The Best US Cities to Travel Alone
Solo traveling is usually a self-discovery journey, and being alone in a foreign country, where people speak a different language and have a strange culture and customs, definitely doesn’t suit everybody. In the beginning, loneliness can be a huge problem until you realize that it is just an ingrained mindset you need to fight against.
Talk to strangers, learn to trust people, and discover the power of a smile. Step out of a comfort zone, make your choices differently than you used to, and try new, crazy things you have never dared to do before. There is a list of five ultimate places in the US for solo travelers who enjoy traveling alone. Bon voyage!
1. New York, New York
Approximately 8.4 million citizens, who speak over 800 languages, live in New York City, probably the most popular city in the US and, unofficially speaking, the center of the whole world. Come here in the springtime to see the town when begins to blossom or in the autumn when the leaves start to fall.
You can arrive in the city via three airports, JFK, Newark airport, and LaGuardia, and use public transport from there to Penn Station. Taxi ride is pretty expensive, but the AirTrain ride is accessible to everyone.
Earlier, tourists were visiting Manhattan and avoided Brooklyn and Bronx, but nowadays, you can go everywhere, and you won’t feel less safe than in any other big city even as a solo female traveler. Depending on your options, select one of the luxury hotels in Manhattan, budget hotel in Queens, or a small motel downtown Brooklyn. Wherever you stay, be prepared that accommodation is not cheap.
Take photos of your life while Manhattan, seen from the boat, takes your breath away. I highly recommend Harbor Line’s three-hour cruise. During this extraordinary excursion, you will cross under all eighteen of the island’s bridges and circumnavigate the whole Manhattan for a few fantastic hours.
Climb to the top of the Empire State Building and go over the Brooklyn Bridge. Experience coffee sipping in Brooklyn, rollerblading in Central Park, and enjoy city subway ride. There is no mistake. Everything is amazingly beautiful and entirely impressive.
New York is one of the rare places in the world where is totally OK to eat alone in the restaurant. Pick the bar such as Balthazar in SoHo or Gramercy Tavern to taste the local produce used in the classic American cuisine or go for the more affordable food in Queens. Check out cheap drinks in the bars at the East Side, pick out your favorite rooftop to drink famous Manhattan cocktail, and spend a night in one of many live rock venues in Brooklyn.
Extra tip – Take advantage of the fact that the city is flat with the well-marked streets and – go for a walk.
2. Austin, Texas
This city is weird! Even though it is recognized as ‘Silicon Hills’, thanks to numerous tech companies, it proudly wears the slogan ‘The Live Music Capital of the World’. Spend a night in one of the upscale hotels near the University of Texas, pick out the cheaper version near the Arboretum, or behave like the most budget travelers and spend only $30 for a hostel room.
With all-year-round sunshine and mild temperatures, this is a city to visit at any time. Capital Metro is a practical choice for driving around the town for just $1.00, but there are a few taxi companies available 24/7 as well as a possibility to rent a bike or a car.
A rarely good art scene deserves your full attention including iconic murals downtown, 29 years built Cathedral of Junk, the Umlauf Sculpture Garden, or Museum of the Weird. Find one of the food trucks, grab a bite of a mix of Tex-Mex, and keep walking.
Swim at Barton Springs (the oldest man-made swimming pool in Texas), admire the Bat Bridge (the world’s largest population of 1.5 million urban Mexican free-tailed bats), row down Lady Bird Lake in downtown, or conquer the top of Mount Bonnell. This impressive view is something worth living for.
It is well-known that this city has a list of the top-notch cafés, lively local breweries, and cool distilleries which are probably the best in the US. Come here early in the morning for the morning cup of coffee or late into the night to have live music or enjoy some live show without glittering visual effects. Just music!
With over 250 music venues, it is a paradise for all music lovers especially those who travel alone. In this city, festivals are a way of life. Be a part of at least one of them, and you will become ‘the native’ in the blink of an eye!
Extra tip – You can feel safe while walk around the city, but it would be wise to avoid Pleasant Valley at night.
3. San Francisco, California
The entirely over-packed Fog City is famous worldwide for the gold rush, liberal values, and ultimate counter-culture. After arriving, you can use a taxi, public transport, or cheap Uber and Lyft from the airport to a desirable destination. In the city, there are the reliable subway (BART) and Muni (streetcars, cable cars, buses). Find a convenient place for overnight around Union Square or more affordable Chinatown. Area of South of Market (SOMA) is a little bit upscale.
Enjoy the mild Mediterranean climate and spend the spring or summer to walk or ride a bike across the Golden Gate Bridge while the view of the San Francisco Bay takes your breath away. It doesn’t count that you have indeed visited the city until seeing Alcatraz. Book a ticket in advance, take a ferry, and feel the atmosphere of the most famous prison of the highest security in the US.
