Guest Post by Lisa - While you are out in the big world traveling, you are excited, and enjoying this new sense of freedom, and may therefore forget or ignore the dangers around you.
You need to remember that when you are on a trip, you are not in your hometown, so you have to make sure you are more alert about what is going on around you and think twice before making any decision.
Especially when women are traveling alone, they need to be more cautious as they will often drive more attention simply by their presence.
Below are some of the basic safety tips for single women to enjoy a danger-free trip.
Choose Safe Accommodation
Where you stay is very important – is it a safe part of town? Are there other tourists staying there, or is the place in the middle of nowhere and you are all alone?
Before you book any room make sure that you research your accommodation and its location before choosing to stay.
If you arrive and are unhappy with the place, request a change or move to different hotel/lodge.
Stay In Touch
Remember, your family & friends may be concerned about your safety. And staying in touch with them really won’t take you much time.
Just make an international call home and let them hear what you are doing, where you are etc. Tell them about your arrival and what you are going to do next.
If you have an Internet connection, send them your pictures or an email about your traveling experience or even set up a travel blog.
Wear The Right Clothes
Your attire is the most immediate symbol of respect. Dress codes differ greatly from country to country, so try to dress the way the locals do – this will help you in not revealing your foreign identity too much or making you a target for muggers, scams etc.
Avoid wearing tight and skimpy clothes outside of Europe and North America. Clothing should be traditional, loose fitting and comfortable. Make sure you cover your arms and legs, especially when visiting places of worship and national monuments.
Stay Under The Radar
When traveling, try to be less noticeable yet more assertive. Just enjoy your trip, don’t get involved in any dangerous issues and avoid getting into any kind of challenging situations with men.
Be more careful during late hours and in interior places. Find the right person to guide you and avoid getting too friendly with the locals.
Learn Some Basic Local Words
Try and learn a few basic words to communicate with while you travel. Knowing the foreign language makes it easier for you to understand situations you find yourself in or make sure you end of at the right place. It also presents you more as a local person and the folks around don’t treat you as as much of a tourist.
Hope these tips help you out, and if you have any more safety tips for single women, leave them in the comments below!
Guest Post by Lisa – (photo credit: moriza – ed yourdon – pedrosimoes7)
But didn’t young ppl who are traveling RTW for the first time, with low budget tend to choose cheap hostel who sometimes are located in a creepy not so safe location, and they still dress in tiny tank top that are revealing…
Although I admire a lot women solo travelers, I still have no guts to do so….I will always need my boyfriend…Thanks for the post!
Hey Febriola. Nothing wrong with traveling with your boyfriend
Personaly having someone close to travel with is the best thing in the world.
Good article! Have traveled alone quite a bit, never got into trouble. Use your common sense should be the first, then these tips follow!
Hey Caroline – thanks for the comment. Your right – common sense is the most important – but often when ppl are traveling, it seems to just run out the door – with all the excitment, and new experiences.
I totally agree with Caroline, things should be quite simple as long as we used our common sense. After all the basic principles apply everywhere, whether at home or abroad.
This is a very helpful article. I am single and normally prefers to travel alone that way I can have my own schedule and won’t need to wait on someone> I have to agree that finding a good place to stay is really important, I would often choose one that is very accessible to all forms of public transportation.
I wish l had seen this earlier- l was attacked sun 28/11 in Buenos Aries. They didn’t get camera which is what they were after. I was a very lucky BUT stupid women. I walked down the wrong street with a flashy camera on my hip. Apart from a few bruises I & the camera survived in tact.
Can’t recommend highly enough the Top 5 safety tips And l’d add one: if the scenery looks like the pictures in the Travel Mags that describe them as POOR, or under privileged then they probably are – so get the hell out of there quickly. Or better still – Don’t walk down the path even if you don’t get the signal of the back of your hairs standing up screaming Danger Will Robertson.
Great travel tips!