My top 10 activities to meet other solo travellers (without staying in a hostel)

Written By Sonia Traore

One of the biggest fears anyone has before their first solo trip is loneliness. Not necessarily being physically alone, but the idea of spending days without meaningful conversations, struggling to meet people, or feeling awkward walking into a restaurant by themselves. I guess it’s especially true as an introvert.

The good news? Meeting people while travelling is usually much easier than you think. And if hostel is obviously one of the most efficient way to do so, it’s luckily not the only one !

In fact, if you're in your late twenties, thirties, forties or beyond, and have a little more budget to spend on accommodation, there are plenty of ways to create a social trip without ever setting foot in a dorm room.

Start with the right accommodation

One of the most underrated factors in solo travel is choosing an environment that naturally encourages connection. While resorts can be beautiful, they are often designed around couples, families, and all-inclusive experiences. People tend to stay within their own bubble, making spontaneous interactions much less common.

Instead, I often recommend boutique hotels. Not because they are necessarily "social" in the traditional sense, but because their smaller size creates familiarity. You start recognising the receptionist, the staff learn your name, you see the same guests at breakfast every morning, and before you know it, conversations happen naturally.

I've also noticed that many boutique hotels in Southeast Asia attract a surprising number of solo female travellers. They often strike the perfect balance between comfort, aesthetics, affordability and community. And when you're travelling alone, those small connections matter more than you might think. Knowing the staff, having familiar faces around, and feeling recognised can make a huge difference to how comfortable and confident you feel throughout your trip.

1. Yoga: probably the easiest community to join anywhere

I might be biased but If I had to recommend one activity to a woman travelling solo for the first time, it would probably be yoga. Yoga communities exist almost everywhere in the world, especially in destinations popular with solo travellers. More importantly, they tend to attract open-minded, welcoming people who are often travelling alone themselves.

The secret is to select one or two studios and shop up consistently. Go to the same shala every morning for a few days and you'll quickly start recognising familiar faces. Conversations happen naturally after class, over coffee, or during workshops and events. Don’t hesitate to ask your instructor for a food spot in towns and if they know of any other wellness events in the area to start a conversation.

Many yoga studios also organise activities such as:

  • Women's circles

  • Cacao ceremonies

  • Full moon ceremonies

  • Sound healing sessions

  • Community dinners

These events create opportunities for deeper conversations and are often filled with people who are equally interested in connection.

Actually, If you’re heading to Bali and feeling a bit unsure about where to start, I’ve put together a small guide with the yoga studios and wellness spaces I personally recommend for solo travellers. These are places where it’s genuinely easy to meet people, feel comfortable, and settle into your trip.

👉 You can download it here if it helps you plan your first days

2. Pottery: the unexpected social activity

Pottery is probably one of the most underrated ways to meet people while travelling. Unlike many activities that last an hour and end, pottery encourages people to stay. If you’re new to it, I would encourage you to take a couple of class to learn the techniques and then buy a few hours to access the studio and practice at your own pace. You'll often find yourself spending two or three hours at a time in the same space, surrounded by the same group of people. Over time, you naturally start seeing the same faces and conversations develop without effort.

If you're someone who finds large social events exhausting, pottery can be a surprisingly effective way to build genuine connections.

Some personal favourite :

3. Diving: friendships built over full days together

Diving is one of the easiest activities for meeting people because it creates shared experiences very quickly. If you're completing your Open Water certification, you'll spend several days learning alongside the same group of people.

Once you are a certified diver, diving excursions tend to last a full day meaning you'll share meals, briefings, dives and surface intervals and with other divers. Diving instructors and boat staffs also tend to be very friendly and facilitate conversations between guests. I’m sure by the end of the day you’ll have exchanged a few numbers and agreed to meet up with some other travellers for a beer.

4. Surf camps/Tennis/padel retreats: instant community

If you're nervous about travelling alone, sports camps are one of the best shortcuts to meeting people. Everyone arrives wanting the same thing: to learn, improve, and have fun.

Most camps follow a similar rhythm. Guests arrive around the same time, take lessons together, eat together and often join organised activities in the evenings.

