Where should I travel to in Summer 2024 or later?

Visit the US Southwest or South America or Hawaii or Alaska or Maine. Or Vietnam. Or take an African Safari.

P.S. It’s Los Angeles

"Would the national parks be too dangerous to travel-to solo? Which would have to be mostly camping because the hotels are too expensive; for example the cheapest hotel near Yellowstone is just under $113, probably not including some taxes and fees. Most hotels in the Yellowstone area are about $125 to $400 a night. And there would be a huge amount of driving involved but I would want to do at least a little bit of walking each day, if only to compensate for sitting in the car so much. I am vaguely aware that you are “not supposed to” hike solo."

The National Parks are fine to travel solo. I go to Yellowstone for 10 days to 2 weeks ever June. I do generally stay in the cabin accommodation in the park, cheapest of which is the lower number you give above. They are cabins with shared baths so kind of like camping as far as going to a central toilet block but sleeping in a bed. IF you are not used to camping then Yellowstone is not the place to learn in my opinion. You need to be well-versed in appropriate bear safety in your camp including how to store food/scented items (bear boxes are available at most sites or in your locked car).

Hiking - I will hike with another person but generally don't hike solo. The park recommends hiking in groups of 3 or more. I DO go into the geyser basins and walk the boardwalks and trails solo but I also have my bear spray with me.

https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/hiking.htm

Driving - There can be a lot of driving. I don't get my car out on the days I'm walking the Upper Basin around Old Faithful and usually get 5-8 miles of walking in on the trails/boardwalks there. On days when I am driving to watch wildlife or birds I still manage to get several miles in. Here is a link to approximate drive times. All the regulars on the Trip Advisor forum I frequent have done segments in less time but it helps you get your head wrapped around the times. Roads are narrow, wildlife can slow things down, other tourists can slow things down.

https://www.yellowstonenationalparklodges.com/content/uploads/2017/04/Park-Map-with-mileage.pdf

The 3rd week of June is a perfect time for Yellowstone and Grand Tetons. You'd want at least 4 nights in Yellowstone and 2-3 in Grand Tetons.

If you decide to go with hotels or some of hte campgrounds, book only thru the official concessioner, Xanterra at www.yellowstonenationalparklodges.com There are some Yellowstone campgrounds that you book thru recreation.gov

I'm happy to help you figure things out and plan an itinerary.

Yellowstone requires reservations, even if you are camping. The type of hiking that most tourists do, just a mile or two from the road, really wouldn't be too dangerous. You are rarely alone in Yellowstone unless you venture further afield than that. If you want to venture further afield as a solo hiker, invest in a garmin mini inreach which allows you to contact help via satellite and gives them your gps position.

The thing about camping is that gear really matters. It sounds like you would need to invest enough money in quality gear that the cost might be higher than you think. If you are not planning on camping again, then this would be money lost. Altitude matters. I remember camping with my family and putting knit hats and every bit of warm clothes they had with them on my kids to keep them warm in their sleeping bags in July.

I wonder if you might consider something a little bit different such as cruise to Alaska. Hear me out. Right now you could get a Oceanview Cabin on the Sapphire Princess for a solo traveler for a 7 night cruise between Vancouver and Anchorage for $1102. That includes your food, lodging, transportation, entertainment, taxes and gratuities. (This would be the August 17th sailing) Your extra costs would be travel to Vancouver and home from Anchorage as well as any extra sightseeing costs you wanted to pay in port. Lots of nice walks available at all the ports and you don't have to pay for anything more unless you want to.

The scenery is great and you have the opportunity to be as social, or non-social, as you want. This can be a fun way to travel solo and yet have social interactions.

Mike, is there any chance the Boundary Waters in Wisconsin holds any appeal? You might need a 5-gallon container of mosquito repellent, though.

If you wanted lots of walking, there’s all or part of a big trail … Continental Divide, Appalachian, or Pacific Crest, but that means logistics for getting to and from your Start and End points. Gear and food, too.

Besides U.S. National Parks, there’s also the National Forests, and Wilderness Areas, all with trails galore. The Forests will tend to have fewer people, and fewer camping costs.

In Europe, we hiked across England, on the Hadrian’s Wall route. A company transferred our bags to the next B&B, and we carried daypacks. Then there’s the Tour du Mont Blanc, with incredible scenery in France and Switzerland, with Chamonix and Mont Blanc as highlights, sleeping in “refuge” huts. You could do it on your own, or with an organizing company to handle the accommodations and other details.

Scenery/Mountains/Waterfalls/Fjord canyons: look no further than Norway! Except it’s an expensive place. There are mountain huts and hostels that could make it easier on the wallet. Rent an electric car, or plan on buses to get around.

I hope your longevity is more like your paternal grandfather’s, rather than his father. Happy travels - hope you go somewhere it’s not toooooo crowded.

"The type of hiking that most tourists do, just a mile or two from the road, really wouldn't be too dangerous."

