5 Reasons Why I Think Travelling With People Is Just As Fun As Travelling Solo

With my unpopular opinion in mind, I made a quick Google search for two phrases; 'Why I hate to travel alone' and 'Why I love to travel alone' and the results weren't surprising at all. The former only had 10.4 million search results while the latter had 7 times more search results at 74.1 million.

What happens if I get sick or run out of money? People say that such circumstances will force us to be more confident and independent when travelling solo. However, I see things a little differently. To me, vacation time is a commodity, and I'd like to get things going quickly without spending too much time worrying about what I'd have to do all alone when faced with these unforeseen circumstances. With companions, I can be sure they'll help me out if anything happens.

Many people tell me that I shouldn't be 'afraid' or 'ashamed' of getting help from strangers. The fact is, I'm not, because I already know who will be there to help me in times of need.

As a Malaysian, there's one important thing that is on top of my mind - food! When I think about travelling alone, I immediately think about all the food that I could be missing out on because I wouldn't have people to try out all the delicious food that we usually stumble upon when travelling.

But things could be different if I travel in a group, because together, we can have a variety of food and try it all out without wasting any. I mean I can eat, but attempting to order and finish everything on the menu is pretty impossible.

Yes, food it my utmost priority.

People argue that travelling alone gives them 'unlimited freedom'. Somehow, people seem to assume that when you travel with someone else, there's always some kind of compromise to make. Like, what if I want to go shopping but my friend wants to go hiking?

I personally think the problem lies within us, because this only happens when we fail to choose the right travel companion(s). There shouldn't be any problem of having last minute plans or differences in opinion on what the travel activity should be. There is always enough time for everybody to have their fair share of fun and the key to this is, organisation. Of course, I do admit that things will get tricky if everyone insists on getting their own way. So remember, choose wisely who you want to travel with!

Solo travellers always emphasize on how great it is to meet new people, but I actually prefer to bond with the people I already know. Maybe this is because I'm an introvert, but it's both tiring and fun to meet new people. It's a great thing to make new friends, and I may even stumble upon people who share the same interests as me.

However, I find it way more satisfying to be able to watch the sunset with a bunch of close friends rather than spending it talking to a person that I may not even meet again.

Also, I can't be the only one who likes the idea of taking silly photographs of family and friends when we're travelling, and still laugh about it 10 years down the road, right?

I do not doubt the fact that a solo trip could be very liberating because one could spend a significant amount of time being all alone to engage in some life-changing introspective session.

However, just because you're travelling with someone else doesn't mean that you cannot do that. Whether you are in a large group or travelling with just another companion, you still have all the power to choose to spend some quality 'me time' by being away from people.

In the past, people were afraid of being seen alone. Nowadays, it looks like people are afraid of being seen with others. Sure, there is a sense of admiration for people who travel solo but we shouldn't reach a point where we consider another person to be more inferior just because he or she has not travelled alone.

Frankly, I think it doesn't matter if you're travelling solo or in a group, as long as you're getting something meaningful out of it and you're enjoying the trip, nothing else matters.

As for me, I just cannot see myself travelling alone and will probably never do it. Maybe one day I'll change my mind.