photo by Leo Cuesta
Travel is by far one of the best things that life has to offer; unfortunately many travel companies cater to group travellers and if someone wishes to travel solo, the price automatically goes up. This is especially true in the cruise ship industry. I paid for a mother-daughter cruise to Germany and when my dad wanted to come along, the extra room request was double what a shared room was. This still makes no sense to me but I feel that pain of having a solo traveller get the brunt of the singles tax.
But don’t worry! Check out our tips and tricks below to help cut down costs on your solo vacation as well as have the time of your life. No need for a +1 here!
photo by Sudarshan V via Flickr
Surf the Forum Net
Anytime anyone wants to do something these days, it often starts with an internet search. This may be an obvious one but the less obvious tip is searching travel boards and forums in search of travel buddies. Reddit has a few travel buddy boards and there are other sites like Penroads and Globetrooper that’s a good place to start for preliminary info. But if you’re wanting more of a hands-on boutique approach to finding travel buddies, check out the new Uncharted Earth travel companion finder .
The Uncharted Earth team will work diligently with you to partner you with other travel companions who are interested in the same group adventures or custom adventures as you are. Plus, there’s nothing weird. No need to post your profile pic or fill out a three-page personality survey. They keep it simple and effective and link you up with travel buddies who are interested in adventuring just like you.
So whether you’re a social butterfly or just looking to save a few bucks by getting a group rate, it’s equal opportunity for great tripping.
Do Yoga and Be Flexible
Doing yoga is a great stress reliever and it helps you clear your mind; so it’s never bad advice to suggest yoga. However, in this case, doing yoga will also be inspiration for you to be flexible mentally as well. When travelling solo, if you’re wanting to save a few extra bucks, then compromise is key.
Being flexible with your travel plans will help you pair up with companions easier as you’ll have a higher likelihood of finding a compatible itinerary that will make everyone happy. Maybe the compromise is a certain geographical area and within a certain radius, you get to choose two things you want to do and the other person gets to choose the other two.
Though the word compromise has a connotation of losing something, this can actually be a positive as a new person could suggest something equally or more cool than what you had originally thought you wanted to do. So it truly does become a win-win.
photo by Tony Shih via Flickr
Group Tours are Your Friends
If you’re unable to find a travel buddy before you put in your vacation time at work and purchase a roundtrip ticket to your vacation destination, all hope isn’t lost on saving a few bucks. Once you’ve landed and checked into your hotel, jump on your laptop and search for group tours.
Booking a popular group tour in the area will boost your likelihood of getting a good rate even if you’re only purchasing a ticket for one. This is because 6 other people or so will also sign up which helps keep the cost down. Again, you may have to compromise on your itinerary a bit but fitting in a few group tours will help you save some money and see the major highlights in an area.
Tip: You can request Uncharted Earth to set up a group tour departure on the date that you want.
Extra bonus points for scoping out a general area is to get one of the hop on hop off bus day tickets. This may sound cheesy but every time I travel, someone suggests this to me and I always regret not getting it because I spend so much time wandering around aimlessly and overpaying for taxis. Just something to think about.
So Let’s Go!
Don’t let the fear of searching for travel buddies get you down or keep you at home on the sofa. One of the biggest reasons for traveling is to meet new people and have adventures in a foreign land. Who says you can’t do that with a travel companion that isn’t your parent, friend or significant other? And with a safe, and simple tool like Uncharted Earth’s travel companion finder , there really aren’t any more excuses.