Travelling Alone

firsttime_tat

Hi Guys,
Im travelling to Oz(Perth) for a year in June on my own!Im 24 and female, im excited about it but also a bit nervous about travelling on my own. Ive always wanted to travel i broke up with my long term boyfriend last year and all my friends are in relationships/college/have no interest in travelling so i deciced to just go for it on my own!I was just wondering if there is anyone who was in the same situation and how did ye get on?And any advice or tips would be great!!Thank You!

Einstein

No tips I'm afraid, but high five for making the decision!!

I have no doubt it will be a fantastic year for ya!!

I'd quite like to travel on my own!

Besta luck

jonnyfoxes

Fair play on making ur mind up to go on your own...good on ya
I'll be heading over there on my own around Sept/Oct time...have same feelings of nervous excitement..all good natural feelings to have in my opinion.

Have you a plan yet on where you're going to stay while to find a more permanent place to stay etc..?
Again, best of luck with everything
JF

firsttime_tat

i have a few friends over there that i could stay with for a few days but don't want to rely on them too much!Kind of want to do my own thing, be independent!I dont really have a plan either just gonna go with the flow and see what happens!:)

Tigerandahalf

As many have said it's a great way to travel. You get to do whatever you want and once you get that bit of confidence you push on and do more and more things. Even if you have no interest in GAA it's worth joining up with a club...lots of people do likewise just to meet people and get contacts for work etc. Perth seems to have become the 'going to' place for a lot of Irish lately. So you should have plenty similar minded people to meet up with. You'll have a blast!

Vorsprung

Sorry a little OT but why is the first advice people give to people is to join a GAA club? I'd have thought that if you're moving to the other side of the world, you'd want to meet new people, perhaps not from your own country?!?

mandrake04

In Sydney GAA is really good if you are finding it tough to get work especially in construction, also the better footballer you are better of chances of getting yourself sponsored.

Have to agree though it's good to meet other nationalities as well

GiftofGab

Fair play to you OP, i' in the same boat, I'm leaving in June/July. I'm stopping of at south east Asia then onto the east coast of OZ. I'll settle in Melbourne. I'm nervous about south east Asia but excited about Australia as I know I'll bump into some Irish in which I can chat to.

hollyday

I'm also female 26 and heading off end of June,same story with friends loved up etc :rolleyes: stopping in Asia first and then flying into perth for a few weeks, then work my way up the coast to my friend in brisbane. I've been along the east coast before for a month's holiday but I'm still feeling a bit nervous because last time i just stayed in hotels. this time i am going to throw myself in to the backpacker scene! exciting but daunting at the same time. looking into the ozexperience/greyhound buses but they seem to exceed my budget! Happy travels op!

HardyBuckFan

hi all, already spent two years in oz and planning to go travelling solo in early june, have my NZ visa and plan is to fly from ireland to bangkok, spend about a month travelling SE asia, then on to melbourne for a wkend to see my mates and then off to auckland (all goin to plan)! have no fears about travelling solo, tis often the best way, best of luck everyone and sure no doubt we'll bump into each other somewhere along the way!

Kaneda_

I strongly thinking about travelling solo as well, Im also 24 , and the only thing thing thats keeping me here is my wife and 4 kids!..........

Really though, I need to save a bit more cash , and make some sort of escape plan outta here!

Zambia

Mate seriously buy a TV....

Welcome to boards.

Kaneda_

Zambia wrote: »

Mate seriously buy a TV....

Welcome to boards.

Thank you Zambia.

Rebel Boy

I'm in Melbourne at the mo. Came out to Australia in November solo and its the best thing I've ever done. I love it over here. Been in Sydney as well but Melbourne is way better IMO. My advice would be to save as much money as possible because Australia is a very expensive country and money goes fast. Your going to love it.

blondie82

Hi all
considering heading to oz solo myself at some stage later this year. petrified but am 28, no responsibilities, totally miserable in my job so i figure now is the time. none of my friends in a position to go but ifeel like i can't let that stop me. Like the idea of travelling around on my own & being totally in charge of my own time but it's the job hunting/apartment hunting part that is daunting. Am considering melbourne - Rebel Boy any tips on life in melbourne/accomodation/job hunting etc would be greatly appreciated, thanks a mil. Have no idea what my budget should be.

