11 Lessons From Solo Backpacking Through South America
A few months ago I decided to take the leap and solo travel around South America (in case you didn’t know lol) ✈️
Since the start of my travels I have learned so much and wanted to share the reality (that at least I have had) versus what you see on instagram
Hopefully this can help anyone else about to take the leap or considering it :)
Everything here speaks purely from my own experience (even though from chatting with other solo backpackers, it seemed a lot of things here resonated with them as well)
Read on if you’re thinking of doing the same or even just curious 😊
Solo Travelling - Is it for You?
If you’ve decided to take the same leap - congrats! It’s an absolute rollercoaster but one I don’t want to get off just yet 😁
If you’re thinking about doing a solo trip but afraid to do it, my advice would be start small - do a trip somewhere yourself for a weekend or week or so to see if you like it
My first solo travel was to a yoga retreat in Portugal in 2019! 🧘♂️ This was great since I had some structure during the day but also gave me the free time to explore being somewhere by myself
The first time you do it you’re like WTF 👀 In an airport with no one next to you thinking everyone is looking at you like you’re a weirdo!
But then comes the unreal part of solo travel - the absolute beauty that every decision was mine! 😍The freedom of travelling on your own is honestly next level
As I was getting a boat into the jungle in the North of Bolivia the other day with just me and the 60 year old who owned the boat he said “por que sola?” And I said “mas facil” lol (easier 😊)
Of course travelling with friends is such great craic, you’re sharing experiences with them that will be memories forever and it means you always have someone there for you
But for me, there is something addictive about solo travelling and you feel a real sense of achievement
I also find I am a lot more open and come across a lot more opportunities of doing things or meeting people when I’m on my own versus with people which is another reason to love it
Going/Moving Somewhere Solo versus Solo Backpacking
This blog is going to be focused on the second
I had done a few trips by myself before this latest expedition but these were different, these were going abroad to one place for a few weeks/a few months which meant getting familiar with one place, having a home and being able to build up connections that lasted longer than a few days
Backpacking is a lot different - you’ve no base, you’re moving on every few days and always meeting new people
It sounds obvious but this was something I hadn’t taken into consideration before coming so just something I wanted to highlight
Instagram versus Reality
I definitely underestimated how hard the transition into backpacking would be 😬
Before this I was working in my living room in my house for 2 and a half years for 75% of the week - to say I got a culture shock was an understatement
At the start of my trip I travelled with friends for 2 weeks, then I was on my own - into the wilderness lol
To be honest on reflection and looking back on the start of the trip when I first was on my own, I borderline hated it
The first few weeks after I left my friends was tough - I felt lonely and self conscious
I found it hard to meet people as well (I think when you’re feeling shit you give off that vibe which in turn makes it harder to meet people which in turn makes you feel more shit - a lovely viscous circle 😊)
So below are some takeaways that I wish someone would have told me in advance that may have made that transition easier
1. Travelling is not Easy
This was my first misconception
Not that anyone had ever told me this, but anyone I follow that was travelling on instagram made it look easy and without any low points
I was thinking what’s wrong with me, maybe this kind of travelling just isn’t for me
I was thinking how will I do this for 6 months? I don’t want to do this for another week!
I was shocked since I had enjoyed the other solo trips so much but to be honest I was fed up of having to pack my bag every few days, having to meet new people in every location, figure out logistics - it was a whole new territory I hadn’t explored before!
Im glad to tell you though it gets a lot easier as time goes on - you settle in to having to get up and go every few days, you gain more confidence and just begin to enjoy a lot more
2. Be Prepared for Low Days
We all have low days at home, so why wouldn’t we have them during a time where our entire routine is turned entirely upside down in a new place where we know no one?
This ties in with the misconception that you will always be having fun, it’s not humanly possible to always be happy or having fun in normal life so why would it change while travelling
At the start I was honestly having a low day once or sometimes twice a week, I did a fair bit of crying at the start lol (I do love a cry tho - it feels great!)
I felt guilty for this - I was already feeling bad but then started feeling bad about feeling bad 😂
The great thing is as time has gone on, these have become less and less!
I don’t remember the last time I had one - I think this is because you build up more resilience to the situations you come up against and you learn to enjoy your own company even more if that makes sense!
3. You Won’t Have Your Support System Around You
4. You Don’t Always Have to be With People
Read that once and then read it again!
I had built up a lot of expectations before travelling around meeting people
I thought before coming I would meet a group of people the moment I walked into every hostel and would do every single activity with new friends in new places. Again another shock when this didn’t happen
I also thought I was the only solo traveler ever to be doing activities on their own - false
The reality is I’ve done a lot of stuff on my own as well but so have others
It’s funny to compare my outlook from the start until now - At the start I was very self conscious of doing things on my own or even just hanging around on my own, being hyper aware and over analysing being on my own. I always felt I wanted to be with people - or so I thought lol
After a short period of time I realised I didn’t want that
Now there are a lot of times I just want to do stuff on my own because I couldn’t be bothered chatting with new people 😂 (sorry not sorry) but your social battery does drain very quickly and sometimes I’m happy just to absorb the experience myself 😊
Also doing things on my own has allowed me to really make pals with locals: guides, cooks, other South Americans travelling - so it’s nice to do a bit of both
Final point on this you’ll also find there are people you will click with and others you won’t and that’s okay!
