Ever since the tragic death of Sarai Sierra, a 33-year old New York mom traveling solo in Istanbul, the solo female travel experience has received harsh criticism: of how women shouldn’t travel alone, of how it’s dangerous to travel outside the US, of how women shouldn’t go to a third-world country in the Middle East, of how men should never leave their women travel by themselves etc. In a nutshell, women should NOT travel abroad alone as it is NOT safe.
While Sarai’s story is undeniably distressing, I couldn’t disagree more. The blogosphere – and by this I’m referring to the solo female travelers out there – has spoken as a result of the outcry.
Here are some of their opinions:
Jodi from Legal Nomads – “Revisiting the solo female travel experience”
Katie from Katie Going Global – “No, it’s not stupid to travel solo“
Kate from Adventurous Kate – “The truth about solo female travel and safety“
Christine from C’est Christine – “Solo travel and why it’s a label I support“
Stephanie from Twentysomething Travel – “Female solo travel is not the problem.”
My opinion on solo female travel?
It’s empowering! And it all depends on each one’s circumstances and taking all your safety precautions.
Only about 30% of Americans hold a passport, a percentage I find surprisingly low. Even more astonishing is that only half of those actually use it. Why? Because they think it’s dangerous to travel outside of US. How will they ever know though if it really is dangerous if they never try it? And due to the recent school mass shooting and terrorism attacks, why would you think US is safer than any other country?
I think Sarai’s death was horrible. However, to say that she was killed ONLY because she was traveling alone in Istanbul is biased. So far, it’s not 100% clear what exactly happened, so why jump to conclusions?
I traveled alone to Istanbul just a few months ago. I was visiting my family in Bucharest, Romania, and so I decided to take a short one-hour flight into Istanbul, Turkey. I found Istanbul to be a very cosmopolitan city, extremely safe, certainly not one in a third-world country, as many have deemed Turkey to be.
Yes, some people were slightly worried of how Turkish men might pester me there, and how it may not be the best idea to go alone, but it was really one of the safest places I’ve ever been to. I asked plenty of experienced travelers before going, and they all advised me the same thing: dress appropriately and you’ll be fine.
Once I got there, I had no problem taking the subway and local buses to reach my hotel; the public transportation system was extremely straightforward and well connected.
So, what were some of the things I did to make sure I’m safe?
1. I registered in advance with the US Embassy, just as I did when I went to China. It gave me peace of mind and a safety net in case anything happened.
2. I chose a hotel in the center, in Sultanahmet. It was within walking distance to everything, and if I had to go further, the area was very well connected.
3. I dressed appropriately for the local culture. The first day, I went as far as dressing in all black, leaving nothing to the imagination. It wasn’t called for, as simply respecting their culture was enough.
4. I didn’t walk alone at night. Given it was June and extremely hot, after sightseeing all day in the heat, I was quite exhausted by the evening. So by 9pm, I was back in my hotel room.
5. I didn’t engage much with unknown Turkish men. Yes, they tried to stop me for different reasons, but I just smiled and went on my merry way, and that was it.
6. I didn’t drink alone in a bar. I had traditional Turkey food and the occasional beer in central restaurants, but that was it. I didn’t want to attract the extra attention.
Bottom line is as long as you take all your safety precautions, do some research beforehand and avoid going to areas you know nothing about, you should be fine.
These tragedies can happen anywhere, and they sadly do. I felt safer in Istanbul than other areas in New York City, and as it could be seen from the appalling death of the Indian student that was brutally raped, while accompanied by her boyfriend, it is more a question of violence against women in general rather than women traveling alone.
I’ve traveled solo many times - through Eastern Europe, to the Middle East and to China. And I never felt unsafe just due the fact that I was alone.
#WeGoSolo
