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What’s your travel style?

When I left my career in corporate and investment banking in 2008, my primary goal was to spend some time on ‘me’. I was tired and I felt somewhat out of touch with myself. I decided to embark on a five-month (predominantly) solo round-the-world trip. In a sense, I used that trip to grow; I [...]

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Ten things to do when you travel alone

Some people love travelling alone and there are some that simply wouldn’t dream of it. I used to belong to the latter group. That all changed when I went on a (predominantly) solo, five-month round-the-world trip last year. I had the time of my life and rarely experienced a lonely moment! Most of all, I [...]

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velvet escape’s ‘Lone Traveller’ series (10)

Things to do when you’re travelling alone: learn a new language Travelling alone provides us with a great opportunity to learn new things or pick up a new skill. In the increasingly globalised village we live in nowadays, what skill could be better than languages? During my travels, I’ve often met other fellow tourists who [...]

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Ten reasons to travel alone

I love travelling. Period. However, I’ve always been rather hesitant about travelling alone. It’s probably got to do with the fact that I’ve never liked eating alone. So, when I embarked on a solo five-month round-the-world trip in 2008, I was terribly excited but I was also a bit doubtful if I would enjoy it. [...]

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velvet escape’s ‘Lone Traveller’ series (9)

Things to do when you’re travelling alone: make new friends One of the great things about travelling alone is that it makes you a lot more approachable. There will be countless opportunities to meet new people. So, take good advantage of these factors and make some new friends along the way. Take the time to [...]

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velvet escape’s ‘Lone Traveller’ series (8)

Things to do when you’re travelling alone: stop for a recap When you’re travelling a lot and seeing and experiencing so much in a relatively short space of time, it’s great to stop for a moment, maybe while you’re having a coffee in a cosy café or a glass of wine on a sunny terrace, [...]

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velvet escape’s ‘Lone Traveller’ series (7)

Things to do when you’re travelling alone: take your own picture If you haven’t done this before, maybe because it looks silly (ok, I admit, it does look silly), get over it and give it a go. Turn the camera around, point it at yourself and snap! It’s great fun and you’d be surprised how [...]

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velvet escape’s ‘Lone Traveller’ series (6)

Things to do when you’re travelling alone: beware of scams Travelling alone makes you more approachable but this factor unfortunately also makes you an easier target for all sorts of scams. Some are quite transparent and can be easily brushed off by a friendly shake of the head and a smile but some scams are [...]

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velvet escape’s ‘Lone Traveller’ series (5)

Things to do when you’re travelling alone: treat yourself It’s hard work travelling alone . Lugging your bags across cobble-stone streets or up staircases, planning the trip, researching your destination, arranging transportation, keeping an eye on your budget… you’ll have to do all that on your own. All that hard work has to be rewarded [...]

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velvet escape’s ‘Lone Traveller’ series (4)

Things to do when you’re travelling alone: try something new One of the great things about travelling alone is that you can go anywhere you want on a whim and do anything you like. That includes going to places you previously might not have thought of or doing something you’ve never tried before. All in [...]

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