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Vagabondess: A Guide to Solo Female Travel
A Guide to Solo Female Travel is a book for women—and all people!—who want to travel solo, face their fears, and live the adventure of their dreams. This book is for the travelers, the feminists, the adventurers, the seekers and the curious. The author shares insights from over 10 years of solo travel through Asia, Africa, Europe, and Central America.Vagabondess is much more than a guide. It is a collection of travelogue, philosophy, stories, and, yes, travel advice. It is about embracing the vagabondess—her spirit of adventure, her curiosity, her dedication to growth and discovery—who lives inside each of us, showing up in our lives in a myriad of ways.If you were waiting for someone to tell you that your dreams are just crazy enough, and then give you some practical suggestions for how to get there, then this is the book for you.“Why Vagabondess? A vagabondess has earth and salt to balance her air. Her lifestyle is not a romantic, Instagram-filter utopia, but rather gritty and smeared with sweat. A vagabondess is not a symbol of an ideal of a life. She is alive.A vagabondess weaves magic into the everyday and touches the profound with her toes as she wanders—aimlessly, purposefully—through her inner landscape and the outer wilderness of the modern world. She unites nostalgia for a freer past and hope for a liberated future by living squarely in the present tense. For solo female travelers, the vagabondess is an attainable objective, not a holy grail. She is within easy reach, if only we look in the right inside.”
- GenresTravel
199 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 16, 2020
12 people are currently reading
71 people want to read
About the author
Toby Israel
1 book2 followersHi there! My name is Toby.
I am a vagabondess, writer, and facilitator currently based in Costa Rica. I have traveled and lived many places, and can comfortably say I feel at home just about everywhere. I believe that words are medicine, and that stories can heal the world.
I have a metaphorical closet full of hats. You could sum it up like this:
Hat #1: As a creative facilitator, I design and lead one-of-a-kind retreats in Costa Rica and beyond. I teach Empowerment Self-Defense, Yoga, Meditation, and Storytelling... usually not all at once, but sometimes I find a way to weave it all together.
Hat #2: Writing remains at the core of my work in media and storytelling. I believe our words matter deeply, and can be a healing force at the individual and collective level. I am passionate about sharing stories--and supporting others to do the same.
Hat #3: I am Chief Storyteller at NuMundo and Content Strategist for Producers Market. If you ask me really nicely, I sometimes do consulting, content strategy, or editing for small businesses and ethical brands.
Hat #4: Whatever else I do, I am a full-time lover of movement, good food, and words. I wander, adventure, dance, create, and sing in search of meaning--and I find it everywhere. I hunt for dragons, searches, and cross-cultural understanding...and then I share those discoveries with you.
Vagabondess: A Guide to Solo Female Travel is my first book. I am so excited to share it with you!
I am a vagabondess, writer, and facilitator currently based in Costa Rica. I have traveled and lived many places, and can comfortably say I feel at home just about everywhere. I believe that words are medicine, and that stories can heal the world.
I have a metaphorical closet full of hats. You could sum it up like this:
Hat #1: As a creative facilitator, I design and lead one-of-a-kind retreats in Costa Rica and beyond. I teach Empowerment Self-Defense, Yoga, Meditation, and Storytelling... usually not all at once, but sometimes I find a way to weave it all together.
Hat #2: Writing remains at the core of my work in media and storytelling. I believe our words matter deeply, and can be a healing force at the individual and collective level. I am passionate about sharing stories--and supporting others to do the same.
Hat #3: I am Chief Storyteller at NuMundo and Content Strategist for Producers Market. If you ask me really nicely, I sometimes do consulting, content strategy, or editing for small businesses and ethical brands.
Hat #4: Whatever else I do, I am a full-time lover of movement, good food, and words. I wander, adventure, dance, create, and sing in search of meaning--and I find it everywhere. I hunt for dragons, searches, and cross-cultural understanding...and then I share those discoveries with you.
Vagabondess: A Guide to Solo Female Travel is my first book. I am so excited to share it with you!
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 22, 2020
If you're a woman who dreams of hitting the road alone or just generally taking a lighter approach to life—letting go and taking a leap, in whatever way you choose to define it—Toby Israel's "Vagabondess" will guide you wisely and gently forward into your own adventure.
She's an accomplished long-term solo traveler who gives solid, practical advice about material challenges such as what to pack, how to fill the time during a 30-hour bus ride, and how to say "no" and defend your boundaries. But taking care of yourself physically and emotionally when you're on the road alone requires more than the right items in your backpack, and Israel offers wisdom on aspects of long-term travel you don't often hear about, such as balancing introversion with extroversion, taking risks smartly, dealing with the concerns of those you leave behind, and trusting strangers.
Israel understands that to be successful in this lifestyle requires attention to the emotional and spiritual as well as the physical—to the how and why, as well as the what and when. Making a meaningful solo journey is not about creating a perfect plan and packing exactly the right things. It's not about racking up a high number of countries visited. It's about exploring each place with an open heart and curious mind, the way Israel does, the way her book will inspire you to do.
I think this book of practical tips and wise advice will inspire many women to try solo travel for themselves. If I'd read "Vagabondess" before I went on a long-term adventure alone at 37, I would have packed more lightly, trusted the process more easily, and opened my heart more quickly to all the gifts of solo travel. I still had a grand time, and if you're feeling called to this type of journey, so will you. But read this book first!
