Travel to Italy was the first time I had travelled solo purely as a tourist, not on business.

I learned a few little tricks that worked for me in my first destination, Rome. It was November so the days were short and evening arrived before dinner time. I found that a leisurely lunch often with a glass of wine was a treat and I didn’t need to go out in search of a restaurant after dark. As a woman alone, that gave me peace of mind.

Because I feared I would get lonely (and I did), I took several daytime tours. That gave structure to my day and ensured I had some people to meet and chat with. I found I loved the tours. The company I stumbled upon did small groups only and were highly personalized and top notch. I learned so much. Here is their website (and no, I’m not sponsored by Context Travel) https://www.contexttravel.com

I also took a photography tour of Rome after dark. I found this tour on AirBNB. Tours by locals is a relatively new feature of AirBNB so you may want to check it out. For a woman alone, I would never have gone down some of the dark streets we went on in the tour and I would have missed out on some of the most extraordinary sights. Rome is even more magical after dark. Whether you use a phone or a camera, a nighttime photography tour is a great idea.

So if you aren’t sure that you can travel as a woman alone, I encourage you to give it a whirl.