I follow the guidelines of the instructors at Yellowstone Forever, the educational non-profit that is associated with Yellowstone. In their groups there must be bear spray if you are more than 100 FEET from the pavement. For myself I put my bear spray holster on my belt when I get dressed in the AM. I try to holster it every time I get out of the car, including standing in a paved pull out watching birds.

A friend and I hiked Trout Lake in mid-September which is a 1.25 mile trail. Although we expected a number of people on the trail there were times especially after we got to Trout Lake that we and a fisherman across the lake were the only people there. We both are experienced in Yellowstone and both carried bear spray.

Have you thought about renting a small RV camper? You can join Campground Clubs that are located everywhere. You could start driving West and turn around when you feel like going home. Or you could fly to the West Coast and drive the Pacific Hwy or 101 and stay in the smaller places on the way. There are lots of State Parks and Light Houses and Museums and Historic Towns and Beaches.

I suspect that for about the same price as going to a national park, and stating in a park hotel, you could go to Albania and see very beautiful mountains and nature. Montenegro, a bit more expensive than Albania for the same nature and both have amazing cosst lines. If you want to practice your Yiddish, Budapest is a good choice and I will take you to my favorite Shul.

Thanks for your replies so far.

The idea of a cruise never had any appeal to me. (Its just a floating moving resort where you are stuck eating too much restaurant food and the boat isn't necessary for transportation because airplane travel exists)

I still have my tent, inflatable mattress, and manual inflater, that I bought at Walmart before my trip to Sleeping Bear Dunes park in Michigan. I need a sleeping bag, and probably a suitcase because my assumption is that if I went to Yellowstone, I would fly to Boseman and drive a rental car the rest of the way. But I am not inherently interested in camping for the sake of camping, only in cases when I plan travel to a place where the nearby hotels are too expensive but camping is a cheaper option. The biggest risk I can think of is being too cold and having too much trouble sleeping, then (this might be the wrong order), dangerous wildlife, assault from other people, encounter with dogs brought to the campground or the sights by other visitors, heart attack, injury/accident, flat tire ad wasting too much time trying to change it (do rental cars come with spare tires? My Kia Forte only came with a tire inflation kit and I had to pay over $400 extra for the temporary-spare tire). I will do more comprehensive research.

What do you do when you see a bear on a trail? Do you abandon completing the trail loop as intended and walk backwards slowly while keeping your eyes on the bear, until you can't see the bear anymore and then walk facing forward the rest of the way still going in the opposite direction you planned? But then what if you see another bear? Do I need to buy a knife or pepper spray in case of assault from another park visitor?

A 20 degree F sleeping bag is a good investment. See if REI, Sierra Teading Pist, or a. online dealer has The North Face, Big Agnes, or other quality brands.

People enjoying the outdoors generally have respect for one another. A rowdy campground with people partying loudly would be my biggest concern, and I’d avoid that, if I wanted peaceful sleep. The scene in Deliverance with Ned Beatty and the two backwoods perverts would be extremely rare to encounter yourself.

On a section of a trail in Colorado, I once came around a curve, and there was a bear some distance ahead. Colorado has Black bears (including some that have brownish fur), but no Grizzly (aka “Brown”) bears. I spoke calmly and then waited for the bear to head uphill. I went downhill. I assume it knew I was there, some ways away from it, not threatening, but also not something for it to mess with. Yelling, clapping or making other noise, would reinforce that concept. Last year, two separate bears crossed a trail less than 100 yards away, on separate occasions about two months apart. The first one kept going, and was gone before I knew it. The second one hung around, then turned and was nonchalantly walking parallel to the trail. It was coming closer, but remaining well off the trail. Other hikers started arriving from behind me, as I stayed still. We all remained quiet. Still moving slowly, the bear eventually took one step closer to the trail. I started clapping and saying firmly, “OK, go away bear!”, and the others joined in. It left. Black bears are smaller, and arguably less aggressive than Grizzlies. I understand, though (and fortunately have never needed to test this), that if you’re ever attacked by a Grizzly, play dead. It’ll lose interest. If a black bear attacks, fight it with everything you’ve got - poke its eyes, punch it, kick it, make lots of noise. Bear spray could be handy, but likely won’t need to be used (I’m not talking Yellowstone here).

I’ve encountered some moose. Keep your distance - they are enormous, and you don’t want to annoy one. A big porcupine crossed in front of me once, but kept going. Neat to see, and not terrifying.

There’s an old joke that deer poop on a trail is little round pellets, elk poop is bigger, moose poop is bigger yet, and bear poop has fingers and dented bear spray cans in it.

Which would be safer: Yellowstone National Park, or cities (I haven't figured out whether Great Smokey Mountains national Park is worth it or safe enough) in Tennessee?

I have been to Athens, Greece; Nashville has a replica of the Parthenon.

"What do you do when you see a bear on a trail? Do you abandon completing the trail loop as intended and walk backwards slowly while keeping your eyes on the bear, until you can't see the bear anymore and then walk facing forward the rest of the way still going in the opposite direction you planned? But then what if you see another bear? Do I need to buy a knife or pepper spray in case of assault from another park visitor?"

