Ever since I started travelling solo back in 2014, I get asked this question alot. “How do you prepare for a backpacking trip?” Honestly, my reply to this question is usually, “I don’t.” When I say that, I mean I don’t do ample research, I don’t book hostels, tours, and especially not my return flight back. However, there are a few things that I do before a solo trip.
1. If you are going to find hosts on Couchsurfing, do ample research
This point, I cannot stress enough. Sometimes, all you have to do is make sure the person has credible references, a legit description of him/her and the place you will be staying in. Oh yeah, and of course talk to them for some time before arriving to build some rapport. You are going to be roomies with them after all! Sending requests ahead of your arrival date helps a lot because people usually don’t check their messages/requests everyday and you will be less likely to get a host if you send a request on the day itself. If you are lucky, you might get one though!
2. Book your hostel for the first night (or the second night too, if you wanna be safe)
If you are not using Couchsurfing or can’t find any hosts, you can always book your hostel for the first night. In that way, I can be sure I have somewhere to stay when I arrive at the city but also know that I might be able to find even better options when talking to locals. For example, when I was in China, some of the more local and much cheaper hostels were not listed online. Instead, they have this local app called Meituan, where you can get absolutely amazing deals like 5RMB/night for a bed in a dorm.
3. Buy travel insurance
I usually buy a single trip insurance plan as I am always unsure how long my trip will be. However, if you are sure that your trip would be less than 90 days, I suggest you take the annual plan. Usually, single trips cost more because you can get coverage for up to 180 days. For annual trips, maximum coverage is 90 days per trip but unlimited trips for the whole year. Bear in mind that if your trip exceeds 90days/180days, your coverage is immediately invalid. That’s the case for most insurance company in Singapore, I don’t know much about overseas though.
Well, I have heard from some traveller friends that they never buy travel insurance. Especially those that are going to be on the road for a year or more. For me, I personally believe in buying travel insurance, even if it is minimum coverage because I always lose my things, and sometimes I go trekking/hiking (danger might arise, you never know haha). I mean, it also makes your family feel more at ease especially if you are a girl who’s travelling alone.
4. Roughly know where you want to go
If you are on a super tight budget, it’s always good to know how long you want to stay in each city or where you want to head to next. I find that when I travel, transport is always where I unexpectedly spend the most money.
5. Talk to people who have been to those places
And write down their travel tips and advice. Be it places to visit, food to try or things to see, it’s always easier to get advice from like minded travellers/friends than to research and browse through endless articles online.
6. Have an emergency fund
For me personally, I usually set aside just enough money for my return tickets home. Depending on which country you will be heading to, roughly calculate how much you will need for your return tickets. Unless you have no intentions of going back home, I guess this “fund” is quite necessary. I mean, shit happens when you travel (not enough money for hostels when it is peak season, food turns out to be much more expensive than you thought, unexpectedly spend more than you calculated, losing money along the way, etc etc etc) So, better be safe than sorry. Or at least, be sure that you have someone back at home that could lend you a couple of hundreds in case of emergency.
This is all I can think of for what I would usually do before my solo trips. So, that’s all folks! I will probably write another article if I think of more things before my next trip (probably to India)!
xx
Solo Expeditions 