The Akron Legal News

More women hitting the road alone and travel industry helping

ELISSA COLLOPY
Special to the Legal News
Published: February 14, 2017

Solo travel may sound daunting, lonely or even dangerous, but more people than ever before are taking to foreign countries or cities as a singleton.

With an anticipated "boom year," solo travel will continue to grow, according to the Ohio Travel Association.

A recent survey by BookYogaRetreats.com showed the rise of solo traveling, with 51 percent of respondents saying they'll be taking their next holiday solo, and according to the Visa Global Travel Intentions study, almost 24 percent of travelers took a leisure trip overseas on their own last year.

Solo female travel specifically is on the rise, helping to drive the solo travel boom, according to Trekksoft's Travel Trend Report 2017.

Whether by choice or a contradicting schedule, solo travel is something every woman should experience, according to Nicole Kow, co-author of the report.

"Female solo travellers want to embrace new and raw experiences, not the typical five-star hotel and spa we see in advertisements," said Kow.

Kow said that while some companies are gearing their products toward this trend, there is a definitive line between gimmicky marketing that reinforces gender stereotypes and genuine experiences for solo female travel.

In the same report, companies stated they've seen a huge amount of traffic to their women-only retreats, which accompanies a recent study that found a 230 percent increase in the number of women-only travel companies.

In the report, Kow listed tips for travel companies to help take advantage of this trend.

Creating safer environments for female customers and providing platforms for solo female travelers to meet one another were tips given in the report.

AAA Ohio offers a platform to help individual travelers connect with each other - the AAA Solo Travelers Club. The Club meets monthly to discuss different topics such as travel locations, tours and cruises.

Another platform is Travelers Without Partners, a networking group that links like-minded female wanderers with each other created by Action Travel owner Arlene Goldberg of Solon.

Members meet every other month and have an online profile where they can list their dream destinations and hobbies.

They also have the ability to search the database for like-minded women and utilize a contact link to get in touch with one another.

Other examples of platforms available to solo travelers are different phone apps.

Trover is a relatively new travel planning app and website that resembles Pinterest in its layout.

Trover is described as "a community of travelers that share travel tips via photos for destinations around the world," according to their description. Instead of just offering inspiration through a photo, each photo includes information about that photo so users can easily plan a trip instead of dream about one.

Another app is Tourlina, a womens-only app that connects fellow travelers. Every new user is screened through this app, so safety comes first.

According to the app, just enter your trip and possible travel companions with mutual interests and trip plans will be provided. Users can then chat and plan a trip together.

Another app that is growing in popularity is Zipskee, which connects travelers and locals. Through this app, users can create a profile, search for guides or travelers and meet new people when traveling solo.

When creating your profile, users fill out a questionaire to help the app match you with people who share the same passions and interests.

In the report, one tip Kow mentioned for solo female travelers is to pick relatively safe locations, especially for their first time.

According to Trekksoft's report, some of the safest locations for females to travel alone are Rome, New York City, Australia, Iceland and Amsterdam.

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