Going Solo - my first trip alone
There is a particular moment before your first solo trip when excitement briefly gives way to doubt. You’ve booked the flights, the hotels are confirmed and the itinerary is sitting neatly in your inbox.
Then suddenly, the questions begin…
What if something goes wrong? What will it be like eating in a restaurant on my own? And, perhaps most importantly, who is going to watch my suitcase when I need the toilet at the airport? For me these questions had all been answered before as I travelled quite a bit for business so this was not my first rodeo, my main question was, what if I feel lonely? (Spoiler alert: I wasn’t)
My first solo trip was a treat, to celebrate me and I decided that if I was going to do it, I might as well do it properly. I flew from London to Hong Kong, continued onwards to Australia, travelled between Port Douglas, Uluru and Sydney, and eventually flew home from Sydney to London. It was a big journey, several flights, with four very different destinations. New Year in Hong Kong, onto Australia and the Great Barrier Reef, then to Uluru, finishing with a bang in Sydney!
Taking the First Step
The journey began at London Heathrow, where I boarded a British Airways business class flight to Hong Kong, there are certainly more difficult ways to begin a solo adventure than with a glass of champagne in hand and plenty of legroom and a place to sleep without someone kicking my seat!
Flying business class gave me space to settle into the journey, enjoy the service and gradually adjust to the fact that I was travelling halfway around the world by myself. That was initially a strange feeling, but it soon became one of the most liberating parts of travelling alone. I could move at my own pace, change my plans, eat what and where I wanted, spend longer somewhere that interested me or leave when it did not.
For the first time, the journey belonged entirely to me and I loved it!
New Year in Hong Kong
My first stop was Hong Kong, where I stayed at the Shangri-La in Kowloon. Hong Kong was the perfect place to begin, it was energetic, exciting and completely different from home.
During my time there, I explored the city on a tour that took me from the views at Victoria Peak to traditional temples and the river boats that remain such an important part of everyday life, the city seemed to shift personality from one street to the next. One moment I was looking across a skyline filled with glass towers and modern architecture, and the next, I was standing inside a peaceful temple surrounded by incense, colour and centuries of tradition. That contrast is what makes Hong Kong so fascinating, it feels fast and modern, yet its history and culture are never very far away.
The highlight came on New Year’s Eve, from the Kowloon side of Victoria Harbour, I watched fireworks illuminate the Hong Kong skyline. Anyone who has seen the harbour at night will know how impressive it already is, add fireworks, reflections across the water and the atmosphere of New Year’s Eve, and it becomes something else entirely.
I did it a little differently, instead of standing outside among thousands of people welcoming the new year, I sat in the comfort of my hotel room, with easy access to a bathroom, chair, and room service, yet I never felt alone.
That was one of the first lessons of the trip, travelling solo does not necessarily mean being lonely, sometimes it makes you more aware of the people, energy and moments happening around you. I had crossed the world by myself and was beginning a new year beneath fireworks over Hong Kong Harbour and it felt like the adventure had truly begun.
From Hong Kong to Australia
From Hong Kong, I flew business class with Qantas to Australia, I was so excited to receive a Kate Spade toiletries bag and I still have it today!
The longer I travelled, the more comfortable I became with my own company, airports became part of the adventure rather than something to endure, I enjoyed exploring the different shops, cafes and taking time to read or people watch.
After arriving in Australia and taking an internal flight north, my next stop was Port Douglas, where I stayed at By The Sea, and Port Douglas immediately brought a different pace.
Hong Kong had been bright, busy and constantly moving, but Port Douglas felt relaxed and tropical, with the rainforest on one side and the Coral Sea on the other.
It was the kind of place that encouraged you to slow down, but there was one Australian experience I was particularly excited about: Kangaroos.
My First Close Encounter with Kangaroos
At Wildlife Habitat Port Douglas, I walked through an area where kangaroos could move freely around the visitors. Seeing a kangaroo from a distance is one thing, standing close enough to appreciate its size, movement and personality is something completely different. For the first time, I was able to get properly up close and personal with them, there was something slightly surreal about walking alongside an animal I had previously only seen in wildlife programmes, photographs and the occasional Australian tourism advert.
It was a small moment compared with some of the enormous landscapes I would later see, but it became one of those memories that stayed with me, and that is often how travel works. The famous sights may encourage you to book the journey, but it’s frequently the unexpected encounters that you remember most clearly.
