I am considering including Croatia and the above listed countries in my next trip. Can anyone offer feedback from experience on how prudent this is as a seasoned 30-something solo woman traveler? I was thinking Croatia was fine until one guidebook suggested women shouldn't be alone. That surprised me. I also got that sense a bit from some things I've read on Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey. I'd hate to miss these if those comments are overly cautious. Thoughts from anyone?
Posted by
Magyarország / Rep of Texas
20962 posts
I can only speak to Romania and Bulgaria and in those countries if you practice just a little common sense I wouldn't worry. I would even let my 21 year old daughter go. But I think both Romania and Bulgaria are best done with a guide. A guide, car and a decent hotel room will set you back about $300 a day.
Posted by
Washington DC Region, USA
7054 posts
Did the guidebook offer a reason? If not, I would take it with a grain of salt...Croatia is safe and friendly (caveat: I traveled from Split down the coastline to Montenegro). I've been to Istanbul alone for over two weeks - no problems except you'll have to get used to "standing out" (it didn't bother me but I have a high tolerance for that kind of thing). Romania and Bulgaria may be more challenging only because their tourist infrastructure is probably less robust so you need to be a bit more flexible and adventurous
Posted by
Toledo, Ohio, US
11613 posts
I've traveled alone in Turkey for nearly two months and had no problems. Just normal caution should suffice.
Posted by
brooklyn, ny, usa
118 posts
ive been to croatia solo, i was fine. next month ill be in bulgaria and istanbul solo. i will be fine.
Posted by
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
6 posts
Istanbul is the only place I can speak for. I went there alone when I was 22. There was only one time I felt at all unsafe and it was because I didn't make the best decision (it wasn't that bad everything turned out fine, though). As long as you are careful, I wouldn't hesitate to go alone. It is a beautiful and busy city! My biggest problem when I was there was that I didn't speak Turkish and a lot of people I encountered (even in the city center) didn't speak English, so I got pretty lonely after a few weeks. One thing that helped me was expat-blog.com, because they have meet-ups with English-speakers from different countries as well as Turkish people who want to learn English.