Whether by choice or necessity, women travel alone for business or pleasure. Travel expands our perspectives, though many of us would forego Rosanne’s path to self-discovery. Melinda Kelly of Taos Travel suggests a travel agent may help solo travelers avoid unwelcome adventures, noting, “It’s a bit more unnerving for women to travel alone than men.” Melinda serves on the board of the southwest chapter of the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA). Both Melinda and Rosanne tout decades of solo road warrior experience, and offer the following suggestions. Melinda also recommends the Consumer Travel Information section of the ASTA website (www.asta.org) for additional information.

1. Planning. “The main thing for anyone traveling alone,” Melinda says,” is to plan ahead and think out your trip. I’ll need to get to the airport, to my hotel, to an event. How am I going to do that?” She also suggests planning your flight to arrive during the day, if possible, as after dark “it’s more confusing and more difficult to find your way around.”

2. Hotels. First-timers to a city, especially in a foreign country, will want to pre-book at least their first night, Melinda advises. When you are acclimated and find a hotel that exudes charm or is less expensive, you can always move later.
   
   Melinda suggests staying at small hotels “where you’ll have more chance to get to know people at the front desk and the serving people. You’ll have a little community.” Rosanne concurs that developing a family on the road is important. But for business travel, she prefers to frequent the same hotel chain. “People know my name. When you travel so much, to have any kind of community is really nice.” Rosanne will refuse a room on the first floor—too easy for burglars and other miscreants to find an open window.

3. Unwanted Attention. Rosanne devised a unique way to avoid social interaction on a plane. “I put on a fake engagement ring. It’s my announcement, ‘I’m working on this flight.’” She rarely gives out her business card to a new acquaintance on a plane or in a hotel lobby, but will accept theirs. “I want to think about it. I don’t want to give my phone number out without knowing anything about them.”  

4. Going Native. Despite her China experience (or perhaps because of it), Rosanne avidly seeks to understand the culture and people of the countries she visits. She avoids comparing their customs and lifestyle with that of the United States. Still, she cautions, “You’ve got to keep your wits about you.”
   
   Melinda suggests that when traveling to a foreign country, “It’s good to check the expectations for women there, so you dress and act appropriately.” Though it may be tempting to sport a sari in Delhi, “It attracts less attention to dress modestly in western clothes than to pretend you’re a local when you obviously are not.”

5. Flexibility. Melinda says, “The best part of traveling alone is that it makes you more open and flexible to situations that arise.” Rosanne agrees, commenting, “If you have time, don’t be overly structured.”

Flexibility paid off for Rosanne on a solo trip to England, where she encountered a server at a museum café. The server invited Rosanne to her home for lunch, indicating her family did not know many Americans. Imagine Rosanne’s surprise as the taxi drove to a mansion with a Mercedes in the driveway. The girl who served her tea was a museum volunteer. Rosanne spent the afternoon in the home of the Zambian ambassador to England.

If you wish to travel with a tour group, Melinda says singles may feel more comfortable in groups that cater to solo travelers. Also, groups with more exotic or adventurous destinations are less likely to be dominated by couples.

Reach Melinda at Taos Travel, (505) 758-4246, or mkelly@taostravel.com. Contact Rosanne at R. M. Roberts and Associates, (505) 992-1310, or rmroberts@robertsresources.com.

Diane Thome is a freelance writer and owner of DT Research, a marketing research consulting firm.