Travelling as a young woman can feel daunting. You may be wary due to horror stories that you hear of independent travel, and the sad reality is that, as a young woman in today’s society, you may encounter some unwanted attention, harassment or even worse.
However, this should not deter you at all from experiencing travel in the way that you wish too, whether this be in a group or alone.
Having an open dialogue about the realities of travelling as a young woman can help to ease the tension, or potential anxieties that you may have surrounding your upcoming, or ongoing, trip.
Making Contact
As small as this may seem, allowing people to know your whereabouts, your plans, and your itinerary will help ensure your safety.
That way, if your friends or family do not hear from you, they could contact the hostel where you are meant to be staying and ensure that everything is ok.
This may seem like an encroaching action, but explaining the boundaries you wish your family to have to ensure your safety is a great idea before starting your journey. This means that you have someone roughly knowing your whereabouts, which could really help if you did run into an unexpected problem.
Meeting new people is one of the most exciting parts about travel. However, dorms in hostels can also provide people with worries of their own.
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This is where you sleep and store your belongings, and so is of course one of your most vulnerable places. This is due to you relaxing and potentially being off guard. If this is a concern, then staying in a female-only dorm may be your best option.
Additionally, if you are unhappy with the people in your dorm, make sure to talk to the hostel staff. They are there to ensure your safety and, if there was a problem, reporting it is the best port of call to make sure you are in the safest situation.
Furthermore, there are Facebook pages for different locations across the world, where you can meet similar women in your situation. If you are travelling alone and wish to meet people safely and quickly, then joining Facebook pages that hold specific events, tours, and nights out is a great way to break the ice with like-minded people.
Be Aware
As challenging as this is to do 24/7, being alert is a large part of travelling as a young woman. Ensure you don’t leave your drink unattended, that you have people around you on nights out that can assist you if you need them, and making sure you are safe is a constant priority.
However, this does not mean that you don’t have some real fun. It just means that you also are aware of how far you are from home, and how vigilant you need to be to not make any decisions that could harm or jeopardize your safety.
There is a large majority of helpful, kind and caring people that you will meet and have in your life. However, people also tend to prey on and take advantage of young female travellers.
This is just the reality of life, and something that women have been programmed to learn to deal with. This is not right and is a separate battle and argument of its own.
But ensuring you are in the safest situations you can be, means you can take in every experience you wish to whilst you travel. This is a huge priority.
Emergency Services
For those who are travelling, enjoy yourself, as these are some of the most formative experiences that you will have.
But just be careful and keep in mind the above information to ensure your safety.
Finally, wherever you are travelling to, make a note of the emergency service numbers. That way, if you do run into any trouble, you will be aware of who to call.
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