Discovering the Great Barrier Reef
From Cairns, I travelled by boat to Green Island to experience the Great Barrier Reef. The day included snorkelling and a glass-bottom boat tour, giving me two very different views of one of the world’s greatest natural environments. Looking through the glass-bottom boat offered a window into another world, coral formations appeared beneath us, surrounded by fish moving through water that seemed impossibly clear.
Then it was time to get into the water, snorkelling above the reef made everything feel more immediate, and instead of looking down from a boat, I was suddenly part of the environment, floating above the coral and watching marine life move below me.
There is a moment when you first put your face beneath the surface and the noise of the world disappears, all you hear is your own breathing.
Experiencing the Great Barrier Reef had been one of the reasons I wanted to visit this part of Australia, seeing it for myself made the scale and fragility of the reef feel much more real.
Into the Red Centre
From tropical Queensland, I travelled into Australia’s Red Centre and stayed at Sails in the Desert near Uluru, the change in landscape was extraordinary. The greens and blues of the coast were replaced by deep red earth, enormous skies and a sense of space that is difficult to describe until you experience it.
Uluru has appeared in countless photographs, but photographs cannot communicate its presence, it just doesn’t sit within the landscape, it seems to command it.
I experienced Uluru at sunrise, walking as the first light began to change the colours of the rock and the desert around it. The morning was cool and quiet, and as the sun rose, the landscape slowly revealed itself. I also visited Kata Tjuta, another remarkable formation whose scale only becomes apparent when you stand among its enormous domes.
These are places with profound cultural and spiritual importance, and being there encouraged me to slow down, listen and appreciate the land differently.
Sunset, Stars and the Field of Light
Later, I watched the sun set over Uluru, as the light changed, so did the colour of the rock. Red became orange, then deeper and darker as the sun disappeared.
The evening continued with an outback barbecue dinner and a star talk beneath the desert sky. Growing up near towns and cities, you become accustomed to a certain amount of light pollution, but in the Australian Outback, the night sky felt almost overwhelming. Without the glow of cities and streetlights, the stars seemed brighter, closer and far more numerous.
The experience was made even more memorable by visiting the Field of Light, where thousands of illuminated stems spread across the desert, against the darkness of the Outback, the lights appeared almost dreamlike. It was peaceful, beautiful and unlike anything I had seen before, standing there without a travel companion didn’t make the experience feel smaller, it made me pay closer attention. There was no conversation to distract me and no pressure to move on because someone else was ready to leave. I could simply stand there and take it all in.
Finishing the Journey in Sydney
My final Australian destination was Sydney, where I stayed at the Shangri-La Sydney. Sydney delivered many of the sights I had imagined before the trip, I explored the city from an open-top bus, giving me an overview of its neighbourhoods, waterfront and famous landmarks. I visited the Sydney Opera House, and even went to see a performance of Puccini and in a building I had seen in photographs throughout my life.
Like Uluru, it was one of those places that felt familiar before I arrived, yet seeing it in person was completely different. I also travelled to Manly Beach, where the city gave way to a more relaxed coastal atmosphere, and visited Taronga Zoo, with its combination of wildlife and spectacular views across Sydney Harbour.
I had navigated international and internal flights, unfamiliar cities, tours, hotels and experiences across two very different parts of the world. More importantly, I had learned that I enjoyed it.
What My First Solo Trip Taught Me
My first solo trip gave me confidence, but not in the dramatic way people sometimes describe personal transformation, I didn’t return as a completely different person, I returned as someone who trusted herself a little more.
Travelling alone taught me that I could make decisions without constantly seeking reassurance, that I could solve small problems as they appeared, join a tour and experience something extraordinary without needing somebody beside me. It also taught me that solo travel does not mean shutting yourself away from other people, quite the opposite.
When you travel alone, you often become more open to conversations, more observant of your surroundings and more willing to engage with the people you meet, you notice more, you listen more, and sometimes, you surprise yourself.
Coming Home
My journey ended with business class flights from Sydney back to London, there was something wonderfully reflective about having that space and time on the journey home.
I thought about the fireworks over Hong Kong Harbour, my first close encounter with a kangaroo, snorkelling above the Great Barrier Reef and watching the colours of Uluru change beneath an enormous Australian sky. I had travelled an extraordinary distance and experienced places that had once seemed very far away.
Your first solo trip can feel intimidating, there will always be a reason to delay it, someone who can’t travel at the same time or a voice in your head questioning whether you will enjoy being alone, but travelling solo doesn’t have to be about proving anything, it can simply be about giving yourself permission to go.
You may begin the journey wondering whether you can do it, you might return wondering why you waited so long.
And when I returned home, I booked my next solo travel trip to Los Angeles!