You just have to find people that suit you
5a. You will Meet Someone and Travel with Them for Your Entire Trip: False
I thought I would bump into someone who wanted to do the exact same route and things and we could travel together
I spoke to a lot of solo backpackers who also had this misconception
Reality is generally you’re going one way and they’re going the other
With this one though I have learned it depends on your flexibility versus your priorities: if you are willing to go with someone else’s plan you will be a lot more likely to meet someone to travel with, however if you have certain things or places you want to see or do it’s not as likely
For me I’ve done a bit of both, I had no plans for Bolivia and travelled with a friend who had some things he wanted to do, and this was nice as well for someone else to make a plan and not have to do the logistics
5b. And Anyways Do You Really Want to Travel with Someone?
I learned this one the hard way lol
I travelled with someone who id met a few times - by this I mean same transport, same hostel room, doing everything together!
And I realised I definitely didn’t want that, Im someone who needs a lot of space and this was too suffocating for me
Also you are doing a solo trip to be with yourself!
What I’ve found worked well here is with the friend I travelled with in Bolivia - we would get our own hostel, get our own transport and then meet up and do stuff together
While writing this I realise a lot of these things will totally be down to you as a person, there are probably people who always want to be with someone all the time, or maybe you meet someone that you want to spend every second of the day with - but for me this wasn’t the case
6. Be Prepared to Have the Same Conversation - in the words of Hot Chip “Over and Over Again”
If I had a euro for every time I’ve asked or have been asked “where are you from”, I’d be a very wealthy woman 😊 be prepared for the monotony
7. There is no Right or Wrong way to travel
I met many people who like to slow travel and others who just want to do a whistle top tour of countries
I remember I felt guilty for going too slow at the start - for me I’d prefer to do one country for a month then try and squeeze in a few! But this is purely down to my preferences
Remember this time is for you and not for anyone to tell you how to travel, everyone has preferences and opinions about everything and how you travel is no different
Travelling is all about trial and error as well so you need to find out what works and doesn’t work for you!
For me it has all been a learning curve
8. Don’t feel like you have to say Yes to everything
If you get asked to go out or do x or y but you know you don’t have the energy or interest in it!
I felt at the start always obliged that if I got an invite I had to take it up and would be very hard on myself if I didn’t accept!
But honestly Don’t be afraid to say no, fomo is a real disease but listening to your energy levels is more important :)
9. Comparison is the Thief of Joy
There will always be someone who’s more adventurous, who’s done more, visited more places and spent more time in a country, but there will also be someone who’s done less!
Travelling isn’t a competition (I still struggle with this one if people have spent longer somewhere in like oh maybe I should have so trying to work on that one)
10. If you are Feeling it, Chances are lots of other Solo Travellers are Feeling it
In one particular hostel i was in at the start of my trip it was quite big and everyone was on their phone
I remember thinking it was really hard to meet people in some hostels when everyone was on their phone, I said it to one of my friends there at the time and she said she couldn’t agree more and I thought it was only me who had noticed it!
So for sure you’re not the only one
11. Don’t feel Guilty for taking Rest Days
I always think if I could treat travelling like a 9-5 job it would be perfect - Monday - Friday you do your tourist activities and weekend you chill out
However this isn’t the case, and honestly while I’m so lucky to have all these experience, it’s fecking tiring moving around all of the time and always doing new things 😂 it’s not like a holiday at all where you do nothing and are refreshed after a week off
I used feel guilty at the start for not doing something every day but you need these rest days to recover and psyche yourself up for then next thing!
I honestly saviour the days I find a nice cafe or park and sit somewhere for hours on my phone replying to friends, reading, journalling etc.
I probably lean on the side of taking too many rest days 👀 😂
Finally Go Easy On Yourself
Try to remember some Self-Compassion when you are solo travelling
Sometimes I’m thinking “you’re spending too much, you need to do more, meet more people etc” however give yourself some credit - you’re already doing something that a lot of people wouldn’t dare to do!
In Summation
All of this might sound a bit negative but i really did just want to share the reality and the challenges I had at the start and show the progression! 😁
I am very much thriving off of traveling now and I’m trying to find ways to extend my travel time! 😊😊
I’ve so much more to say on traveling but think I’ve said enough for now 😋
So I hope if someone reads this and is unsure that this might motivate you to take the plunge
What’s the worst that can happen? ☺️
P.S. Everything here has highlighted the challenges because I felt this information was what was missing for me before I started my trip and most important to share but of course there are so many upsides 😊
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