Anyone been backpacking solo?

[sasguru]

Travel alone, you will meet people. If you set off with someone you already know, you will bring your home life along and will miss a lot of what you might otherwise have seen.

True that. The backpacking trips with a gf were not half as much fun.

[Wanderer]

Has anyone ever done it on their own? how did they find it?

Best thing I ever did. Don't take anything you don't want to lose.

[Ketchup]

Thank you for the responses, it is something i have wanted to do since i was young, had planned to go on my gap year but had an operation which meant i was hospitalised for 3 months. Wish i had done it then, as however much i try and shut it off, there will always be a voice in my head worrying about the .net market and thinking how much each day is costing me, but one can't live their life like that.

[xoggoth]

Hitchhiked round most of Europe, starting with Denmark when I was 16. Once with a male friend (although we tended to travel separately and meet up as people didn't like picking up two males) and twice with girlfriends. The times I went alone were by far the most fun though, as said above, you meet all sort of people and have more freedom to do what you want.

[doodab]

I have worked out i have had 4 days off in the last 3 years and have decided I want to treat myself to a long break at the end of my current gig. All my friends are permies and would not be able to take more than 2 weeks off. So i was thinking of taking 3-6 months and do a bit of traveling. I am 28 now and think i need to do this now or i never will.

Has anyone ever done it on their own? how did they find it?

Yes although not really backpacking ,but solo travel.

It's great fun, when you're on your own you meet people and do things you wouldn't do if you were with other people.

[formant]

I have worked out i have had 4 days off in the last 3 years and have decided I want to treat myself to a long break at the end of my current gig. All my friends are permies and would not be able to take more than 2 weeks off. So i was thinking of taking 3-6 months and do a bit of traveling. I am 28 now and think i need to do this now or i never will.

Has anyone ever done it on their own? how did they find it?

I did an 8 week interrail/backpacking trip through the UK on my own 10 years ago (so at 18). That was before I moved here obviously. I'd like to do something similar somewhere slightly more 'exotic' eventually.

[Mich the Tester]

Yep, Pennine Way (in winter), West Highland Way, India for 4 weeks, Southern Europe for 6 weeks hitchhiking from beach to beach, Zimbabwe for 4 weeks (before Mugabe lost his marbles), Kenya and Tanzania. Tanzania was brilliant for backpacking; very friendly people, great weather and scenery and (20 years ago) rock bottom prices for almost anything. Southern Europe was best for meeting intellectually, aesthetically and physically stimulating females. India might have been good except for dyssentry. Kenya was OK, but much more stressful than Tanzania (I don't think Tanzanians actually know what 'stress' is). If you go to Africa, just accept that things aren't always as modern or quick as here and people do things at a pace that fits the climate.

Always went alone; no arguments, did exactly what I wanted.

[Troll]

Hitchhiked round most of Europe, starting with Denmark when I was 16. Once with a male friend (although we tended to travel separately and meet up as people didn't like picking up two males) and twice with girlfriends. The times I went alone were by far the most fun though, as said above, you meet all sort of people and have more freedom to do what you want.

Did you find any problems with Holland - seemed to be not the done thing to hitch hike judging by the lack of lifts I got there...

[Mich the Tester]

Did you find any problems with Holland - seemed to be not the done thing to hitch hike judging by the lack of lifts I got there...

Holland was easy 20 years ago, but it's become a tight-arsed scaredypants stuck up git society like much of northern Europe.

[Bunk]

I did a year backpacking around Australia in 2004-2005. As others have said, it's very easy to meet people. I still see friends I made on that trip every week now.

I'd recommend leaving the contractor lifestyle behind for the trip though. Slum it for a while, it's a lot easier to meet people in a hostel than a nice hotel, and it'll be more fun too I reckon.