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Fly Solo: The 50 Best Places on Earth for a Girl to Travel Alone

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There's a whole big world out there. Here's how every woman can get out and conquer it-solo.

This is an inspiring guide for women who want to "fly solo"-yet stay safe, sane, and solvent during their travels. With candid advice and insider's secrets about some of the most exciting places on earth, readers will find:

- A quiz to help determine what sorts of trips best suit one's personality, interests, and goals
- The essential female-friendly spots every woman should visit
- Why each destination is perfect for solo travelers, important foreign phrases, what to pack, what shoes to wear, special events, historical facts, where to meet the global glitterati, and a list of the top ten things women must do while visiting
- Where to eat, meet, party, people watch, sunbathe, soul-search, shop, spa, frolic, photograph, and more<

Whether surfing in Hawaii, strolling the cobblestone streets of St. Petersburg, drinking in Dublin, or swimming with dolphins in the Caribbean, women can take on the world and create lasting memories with the best travel companion ever-themselves!

369 pages, Paperback

First published February 6, 2007

16 people are currently reading
348 people want to read

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5 stars
33 (17%)
4 stars
45 (24%)
3 stars
69 (37%)
2 stars
30 (16%)
1 star
8 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
Profile Image for Kara.
35 reviews
August 7, 2007
A very good read for women who like to travel but may not always have a readily available companion. Good read for anyone wanting to know about safe and fun places to go. This book is nice because it rates places on different types of things a person traveling looks for. (I.E. museums as opposed to beaches or bars) I got to read about some must do activities in areas i have always wanted to go and read about a couple places i never really thought about visiting that have quickly moved up on my list of places to go.
Profile Image for Becca.
412 reviews11 followers
July 27, 2011
While I am eager to see the world, I am less eager to view it as my own personal hunting ground (the prey being a plethora of foreign men, apparently). Personally, I am in no need to learn "Do you have any condoms?" in Dutch because, frankly, I'm just not that type of girl (Hebt u om het even welke condoms? fyi). Understandably, there is going to be this type of single female traveler (I met a few in Dublin), but for the quieter, more introspective traveler who is honestly just out to see the world (and not inside the pants of the men of the world), maybe you should just stick to your Rough Guide.
Profile Image for Arminzerella.
3,746 reviews93 followers
not-going-to-finish
February 3, 2009
I started looking at this the other night and it just wasn't appealing. It starts off with a quiz to find out what kind of traveller you are, but even before that it turned me off because it seemed to emphasize travel for the sake of meeting special someones, which isn't really my first priority. I mean, the title indicates that these are going to be places where a girl travels alone. Not that you don't meet people during your travels... It may have some good things to say, but I'm disinterested for the time being.
Profile Image for Annu.
186 reviews
September 18, 2007
If you are at all adventurous or on a budget, stay away from this book. It's a nice collection of places for someone who is new to traveling, but traveling isn't just about having sex with random guys in other countries. The tone of this book is not for an experienced traveler.
2,934 reviews261 followers
December 27, 2019
This book wasn't for me.

It felt outdated given how specific some tips and recommendations are and how much the world has changed. Also most of the proposed itineraries are pretty expensive and pretty touristy, not about getting off the beaten path.

The tone was also very focused on flirting and finding a man. If that's what you want to do when you travel - great! But if not this book isn't particularly useful. Also the idea of measuring 'safeness' wasn't particularly helpful. There's not acknowledgement that women of color will likely be treated differently than white women and what that means or a clarification on what a country with 'generally positive' cultural implications are. Just because people like women doesn't mean it's safe for women!

Overall this book wasn't what I was looking for.
Profile Image for Maarten.
175 reviews
January 17, 2024
If you consider buying a travel guide that covers the world, always check your own country first.
In that way you can check the quality of the book.

In this case it's not much.
As a Dutchman I can state that the information is very shallow, the Dutch sentences incorrect and silly (probably translated online) and really useful practical information is missing.
Profile Image for Novieta Tourisia.
6 reviews42 followers
August 7, 2014
Written by Teresa Rodriguez Williamson (founder of TangoDiva.com), Fly Solo 'serves set menu' from appetizers to desserts for female who wants to travel by herself but still is afraid to start it.

On the introductory pages, there’s a list of reasons why the writer picked those destinations that includes safety, transportation, social center, variety, friendliness, cost, climate, size, communication, medical and health. Continue with 12 questions that can help in determining the best destinations for a female according to her thoughts on CAWS (Cultural, Activity, Weather and Social).

Those 50 places spread in 4 continents (Europe, Asia, Australia and America); from Hungary to Bhutan, jump to New Zealand, Brazil and many others. The writer explains the details of each place. In Why This Place Rocks for Flying Solo part, it’s like general info on how the condition and situation of the place. Travel needs ‘warming-up’ too and that’s why there’s Flying Foreplay part, to understand what should be prepared for the journey. To make assurance, there’s also Read Before You Go part. The writer gives reference on books that will be useful during the voyage. On Accessories part, don’t misread the word and misinterpret it to ‘fashion only’, because accessories here means the right travel stuffs that match to the destination. The good part is… The Top 10 Extraordinary Experiences, where the writer breakdown a list of excitement that the solo traveler should do: ‘Learning Balinese Cooking’, ‘Dance Sambadrome in Brazil’, or ‘Go to the Ghetto in Czech’.

