Solo Female Travel On the Beach

by Gadabout Goods February 09, 2019

Many women are nervous about traveling alone, and with good reason! I would be concerned if a woman had no nerves over traveling alone. Solo female travel can put women in vulnerable situations male solo travelers do not have to consider. I plan on writing about these more as the blog progresses, but today I thought I'd write a quick note about visiting beaches alone as a woman.

Beaches can be questionable at best and dangerous at worst for a woman traveling alone. You are obviously on your own, with your body pretty well exposed, and very few witnesses depending on the beach. But do not let that bother you, intrepid solo female traveler! Just be smart about it. Tell people where you're going, don't lay your towel down in an area that's completely deserted, only wear a swimsuit on beaches where everyone else is doing so (many countries have beautiful beaches, but swimming and sun tanning are not a part of the culture. It is important to respect the local culture in all things and take your cue from the locals), and be cautious about who you talk to or make eye contact with. The best thing is to find the lady land of the beach, and there is one of these on pretty much every beach in the world.

One can always find a nice stretch of sand populated exclusively by lone women or pairs of women. It feels safer than plopping down any old where and stripping to your swimsuit, and even when fully covered. There is an unspoken trust among the women on these limited areas of sand: no men will harass or ogle you here, you can wade out into the water- we'll keep an eye on your things, and it's usually one of the more lovely areas of beach to boot.

Once you find the lady land of your chosen beach, you can be pretty confident of a safe a relaxing day. Just make sure you leave with the last stragglers and have a safe way back to your guest house. Or grab a drink and a gab with the ladies you met in lady land!