It's nearly 7pm in Prague and I'm sitting in my room at the Hilton, and I have a confession to make: My name is TravelSpark, and I hate traveling by myself.
Okay, perhaps "hate" is a rather strong term, but solo travel is not something I would do if it wasn't a job requirement. After arriving in Prague around lunchtime, I settled in for a nap. When the alarm went off, I seriously considered not leaving my hotel room. Fortunately I came to my senses and went for a stroll in the late afternoon sunshine, because frankly there is no excuse for camping out in your hotel room on a beautiful European summer day.
I'm a social being who much prefers to be with people than not, and I don't have a lot of faith in my internal GPS. It's so much better to have a friend or colleague to watch your bags while you pee, chat with while you wait for flight, and people-watch to see who's wearing the most ridiculous traveling clothes. At Heathrow today I saw a woman wearing wedge heels that seemed to be two sizes too small, and I had no one to share it with! And after a stop at H&M and MNG I quite missed my boss, who used to be my shopping buddy until she cut the apron strings and sent me off to Europe on my own.
More importantly, I need someone to push me to get out and do things. This reason is one of many that I love my husband for - he'll do anything and go anywhere and isn't afraid to get lost, and I'm the opposite. My sense of adventure takes some coaxing to come out.
I suspect I'm not the only one out there who feels this way, so if solo travel isn't your thing (yet) here are some tips to make it more comfortable (which I have either tried, or should):
1. If you don't like to navigate airports and feel stressed trying to make your way from terminal to terminal, look up the airport's map in advance. I just found this cool feature on MapQuest.
2. Read up on other women who've learned to love traveling by themselves:
Wanderlust and Lipstick: The Essential Guide for Women Traveling Solo by Beth Whitman
Fly Solo: The 50 Best Places On Earth For a Girl to Travel Alone by Teresa Rodriguez Williamson
Go Your Own Way: Women Travel the World Solo by Faith Conlon, Ingrid Emerick, and Christina Henry de Tessan
Just search Amazon for "solo travel" to find more.
3. Bring a small guidebook. I like the Frommer's Portable Guides and the Top 10 guidebook series because they fit nicely in a small purse and provide just enough information to get you around without being overwhelming.
4. Ask the concierge for help. Prague's streets are more confusing than Boston's, so even with my guidebook's map I needed advice on the best route to take. The concierge printed out a map and highlighted the best route.
5. Bring a book or magazine to dinner, or if there's a bar at the restaurant playing a local game on tv, park yourself there. This is my husband's trick for eating out by himself - the tv is a good excuse to occupy your eyes and ears, and most people sitting there are also by themselves. Note: in some countries, a single female sitting at a bar may bring on some unwanted attention.
6. Seek out a fellow solo traveler (but be smart about it). While waiting in line for the concierge today, there was a woman about my age in front of me doing the same thing and I could hear her American accent. I bumped into her outside at a crosswalk and worked up the courage to start a conversation. Turns out we were headed in the same direction. After not saying anything more than "I'll have the chicken" and "That's a non-smoking room, right?" today it was a relief to talk to someone else. She invited me to have a beer with her and her colleagues, but I passed in favor of strolling.
My European colleagues are typically very nice about taking me out to dinner after my meetings, so tonight is likely the only night I'll have to eat dinner by myself. I'll bring "Eat, Pray, Love" and get inspired by the author's year of traveling solo.
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