Solo Travel in Your 20s

Why Solo Traveling in Your 20s is the New Rite of Passage to Adulthood

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Decades ago people in their 20s were getting married, starting their careers, becoming first-time home owners, and having children. The involvement in at least one of these events, truly signified to society that those young guns were no longer pups and ready to bite a

bigger bone.

Now in 2025, we have "solo travel" as a means to signal the entrance into adulthood. Before you start to argue, here's why solo travel actually suggests that someone's ready to take on the depths of the adulthood.

1. You Have to Plan Wisely & Budget

Much like parenthood, no one can perfectly guide you through traveling. Sure you can plan an itinerary based on someone else's suggestions, but what happens when something makes you deviate from that agenda? When you take the wrong train, find yourself staying in an un-ideal location, or meet new friends who ask if you’re up to go to a local gem they found? 

You might think your baby travel plans are much more mature than they are, but in truth, you're just getting started and they are very unique from any one else’s – that’s the beauty in it. As parents say about their first-borns “there is no manual for these things”, the same goes for solo exploration. 

2. You Become Seriously Committed

Like exchanging vows, you too are fully committing yourself to a new stage in your life. You invest finances, time, energy, and patience into traveling to new places and getting to know yourself further. There would be no other way to actually see the intricacies in the senatorial benches at the Colosseum, learn how much you hate foreign public transit, and find out just how adaptable you can be. 

In my experience, there is no divorcing solo travel, over time you just grow more and more fond of the memories you’ve made with it, and who you’ve become as a result. 

2. You Come Out Transformed

They say nothing is quite as rewarding as that first-time-buyer's feeling – as in once you've bought your first flight as a solo traveler.

You've worked up the courage, the finances, and the utter will to book your trip and it feels electric. The trust and confidence that you'll feel in your ability to navigate the world alone will directly translate to your relationship with yourself.

Interviewing for a new position? Much easier now that you’ve cross-culturally networked with others. Looking for a new place to hang your hat? You’ve already explored alone and know which atmospheres make you feel right at home. Committing yourself to someone else? You’ve already built up so much self awareness and independence to fuel a healthy interdependent relationship. Truly there's no stopping you or predicting what's to come. 

– Voilà –

Once you've mastered the art of traveling alone, any other adult-adjacent event in life will be as easy as licking ice cream on a hot summer day.