not, company that you enjoy). One of the challenges I had when backpacking is that I often wanted to try restaurants that were a lot nicer (and pricier) than the average backpacker desired. Travelling in groups of people who are willing and able to have these experiences (such as a Costa Rican degustation in San Jose) is something that I have really enjoyed.

Group travel also provides you with company regardless of the activities that you want to experience. Even if the larger group decides to do one thing, and you want to do something else, you will often find at least one or two other people who will join you. Yesterday in Chefchaouen (Morocco), most of the group wanted to hike to a waterfall and natural bridge, while I wanted to explore the city and take photos. In the end, a couple of my friends joined me and we had a great time.

 

You have experiences you wouldn’t have otherwise had

As in many other settings, having a diversity of people leads to a more enriching experience. The same is true of travel. Being in a group of people when travelling makes it likely that you end up doing something you wouldn’t have otherwise done, or even considered. Sometimes, your assumptions are correct and the activity turns out to be a dud. However, more than often, you enjoy the activity and couldn’t imagine not doing it.

An example of this is during my post-undergrad trip to South America, where I travelled with 8 other people. Thanks to my friends, I hiked the Inca trail, spent a night sleeping in a hammock in the Amazon rainforest in Brazil, and went to a tango class in Buenos Aires. I likely wouldn’t have done any of these things without my friends wanting to do them and I am grateful to my friends for making me have these wonderful experiences.

 

My ask of you

As challenging and strange as it may seem, I would highly recommend you travel alone at least once in your life and see what the experience is like.