The only time I’ve missed a flight is when I was deeply engrossed in a book, travelling solo, in transit, in Istanbul airport. Having missed my connection, I decided to stay in Istanbul for a few days, and booked a flight onwards a few days later.
That was my first solo adventure. And I don’t mean first time travelling solo, I mean real adventure. Although I found the Turks to be some of the friendliest and most hospitable people, there are plenty of tourist scams to avoid. And I evidently looked like a tourist. The notorious taxi scam – ensure the meter is on. And the restaurant scam – bringing you ‘comp’ starters which you didn’t ask for, later to be charged.
It’s something people presume we write about a lot being a female focused travel and lifestyle magazine. Solo travel. Funnily enough, we haven’t really spoken about it hugely. But it’s a burgeoning trend and 2024 is absolutely the year for the solo traveller. It’s remarkable a shift from the past, when a single supplement used to be imposed and solo travelling was known for its popularity amongst the backpackers. Now, the different motivations have pushed us to crave solo travel more. Whether that is our own sense of freedom and independence, the desire to travel more than others, the search for personal wellness or learning. Why we choose to take a trip solo is so much more open and varied, and as a result, why the demographic has changed so much.
And so as we embark on solo travel month, I’m excited for us to explore all the questions we ask as solo travellers. Solo travel to help healing as well as learning, the most useful apps to the best accessories, the best destinations for solo travellers to finding love, plus the next series of our podcast talks to some incredibly inspiring women.
Kicking off this month, our well-travelled team at Citizen Femme have plenty of solo travel advice to give. This month, we also navigate the world of investments at Allbright (book your ticket here). And with the rising popularity of our column Citizen Enfants, we bring Maternal Mental Health to the forefront with an event by mothers, for mothers, led by an expert panel as we dive into this complex topic (click here to book).
So pack your solo suitcase and discover some adventures for your 2024 travels.
Any Questions or Tips to add?