Ever wondered how to make friends solo traveling? Here’s 14 social travel tips on how to make friends traveling alone:

Many people are afraid to dive into solo travel because it seems daunting and lonely to travel alone, or they’ve faced times of loneliness on their solo travels already. But I’m here to tell you that solo travel doesn’t have to be lonely! There are so many ways on how to make friends traveling alone – for those days you are ready to enjoy some company on your solo travels. 

And one of the most special things about solo travel is that I personally think it actually allows you to meet MORE people than you would have done otherwise! Without a companion to buffer you or fall back on, you are more willing to put yourself out there and more aware of connection opportunities when they arise. Ready to make your new travel bestie? Here are 14 tips on how to make friends solo traveling:

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The number one and easiest tip to making friends while traveling alone? Stay in a hostel! Hostels are amazing places to meet a variety of fellow travelers. To make the most of this opportunity, hang out in common areas, join hostel-hosted activities, and even just show up for breakfast. Ask to sit with someone new, strike up a conversation, or bond over last night’s hostel bar crawl. 

If you’re not a fan of shared rooms, book a private room in a hostel, or see if you can sign up for a hostel tour/activity even if you are not staying at that particular hostel – it can depend on the hostel but sometimes they let you join if you sign up in advance! I did this in the Philippines where I stayed just down the road but joined the local hostel’s boat tour by just inquiring the day before and signing up. Check and see if the hostel has a Whatsapp contact line or email and you can ask this way too!

Activities can be expensive when you’re traveling alone, so I often join half-day or full-day tours; it’s a great way to do an activity on your bucket list without the crazy cost of a private tour AND you get to meet people at the same time! I’ve met a lot of other solo travelers on group tours, and also have graciously been invited along to hang out with friend groups during the tour too. More often than not I’ve found people are nicer and more inviting than you think, so don’t discount socializing even if it seems everyone is already paired off with friends they came with.

And bonus – if you stay at a hostel, you can also invite other guests to join you on a group tour; it’s such a fantastic way to immediately have something to bond over and chat about! 

If you’re tired of hostels or maybe hostels aren’t your vibe, I’d highly recommend staying with a local instead! For me, this often looks like staying with a local on Airbnb – a room in a local family’s house, staying in a guesthouse on a local’s property, or even renting out an apartment but meeting up with the host to have a coffee and to pick their brain about local activities. To find a good fit, I read the reviews and get a sense for how social the host is and what others have experienced. 

Staying local is also such a great way to integrate more deeply into the local culture and get a feel for how the locals live, where they like to go and eat, and what life is like in another country.

Make sure to learn local phrases too – if your host doesn’t speak English this is a great way to connect with both them and locals on your travels in general! Download the Google translate app and use this as a way to communicate despite a language barrier – it’s a little slow but I’ve used this EXTENSIVELY to have long chats with locals and it’s been an amazing resource.

For a more social experience throughout the length of your trip, definitely jump on a group trip! I’ve met so many amazing people on group trips and had such a fun time getting to spend a longer time with people I’ve met while traveling – and these are the friends I tend to stay in contact with long after the trip is done! You’ll have so much to connect on and you’ll already know what it’s like to travel longer-term with them – opening up the doors for future trips together!

I have loved group trips so much as a solo traveler that I actually began hosting group trips all over the world for my fellow solo travelers and travel-lovers in general. Want to be friends?! I’d love to have you on one of my group trips.

Learning a new skill while traveling is SO underrated! One of my absolute favorite travel experiences from my solo year of traveling the world was when I did a cooking class in Thailand; it was so fun and I met tons of other travelers and had a great time cooking with them! Having an experience to bond over and help each other learn and grow is a really unique and powerful way to make friends while traveling alone.

Bonus: if you learn something new on your travels, you’ll be able to bring that skill back home from your travels (the BEST souvenir), and be able to share this skill with friends back home, enriching those friendships too.

Shared interests is a solid foundation for friendship, so look up conferences that align with your interest and take a weekend trip to meet others who love the same things as you! One of my personal favorites is the Women in Travel Summit – it was FULL of other solo travelers and women who were just as excited and passionate about travel as I am.

Whatever your interest is, there is a group for that! You can find and join solo travel groups to meet other people traveling alone, you can join backpacker groups who often share trips you can join, you can also join local or expat groups in the country you’re visiting and invite someone to join you for a meal. Facebook is a great place to find groups like this, and my personal recommendation from the Women in Travel Summit is to join the Wanderful membership – it’s an online community with virtual and in-person meetups, travel tips, travel training, events, and more.

Another fantastic way to make friends while traveling alone is by volunteering – I personally love using WorldPackers because I get to enjoy free accommodation, meet locals, and meet other travelers, all while giving back to a community and having a meaningful trip. Volunteer travel can be LIFE-CHANGING and the connections you meet there are ones you don’t often forget. If you want to give it a try, you can use the code “ROAMFREE” for $10 off your WorldPackers membership.

Of all the ways to make friends traveling solo, I’ve probably met the most through social media! Comment on a post, chat with others in DMs, and use social media for its intended purpose – to be social! Just a word of caution – always get to know someone and verify they are who they are and that you would feel SAFE before meeting up in person! Usually I try to ask a shared connection about a potential friend or have a virtual meetup first.

On your travels, make sure to showcase in your body language that you are open to being approached and are friendly. Try minimizing your use of electronics so you can be aware of your surroundings and not have a barrier that otherwise might stop someone from starting up a conversation with you. Sit up, uncross your arms, make eye contact, and smile – the universal sign of friendliness!

One of my favorite apps is still Meetup – both at home and on my solo travels it’s been an easy way to quickly meet up with others who are actively looking and open to friendship and sharing interests. Another great app is eatwith, where you can meet up with a local for dinner at your destination – this is a MUST-TRY because you’ll not only get to connect with a local but you’ll also get to enjoy a fantastic meal somewhere you probably didn’t even know about! If you enjoy meeting and befriending locals, you can also try couchsurfing, where an added bonus is having cheap or no accommodation fees in addition to living local for a while.

Okay, I can admit I am a Type-A planner travel type, and often fall victim to sticking to my plans to a fault. HOWEVER, everytime I have shrugged off the schedule to say YES to an opportunity, it ends up being the highlight of my trip! So be open to saying yes to an invite from a new friend to join them on their upcoming tour, or follow a suggestion from a local to visit a place that wasn’t on your list, and just give yourself a bit of wiggle room for spontaneity. Another word of caution, especially for solo female travelers: just make sure to trust your gut that saying YES feels safe and fun, and have a backup plan in case things fall through or you want to leave a place early.

For those traveling longer-term or maybe as part of a work trip while you’re alone – seek out co-working spaces. To find a co-working space, just type [location + coworking space] and you’ll get a list of places in that area, or you can try Coworker.com or try CoworkingNomads.com for spaces that are geared towards digital nomads. This is a great way to both get work done and have someone to grab after-work drinks with! You never know when you’ll meet an amazing work connection too or a friend who wants to balance work + travel just like you. 

Yes it can be scary, but sometimes to make friends you just have put yourself out there. You never know if someone is feeling just as shy or awkward and is wishing they’d be the one approached! Say hello to someone and strike up a conversation. Make sure to check for open body language – eye contact, a smile, not busy with something else – and be respectful of boundaries if someone does not want to chat with you too. It’s okay, say goodbye, dust yourself off, and try again!

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