It did not seem so long ago that all talk was about connectedness, globalisation, borderless travel, the seamless journey. But how quickly life can go on reverse. These days, we speak of quarantines, closing borders, and social distancing.
But even before Covid-19 forced us to, in a sense, disconnect, there was perhaps already a sense of connectedness fatigue seeping in. The always on, always present, always together way we lived our lives was creating a need for privacy, me-time and going off-the-grid.
Solo travel has already started to become vogue. According to Google Trends, in 2019 alone, it recorded a 131% increase in interest for female solo travel. Google searches for ‘solo women travel’ increased by 32% in 2017 and 59% in 2018. The search grew to a jaw-dropping 230% increase in 2019.
In 2019, Klook commissioned a global Solo Travel Survey last October confirmed the trend. Of the nearly 21,000 people we surveyed around the globe, 76% indicated that they have either travelled alone already or are considering it – regardless of age, gender and nationality.
There is a community website, dedicated to solo travels.
A few years ago, I made myself a commitment to do at least one solo trip a year, even if it was for a short weekend getaway. I’ve done a few since and it has reinforced my notion that everyone capable of doing solo travelling, should. For me, the freedom from group consensus on just about everything (from what and where to eat, where to shop, to what attractions to hit first) is already reason enough. Then there is the benefit of meeting other people (the opportunity to engage in conversations with strangers when you are alone are far greater than when you are moving around in a group), taking in more of the destination (since you are not as distracted or occupied by others), having time to just sit at cafes, people watch and write journals, and also the ultimate flexibility – change plans on the fly!
If you need more reasons or inspiration to go solo, check this list.
Tourlane, a startup focused on individual travel, recently released findings from its research on the best cities for female solo travellers to visit this year. Taking into consideration factors such as safety, accommodation, price of a taxi, Internet speed, equality with men, female representation in local businesses, Singapore was identified as Asia’s number one city, and second globally, favoured for solo travels by females.
“Female solo travel is one of the hottest travel trends right now,” said Tourlane’s senior travel product manager, Arlett Walleck.
“The results of this year’s study show that regardless of geography and budget, every female solo traveller around the world has excellent travel options within easy reach.”
Other results from the survey:
- Europe is the best-represented continent in the ranking, with 26 cities in the ranking.
- Asia has 10 cities in the ranking, making it the second best-represented continent.
- English is an official language in nine of the cities in this year’s ranking (Auckland, Cape Town, Delhi, Dublin, London, New York City, Singapore, Sydney, Vancouver)
- Mumbai is the most populous city in this year’s ranking, with approximately 20.4 million citizens.
- Kotor is the least populous city, with approximately 14,000 citizens.
Whether this Covid-19 crisis will propel the trend towards solo travel, or make us crave for more company, remains to be seen – what is for sure is the travel world has become more accessible and enjoyable for travellers who choose to go it alone.
