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The Solo Traveler Blog

The Solo Traveler Project: what can I do for you?

Published July 25, 2011 | By solotraveler


My trepidation here is over signing a waiver for my first-ever time on a horse. I wasn't nearly this tentative starting the blog.

Just over two years ago I started this blog. It was a tentative initiative at first. I didn’t really know what I was doing. I wasn’t sure what would come of it. I certainly didn’t know that it would take over my life.

I just knew that I had to do it.

But it did take over my life. At least, it has become a very significant part of my life. And it has grown.

In my introduction to The Solo Traveler’s Handbook I, (quite naturally – without consideration) called it part of a project. That’s when I realized, I had undertaken more than a blog. And the funny thing is, when I went back to read my very first post, “The Back-Story“, I discovered that I referred to it as project even then.

Introducing The Solo Traveler Project 

The goal of the project hasn’t changed. It is to encourage and legitimize solo travel. What has changed is it’s parameters. It’s grown and now includes:

As a result of all this – the blog, the book, the Facebook page, public speaking, and more ideas I have -  I’ve started this new section on Solo Traveler: The Solo Traveler Project. From time to time, I’ll post in this section to let you know how things are going. I’ll share with you new developments, ideas, opportunities for solo travelers, the thrills and occasional spills I have as I work away on this project.

Coming off of riding the Tidal Bore, Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia

Excited from riding the Tidal Bore in Nova Scotia. I'm also excited for this Project.

But I Want to Know: What Can The Solo Traveler Project Do For You?

I’ve already started talking about us – the solo travel community – to travel industry players and I will be doing a lot more of this in the future. But I’d like to know…

  • What do you want from the industry?
  • What do you want from me?

Yes, what can the Solo Traveler Project do for you? Discounts? Everyone likes to save money. Information? A community that facilitates more interaction than Facebook? An inner circle of solo travel ambassadors. Events?

Dream. As a solo traveler, what would be your ideal?

Please tell me what I can do for you?

It will take time but I will do my best.

Related posts:

Posted in The Solo Traveler Project
  • Marcia

    I am rly happy with your blog! My boyfriend just broke up with me, and I was thinking, How can I travel if I don’t like to be alone? Your blog made me see many different things and I am so excited to travel alone and to try your tips… but I’m paying an apartment (which I was buying with the boyfriend), so I have no money at all, from now I am thinking of doing some travels near my city (I’m from Brazil, Sao paulo) once a month low budget to learn and meet new ppl! And I am sure it will make me forget my ex boyfriend and turn into a very interesting person as you!!! Thank you for this amazing blog!

  • Alexa Pilcher

    What a great blog !  I too feel that I would do more traveling if not continually faced with the scourge of ‘double occupancy’,  Very frustrating how that makes it so cost-inhibitive as a lot of the time I prefer to be on my own when traveling for the obvious reason I can do what I want, when I want !  I have to throw into the mix of being mildly handicapped with R.A. so consequently I do rather a lot of ‘armchair’ traveling, so maybe the discovery of your blog may lead to that changing sometime in the future.  Thanks for doing this, you have my full support.   Best regards, Alexa

  • Gracetandil

    Does anyone know what might happen with dollars all around the world after August 2nd??? I want to go on travelling!!!!! Ideas? Suggestions? Thank you. Graciela, from Argentina.

  • Matthew Cheyne

    I just want to encourage you Janice. Whatever you decide to do think big dream big and others will latch onto your vision. I think all the comments below are brilliant. Something along the lines of Tripadvisor for solo travelers would be absolutely brilliant. And it wouldn’t hurt asking for an iPhone app while I’m at it so that all this information is available in a portable format. Again thank you for everything you do including your blog and your book. Speaking of your book I’ve been looking for it on Amazon and can’t find it. Any idea as to when it will be on there?

  • http://solotravelerblog.com Janice Waugh

    Thanks for all your encouragement. I’m going to write an update to this post next Monday. I have a few ideas to get things going. As for the book, it should be on Amazon soon. They say two or three weeks in total.

  • http://solotravelerblog.com Janice Waugh

    Ah, Vienna. Such a beautiful city. I’ve enjoyed it twice, the first time as a solo traveler when I went to the opera alone, standing in the stalls in the back. Later (during more affluent times) with my husband and son on our grand European tour – that time we had good seats at the opera.

    In fact, I wrote about Vienna as a solo traveler in this post: Romantic Destinations for Solo Travelers

    Maybe you can share it, or an excerpt, with your readers. Thanks for writing.

  • Barbara Cacao

    Hi Janice,
    I love your drive and the way you develop and nurture a much needed niche that will help the travel industry grow into modern society. I am running travel portal vienna-unwrapped.com for my home town Vienna, Austria. There is hardly a more romantic intimate European city you can imagine, and I guess this type of cities, which have so much to offer culturally, is not top of mind with solo travellers.

    How can solo travellers explore places that are dubbed ‘romantic’ while feeling great in their skin? Should they skip ‘two some’ cultural events like opera, concerts, theatres, balls, in favour of group bike tours and the like? Any specific thoughts about Vienna for solo travellers you’d want to share with Vienna Unwrapped users?

