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In today’s post we’re going to dive into some awesome tips for solo female travel safety.

I reached out to Chelsey Schultz, a third-degree blackbelt and female travel safety expert, to provide her top safety advice for solo women travelers.

In this post you will learn how to be more aware of your surroundings, plan for the unexpected, communicate more effectively, meet new people that can help, and how to avoid conflict.

Chelsey is an expert in female travel safety and is sharing her best safety tips here with you.

Let’s get right into Chelsey’s top tips for solo female travel safety!

The following is written by Chelsey Schultz. Chelsey is the creator of The Ninja Gypsy, a travel safety blog designed to help travelers around the world to be safe wherever they go.

Introduction to Safety for Solo Female Travelers

The world is a fascinating place, just waiting for you to explore. You want to get out there, but you are scared.

Being a solo female traveler can be daunting and can sometimes unsafe.

Don’t let that stop you!

To help you stay safe, here are my top safety tips for solo female travelers.

5 Essential Tips for Solo Female Travel Safety

1.  Be Aware

One of the most horrifying things that I witnessed when I was traveling solo was when I saw other solo female travelers who were oblivious to the world around them.

Whether they were snapping a picture for Instagram or wholly smashed in a bar, they had no idea what was going on.

Being aware of your surroundings is vital to maintain your safety. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t snap that pic for your followers or that you can’t have a drink, but it needs to be done correctly.

How can you be aware of your surroundings?

There are a lot of “don’ts” that I could name, but you probably already know them. So, what should you do?

The most important thing to do is to keep your eyes up and your ears open.

Keeping your eyes up and your ears open allows your brain to take in extreme amounts of information. It will automatically filter out anything unimportant as well as alert you when something seems off.

If you hear a shoe scuff close behind you or you see a group of men staring at you, your brain will give you a nudge to notice and react appropriately.

Therefore, if you are walking down the street, in a crowded festival, or just chilling in your hostel, keep your mind engaged as to what and who is around you.

READ MORE: 10 Awesome Tips for Solo Female Travelers

2.  Have a Plan

Whether you are going to the next town over or to the other side of the planet, it is vital to have a plan.

I’m not asking you to plan out every moment of your trip, no way! What I mean is to have an idea of what you will do when something inevitably goes wrong. 

Take a moment to think about these horrible scenarios: your credit card gets lost, your backpack gets stolen, your car breaks down, you miss your flight, your cell phone dies, or even that you get attacked. What are you going to do?

In teaching self-defense, we call it playing the “What If?” game.

What if any of those terrible situations above happen to you? Do you have a plan on how to react?

Take some time BEFORE you head out to travel solo to come up with detailed answers for those problems. Then think of other issues that may occur and come up with solutions for those as well.

While it may not be the most fun game, it will help you be prepared instead of succumbing to disaster. 

3.  Communicate Confidently

In many cultures around the world, women aren’t valued at the level that they should be. They are trained to want to please or to say “yes” to requests.

In some cases, men believe that they can use that to influence you into doing something that you don’t want to do. 

Whether it is a verbal request such as agreeing to dance, letting them by you a drink, saying “yes” to a date or a physical request like putting their arm around you, kissing you, or touching you, you have the CHOICE to choose what you want. If you want to, go ahead.

However, if you do not want to, then say “NO” and stick to it.

Many people think that they can change your mind after you have made a decision. They may rephrase the question, guilt you, antagonize you, or annoy you, thinking that they can sway your decision in their favor.

DON’T LET THEM! 

When you have made your decision, stick to it.

I always like to say to “become a broken record.” When you become a broken record, make it abundantly clear what you are saying, such as “I don’t want to dance with you.” Repeat it until they take the hint.

If they don’t, get louder and try to move away. Finding a buddy or getting to a safe location would be the next steps to take if communication is not working. 

4.  Grab a Buddy

One of the best parts of traveling solo is getting to be SOLO.

Yet, the phrase “strength lies in numbers” is accurate and could potentially save your life. If you are ever feeling threatened or uncomfortable, finding a buddy can help. 

Women, in particular, have a protective nature over their fellow women.

If you are alone in a bar, getting creeped on by an unsavory individual, see if you can find another lady or group of ladies in the crowd. Head straight to them, discreetly tell them what is going on, and ask if you can join them until the threat has passed. Most of the time, they will pull you into the fold to become the shield you need. 

Other individuals you can turn to in a time of need would be bartenders, bouncers, police officers, hostel/hotel staff, etc.

If you are in trouble, make your way to the nearest store and ask the clerk to call emergency services and see if they will let you hide behind the desk. Of course, police stations, fire stations, and hospitals are other major buildings where you can walk in to ask for help.

Please remember that it is okay to ask for help.

Just because you are traveling solo doesn’t mean that you are alone. There is a whole community of individuals who are willing to help you, all you have to do is ask.

READ MORE: 20 Easy Ways to Meet People While Traveling Solo

5.  Get Away 

One of the best methods of avoiding conflict is to get out of the situation. If you are ever feeling unsafe, for any reason, get out of there. 

When you get away, always go into populated areas.

Busy streets, malls, markets, emergency service stations, hospitals, and town squares are usually brimming with life.

Never run down on alley or try to hide in an isolated place.

If the baddie manages to find you, your chances of survival just went way down because no one is around to help you.

Knowing when to get away, when the situation has escalated to a point where you need to get out, can be difficult. That is why you must listen to your instincts.

We all have instincts. That feeling that something isn’t right, even if you can’t pinpoint it. We have all been there. Often times, people ignore their instincts. That is incredibly STUPID!

I’m not trying to make you feel poorly, but your instincts were designed to keep you alive, and purposefully ignoring them will lead you into dangerous situations.

Listen to your instincts. If something doesn’t feel right, leave. If you were wrong, oh well. But if you were right, you could have saved your life.

Final Thoughts on Solo Female Travel Safety

Be Safe:

I know that thinking about safety and self-defense can be scary, but it is a vital component of life, not just traveling solo. 

Even if you read all of this information and it slips out of your head by tomorrow, there is one thing that I want you to take away. 

You deserve to be safe. 

It doesn’t matter who you are or what you think of yourself, you deserve to be safe. 

Whatever happens out there, fight for your safety. Don’t let anyone, including yourself, take it away from you. You deserve to be safe. Make it happen.

Now I’d Like to Hear from You

I hope you enjoyed Chelsey’s list of top tips for solo female travel safety.

Now I would like to hear from you.

What did you think of her tips for solo female travel safety?

What are your favorite safety tips for solo female travel?

Is there anything you think she left out?

Let me know by leaving a quick comment below!

Chelsey Schultz is the creator of The Ninja Gypsy, a travel safety blog designed to help travelers around the world to be safe wherever they go. Chelsey is a third-degree blackbelt and is travel obsessed. Last year she published her first book on solo female travel called “Inspired: The Stories of Nine Solo Female Travelers.” If you are interested in learning more about The Ninja Gypsy, you can follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest.

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