She's an accomplished long-term solo traveler who gives solid, practical advice about material challenges such as what to pack, how to fill the time during a 30-hour bus ride, and how to say "no" and defend your boundaries. But taking care of yourself physically and emotionally when you're on the road alone requires more than the right items in your backpack, and Israel offers wisdom on aspects of long-term travel you don't often hear about, such as balancing introversion with extroversion, taking risks smartly, dealing with the concerns of those you leave behind, and trusting strangers.
Israel understands that to be successful in this lifestyle requires attention to the emotional and spiritual as well as the physical—to the how and why, as well as the what and when. Making a meaningful solo journey is not about creating a perfect plan and packing exactly the right things. It's not about racking up a high number of countries visited. It's about exploring each place with an open heart and curious mind, the way Israel does, the way her book will inspire you to do.
I think this book of practical tips and wise advice will inspire many women to try solo travel for themselves. If I'd read "Vagabondess" before I went on a long-term adventure alone at 37, I would have packed more lightly, trusted the process more easily, and opened my heart more quickly to all the gifts of solo travel. I still had a grand time, and if you're feeling called to this type of journey, so will you. But read this book first!
July 7, 2020
Insightful guide of exploration and discovery
Vagabondess: A Guide to Solo Female Travel is a book for women—and all people!—who want to travel solo, face their fears, and live the adventure of their dreams. This book is for the travelers, the feminists, the adventurers, the seekers, and the curious.
Incredible collection of travelogue, poetries, practical advice, and suggestions for travelers.
An interesting book that motivates the travelers and the feminists to live and travel with confidence, optimism, trust, and self-defense.
The author covers all the queries which may arise in the reader's minds about solo travel taking into account the benefits, obstacles, and adversities one can experience. Deeper information and scenarios will teach us valuable lessons into living a more courageous life.
Poems (Ode to a powerful woman & To Love a Girl who Wanders), Similarities between Pirates and Vagabonds, and Interaction between Angel and Devil in the concluding chapter A walk in the woods are wonderfully portrayed.
There is space to expand, and there is time to be still. Why not embrace it?
Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.
Vagabondess: A Guide to Solo Female Travel is a book for women—and all people!—who want to travel solo, face their fears, and live the adventure of their dreams. This book is for the travelers, the feminists, the adventurers, the seekers, and the curious.
Incredible collection of travelogue, poetries, practical advice, and suggestions for travelers.
An interesting book that motivates the travelers and the feminists to live and travel with confidence, optimism, trust, and self-defense.
The author covers all the queries which may arise in the reader's minds about solo travel taking into account the benefits, obstacles, and adversities one can experience. Deeper information and scenarios will teach us valuable lessons into living a more courageous life.
Poems (Ode to a powerful woman & To Love a Girl who Wanders), Similarities between Pirates and Vagabonds, and Interaction between Angel and Devil in the concluding chapter A walk in the woods are wonderfully portrayed.
There is space to expand, and there is time to be still. Why not embrace it?
Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.
July 21, 2020
I’ve been traveling on my own since my teens. I’m now in my early 40s. Because I’m so used to exploring places on my own, I had never considered reading any books on solo travel.
I knew about Toby’s adventurous life, which far surpasses mine when it comes to getting out into far corners of the world. When she published Vagabondess, I thought I’d see what insight I could gain from her. Surely, her game was many steps up from mine!
I started reading the book as soon as I lifted it out of the package on the day it arrived in the mail... and didn’t stop until I was finished. Toby is witty, honest, and forthright about what it takes to really make the best of traveling alone—meeting incredible fellow travelers and locals, knowing when to just close out the world and take alone time, finding the off-the-beaten path...
What I love most about Vagabondess is that, traveler or homebody, it’s relevant. It’s not only a guide for solo travel but also food for thought regarding how to live life to the fullest while staying true to our needs and our dreams.
I knew about Toby’s adventurous life, which far surpasses mine when it comes to getting out into far corners of the world. When she published Vagabondess, I thought I’d see what insight I could gain from her. Surely, her game was many steps up from mine!
I started reading the book as soon as I lifted it out of the package on the day it arrived in the mail... and didn’t stop until I was finished. Toby is witty, honest, and forthright about what it takes to really make the best of traveling alone—meeting incredible fellow travelers and locals, knowing when to just close out the world and take alone time, finding the off-the-beaten path...
What I love most about Vagabondess is that, traveler or homebody, it’s relevant. It’s not only a guide for solo travel but also food for thought regarding how to live life to the fullest while staying true to our needs and our dreams.
June 11, 2020
Being a solo female travel blogger/ writer I've read a lot of books by other solo female travelers. Some I've liked. Some not so much. But this I genuinely loved. Throughout, Toby shares her thoughts, feelings, and experiences with the reader beautifully woven together with more abstract poems. It gives the book a real flow while allowing you to dip in and out of the book as you like.
I think this book would be most appealing to women thining about solo travel or who are new to solo travel. It would be a wonderful companion to read before you first trip and then use it as a reference to dip in and out of when you need it while traveling.
I think this book would be most appealing to women thining about solo travel or who are new to solo travel. It would be a wonderful companion to read before you first trip and then use it as a reference to dip in and out of when you need it while traveling.
June 10, 2022
Great book that every female traveler should read! She gives a different perspective and hits the nail on the head with different aspects and struggles of traveling alone as a female. It has everything from safety to packing to wellness. Definitely worth the read!
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January 23, 2023Love this book. I just keep coming back to it and opening to a random page. So inspiring.
December 1, 2023
White privilege indeed..and she had no issue with saying it..ugh..I still want to travel though
December 1, 2024
I picked up this book at the PERFECT time and day of my life. Thank you Toby.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews