Female solo travellers have joined forces to share what countries to avoid when travelling by yourself – several European cities were listed as part of the warning
The concept of solo travelling has swept the internet, with the idea becoming more and more popular over recent years, including with women. However, when venturing out of your own country, it is important to do your research.
Solo travel is a great way to push yourself out of your comfort zone and offers you the chance to meet new people, but with that there is a risk. One curious holidaymaker, who had visited around 30 countries, wanted to know where women had been “surprised to feel unsafe”.
She took to Reddit to ask after having a disturbing experience in Brussels, Belgium. The woman, called Brooklawyer, wrote: “I was surprised that I felt really uneasy in Belgium, specifically Brussels. This cute little country known for being an easy solo travel destination had some dimly lit, covered alleyways where throngs of men liked to loiter and catcall.
READ MORE: Brits living in ‘Cotswold but with sunshine’ explain why they won’t ever move back
“And I was the only woman on some streets after 8pm. I felt like something could happen and nobody would be aware.” However, other users flooded the comments section to say they had similar experiences in Brussels. One person said: “I just came back from there. I have travelled solo quite a bit and Brussels was the place I felt most uneasy, which was so surprising.
“Someone tried to rob me within five minutes of arriving and the catcalling was awful. I’ve never had men say such disgusting things to me. I didn’t feel safe walking alone.”
Another woman described the city as “dirty” and “dangerous” and said she didn’t want to leave her accomodation. “Despite the fact that I had two nights booked there, I walked around for five hours on the first day, checking the main square and the sculpture of the peeing boy (Mannekin Pis) and went back to my hotel and spent the rest of the time there,” she said.
Sadly, Brussels wasn’t the only place that the women reported to be unsafe for solo travel. Some people mentioned Barcelona and Rome. “The amount of pickpocketing in Barcelona is crazy. I felt like I always had to watch my purse,” another user said.
One user commented: “Agree with Rome & Barcelona. Scammers and thieves are everywhere. I’ve travelled the whole of Europe and I felt way safer in Eastern Europe than in the West. Actually, I never had any issues while travelling to Balkan countries.”
Someone else added: “Nice, France. I expected it to be beautiful but found it really sketchy. I actually find this a lot in France. I’ve had some very scary Paris experiences as well, particularly with an Uber driver that wanted to follow me into my hotel when he found out I was solo.”
Another solo traveller said: “Totally agree with you on Brussels, Paris and Rome. Didn’t help that the day I arrived in Brussels there were police or military with huge rifles everywhere in the train station due to a bomb threat.
“Paris only felt unsafe at night and that was mostly because my hostel was in Montmartre. I wouldn’t make the mistake of staying there again, not safe as a single woman to walk through at night. Rome felt more like I was going to get pickpocketed rather than assaulted. I don’t remember ever feeling unsafe in Barcelona, but some areas did have a weird vibe for sure.”