Last week I went on the adventure of a lifetime that is a solo trip in Portugal! I have dreamed of being a solo traveler since I was 13, and now at 23 I finally did it. Deciding to take a solo trip is a big step, here is how I planned it.
4 Months Ahead: Organize your time off
My job requires a lot of travel which can include events on weeknights and weekends where I earn comp time. This comp time added up quickly and after 3 months of work, I had accumulated up to 4 days of comp time that I could take off! I wanted to reward myself for all of my hard work by using these days to take a solo trip.
Once I realized that my 4 days of comp time would cover almost a work week, I organized a trip that would include two weekends to really maximize my time off.
I ended up taking a Friday off from work using annual leave, then having a weekend, then my 4 days of comp time, another Friday off using annual leave, and then traveling home that weekend so that I returned to work that following Monday.
All in all, I took a nine day trip using only two days of annual leave.
4 Months Ahead: Use Google Flights Explore and Calendar View
June is typically a slow time for my work so I originally wanted to travel then. However, after looking at the Google Flights Calendar, I saw that flights in June cost double the price than flights in February! Now that I am not on a structured spring break, I chose to take advantage of the off season prices. I even was able to select which week in February was the cheapest because I had no restrictions.
The Google Flights Calendar also helped me choose the destination to travel to. I browsed across several different countries starting as far as Thailand and Australia, and making my way closer in Europe. Important factors were cheapest flights, shortest travel time, and airlines used.
I narrowed it down to Germany or Portugal, both of which were $550 for round trip flights.
4 Months Ahead: Research Destinations
This is the fun part!! Once I had narrowed my choices down to Germany and Portugal, I researched which cities interested me, what I would do there, and experiences I wanted to have.
I really liked the idea of traveling to Munich, Germany and Salzburg, Austria. Most of my research of things to do in the winter in these cities placed big emphasis on the Christmas Markets. Unfortunately, these would be over by the time I traveled there in February. Other activities included winter sports or indoor museums since it is so cold. Heavy winter coats weren’t going to fit in my carry on backpack so I decided that Germany would be a trip for another time. If I was going to travel there while it is freezing cold, it would be for the Christmas markets.
Portugal has always been a destination I have wanted to travel to in the summer for their world renowned surfing. However, it was the warmest country in Europe during the month of February, ranging from 50 to 70 degrees, which really appealed to me. I decided to skip the Algarve, the southern region known for its beaches, and spend my time in Lisbon and Porto. The Carnival Festival happened to be taking place in Torres Vedras the week I was traveling there, so I did stay in a small surf town for the festival.
3 Months Ahead: Book Flights
It had been decided! Portugal was the warmest, cheapest, and fastest destination to get to. I booked my flights through United because I knew that my economy ticket would be non-refundable, but if I had a cancellation I could always use the credit because my family flys this airline frequently.
I had bought the cheapest of all cheap tickets- economy, no seat preference, no refunds, no checked baggage. Some of my flight times were inconvenient like departing from Porto at 6:00 am so I had to leave my hostel at 3:00 am… but that is all part of the cheap tickets! I honestly didn’t have any issues.
2 Months Ahead: Book Refundable Accommodations
Once I had my flights booked I went onto Hostelworld and chose my accommodations. I picked highly rated, clean, and community building hostels. I really wanted to make friends there through happy hours, included breakfasts or any other perks they offered. It was also important to me that each hostel had lockers, individual locks on dormitories, towels offered (some were for rent) and were geared towards younger solo travelers. Each hostel I booked was refundable in case I needed to make adjustments as I got further along in my itinerary building.
1 Month Ahead: Build Out Itinerary
At first I thought that I wasn’t going to want an itinerary, I wanted to get there and spontaneously explore. It is a solo trip after all! Then I remembered that I am a travel agent and it is my pride and joy to make an itinerary so of course I couldn’t help myself. I researched the cities I was going to, the top attractions, hidden gems, local eateries and transportation systems. My itinerary looked like a serious schedule to most, but I knew that it was all inspiration and nothing was actually booked and I could do whatever I pleased.
Looking back on it, I followed my itinerary suggestions but not necessarily the timing. I ended up stumbling upon many of the sightseeing spots that my research had suggested. My prior knowledge gave me an elevated level of appreciation.
My solo trip in Portugal was all that I had imagined and more! I am so proud of my planning process, it takes time but the memories are more than worth it.