Overall, I personally think it’s a good book for a female who has never traveled alone before, and quite light for one who has experienced it.
Profile Image for Kate M.
5 reviews15 followers
March 29, 2008
This book is pure fun! I didn't expect to enjoy a book about any kind of travel that wasn't budget and exotic, but I did like the aspect of solo women's travel.

There is a short chapter on each destination -- there are 50 in all, and most of them are cities. Each chapter features the top 10 unique things that you must do, and they rate each destination in terms of activity, weather, social atmosphere and culture.

You can tell that the author and her team are much stronger on the European destinations. They include great tidbits like a man in Paris who makes dinner for the first 20 people who call him every weekend and a club in Barcelona made of old carnival equipment that would be illegal in the U.S.!

Best of all, I love the emphasis on finding the hott men wherever you go!

This is a surprisingly great book, and it has inspired me to travel to places that were previously low on my list -- namely, Copenhagen and South Beach. (Haven't been to either place yet, but I will GET there!)

As someone who has traveled a fairly good amount in the North America and Europe, I have been to only nine of the 50 destinations: Brussels, Budapest, Dublin, London, Montreal, Paris, Prague, Rome and San Francisco.

Profile Image for Rose.
335 reviews32 followers
December 2, 2011
If you love to travel, or even just dream of doing so, & you're female, then this is a pretty fun read you might want to try. There's plenty of helpful tips & ideas about traveling all over the world. As it is intended for females traveling alone there's an assumption that you might be single & thus there's quite a few suggestions on where to go to meet cute local men which I found utterly ridiculous, but as some people might actually want that info I'm ok with it. Take whatever helpful suggestions this book offers & what doesn't apply to you just smile & bypass it. Obviously if you plan to visit any of the places mentioned in this book you'd do much more thorough research. This is just a fun introduction to get you started & give you ideas.
Profile Image for Ebee.
4 reviews1 follower
June 2, 2008
this is suitable for young woman traveler who wants to travel around the world: alone. as i wish to do the same, this handbook is really useful, at least it provides highlights of the trip to make things easier. i haven't really read all the section but "Asia". it makes me wanna hit Thailand and Vietnam as soon as possible. So if you are still want to fly solo, this "Fly Solo" will leads you to be at wherever you want to be - all alone!
3 reviews
August 15, 2007
It gives a lot of great travel ideas and destinations, with weblinks but doesn't distinguish what is best for those who are on a budget. Things that are really expensive are mixed in with good deals, so you need to do your own research. Also the language used gets annoying after awhile...very Spice Girl-y, 'girlpower'! You GO girl...
Profile Image for Katherine.
20 reviews3 followers
February 11, 2008
I would like to see a sequel that's something along the lines of the 50 most dangerous places on earth for a girl to travel alone. I'm not one to play it safe when it comes to travel. However, this book does have some excellent suggestions on things to do in locations all over the world. It's another one of those bad books to read if you're trying to avoid excuses to travel.
Profile Image for Shelley.
33 reviews6 followers
April 18, 2011
I really like the layout of this book. She gives great overviews of each area. She then gives the break down of the area's overall culture, activity, weather and social aspects. She also gives you 10 experiences that you must do while there and some great tips in what to expect... She did spend a little too much time on the party aspects but that's to be expected when it's about solo travel.
Profile Image for Laura.
1,366 reviews44 followers
August 11, 2015
3.5. Overall, it was organized well and had some good sights on the list, but it was a little too focused on shopping and partying in these various locales, which isn't my main goal when I travel. There are some locations in here that when I go (not IF I go) I will certainly check back with the book and see what she had to say, and others that I will skip.
Profile Image for Cassandra.
135 reviews
December 17, 2007
What a fun book! I prefer traveling solo at times and this is the perfect companion for those adventures. The author chronicles the best places for women to travel alone keeping safety, fun and adventure in mind.
15 reviews
March 19, 2008
The title had me hooked, however once I opened the book and began reading I was entirely disappointed. If you've traveled anywhere and do a bit of research on your own, don't bother. The information isn't even detailed enough to be helpful.
Profile Image for Yin.
3 reviews
February 25, 2014
I like to travel so I wanted to read this book for some recommendations of places for solo travelers. I found the book to be useful for solo traveler and as general travel guide for some destination spots. I borrow the book from the library but I would definitely buy as a travel reference guide.
Profile Image for Y.
238 reviews10 followers
June 5, 2009
I thought it was going to be kind of personal but it's not much different from a regular guide book in a way... Maybe I expected too much.
349 reviews4 followers
November 30, 2009
Exactly the travel book I've been looking for! I highly recommend for any young woman who's traveling to these places, even if she's not going solo.
Profile Image for jess.
860 reviews82 followers
August 15, 2010
women, travel, traveling solo, boring, written for single rich white women not me
Profile Image for Lauren.
3 reviews1 follower
June 1, 2013
Lots of helpfull hints and tips for those wanting to take their own adventure. I use it more as a reference when planning a trip or for ideas on where to go next!
Profile Image for Amy.
61 reviews
May 3, 2016
A book with general tourist knowledge; good variety of cities. I didn't finish it because it's written for a party girl looking for men and drinks. The tone put me off.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews

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