Heading to an info session in Usit today but it sounds like its mainly focussed on Adelaide & South Australia

firsttime_tat

im off in 2 months!!!money nearly all saved (it was soo hard had to be a hermit for the past few months haha) getting nervous now as the time gets closer but still cannot wait :)

blondie82

Well done firsttime_tat! I'm in the same boat, heading off on my own in August! Yeah the living like a hermit is gettin tough but keep tellin myself it will be worth it! Has made me realise how much useless crap I was spending money on before. Am both petrified & very excited, more excited than anything! I'd say when the day comes I'll be sick & wondering what the hell am I doing but once I'm on the plane I'll be grand. Where exactly are you heading?

firsttime_tat

perth first then i dont have a clue after that!!im the exact same i will be freaking out big time!!i think its the fact that im just going on my own all my family and friends thought i was crazy!!:) where abouts are you going?

blondie82

haha yeah i have got some interesting reactions too! especially as I'm leaving a full time job. But the job was making me very unhappy & stressed & i think it took being that miserable to give me the kick in the ass to do it! My parents are petrified as i'm a girl going off my own (i'm nearly 29 but sure parents will always see me as their little girl!) Was surprised at how many great reactions though, even from much older people, aunts uncles etc. Most peoples attitude is feck it life is short, enjoy it! I know i'll have some very tough moments of homesickness & will get lonely at times but i think i will be so thrilled with myself for doin it & i cant wait to be free of all responsibility & totally in charge of my own time. The beauty of going on your own is you wont spend any time or money on anything someone else wants to do.
I'm flying into adelaide, will move onto melbourne & prob work there for a while. I'm not putting anything in stone but will prob then travel onto the east coast, then new zealand & asia
I'd say once you get to perth you'll be grand, plenty of irish people and you will get lots of ideas of what to do next

firsttime_tat

yeah i know the feeling so sick of just going through the motions in a boring job that ive been doing for too long its def time for a change i think the homesickness will be very bad i know that its going to happen but ill just have to get through it!:)

Rebel Boy

firsttime_tat wrote: »

im off in 2 months!!!money nearly all saved (it was soo hard had to be a hermit for the past few months haha) getting nervous now as the time gets closer but still cannot wait :)

Hey.

I was in your position a few months ago. Nerves were sky high, when I got here it all changed. Its like a totally different world out here. None of the doom and goom like back home etc. I made friends with in 3 days of landing and living with 2 of them now in Southbank which is a few mins walk from Melbourne city. have no plans to go back to Ireland till at least August or September. The best thing for ya to do is research hostels in the cities you plan to go to, hostels are great ways of meeting new people. If you need advice on which ones to stay in I'll do the best I can to help. Don't hesitate to PM me.

longhalloween

Im thinking of going solo myself. Male, 22, Ive gone to Spain by myself in the past on an ill thought out adventure, but nothing this extreme.

Its a really daunting prospect, tho I do know a few people out there and hope to meet up with them. Is there any forum for finding a travel buddy on boards??

Pisco Sour

About a year ago I quit my horrid job and in September went travelling solo. Best decision I have ever made and it has been the best 7 months of my life to date. Obviously I was sh1tting a brick going off solo. I was sitting there on the plane flying to Rio de Janeiro (where I would be arriving to at night!) when the thought occured to me "what the hell am I doing". Of course it doesn't take long for such thoughts to dissappear and had an amazing 10 week adventure travelling solo around South America. It was a nice challenge getting myself around such a big landmass, with minimal spanish, and by the end of the trip I felt much more confident in myself.

After that I did NZ solo for 4 weeks but it wasnt really solo as it was with Magic Bus. Now in Melbourne for the last 4 months.

I dont think I could ever travel with people again (unless I am married lol). Once you go solo, you dont go back. The freedom is unreal. No waiting for friends to get out of bed and shower so you can go sightseeing. No stopping at random shops along the way that your mates are interested in but you arent. You only have to think about yourself and it is GREAT!!

And honestly, by far the most interesting people I met along the way were solo travellers.

blondie82

Well done 04072511

sounds amazing & starting off in south america was v brave rather than in somewhere english speaking. I can't wait to head off now.

longhalloween go to www.travbuddy.com, it's a general site for travellers with forums/reviews/blogs etc but a big part of it is also a section where you can search for a travel buddy, might be useful. You can also ask locals for info about their area. But from the sounds of things you won't have trouble meeting up with other travellers in Australia. The way things are goin I'm more worried about bumpin into too many people I know

kiwipower

Both myself and my baby sister have done the solo travel thing.

