Traveling and writing are at the top of my list of favorite things to do. It makes no difference whether I’m travelling two hours away from home or halfway around the world. Travel has also encouraged me to discover methods to meet new people while on the road–but as long as I’m not sleeping in my own bed, I’m content, though I do miss it after a while! I work online, so my schedule is flexible and I can travel whenever I want, but it also means I wind myself travelling on my own a lot.
Now if you’re a shier type of person like me, you may find meeting new people during your travels challenging. The first few times I went away, I was perfectly content to go alone–seeing the sights, trying the food, and exploring the unexplored. But then it got boring and, honestly, lonely! So I started looking for ways that I could meet fellow adventurers while traveling that didn’t involve walking up to complete strangers and introducing myself.
Here are 5 tips for meeting new people during your travels. I discovered these as I traveled around the world, some by luck, some by following others:
1. I stay with locals
I am extremely budget conscious. I am always looking for a lower price, so the first time I used Couchsurfing was because I wanted to save money. But then I realised that staying with someone means meeting a new person in a totally natural way! Sometimes there may not be any good Couchsurfing options, but when that happens I often find something that I like on Hotels.com, which also has a lot of different discount options with coupons from Discountrue, or other online coupon services.
There are also great options for meeting new people during your travels, such as tripping.com and Knok, which are great for families because the latter caters to travelers with children, with hosts giving you info about kid-friendly activities nearby. I am not a parent (yet), but I have close friends who are and we sometimes travel together. Staying with someone you’ve never met for one or a few days means you have no choice but to get to know each other. Plus they can introduce you to some of their friends and favorite local haunts!
2. I tour with a local
When it comes to finding out everything there is to know about a destination, you just can’t beat the insider knowledge that a local has. Over the years I’ve gotten pretty good at finding food and drink, historical, or other kinds of short tours. When the groups are a little smaller they become a great way to connect with new people, which is an excellent way of meeting new people during your travels. I also discovered ToursByLocals, a website where normal people from around the world offer themselves as private tour guides.
I started with an art tour in Port Elizabeth, and next booked a wine tour in Melbourne – both of which were amazing. And because we were a small group (just four people on each tour), we got to talk and know each other more. In fact, I ended up staying with one of my tour companions when I went through their city two years later! I used to enjoy SideTour, but now they’re part of Groupon so I found Vayable to be a better option.
3. I eat with a local
I love everything about food, from finding ingredients to creating delicious meals with locals and sitting down to eat those creations. I was actually looking for a gastronomic (food) tour in Cape Town when I first found eatwith.com and I was very excited when I did. The majority of the chefs prepare local cuisine, although a few get inventive with their food and themes, but the most important thing is that the chefs are locals and the venue is their homes.
The setting is quite intimate, with only a few people eating together. And although I am often a third wheel at the table, because I am on my own, someone always ends up taking me under their wing. They usually end up inviting me along on their activities the next day, or giving me their number so I can call them for advice about tours or places to stay. It’s an excellent way of meeting new people during your travels.
4. I sign up for local activities
I have never found an app or a website that makes this simple, but with search engines being what they are today, this isn’t really a problem. All you have to do is enter the activity, the word ‘course’, ‘lesson’, ‘class’, or something similar, and then the city or town that you’re going to be visiting. It is easiest to find one day courses for activities that a town/country is known for, although a good work-around is to sign up for intro courses (these are normally free!). These free local classes double-up as a great way to meet new people during your travels.
Be as specific as possible when searching for activities. So instead of just looking for cooking classes in Italy, look for a pasta-making courses. Instead of looking for arts and crafts classes, look for watercolor painting lessons, or look for guitar lessons instead of just music lessons. The more specific you are, the more likely you are to find what you are looking for. And this is where pumping locals for info might be helpful.
5. I find other travelers
When you are traveling you’re in a certain mind set – you’re relaxing, having fun, exploring, and pretty much avoiding anything that has anything to do with work. This isn’t always the case with the local hosts you may be staying with, or any locals you happen to meet when taking part in other activities. People you meet on a tour may also have plans that you aren’t particularly interested in.
That’s when hooking up with other travelers is the best way to go. There are a couple of websites that are great for meeting new people during your travels, but my favorite is an app called Tripr, because both users have to decide they want to connect with each other. This allows you to avoid weirdos (for the most part!). A couple of other options are backpackr.org, TravBuddy, Wandermates and Badoo (the last one is often used as a dating app, so be clear about what you’re looking for).
Some people advise joining a tour group for your entire trip. I personally don’t like being stuck with people I might not like for an entire trip, so I prefer joining groups that don’t travel together for more than three or four days. There are quite a lot of apps that will help you meet, chat with, and friend people you’ve never met, so head to your favorite app store and search for ones that provide what you’re looking for (meeting other travelers, meeting locals, eating with locals, etc).
What other ways do you use to meet new people during your travels? What advice would you give a traveler about to embark on their first long-term journey?