When I travel, whether alone or with others, there is always something I absolutely want to do: meet new people.
📋 The key takeaway: Meeting people while traveling requires creating opportunities without seeming pushy. The 5 places that always work: youth hostels (common room in the evening), free walking tours, local cooking classes, neighborhood bars outside tourist areas, and Couchsurfing/Meetup platforms. The secret: traveling alone boosts encounters, traveling as a couple/group unintentionally hinders them.
Meeting people while traveling
I will talk to you about the usefulness and places to meet new people: here. In this article, I will give you the reasons why you should do it.
The reasons are as follows:
🗣️ My experience: In Cuzco, I joined a free walking tour alone on a Tuesday morning. Out of the 12 participants, I befriended 3 Germans and one Argentinian. That same evening we had dinner together, and the next day we left as a group of 5 for the Sacred Valley. Four days shared, contacts kept since then. Without this free tour, I would probably have left alone. The walking tour remains my number one hack when arriving in a new city.
- Sharing experiences: while traveling, it is important to gain experience by listening to others’ adventures. There is one important thing when you travel: that thing is information; the better informed you are, the better prepared you are for your trip. When I was looking for work in Australia, opening up to other people allowed me to find work many times.
- Meeting people allows you to open up to others and thus improve your communication skills and curiosity. The first time I went to Thailand was my first experience in a developing country. At that time, I met foreigners living in Thailand. Thanks to these acquaintances, I was able to go to places I would never have gone to without making these connections.
🍀 Traveling alone to meet people
- Everyone naturally comes to you
- Freedom to follow the encounters
- Builds resourcefulness and language skills
- More memorable experiences
🔻 Traveling alone, the downside
- Higher cost (single supplement)
- Possible loneliness at low points
- Less safe in some countries
- Harder to get photos taken
- Meeting people is having a new experience. The more experiences you have, the more you adapt to situations.
- Encounters can create friendships and when you have problems abroad, these encounters can help you overcome them. I remember one evening when I met some German women in Thailand, the next day I saw them again and their bungalow had been burglarized, they had lost their wallets. I then helped them without any problem.
Some ways to succeed in your travel encounters
⚠️ Classic trap
Staying in a private hotel room thinking you will meet people. Classic hotels have almost no common life. To meet people: hostels (even in a private room if you want privacy, but use the common kitchen), family guesthouses, or Airbnb with a host present. The structure of the place makes all the difference.
- Use all means at your disposal or be in the right place. I remember when I was at the airport in Sydney to go to Australia, I heard German being spoken and I addressed them. Lucky break, these people were going to the same place as me. We then worked together for two months where we worked side by side. It was one of my best encounters in Australia.
- When you travel, it is good to meet locals, it can be in a youth hostel, in a bar or even through online meetings. In fact, I met several of my travel companions online in Australia when I traveled on the Australian west coast or to do fruit picking.
- When you have the same goal, you are often on the same wavelength. Creating bonds is therefore easier. This is the case when you take an excursion or stay with other people.
- Speaking the same language or having the same mentality helps a lot, one of the things you hear most often is that the French or Spanish always stick together. This is true and false, it is said that people who are alike attract each other.
Now, you know what you have left to do when traveling, go make as many encounters as possible! And you? Are you used to talking to strangers or are you afraid of others?
How to meet people when traveling alone?
Is it easier to meet people alone or as a pair?
Is Couchsurfing still active?
If the urge to drop everything and leave is itching you, moving abroad covers taking the plunge. On the precautions side, traveling safely gathers the good habits to adopt once there. And to go further into immersion, couchsurfing in practice explores another form of meeting people.
| Place / method | Quality of meetings | Effort | Ideal for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Youth hostel (dormitory) | Very high | Low | Backpackers |
| Free walking tour | High | Low | First days in town |
| Local cooking class | High | Medium | Cultural travelers |
| Couchsurfing (accommodation) | Very high | High | Local immersion |
| Meetup / local events | Variable | Medium | Long stay |
| Local neighborhood bar/café | Variable | High | Social travelers |
🌍 Did you know?
According to a Hostelworld study, 74% of solo travelers report having made a lasting friendship in a youth hostel. The common room (shared kitchen, TV lounge) remains the primary place for international meetings, far ahead of travel apps or Facebook groups.