Though IMO she was braver than me, in her mid 20s took off to South America from NZ for three months, had an absolute blast, she meet loads of other solo travellers and made some long lasting FaceBook friends (Wouldnt be surprised if she ran into 04072511 over there!) She left a partner of 10years at home cause the partner was to useless to raise the money to travel with her!

I imigrated in my early 20s to Oz spent a couple of years there then came over to Ireland, on my own. Though I did have the advantage of Irish realatives here if I got into trouble. (even though I had only meet a couple of them once) Never really thought of the issues of travelling alone, kinda always done my own thing and never stopped to think "hey is this weird me doing this alone?" Even as a tweenie I use to arrange to head off to youth camps, for a weeks horse riding on my own. Just always loved getting away from where I was and who I was with!

Got The Travel Bug ?

First post on Boards

I'm 21, heading over to NZ via Singapore (for a week). leaving 6th June. Meeting a friend over there for a while but will be travelling on my own. Can't wait.

Can't wait to meet new people and see new sights!!

gigity gigity

Evening all, like many others I too am seriously considering getting out and traveling for a year. Was thinking of heading for Australia then going to New Zealand if things go well. Was wondering for those who are about to head out and those who have already been, how much cash do you reckon you would need (minimum) to get started over there.
Do you plan on starting working as soon as you get there, and how hard was it to get a job that makes a decent enough wage to enjoy yourself?

firsttime_tat

one month to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!starting to get very very nervous!finishing work next week have been there since school!!will be vey sad but its time to go!!:):) very excitied!!!!!

Doc

Bought myself a one way ticket to Bangkok about 2 and a half years ago. It was my first time ever traveling solo and at the time I was a shy enough guy when it came to meeting new people so I did't know if I should go. It was terrifying to think I was going to go so far away from everyone and everything I knew but it was also hugely exciting. The excitement plus the fact I had told everyone I was going to do it kept me focused and I saved like mad and did it.

Traveling alone is a mixed bag on the negative side you can get home sick and miss having very close friends who know you so well you can say anything to, so sometimes you can feel lonely. This however is the only drawback. When traveling alone you do whatever you want whenever you want with whoever you want and the only person you have to explain yourself to is yourself. If you want to stay a week in one place you do it. If after a day in a place you don't think its for you, you leave. If you meet interesting people who are doing something fun you can join them. If they start doing things that you don't think are fun you can leave. You have so much freedom when you travel on your own. Its real freedom too because dispute the fact we all think we are free were not we have jobs we have to go to or people we have to look after rent/bill we have to pay. People also are so much more friendly then you would think and you meet so many more people when you travel solo because firstly you try that little bit harder and secondly when you travel with others people think your all right and don't want to be disturbed or chatted too.

Traveling on my own gave me some of the best times in my life and let me meet some of the best people and interesting caricatures I know I wouldn't have met otherwise I have been here in Australia for 2 years now and I have made really good friends here in Melbourne but I still want to retain that sense that I am still on holidays and try to go and do/see as much as I can.

kiwipower

Well said Doc!
As someone who imigrated twice solo I would back you up on this from a working perspecitive.
My sister who travels solo for a few months at a time for the joy of travel would agree with you from a solo traveller point of view. Infact she made such great friends solo travelling through South America she flew to Brisbane to meet up with a bunch of them (a mix of european backgrounds) as they travelled through Oz!

niva*sis

firsttime_tat wrote: »

Hi Guys,
Im travelling to Oz(Perth) for a year in June on my own!Im 24 and female, im excited about it but also a bit nervous about travelling on my own. Ive always wanted to travel i broke up with my long term boyfriend last year and all my friends are in relationships/college/have no interest in travelling so i deciced to just go for it on my own!I was just wondering if there is anyone who was in the same situation and how did ye get on?And any advice or tips would be great!!Thank You!

can you give us a update on how your getting on???
im heading to perth on my own in oct. im in canada at the moment for 6 months then home for a month and then off i go to oz..
so have u settled in was it easy to meet people??