Your First Solo Trip

Things I Wish I Knew Before

A smiling individual carrying two large backpacks in a parking lot, with cloudy skies in the background.
2025, Liv leaving the UK for the Bali Surf Camp

If you’d told me four years ago that I would go through a breakup, still get on the flight for our 2-week holiday to Bali on my own (that we’d already booked together)… and then skip my flight home, I would’ve laughed. But here we are — and that trip changed everything.

I overpacked massively (I still do… I’m a terrible night-before overpacker).
I panicked about not making friends in 0.1 seconds.
I drank more than I wanted to just to fit in socially (now I rarely drink).
And I winged things to the stupid point that I got caught out with visa issues on arrival to Vietnam and spent an entire day in the immigration office filling in a request for citizenship form in Vietnamese — with Google Translate just about saving the day. This was all after being sick all night from accidentally eating dog meat on a night out.

So yeah… I wasn’t exactly a “prepared backpacker.” But here’s the thing: Solo travel will humble you, confuse you, scare you a bit — and then somehow become the best thing you’ll ever do.

Whether you’re a wing-it-last-minute type or someone who loves spreadsheets (aka me now, with my highly detailed budget tracker), here’s everything I genuinely wish I knew before my first solo trip.

.

Interior view of a hostel showing wooden bunk beds with curtains and a shared space, designed for accommodation.
Casavia Hostel in Siargao, Philippines

Hostels Don’t Suck (If You Pick the Right Ones)

I imagined hostels as grim, overcrowded, unsafe places… but honestly? A good hostel is one of the easiest ways to meet people. Most travellers are 18–35, and everyone is in the same boat: they want to meet people, explore, and make friends. No one goes “solo travelling” to actually be solo.

Key tips:

  • Choose a hostel that has family dinner — they’re always the most social.
  • Book popular hostels on Hostelworld
  • Bring a padlock (for your locker)
  • Pick a dorm room with curtains… at least have some privacy in that 10 bed dorm.

The First 24hrs Are The Hardest — Always

Every country has the same pattern:
You land.
You don’t know the currency.
You’re trying to get a SIM card.
You don’t know the ‘going rates’ for taxis.
You feel completely alone (unless you’ve already made friends and are travelling onwards together, which is a win win).

This is normal. Everyone feels like this. Give yourself a day to adjust — sleep, eat, walk around, figure out what you want to do tomorrow. Then hang out in your hostel and chat to people about what they’ve been up to. It gets easier, unbelievably quickly.

How to Make Friends

A group of smiling individuals enjoying time together on a boat, with a scenic view of the sea in the background.

If you want surf friends
Book a surf lesson and hop on the boat — you’ll immediately meet people.
Ask if they want to grab food afterwards (they will be starving).
Or swap Instagrams and DM them what time you’re surfing tomorrow.

If you want people to explore with
Sit in the hostel social area and ask someone where they’re from. Everyone hates small talk, but that question always works.
Bring a pack of cards or UNO — people gravitate towards anyone doing something.

Trust Your Gut Instinct

If a person or situation feels off, leave. No guilt, no explanation needed.
If you’re struggling, change hostels. It’s like pressing reset — new vibe, new people, fresh start.
If you love somewhere, stay longer. There’s no rush. Travelling isn’t a competition to tick off the most countries.

Money: How Much You Actually Need Per Day

A group of three friends posing cheerfully at night outside a restaurant, holding drinks and showing a card.

Everyone’s different, but realistically:

  • £40/day – most of Southeast Asia
  • £50/day – places like South Korea
  • £70+/day – New Zealand, Australia, etc.

    You can make your money stretch depending on where you eat:
    Street food = cheap. Western cafés = basically England prices.

Know “The Going Rate”
Taxi drivers will always try charge a bit more — and honestly, fair enough. They work long hours and earn very little. Avoid being massively overcharged by:

  • Asking your hostel for normal prices
  • Checking Grab for reference prices
  • Booking through the app if you want the safest option (but remember apps take up to 40% of the driver’s earnings)
    So if you can, tip your driver. Be kind.
  • Take buses where you can. They’re genuinely so cheap it feels illegal.

Solo Travel Makes You Brave…

You navigate a whole new country, figure out public transport in a language you don’t speak, and end up having the deepest conversations with people from completely different walks of life.

You don’t need to be fearless, rich, or super confident to travel solo.
You just need a tiny push to book the first flight. Everything else unfolds naturally.