I'm 18, turning 19 in June, and I really want to go on my first road trip. I'm from Saint Louis, but my family is moving to Indianapolis this summer . Anyways, this has inspired me to become more independent. I've always wanted to go to Rehoboth beach and thought I could take a road trip from Indianapolis to the coast. Any advice for a first road trip? As a young woman, I am somewhat worried for my safety. However, I'm pretty careful, and was mainly planning on exploring various national/state parks. What do you guys think? Should I try to find a friend to join? Or is a solo trip a possibility. My friends aren't particularly spontaneous, which is a bit of a headache for me. Thanks!
Well, I even found travelling with my bestest friend to be a complete pain in the ass and we really don't talk anymore since the day we got back. So, keep that in mind lol. I know it happens to a lot of people.
It's times like these that I wish I had a partner lol. Although...maybe it would just drive us apart...
the thing is, especially when young you might not be living with with a partner or a friend and then you go on vacation and you spend too much time with them you start to see different sides of them you normally would not see and it's not all pretty.
I enjoy road tripping alone. I also enjoy it with friends, but only certain friends. If your friends aren't laid back or spontaneous it might be more of a headache. Just be smart about it. Dont stop at deserted rest areas at night, avoid getting hotels in seedy areas. If you're planning on camping at the state parks you mentioned rather than getting a hotel...i dunno. Either you're camping next to a serial killer or you're not
LOLz, yeah I remember one trip up to Byron when I was 19, 2 guys, it was like a surf trip they were just friends, the one in the back seat just liked refused to shower for 3 days, it was my car, I was the one driving I got so pissed off I refused to even talk to him ever after that, an other wise great trip spoilt by this guys stinky BO and he didnt chip in for petrol
. My friend was one of my best male friends we took on our America group. It was just painful hey. Everything was painful, I remember the first night I mentioned I don't know if I can do it. We've never seen each other again. Almost 4 years ago lol.
Keep pepper spray handy , watch where you go and keep your eyes wide open in any surroundings. Those that want to do harm can be very charming. Unfortunately, this is not 1950.
Don't worry too much about being a female alone. Sure, there are dangers.. But sometimes I feel they get overstated. I have done loads of stuff like this alone and never once felt in the slightest danger. It helps if you feel confident in your strength/fitness.. Spending that kind of time alone can be transformative. I recommend it highly to everyone.
I would try to find a fun and reliable travel buddy but yeah, that can be easier said than done. I never travelled alone and now I don't really like the idea. But... my friends are getting less and less spontaneous too or simply have become uninterested in roadtrips or a travel destination like we used to. I'm really used to the perks of travelling with friends and am really unsure how I would dig it on my own in a spot I never been before. On the other hand, if @Meliai did it more than once with good results so should I me thinks. Anyway, I clearly prefer a buddy (or more)
^ Btw: I am a guy. But its just that in foreign places I hate (the idea) to deal with everything on my own. I guess if you live and travel in such a big country as you do that might be less of an issue. It might also just be me: i don't like the idea of being in a totally new place for several days completely by myself I know others love it though so yeah
Now that I think about it i've never spent days by myself in one place anywhere I've road tripped by myself to visit people, but once I was there I had company. I was just alone for the road trip part of it, which I enjoyed because you can take stupid detours and stop anywhere that looks appealing to you without annoying your travel companion...or without them annoying you by just wanting to burn rubber the whole way and not taking time to stop and smell the roses. I hate that
I always travel alone as i have no one to travel with. I am a guy but i can see how it may be more scary for a women traveling alone. But i have ran into other women who travel alone during my trips. They seemed fine with being alone. Interesting. In Botswana while a bunch of us were waiting to go on a safari drive i happen to be sitting on a table with 5 other lone travelers. 3 men (myself included), 3 women. All from different parts of the globe. Well there was one other American but from the opposite coast. California. I always thought that was kinda interesting.
Interesting assumptions. I think if you look into it, no matter which country, you will find the number of men that die whilst travelling far exceeds the number of woman. Even when adjusted to a percentage as opposed to total number. Number of women that die whilst travelling / number of women travellers will still be a lot lower than their male counterparts. The assumption that follows would then be because men do riskier things, also isnt the case. Most men die whilst travelling because of pre-exusting conditions, followed by traffic accidents, then suicide whilst travelling the rates of which are a lot higher for men. It might look like its scarier for women travelling alone, they may look more vulnerable. But they just dont end up dead as often as the guys do Even with rape, they are far more likely to get raped by someone they know as opposed to a stranger, far more likely to get raped back home
Dying from what you listed isn't going to be as scary as being a victim of a crime in a foreign country. I'm pretty sure most women would be less afraid to visit a place with high traffic accidents than a place that's well known for sexual harassment incidents. The latter is much more personal. Yeah, probably.
