Wyndham Wisdom
10 Tips for Solo Women Travelers
By CHARYN PFEUFFER
Most of the time, I'm flying solo when I travel. Sure, living in Philadelphia and Baltimore stepped up my street smarts, but as a woman, I take extra precautions to keep my eyes on my person, space, and stuff.
For 13 years, I'd traveled as a writer without incident until this past May when my laptop got stolen. I got too comfortable too fast in a foreign environment with a total stranger. Shame on me for letting down my guard so easily; as a savvy traveler I should've known better.
This theft made me rethink my personal safety as a solo woman traveler. And it served as a reminder that you can take 100+ flights a year, stay in dozens of hotels annually, and think you have all the common sense in the world, yet still slip up.
Since we could all use a reminder every now and again, here are 10 tips to help keep solo women travelers safe:
"When pre-ordering breakfast, don't identify yourself as a woman alone. When filling out the information on the form you leave on your doorknob, only fill in your initials or your last name." - Kathy Ameche, Traveler-In-Chief of www.WomanRoadWarrior.com
"Carry a whistle in your purse. If you're in danger, blow the whistle - it's an alert signal recognized in every country." - Melanie Nayer, Solo Travel blogger for www.WomenOnTheirWay.com/jane-air
"Study a map before you go. Use Google Maps to locate not only fun restaurants and shops, but local police stations or the US Embassy. You can also download maps straight to your iPod or phone that way you avoid signaling potential predators that you are lost or a tourist - no giant paper maps!" - Emily Lape, Owner, Crow Water Parfum
"Research the local dress codes and dress appropriately; this doesn't mean dressing in ethic/local dress unless you want to, but it does mean covering all appropriate spots." -
Shannon O'Donnell, round the world traveler http://ALittleAdrift.com
"Limit the amount of information shared about your travel plans - before and during the trip. If you're a physician, there is no reason to use that title. In some countries it is an open invitation for kidnapping as it advertises 'wealthy.'"-- Lynn Walters, Chief Marketing Officer of Escape The Wolf
"When I was younger and traveling alone, I would often befriend an older more mature woman and ask to sit with her on the trip - either on a bus or train. Two plusses -one; you're not as vulnerable to either the unwanted advances of men or to being robbed and two; they are often the most intriguing, well read, socially astute people to meet." - Angela Rowton-Gonzalez of Louisville, Kentucky
"I make sure that the phone works properly. With cell phones and the like we
sometimes never check hotel phones, but you never know when you may need to make
an emergency call from the phone." - Tiffani Murray, author of Stuck on Stupid: A Guide for Today's Single Woman Stuck in Yesterday's Stupid Relationships
"Always, always, always learn key words in the language of the country where you are traveling - particularly 'Help me!"' - Emily Starbuck Crone of http://maiden-voyage-travel.com.
"Put on your blinders. Always have a sense of what's going on in your periphery, but avoid unintentionally engaging with every guy on the street by looking ahead." - Erica Ellis, Seattle, WA
One of my favorite travel tips is to register with U.S. Department of State. It takes two minutes to fill out the online form and if something newsworthy (and not in the good way) goes down in your destination, they'll be the first to let you (or a contact at home) know.
Ladies, what are your favorite solo traveler tips? I'll keep compiling them and post 10 new tips in a few months. Send your tips to cpfeuffer@yahoo.com.
