Comments on: 4 Ways to Beat Traveler’s Loneliness (and Truly Connect with Local Culture)

By: flying ferret

flying ferret — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 14:21:30 +0000

May I add walking down a street then back again?
I did that on my first morning in Montreal.
Take photos of anything and everything, but stay on the street.
This worked for me on my first morning in Montreal!

By: Jupiter Lily

Jupiter Lily — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 16:51:13 +0000

I loved this post! It’s something that never occurs to me until I’m in a foreign place that traveling can get lonely. But if you change your point of view, it can also be so liberating! Not knowing the people around you and the possibility of never seeing them again in your life can make it easier to go out of your shell and get friendly.

By: Karin

Karin — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 17:15:40 +0000

Really good advice, thanks for sharing. Although it can be scary to start with, you get used to talking to others in no time. Travelling is a really good confidence booster!

By: Tracita Linda

Tracita Linda — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:39:38 +0000

These are great tips. Thanks for posting.

By: David @ Malaysia Asia

David @ Malaysia Asia — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 16:46:08 +0000

Excellent and true tips. Practised by me when I travel but I should work on #3.

Dave Douglas, I’m in Malaysia and I don’t bite

Regards,
David

By: Adventurous Kate

Adventurous Kate — Mon, 26 Apr 2010 00:27:16 +0000

Great piece, and I can relate wholly. Finding Couchsurfers made my Buenos Aires trip fantastic.

I have to ask, though…

What in God’s name is a ball-peen hammer? Is it exactly what it sounds like?!

By: Dave Douglas

Dave Douglas — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 12:51:10 +0000

I’m a pretty shy dude, so I’m a bit nervous about meeting people on my upcoming 3-month trip. But #2 and #3 are definitely high on my list!

Still one month to go to organize some #3… anyone living in Peru, Hawaii, Japan, Sydney, Thailand, NZ, or Malaysia?

By: Jessica Skelton

Jessica Skelton — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 19:17:52 +0000

Great tips! I especially love the one about using public transportation. I feel like a lot of people tend to shy away from this option for many reasons, but I’ve met so many people this way!

By: Rachael

Rachael — Fri, 02 Apr 2010 11:27:45 +0000

I like #4. When I was living in Cambodia, one of my favorite things to do was wander the market (the locals’ market – not the big tourist one). I loved the sights, sounds and smells of the everyday.

(Tours are fun too!)

By: Josie

Josie — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 15:07:14 +0000

All great tips – I’ve had some rubbish lonely travelling experiences, that’s one of the reasons I now helps to run a site called crashpadder. We offer lovely locals’ rooms as a budget friendly alternative to hotel rooms – that can often be soul-less and often overpriced.

Staying with a local is also a great way to really get to know an area and lots of our hosts are sociable enough to show their guests around and even invite them out with friends etc.

Defo worth a look if you fancy escaping lone-travellers blues (and save money while you’re at it).

http://www.crashpadder.com