Solo or Group travel – Which is for You?

I have always travelled solo, but also found myself travelling in a group during my solo travels. There are pros and cons to both and I want to share my insights into this topic, and hopefully help you decide which is better for you!

Solo or Group Travel?

Now I am a big fan of solo travel. But it can be a lonely place sometimes. You won’t always meet people that’s just a fact of solo travel. But when you do it can be great! I meet a lot of people that are in a group or pair from home, and they are having a great time as well! It really depends on you and what you feel comfortable doing.

I find when I’m travelling in a group I meet a lot fewer people than I would if I’m travelling alone. I put this down to the fact that I’m already with people and I don’t feel the need to find more people to go out on a day trip with or go to a bar with. Of course, I don’t just ignore people when I’m in a group but the desire to meet people diminishes somewhat.

I also see that a lot of people that are already in a group stick to their group. They don’t really venture out and try and bring new people in, I talk in another post about this further and I will link it later on.

Now some of the best times I’ve had travelling are when I’ve been in a group, you build chemistry and have more fun (in my experience) than with people you just met. If you are travelling with friends from back home that’s already there for you.

Travelling with Friends from Home.

I have never personally travelled with my friends from home. But I have met a lot of people that have. It can be great to have someone to share all the memories and stories with. But you also need to take into consideration you will be with them 24 hours a day for x amount of months. Arguments will happen!

I would assume it would be easier to travel with friends because you know each other well and can help each other out. But I also believe it can bring some issues. If you are in a group and you want to do something but everyone else doesn’t, you can be outvoted. Also like I said before because you are a tight-knit group, you probably won’t meet as many people as you will socialize more within your group. I feel although travelling with friends would be a great experience there can be some pitfalls.

Heres a good list of tips to travelling with friends that I found online.

Travelling With a Group as a Solo Traveller.

Now, this is something I love doing. Forming a group of travel friends that stick together for a few days, weeks or even months! It sounds cynical but I prefer these groups because I know that when I want to, I can go off and do my own thing. The best thing it’s totally acceptable!

When I say I prefer solo travel, I don’t, I prefer travelling with people. But many different people, that come and go over time. Being alone is the worst part of solo travel for me (sometimes it can be nice) but the solo part means you can meet more people.

I like to have the freedom to do what I like. If you want to go in a different direction from the rest of your group you can. Maybe you can meet up with them somewhere else down the line.

Some of my best memories whilst travelling are whilst I’ve been in an organically formed group of random travellers!

Solo Travel.

Solo travel to me is just the act of boarding a plane alone. You won’t be “solo” for long there are so many other solo travellers that everyone is looking for new friends to go out and explore with.

I talked about forming groups above but being solo and going out for the day with someone you just met in the hostel can be as much fun! Some of my good friends are people I haven’t seen in months that I met in hostels at breakfast. Just ask people what they’re doing for the day, see if they wanna go out together and you’ll have a great time! It’s really so easy to make friends in hostels. Everyone is going to be interesting and you all have something in common. A love for travel! Read further about why I think you should travel solo here.

In Summary.

It’s such a personal choice whether solo or group travel is for you!

I love the freedom of solo travel. I feel as though if you travel with friends from home you lose a lot of this freedom. But you will never be lonely and you will have people around you that you rely on at all times. It’s really about weighing up the pros and cons and looking at what you want from your trip.

Just do what you want to do and take the plunge! Make sure to read my packing list first though!