The official YNP website has a huge amount of very good safety advice for recreating, camping and hiking in bear country.

https://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/bearsafety.htm

If you are on a trail or boardwalk and don't have a clear line of sight make noise. I am nearly always solo so on one of the boardwalks in the OF are where it is wooded I count out loud if there are no other people around me. I can't sing and I while my mind might be busy it's not anything I want to talk about out loud, lol!

Here is what to do if you encounter a bear on a trail:

https://www.nps.gov/yell/learn/nature/bearreact.htm

I will also add that to me bison are as big a problem on a trail as bears and you see them WAY more frequently. I have completely changed my route and backtracked for a long way when there were bison on or near the boardwalk in the Upper Basin around Old Faithful. I was sitting watching a geyser last year with some others experienced geyser gazers who noticed a bison headed our way. They discussed it and recommended we all pull back to a boardwalk where they did not think he would go (thought he would stay on the main trail). We did and he veered off on the main trail but they had already been assessing for where to go if he did decide to come down "our" boardwalk. I was willing to do anything they recommended as they are in the geyser basin every day. Elk, especially Mama elk with babies or Bulls during the rut are just as dangerous as bison.

You WILL need to buy bear spray when you get to the park, either in Bozeman if you fly in to there, or once you get to Yellowstone. You can't carry it on the plane either in Carry on or in checked luggage. You'll need to leave it there when you go home. You will in all likelihood not use it but $50 is cheap insurance.

There are very few assaults by other park visitors. I do not even worry about that and I'm a 74-year-old woman with no self defense skills, lol. A good friend camps 5-6 times a year in Yellowstone and is also often solo. She never worries about other people but is scrupulous about bear and bison safety.

Dogs must be kept on leads at all times in Yellowstone due to the wildlife. Domestic dogs have brought in parvo and mange to the other canids plus they are viewed as prey to the big carnivores so there are strict regulations.

No advice on National Parks vs Tennessee vs cities. I'm a parkie all the way, hahaha!

We just did Yellowstone and Grand Teton this year and it was fantastic. We did it on a Gate 1 Travel tour. You are very safe in the National Parks.

As for going to Peru, it is our favorite S. American country. Lima, Cusco and Machu Picchu are amazing. Peru is inexpensive, but DO NOT do it on your own. Do it on a tour.

As for Europe, Eastern Europe is cheaper than Western Europe and Southern Europe is cheaper than Northern Europe. Switzerland and Norway are the most expensive.

Montreal, Ottawa and Quebec City are great, you could do it yourself.

If expense is of paramount importance, I would stick with southeastern Europe, ie, the Balkans, culturally and linguistically intriguing, lovely scenery, the buying power of the $ is very good, and , above all, in light of the current exchange rate.

You mentioned camping, national parks, waterfalls, mountains, and Tenn. Some of The Smokey Mountain National Park is in Tenn. and some in N.C. There are lots of place for car camping, most of them have trails to hike / walk, the scenery is great, and there are many waterfalls to visit. And, in my opinion. one is probably safer camping at one of the campgrounds than just about anywhere. In thirty plus years of camping in Western N.C. right next to the park. we only had one encounter with a bear. We simply let him be and he meander off. And we never had any encounters with anyone that caused us to feel unsafe. Just our experience. Do some research on the area and see if it holds any interest for you. There are also many private campgrounds in the area. This is a link you might find useful. https://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/carcamping.htm .

The North Shore of Lake Superior in Minnesota would be my suggestion for waterfalls, hiking, and scenery. We have bears, but not grizzly bears.

Cyn, the Boundary Waters is in Minnesota (don't get us mixed up with those Packer people);) It's too much work to canoe into anymore, but we still camp every summer on the edge of the BWCA. For me, there is really no better place to be in the summer than a Minnesota lake.

mnannie, whoops, you’re right. I’d been on both a bike tour in the Northwoods of Wisconsin and a canoe/portage trip in the Boundary Waters in Minnesota the same month a few years ago, and clearly mixed them up. I was surprised to find that both places were populated by giant Paul Bunyan statues - maybe it’s easy to conflate them when the big guy with an ax is ubiquitous.

Note to Mike L, the OP: the ax is for trees, not attacking other people. Other humans in the outdoors a should not be a safety concern. On a highway in a populated place, that’s another matter.

Hi Mike, I'm a solo traveler too and I nixed Yellowstone National Park due to the amount of driving involved, bears (I hike alone) and the cost of lodging. One trip that I did solo was to Bryce and Zion canyons in Utah. I got a package deal that included a cheap flight to Las Vegas plus 2 nights lodging which covered my first and last nights. Zion isn't that far from Las Vegas. I might have stopped mid-way, I can't remember. After Zion, I drove to Bryce. I did car camping and day hikes. As far as safety, I'm a woman and had no problem camping in the national parks by myself. The hiking in both parks is superb. I especially liked Bryce. Another trip I did was to Moab, Utah and Arches NP. I stayed in a cabin and cooked my own meals.

I wouldn't hike alone in any bear country myself.