Tips for Solo Female Travelers

August 06, 2025

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by Brenda Murray

Travelling alone can be daunting for many female travelers especially the first few times. Planning the trip, reserving a hotel room, taking care of your home and pets while we you’re gone, packing…it can all seem overwhelming.

But many women do it with confidence and grace and you can too.

We asked Kathleen, a Studio 56 VIP participant who has traveled with us several times, for her advice. Kathleen is confident, organized and has a very upbeat, positive attitude. She’s an inspiration!

If you're organized and you've taken care of all the details, then there's nothing to be worried about.

The key, Kathleen explained, is getting organized. Kathleen prints off a “Pack & Prep” list and follows it closely. It includes tasks needed to prepare for the trip months in advance, weeks in advance and on the day of. As each task gets checked off the list, the trip seems less and less daunting. Click HERE to download Kathleen’s list and curate it to meet your specific needs.

Making an itinerary helps build excitement and answers the question, what will I do with my time?

Kathleen researches all the places and destinations she wants to go and enters them (including the addresses) as contacts in her phone for easy recall and mapping. These might include museums, art galleries, art supply stores, and bookstores but also nearby medical clinics and/or hospitals. By entering the address of these places in her contacts list on her phone, a map will pop up when she searches for them so that she can easily see how close she is to each place.

Don't let other people or fear of messing up your agenda prevent you from making the right decision in a medical emergency.

Kathleen purchases medical and travel insurance so if something happens (and things do happen occasionally) she is prepared. Recently I spent a day in the hospital in Spain. It was very comforting knowing that my medical insurance would cover the costs. Kathleen shared a similar experience. When Kathleen fell ill it meant curtailing part of her trip but her health is more important.

Another great tip Kathleen shared is that she hides all her important documents such as drivers license, ETA and passport in her phone by taking a picture of them then saving the picture in a hidden photo album. That way if the document is lost, she has a record of it. You can find a hidden photo album on your phone by going to Photos, then scroll down to Utilities, and there you will see Hidden. This hidden photo album can only be opened by using your face ID. Pretty cool, right?

Researching transit options is also really important because knowing exactly how you will get from one place to another will reduce stress. Download apps or purchase transit cards or train tickets in advance if possible.

Knowing that you have taken care of safety and security issues will reduce stress and make you a more confident traveler.

Let’s talk safety and security. These things are really important for solo female travelers. First, be sure that you have updated your emergency contact on your phone. You should probably do this even if you're not traveling. You will find it by doing a search for the Health app. Click the icon then tap your profile picture, then navigate to Medical ID. Then scroll down to Emergency contacts. Be sure to share your itinerary with your emergency contact before you leave home. And to be extra safe, upload the free app "Find My" to your phone and share your location with your emergency contact. They will be able to see exactly where you are on a map in real time while you’re traveling.

Dealing with the elephant in the room--feelings of loneliness or vulnerability.

The best way to combat feelings of loneliness or vulnerability is by having an agenda or goal every day. Kathleen keeps a travel sketchbook. She exercises by taking long walks every morning. She plans a cultural event during the day and sketching in the afternoon. She takes advantage of USk groups that are worldwide by joining the group and going to their events when she’s in town. When dining out she eats earlier to avoid crowds and takes her iPad, phone or book or she does some journaling or works on a sketch.

Being able to travel solo successfully is like having a super power and the more you do it, the better you get at it.

Don’t feel sorry for yourself or get depressed about solo travel. Lots of women are single or widowed or divorced and travel alone and you can too.

Studio 56 vacation workshops and artist retreats are a great way to travel with a group, make new friends and have fun.

You should know that 85% of Studio 56 participants are women and almost all of them travel alone to the workshop destination including the tour manager and instructor. But that’s where the solo travel part ends. Because once you arrive you will be surrounded by like-minded artists who are excited to meet you, share the experience and stay in touch afterwards. You will never eat alone (unless you want to) and if you stay with the group all safety and security issues are eliminated.

Life is short. Let’s push past our fear and enjoy every moment. :)

For more info about upcoming vacation workshops, artist retreats and painting holidays with Studio 56, click HERE.

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