    Would love to get your advice.
    best wishes
    Barbara

  • http://solotravelerblog.com Janice Waugh

    Thank you Cindy. As I mentioned to Scott, I’m concerned about the community being large and vibrant enough to take hold. What do you think about setting up an inner circle first to help grow the community.

  • http://solotravelerblog.com Janice Waugh

    I think it will take time to turn a whole industry around but I may be able to get companies to do so one at a time. Believe me, I’ll work on it. But my best ally in doing this is the community here. I need to show our strength and buying power, then just like AAA or CAA, discounts may be possible.

  • http://solotravelerblog.com Janice Waugh

    Hi Scott – (at least I’m assuming it’s Scott :) Thank you so much. I think that a community would be a great idea as well. I hadn’t thought about the members writing for Solo Traveler but that could work very well too.

    One thing about the community, I’m concerned about it being large and active enough to really work. I’m thinking that it might be good to start with an inner circle to get it established. I’ve also thought about taking things offline on occasion as well. The inner circle may be city hosts and hold the occasional meetup thereby growing the community for all. I’m sure I could get a few prizes to give away for such events. What do you think about this?

  • http://twitter.com/StampFreeBlog Lou

    Agreed Pauline. Single supplements are so annoying and I never thought of the comparison to business travellers before! I guess maybe their appeal is in their expense accounts!

  • Pauline

    lobby to get us good prices for single rooms, indeed for single rooms to be provided at all in the case of the modern asian hotels
    hotels prefer double occupancy because people spend more in hotels on food and other services, however, they also love business travellers and they travel solo, so if you can find out how they make their money on the business travellers perhaps we can think of a way to increase the appeal of solo traveller guests

  • Pauline

    lobby to get us good prices for single rooms, indeed for single rooms to be provided at all in the case of the modern asian hotels
    hotels prefer double occupancy because people spend more in hotels on food and other services, however, they also love business travellers and they travel solo, so if you can find out how they make their money on the business travellers perhaps we can think of a way to increase the appeal of solo traveller guests

  • Cindy Tang

    Hi Janice,

    I’d also love to see some sort of a forum here, similar to tripadvisor, so we can share ideas/ comments/ tips with other solo travelers.

    Thanks for this wonderful blog. I’ve been enjoying it very much!

    Best wishes,
    Cindy

  • solotraveler

    Hi Scott – (at least I’m assuming it’s Scott :) Thank you so much. I think that a community would be a great idea as well. I hadn’t thought about the members writing for Solo Traveler but that could work very well too.

    One thing about the community, I’m concerned about it being large and active enough to really work. I’m thinking that it might be good to start with an inner circle to get it established. I’ve also thought about taking things offline on occasion as well. The inner circle may be city hosts and hold the occasional meetup thereby growing the community for all. I’m sure I could get a few prizes to give away for such events. What do you think about this?

  • Darmabum

    Hi Janice – I feel somewhat compelled to write because I admire, value and want to encourage the great work you’ve done.  There are so many different definitions of “travel.”  Mine is fairly well defined: I have found the place on earth that resonates to and with me – India.  I’m not strictly a budget-minded travelers, i.e., have no need for “deals” per se – even my airline flights to India haven’t gone much over $300 more than when I first went – in 1982.  The places I stay are cheap enough for me, and often/ALWAYS, local.

    That being said, I would like a more traveler-interactive site, much like FB.  Where travelers on this site are listed or shown, can be easily accessed for one on one conversation, at least a forum board, like one of my favorite – IndiaMike.  Maybe even more written/photograph/video possibility for members of this site.  A for-members-by-members kinda place . . . like a cafe . . . ?  To this end, maybe do something like Matador does: post story ideas that members can apply for work on, to polish their own writing skills . . . 

    You have done an awesome job so far.  Kudos to you, Janice. 

  • Darmabum

    Hi Janice – I feel somewhat compelled to write because I admire, value and want to encourage the great work you’ve done.  There are so many different definitions of “travel.”  Mine is fairly well defined: I have found the place on earth that resonates to and with me – India.  I’m not strictly a budget-minded travelers, i.e., have no need for “deals” per se – even my airline flights to India haven’t gone much over $300 more than when I first went – in 1982.  The places I stay are cheap enough for me, and often/ALWAYS, local.

    That being said, I would like a more traveler-interactive site, much like FB.  Where travelers on this site are listed or shown, can be easily accessed for one on one conversation, at least a forum board, like one of my favorite – IndiaMike.  Maybe even more written/photograph/video possibility for members of this site.  A for-members-by-members kinda place . . . like a cafe . . . ?  To this end, maybe do something like Matador does: post story ideas that members can apply for work on, to polish their own writing skills . . . 

    You have done an awesome job so far.  Kudos to you, Janice. 

About Janice Waugh and Tracey Nesbitt

I'm an author, blogger, speaker and traveler. I became a widow and empty-nester at about the same time. And then, I became Solo Traveler... Here's the full story. >>

Tracey Nesbitt I’m a writer, editor, food and wine fanatic, and traveler. On my very first trip abroad I learned that solo travel was for me. Here's the full story. >>

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