Solo travel can be a transformational experience.
You learn more about other cultures and meet interesting people. There are iconic sights and majestic scenery to discover and all sorts of new ways to tantalise your taste buds.
But taking those tentative steps towards your first solo adventure can be daunting.
How can you stay safe whilst travelling alone? Will you meet other travellers? How will you combat loneliness as a solo traveller?
I know because I’ve been there.
If you are thinking of travelling alone, solo travel quotes can inspire you to take the plunge. They not only ignite wanderlust and stoke passion for leaping into the unknown, but they can also fortify you as a solo traveller on the road.
To motivate you to book that first solo trip, or to give you strength whilst you are away, here is my specially curated selection of quotes about travelling alone.
The Best Quotes for Solo Travel
I’m going to cut to the chase and jump right in with my favourite solo travel quotes.
There are many of these quotations out there and picking a list of favourites is a tough call. From Marcel Proust to Mark Twain, here are those that continue to inspire me.
The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but having new eyes. – Marcel Proust
We are travelers on a cosmic journey, stardust, swirling and dancing in the eddies and whirlpools of infinity. Life is eternal. We have stopped for a moment to encounter each other, to meet, to love, to share. This is a precious moment. It is a little parenthesis in eternity. – Paulo Coelho
Life is not measured by the number of breaths you take but by the moments that take your breath away
Maya Angelou
I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list. – Susan Sontag
The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page. – St. Augustine
It Is Better To See Something Once Than To Hear About It A Thousand Times. – Asian Proverb
Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming Wow! What a Ride! – Hunter S. Thompson
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover
Mark Twain
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Quotes to Inspire You to Book Your Solo Trip
Every journey begins with a single step. But taking that first step is often the most difficult, whether that’s booking your first trip alone or quitting your job.
Indecision and delays are the parents of failure. – George Canning
I don’t do anything with my life except romanticise and decay with indecision. – Allen Ginsberg
These first quotes reflect one of the main internal conflicts of would-be solo travellers; the desire to set out alone for the first time whilst simultaneously experiencing the paralysis of analysis. You are bound to feel nervous about your first solo adventure but need to tell yourself that travelling alone is the right decision for you.
To get through the hardest journey we need take only one step at a time, but we must keep on stepping. – Chinese Proverb
Aim for the sky, but move slowly, enjoying every step along the way. It is all those little steps that make the journey complete. – Chanda Kochhar
Beginnings are usually scary and endings are usually sad, but it’s everything in between that makes it all worth living.
Bob Marley
One of the greatest journeys in life is overcoming insecurity and learning to truly not give a shit. – A. Konrath
Don’t be scared to walk alone. Don’t be scared to like it. – John Mayer
Not everyone will understand your journey. That’s okay. You’re here to live your life, not to make everyone understand. – Banksy
Solo travel not only pushes you out of your comfort zone, it also pushes you out of the zone of others’ expectations. – Suzy Strutner
Don’t listen to what they say, go see. – Chinese Proverb
These last three quotes in particular speak to me. One of the worst things about solo travel is how other people view it. Reactions to the revelation that you are travelling alone sit on that spectrum from pity to admiration.
Ignore the detractors.
Finding Your Path When Travelling Alone
Once you’ve taken the plunge and embarked on your first solo trip, it’s easy to become disillusioned if plans don’t work out the way that you would like. Don’t let this put you off.
During my 30+ years of travelling alone, some of the best experiences have resulted from unexpected plan changes. In travel as in life, sometimes getting lost is the first step to finding our way and there is not necessarily one right path.
The correct path is the one that is right for you.
Life is a journey that has a lot of different paths, but any path you choose use it as your destiny. – Ryan Leonard
In the middle of the journey of our life I found myself astray in a dark wood where the straight road had been lost sight of.
Dante Alighieri
Two roads diverged in a wood and … I took the one less traveled. – Robert Frost
The Transformational Effects of Solo Travel
The rewards of solo travel far outstrip its challenges. By stepping outside your comfort zone, you discover your true self and abilities and will feel empowered to do things you never would have contemplated.
The next set of travel alone quotes reflects the transformational effects of pushing the boundaries set by your limitations.
Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind. Anthony Bourdain
I have traveled many roads in my life. Some were imbued with pain and I needed to avert my gaze. Others were so beautiful that I would have remained there forever. But always, at some point in these routes, I reached a place where I encountered myself. -Pablo Holmberg
Great things never came from comfort zones
Anonymous
I believe that life is a journey, often difficult and sometimes incredibly cruel, but we are well equipped for it if only we tap into our talents and gifts and allow them to blossom. – Les Brown
Traveling allows you to become so many different versions of yourself. – Anonymous
As you travel solo, being totally responsible for yourself, it’s inevitable that you will discover just how capable you are! – Unknown
You must go on adventures alone to find out where you belong.– Sue Fitzmaurice
How Travelling Alone Can Change Your World View
I defy anyone to travel alone and come back the same person. Solo travel can reframe how you view the world around you.
These quotes refer to how travel can change your perspective on everyday things.
With age, comes wisdom. With travel, comes understanding. – Sandra Lake
If you don’t get out of the box you’ve been raised in, you won’t understand how much bigger the world is. – Angelina Jolie
A mind that is stretched by new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr
Solo female travel quotes
Solo travel statistics suggest that women are the driving force of this segment of the travel industry.
For instance, 85% of solo travellers registered with Overseas Adventure Travel are women. And in China, ten times more women than men have travelled alone overseas.
This set of quotations captures the independent spirit of solo female travellers.
The woman who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The woman who walks alone is likely to find herself in places no one has ever been before.
Albert Einstein
As a woman I have no country. As a woman my country is the whole world. – Virginia Woolf
I want to do it because I want to do it. Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be but a challenge to others. – Amelia Earhart
When a woman becomes her own best friend life is easier. – Diane Von Furstenberg
Never did the world make a queen of a girl who hides in houses and dreams without traveling. – Roman Payne
Traveling solo does not always mean you’re alone. Most often, you meet marvellous people along the way and make connections that last a lifetime. – Jacqueline Boone
Motivational Solo Travel Captions
Sometimes you just need a short and pithy solo travel quote to copy and paste into your Twitter, Instagram or Facebook post. Here’s my pick of the best travel captions about travelling alone.
You have to get lost before you can be found. – Jeff Rasley
Adventure is worthwhile. – Aesop
Wherever you go, go with all your heart! – Confucius.
Travel Far Enough, You Meet Yourself. – David Mitchell
Dare to live the life you always wanted.
Unknown
The Final Word
And that’s a wrap! Bookmark this article, copy and paste these captions into your social media feed or send them to a friend who’s planning to travel alone.
Whichever way you use them, I hope these solo travel quotes help to inspire you to travel alone for the first time or sustain you through challenging times.
If you are looking for something a little meatier, check out these amazing solo travel books. From practical guides to inspirational memoirs from female solo travellers past and present, there’s something for everyone.
But let’s not forget one of the toughest parts of travelling; coming home. When the post-travel blues threaten to bite, take some solace from this final quote:
DISCOVER MORE INSPIRATIONAL TRAVEL QUOTES!
About Bridget
Bridget Coleman has been a passionate traveller for more than 30 years. She has visited 70+ countries, most as a solo traveller.
Articles on this site reflect her first-hand experiences.
To get in touch, email her at hello@theflashpacker.net or follow her on social media.