"For the Women, By the Women" – In Honor of #InternationalWomensDay, Tips by Female Bloggers

This womens day is special. Especially because it celebrates the women of the 21st century. 2015 has marked a year of glorious women, playing their roles of female protagonists, female entrepreneurs, female solo travelers and more. No other time in history has seen this breed with such vigor, independence and confidence. And what is most special, is the fact that these women are today laying the foundations of a world which is ‘For the women, By the women’. We together inspire and engage each other with an unseizable spirit to conquer the world on our own, needing no partner to protect or save us. We are ‘whole’ in our ourselves, and this is what this post celebrates today, on 8th of March, the International Women’s day!  

With everyone contributing to this day in their very own way, I thought it deserved a noteworthy space on StreetTrotter too. Thus in my tiny attempt to honor the ever-increasing pool of successful Women Bloggers, I asked a few of my favorites to share and recommend tips on female travel from their very own experiences. And here is what each of them had to share…

Be Spontaneous and embrace what follows:

My best piece of advice for solo female travellers is to be flexible!  It’s great to have a rough idea of some ‘must see’ places along your route but, in my experience, that will always change once you set off.  When travelling through South America for five months I had a handful of places that I definitely wanted to go to but I left the rest for fate to decide.  It all depended on the people I met along the way and the advice other travellers gave.  And of course, being flexible allows you to discover hidden gems and unexpected locations that weren’t on your initial itinerary, and those are usually the moments that you remember for the longest time because they pleasantly surprise you.  The people you meet along the route, and the things they tell you, make your trip go from great to truly AMAZING so embrace them all and enjoy every moment.

– WhatAWonderfulWorld by Marcella

Know your limitations and follow your feminine instinct: 

I strongly believe that women should travel solo at least once in their life to start loving themselves and finding their anchor of happiness and stability within themselves. There’s nothing more beautiful than a confident & comfortable in her own skin woman.

Having said all this, safety is always utmost on my mind. As a solo woman traveler I know that I attract more attention than the rest and knowing my limitations help. I mean, I would not venture into dark, unsafe/isolated looking areas after dark or with a stranger. Stay away from food/drink offered by strangers or just pretend to have it and insist on sharing the heartier portion with them.

I don’t carry pepper spray but have recently found out that perfume/deodorant is a great alternative of it. At a new guesthouse, B&B etc, check out suspicious looking objects for hidden cameras in the bathrooms. (This one hails from horrible personal experience). If traveling at night insist on being seated with a female fellow traveler (especially in India), or in an open compartment, and avoid taxis as much as possible at night, no matter in whichever part of the world you are in. Last and not the least, follow your feminine instinct. It has never let me down.

– Maverickbird by Svetlana Baghawan

Carry your little one as a Travel Happy Baby: 

I have always loved to travel and discover new places and culture. However having a baby can mean a little bit of restrictions on your last minute backpacker trips!

The little trick of having a travel happy baby is by attending to his basic needs of hunger, thirst and sleep. We always stock up on his favorite snacks and drinks, to pamper him a little. A smart thing to do is that we always schedule his flights to match with his usual sleeping time. While he was a little baby, we would request for the front seat that comes with an infant bassinet. Also, we always dress him comfortable for the climate and carry a few spares. Another important point is to make sure we carry his emergency medical kit and a few handy toys! Kids can always be unpredictable, but then who wouldn’t love an adventure in their trips?

– Monsoon Breeze by Blina Sandeep 

There are many people out there who are glad to help: 

Throughout my travels I have felt that solo traveling for women has more pros than cons. Yes there are safety issues, but sitting in one place is not the solution. Solo travelling enriches you and makes you grow, socially, emotionally and spiritually. Once a woman travels solo, even for a short trip, she is a newer person.

Being a photographer, there have been incidents where I have been photographing crazy crowds during Holi and the policemen have been really helpful, kind and considerate. Honestly, more than we actually imagine – there are many people out there who are glad to help. The good part of being a female photographer is that most people don’t have an issue when you click them. Definitely you are treated differently! Some extra tips to photograph while traveling would be to research well, get to know locals, trust your instincts, leave feminism aside when it comes to safety and just believe in yourself. Every experience will make you wiser and evolve you as a person!

– Quirky Wanderer by Divyakshi Gupta 

Push yourself only as much as you are comfortable with: 

The more I travel, the more I realize how picky I am about the companions I’m travelling with. Sometimes, even good friends make for way-less-than-perfect travel companions (only, you can’t always tell them so!). Which is why I prefer travelling either as a twosome (made sure my boyfriend checks most boxes on my Ideal Travel Partner list), or solo. There are enough blogs out there about the awesomeness of solo travel but for females contemplating their first solo travel or looking for tips, here’s my two cents. Trust your instincts: If someone doesn’t give you great vibes, be polite but firm and walk away. Push yourself only as much as you are comfortable with: you don’t have to go along with the crazy party bunch you just met, if you don’t feel up to it.

Try being connected as much as possible through a local/roaming SIM card and/or internet. Know where you are: Even if your GPS doesn’t work, say on a remote trek, did you know that Google Maps can often work offline if you opened the map (and kept the tab active) while you still have internet connectivity? If required, keep something on you that gives you confidence – pepper spray or a Swiss army knife. I always carry pepper spray; though I haven’t come remotely close to wanting to use it, it’s a great psychological support. Just take sensible precautions you would anyway take while commuting in your own city, and know a little beforehand about the place you’re visiting – that’s all it boils down to. Happy and safe travels, girls!

– A Yearful of Sundays by Amiya

On a parting note, StreetTrotter wishes everyone a very Happy International Womens Day, and I also thank all these wonderful female bloggers to help me put together this post – even on a very last minute notice. I also request all the other lovely women reading this article to comment with their added tips and suggestions, to continue this circle of #FortheWomenBytheWomen !

P.S. – Men are invited to comment too. 

To read further on Solo Travel Tips, visit : The SAFETY GUIDE to SOLO TRAVEL