Very quickly, it starts feeling less like a hotel and more like a temporary family.

My favourite two surf camps :

And an example of Padel retreat

5. Gyms/Pilate classes/ Cold plunge/Sauna

Gyms and fitness studios are often overlooked when it comes to meeting people while travelling, but they can be one of the most natural ways to build connections , especially if you’re staying somewhere for more than a few days. I’ve personally made some good travel friendships this way.

I also tend to look into social sauna/cold plunges when travelling as more and more of them are popping up everywhere.

A few favourites :

6. Coworking spaces for digital nomads

If you're working remotely, coworking and coliving spaces can become your social anchor surprisingly quickly. The best coworking spaces don't just offer desks and WiFi. They organise lunches, workshops, networking events, community dinners, sports activities and weekend trips. Simply showing up regularly often leads to conversations.

I’ve made a really good portion of my friendship while travelling in those spaces so I would definitely recommend targetting those spaces rather than working everyday on your own from your accommodation.

A non-exhaustive list of the most social coliving/coworking spaces I’ve been to :

7. Creative workshops and multi-day courses

Photography workshops, painting retreats, cooking classes and language courses all share one thing in common: You see the same people repeatedly. That's the secret ingredient most people overlook when trying to make friends while travelling.

The goal isn't meeting hundreds of people. The goal is creating repeated interactions with the same people. That's what transforms strangers into friends.

8. Language exchanges and social nights

If walking into a room full of strangers sounds intimidating, language exchanges can be a surprisingly easy way to meet people.

The beauty of these events is that everyone is there to talk. Unlike a café or a bar where people often stay within their own groups, language exchanges are specifically designed for conversation. You'll often find a mix of travellers, digital nomads, expats and locals who are curious about other cultures and open to meeting new people.

Through Eventbrite or hostels website you can also check out social nights, pub crawls or networking events aimed at travellers and expats. Even if you're not a big drinker, joining for the first hour can be an easy way to meet people who are also looking to make connections.

The key is not necessarily the activity itself. It's that everyone attending has already decided they are open to conversation.

9. Airbnb experiences and small group tours

That’s a hack I rarely see but it always works so good for me. I can’t recommend enough Airbnb Experiences and locally run small-group tours. Unlike large tours booked through major platforms like Get your guide, these experiences are usually smaller, more personal and led by passionate locals.

One of my favourite examples was a walking tour I joined in Singapore. Instead of taking us around the typical tourist attractions, the guide focused on the real Singapore: public housing, how the government is organised, everyday life and the realities of living there. It completely changed the way I understood the city.

I had a similar experience on a food tour in Vietnam, where our guide spent hours sharing stories about local culture, family traditions and the history behind the dishes we were tasting.

Because these experiences usually last several hours and involve small groups, conversations happen naturally. By the end, you've not only learned something new about the destination but often spent an entire afternoon chatting with the same people.

10. Volunteering for a cause you care about

If you're staying somewhere for more than a few weeks, volunteering can be an incredible way to build meaningful connections. Whether it's helping at an animal shelter, participating in a beach clean-up, supporting a local community project or assisting at a cultural event, volunteering brings together people who already share similar values.

Unlike many travel activities that last a few hours, volunteering often creates repeated interactions over days or weeks. You start seeing the same faces regularly, working towards a common goal and building friendships naturally along the way.

It can also help you feel more connected to a destination beyond the typical tourist experience. Sometimes the most memorable people you meet while travelling are not other travellers, but the locals and long-term residents who call that place home.

The secret to meeting people isn't confidence

I’ll write a proper article about this but let’s be clear : you don’t need to be an extrovert to enjoy solo travelling. In reality, it usually comes down to putting yourself in environments where conversations happen naturally.

Choose activities you genuinely enjoy, give yourself time to settle into them, and you'll often find that meeting people happens almost by accident.

And if you're planning your first solo trip and feeling unsure about where to go, how to meet people, or how to build an itinerary that feels both exciting and comfortable, I'd love to help. You can book a free 15-minute call with me and we'll talk through your plans together.

Sonia Traore
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