Once you find yourself in this unofficial culinary capital in the US, take advantage of the bars and restaurants which offer seats for singles. Have a meal in Chinatown or organize a picnic in Golden Gate Park for yourself. Dance on the grass during free summer festivals as many other solo travelers or admire the Japanese Tea Garden. In the end, enjoy Pier 39 and stay enchanted with a city that is easy to reach but is immensely difficult to leave.
Choose the place for the hot night out depending on your preferences. The hipster scene is vibrant and top-notch, but you can also go to the Marina to discover the world-class city’s preppy scene. It is true that the ultimate nightclubs are near Union Square, but if you want to escape from that feeling that you are just a tourist, find bars along Polk Street which locals prefer, and spend a wild night as if you were born in this city.
Extra tip – Avoid walking alone through SOMA and the Tenderloin early in the morning. Except that, San Francisco is actually a pretty safe town for solo travelers.
4. New Orleans, Louisiana
It is probably more fun to visit New Orleans with friends, but this city offers a bunch of advantages for solo travelers as well. Take your time when you step inside The Big Easy, ex-French colony La Nouvelle-Orléans and the friendliest city in the US by the ‘Travel + Leisure’ opinion.
A period from February to June is definitely the best time for visiting. Book a flight for super cheap Spirit Airlines, and find a taxi or a shuttle to get from the airport to the city center. If you can afford a hotel like the Hilton New Orleans Riverside, you will wake up with fantastic overlooks the Mississippi River. If not, pick out some hotel in the French Quarter or cheap airport hotel to spend a night.
This is the only city in the US where even a walk through a local cemetery is fascinating. Don’t miss riding on the St. Charles streetcar, the oldest streetcar line in the whole world which still continuously operating. Become a part of the French Quarter, the best of the best for all lovers of jazz.
If you want to spend unique time, join Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday), the Carnival celebration before the Easter Fast and become a part of the ‘greatest free show in the world’. Make sure to book all necessary in advance. It can be crowded during the celebration.
There is no closing time at the bars, and many of them serve alcohol 24/7. For the central night out, you should go to the French Quarter and discover all the beauty of Bourbon Street, but watch yourself here because there are a lot of drunken people around.
Café du Monde, established 1862, is the ‘must see’ place and a sort of a New Orleans landmark. Feel the spirit of the city while tasting their beignets and café au lait. When you get hungry, stop anywhere and try roast beef po’ boy, red beans, and gumbo. Don’t forget pralines!
Extra tip – If you drive by yourself, don’t forget that streets are one-directional in the city center.
5. Atlanta, Georgia
Thanks to the excellent climate and lots of sunny days, any time during the year is perfect for visiting Atlanta, the worldwide famous and top city for solo travelers in the US. To make it easier to navigate the city, use their trustworthy public transport system MARTA (trains, buses, metro). To tour the vaster area of the town, be practical and rent a car or use UBER.
Except for multiple Airbnb listings, there is a wide range of accommodation, including both luxury hotels and budget motels. If you are a budget traveler, don’t expect hostels here, but you can rent an apartment or even bedroom for a couple of days.
Visit the High Museum of Art, exhibitions on the Civil Rights Movement, and the birth home of Martin Luther King Jr. Walk around Piedmont Park, located in the heart of the city, or take a risk and climb to the North Georgia Mountains. Don’t miss the Georgia Wineries, enjoy nearby waterfalls or hang out with dolphins and penguins in the Georgia Aquarium.
Find Cacao Chocolate Co. (cacao cafe in Virginia Highlands) and spend a decadent time enjoying all these incredible flavors. When it comes to food, there is a wide selection of places you can eat in. Wherever you go to have a bite to eat, you can’t go wrong. Just spend a little time on research. You don’t need to enter the first restaurant dedicated exclusively to tourists. Be original; mix with locals, and taste barbecue or fried chicken with cornbread they like.
The uniqueness of this city is the incredible mix of the slow lifestyle, urban flair, and southern souls. Come and enjoy numerous meet-and-greet events, top-notch bars, excellent cocktail lounges, a booming nightlife scene, and trivia nights.
Extra tip – Be sure to visit Ponce City Market, a real artisan food hall, with a wide range of bars, market, and restaurants providing exotic flavors of the south.
Some Useful Tips for International Travelers
The US government provides ESTA application, the system for travelers from ‘Visa Waiver Countries’, which regulates if the visitor has an eligibility to arrive in the United States and stay there for 90 days. This online system makes easier pre-screening the passengers before boarding.
For now, only travelers from 38 countries can be a part of this program, and they don’t need a visa if they travel as tourists or for business purposes. To take advantage of this program, travelers need to have passports with a digital chip with biometric information and some additional security features. Read more about Passport Validity for Travel to USA.
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