One of the many fears a solo traveler faces is being alone in a strange land, making friends may not be as easy as it sounds. The problem which most people face is related more to the comfort zone, than any other thing. Most of us are so comfortable within our own cocooned worlds, we don’t feel the necessity to step out and challenge ourselves. Travelling solo forces us out of these cocoons we build for ourselves. So how do we really break out and make friends.

After all, a journey is all about shared memories!

So we’re giving you some simple tips that you can use to make friends while traveling solo:

1. Be confident and muster up the courage to make new friends

Being confident has nothing to do with being an extrovert. It simply means that you have your bearing about you while approaching a total stranger. When you are traveling alone, you need to muster up the courage to make new friends, else you are bound to feel lonely and it’s inevitable. Don’t assume that you might mess up or sound like an idiot while talking to someone you do not know. You never know, you might actually be good at this!

2. Take a Group Tour

You may want to travel on your own rules, but by taking a group tour through some agency, you are bound to make great friends for sure. You will be spending a lot of time with the same group of people. So it’s pretty natural to make friends like that. Go ahead, strike up a good conversation and have some fun!

3. Stay in Hostels

You may think that this is not the best idea, but trust us; it’s the best way to make new friends and find great company. When you share a dorm with people in college, you automatically tend to gel up together, this is a similar concept. You will be very surprised to see just how easy it is to meet new people like this!

4. Couch surfing

So you might not really like the idea of sleeping in some strange person’s house, but what the hell, you can try it at least once. Get the hang of the best couch surfing websites in order to get proper places to stay instead of some crooks. If you do not like this idea at all, some cities offer the idea of “couch drinking” in which solo travelers can meet up over drinks and interact with each other. Sounds fun, right!

5. Talk to the Locals

Being social never kills anyone! We’re not asking you to talk to random strangers on the street (go ahead, by all means, if you’re up to it), it’s easier to strike up a conversation with a waiter in a café, the grocery store clerk. You can ask for information about the city, popular hangouts, must visit places, the best street food, etc,. The best advice is always from the locals. Chat with co-passengers on a bus or a train and who knows, they might be out there seeking company too!

6. Learn a new language

So while you are at it, why not learn the language of the country that you are visiting? Learning a new language is an enriching experience in itself and a really great way to interact with fellow learners. And the locals will appreciate it, unless you’re in France, where nothing less ‘perfect French’ is appreciated.

7. Go on Pub Crawl

No, don’t get drunk with total strangers, some nice banter over a few pints never hurt no one! Young travelers do this a lot. A great way to quickly make friends is to go on “pub crawls” which is gaining a lot of popularity these days. Most hostels organize pub crawls.

8. Sign up for activities/classes

Try to find out the kind of classes that are being offered in the area that you are visiting. Learn how to cook Thai cuisine or learn how to do salsa. This is a great way to meet and interact with the locals and of course add a new hobby to your list! Whichever activity you choose, you will always have mates to give you company and make your time worthwhile.

9. Volunteer work

As foreigners and travelers, we generally see only one side of the city, the touristy part. We generally avoid the under developed areas like the villages and small towns. Wouldn’t it be nice to do some volunteering work in these areas and get the satisfaction of helping people in need? It will definitely get you to interact with new people and you will surely make some great friends and take home a million memories!

10. Find Friends on Social media

So living in this era of social media craziness, you cannot not be active on Facebook, Instagram etc. You can follow people on a medium like this and make new travel buddies. Announce your travel plan in advance and surely you would get many responses on it. It’s not only a great way to share your travel experience, it’s also an easy way to get free advice and recommendations from trusted sources!

Traveling alone is pretty mind blowing and it actually sets you free. Remember, there are a plenty of people like you out there!

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KomalJain

Komal Jain is an IT professional during day and a writer at all other times. She has a bachelor’s degree in engineering, but she tries to ignore it and finds peace and purpose in writing. Travelling, eating, and writing is what she basically wants to do her life.