People always prefer solo travel when they need to break out their stress and want to hang out with new people. Solo travel is the best way to explore ourselves. To take in new surroundings unfiltered by the prejudices, tastes, or preferences of a traveling companion can be heady stuff.

Solo travel can be the ultimate in self-indulgence; you can rest when you want and pour it on when you’re feeling ambitious. Another benefit is that your mistakes are your own, and your triumphs all the more exciting.

It’s not only the pace of solo travel that differs so greatly from journeys with a companion or large group. People traveling alone must also do the work that might otherwise have been shared: planning the trip, remembering the hotel room key, keeping track of addresses and hours, rescheduling when circumstances change. But for all the extra effort, there’s no one to disappoint if you get something wrong. You are on vacation—forgive yourself. Take a nap.

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton