29 year old single- group/travel buddy?

walkingshadow

Hi all,
I'm 29 and going to be 30 at the end of the summer and haven't been away in ages, so I'm thinking of giving myself an early birthday present of a trip abroad. All my other buddies have commitments, etc, so if I go, I will either have to find a travel buddy to go with, join a tour group thing, or just go alone. I really don't the idea of going completely alone, so I guess my preference would be one of the first two options.

I guess I'm looking for the following- somewhere hot, great scenery, a buzzing nightlife (I am single after all:D), but also somewhere with some good daytime activities (cycling or a hike, etc). Any boardsies have any recommendations regards travel companies/buddies for single travellers, destinations or indeed any stories of your own? I'm looking to get away for about 2 weeks end of July/early August
Thanks!

VisibleGorilla

100% go solo.

walkingshadow

I hear people say go solo alot, and maybe its because I've never been so, but would it not be a bit lonely? It would be strange going into restaurants all by myself, and even going to bars/nightclubs alone would make me feel like a bit of a weirdo- or am I completely overthinking this? I guess I just wouldn't know where to go alone

Ed_Stephens

sGoing solo takes some balls the first time but once you get used to it you find it hard to even think about going with other people again. People won't care if you're on your own, bring something to read or just grab a paper or browse on your phone if you are eating. I actually found it easier to mix when I'm solo as when I went with other people/groups I tended to stay within the group. There's also massive flexibility, no waiting around for other people, no arguments etc. Personally I'd much rather go solo than do some organised tour group with a strict timetable, that's my idea of a crap holiday I spend enough of the rest of the year looking at the clock and I don't want to do it while I'm on hols!

South East Asia ticks a lot of your boxes for heat, nightlife and daytime activities and at the end of the Summer it'll be going into low season there so bargains to be had.

wicorthered

I was very much like you 2 years ago, I desperately wanted to see S. America but had no one to go with. I was apprehensive about traveling alone, I had the same doubts, would I be lonely, would I look like an oddball etc. Eventually the urge to travel won, I off I went on my own. Over 6 weeks I had some absolutely fantastic times but also some pretty bad ones. I've since traveled back to S. America with a mate so can compare the 2.


Pros
Traveling alone I had great freedom, I was my own boss, could come and go as I pleased and If I didn't like a place I was up and gone without a second thought. Traveling with a mate you are restricted. They could love a place/activity you hate but you're still bound to go along with them. You lose a bit of freedom. I found traveling alone I was much more outgoing, I'd chat with anyone and met lots of people, some of which I'm still in contact with. With my friend we kinda just stuck together and didn't really meet many new people. I think you also see more of a place on your own. I didn't lounge around as much when on my own, instead I was always pout doing something. With my mate we kinda hung around the hostel a lot not doing much.

Cons
A couple of times I stayed in really quiet hostels in really quiet towns. These were rough on my own. I remember one place where I was on my own for 2 days, that was very tough. Having a friend with you obviously means this doesn't happen. Generally I didn't find much of an issue going for dinner myself, but saying that I owuld prefer company going out to eat. I'd generally tried to find a bar doing food or a cafe where some football or something was on TV. I pretty much ignored restaurants. I also kinda regret experiencing some things Like Machu Picchu on my own. That's an amazing place and it would have been great to have had a friend with me to share the experience. There's also less worry when there's more than one of you. If you lose a wallet, credit card etc when buy yourself I'd imagine it's a lot more stressful than if you're with someone.

walkingshadow

I would really like to travel to the Greek islands this summer, maybe do some cycling in Crete too. I’d really like to experience the nightlife there too (crazy as it is!)- I guess though as a single guy wandering amid groups of lads and girls holidays I could feel lost- to go with a group or not, that is the question lol

grimm2005

Just to echo what everyone is saying, go alone and you won't regret it. Rather then rehash what I've already said in the past I'll just quote myself from a year ago in another thread:

Ah that's annoying but definitely don't let it stop you going! I've realised recently that traveling alone can be more fun. I've said it in other threads recently that as long as you pick small, high rated hostels that have social activities/pub crawls in the evening it's hard to go wrong. Anywhere that has "family dinners" in the evening should usually be a good bet as it's hard not to get talking to people around a dinner table!

I've only done it once so far but it was one of the best trips I've had and I made some great friends, something which is less likely when you are with your own friends as you tend to hang out more together then socialise with those around you especially in huge, factory like hostels. Oh and stay in a dorm! Cheaper and again, easier to make friends, and most hostels have female only dorms if it makes you more comfortable.

It's also good in the sense that you can see and do exactly what you want everyday and then re-group and socialise/party with your hostel at night.

I have 2 more solo trips coming up soon and I'm hoping they'll be as successful as my first, I just made sure to do a lot of research on hostels and read a lot of reviews focusing mainly on those that went alone. I can be pretty shy so it lifted my confidence a lot during my last stay.

Have done it loads since I posted that a year ago and can't get enough of solo travelling now. I was very nervous my first time doing it, thinking it might be a disaster but I was very wrong.