The Complete Solo Female Travel Safety Guide

Traveling solo as a woman is one of the most transformative experiences you can have. It builds confidence, independence, and a perspective on the world that no amount of reading can replicate. But it also comes with risks that are different from those faced by male travelers or couples. This guide is your comprehensive resource for navigating those risks — not to scare you, but to prepare you so thoroughly that fear never holds you back.

Choosing Safe Destinations

Not every destination is equally welcoming or safe for solo women. That does not mean you should limit yourself to a short list of “approved” countries, but it does mean doing your homework before you book.

What to research before choosing a destination:

• Crime statistics targeting tourists and women — Look beyond the headline numbers. A city might have a low overall crime rate but high rates of harassment or petty theft in tourist areas.
• Cultural attitudes toward women — Some destinations have conservative dress codes, restrictions on women in public spaces, or social norms that can catch solo travelers off guard.
• Infrastructure quality — Reliable public transportation, well-lit streets, and accessible emergency services all matter enormously when you are on your own.
• Traveler community — Destinations with established backpacker or digital nomad scenes tend to have better infrastructure for solo travelers: hostels with social common areas, walking tours, and meetup groups.

Our city guides rate every destination on a 1-10 safety scale and break down exactly what solo women can expect. Start with our highest-rated cities — Tokyo, Reykjavik, Copenhagen, Melbourne, and Taipei — if this is your first solo trip.

Accommodation Safety Tips

Where you sleep is one of the most important safety decisions you will make. The cheapest option is rarely the safest, but expensive does not automatically mean secure either.

Hostels: Look for hostels with female-only dorms, 24-hour reception, lockers in the rooms (not just common areas), keycard access, and good reviews from solo women specifically. Chains like Selina, Generator, and Hostelworld’s “female-friendly” filtered results are good starting points.

Hotels: Choose hotels in well-reviewed, central neighborhoods. Request a room that is not on the ground floor. Check that doors have deadbolts and peepholes. When checking in, ask the front desk not to announce your room number loudly.

Apartments and Airbnbs: Only book places with verified hosts and many reviews. Avoid listings where a male host insists on meeting you in person to hand over keys — use keypad or lockbox listings instead. Share your exact address with someone you trust back home.

General rules:

• Always lock your door, even when you are inside the room
• Keep a doorstop alarm in your bag — they cost under $10 and are incredibly effective
• Research the neighborhood before booking, not after arriving
• Trust reviews from other solo female travelers above all others

Staying Connected

Connectivity is a safety tool, not a luxury. When you are traveling alone, being reachable — and being able to reach others — is non-negotiable.

Before you leave:

• Set up a check-in schedule with someone at home (daily text or call at an agreed time)
• Share your full itinerary, including accommodation addresses and booking confirmations
• Enable location sharing on your phone with a trusted contact
• Download offline maps for every city you will visit (Google Maps lets you save entire regions)

On the ground:

• Get a local SIM card or eSIM (Airalo and Holafly are popular choices) the moment you arrive
• Keep your phone charged — carry a power bank with at least 10,000mAh capacity
• Know the local emergency number (it is not always 911)
• Save the address of your country’s nearest embassy or consulate in your contacts

Apps every solo female traveler should have:

• bSafe or Noonlight — personal safety apps with emergency alert features
• Maps.me — offline maps that work without any data connection
• Google Translate — download offline language packs before you go
• Tourlina — a travel app specifically for women to find female travel companions

What to Pack for Safety

Your packing list should include a handful of items specifically chosen for personal safety. None of them are bulky or expensive, but all of them can make a real difference.

Essential safety items:

• Doorstop alarm — wedges under your hotel door and sounds a loud alarm if anyone tries to open it
• Portable door lock — adds a physical lock to any hotel door, even if the existing lock is flimsy
• Money belt or hidden wallet — keep your passport, backup cash, and backup card separate from your daily bag
• Small flashlight or headlamp — power outages happen, and not all streets are well-lit
• Whistle — simple, effective, no batteries required
• Backup phone charger — a dead phone is a safety liability

Clothing considerations:

• Research dress norms at your destination before packing — covering shoulders and knees is expected in many countries and reduces unwanted attention
• A lightweight scarf is the most versatile safety item you can pack — it serves as a head covering, a blanket, a modesty layer, and a sun shield
• Wear shoes you can walk quickly in — flip-flops and heels limit your mobility

Trusting Your Instincts

This is the most important section of this entire guide. Your instincts are your most powerful safety tool, and they are right far more often than they are wrong.

The Gift of Fear is real. If a situation feels wrong — a person, a taxi, a street, a bar, a conversation — remove yourself immediately. You do not owe anyone politeness at the expense of your safety. You do not need to justify the feeling or wait for “proof” that something is wrong.

Practical applications:

• If a taxi driver takes an unexpected route, speak up or get out
• If someone is following you, walk into the nearest open business — a restaurant, a shop, a hotel lobby
• If a new acquaintance pressures you to go somewhere private, say no without apology
• If your accommodation feels unsafe when you arrive, leave and find another option — the cost of one wasted booking is nothing compared to your safety
• If a group situation feels off, trust that feeling and extract yourself

Cultural context matters. In some cultures, what feels like overly aggressive friendliness is genuinely normal. In others, what seems like polite interest is a precursor to something unwelcome. Read about social norms at your destination beforehand so you can better calibrate your instincts to the local context.

Solo Female Travel Communities

You are not alone in traveling alone. There is a massive, supportive global community of solo female travelers, and connecting with them is one of the best things you can do — both for safety and for the sheer joy of shared experience.

Online communities:

• Women Who Travel (Conde Nast Traveler) — active Facebook group and podcast
• Solo Female Travelers — one of the largest Facebook groups dedicated to women traveling alone, with regional subgroups
• Girls LOVE Travel — another large, active community with helpful destination-specific advice
• Reddit r/solotravel — not women-only, but has many active female contributors and a supportive culture

On the ground:

• Stay in social hostels and join their events (pub crawls, cooking classes, walking tours)
• Use apps like Tourlina or Bumble BFF to find other women travelers in your destination
• Take free walking tours — they are a great way to orient yourself and meet other travelers on day one
• Co-working spaces are excellent for meeting other solo travelers, even if you are not working remotely

Pay it forward. When you meet a solo woman who is newer to this than you, share what you know. The solo female travel community thrives because experienced travelers look out for newcomers.

Your Solo Journey Starts Now

The world is not as dangerous as the headlines suggest. Millions of women travel solo every year and come home with nothing but extraordinary stories and a fierce desire to do it again. The key is preparation, awareness, and the confidence to trust yourself.

Start with a destination that matches your comfort level. Do your research. Pack your doorstop alarm. Set up your check-in schedule. And then go — because the only trip you will regret is the one you never took.