Last updated on January 30th, 2024

FEEL EMPOWERED + CONFIDENT

Safety Resources for Women Travellers

Safety starts with the right mindset

While women have taken great steps forward in travel, representing two-thirds of all travellers, we still have to plan for our personal safety when we travel.  With a safety mindset and careful planning, women can prepare for any situation, at home or abroad.

JourneyWoman has been leading the safety dialogue for almost 30 years, and even created the Government of Canada’s guide for solo travel for women, called Her Own Way, which is still in use today. In 2021, we conducted a global Solo Travel Women’s Safety Survey, showing that 88% of women had been threatened or felt unsafe while travelling.

How do we define safety?

“As a woman, being able to move about freely all over the world without having to worry about personal safety, is my definition of safety in the context of future travel.”

Today, safety includes mobility and accessiblity, transportation and health and hygiene.  It also includes online safety, which is why we’ve expanded our resources to include tips on online dating, cybersecurity and more.

We hope this information empowers women to take control of any situation.

Top Safety Tips for Solo Travellers 

list of tips for solo travel

Latest Articles on Safety 

Safety Products for women travelers

Solo Travel Safety Resource Centre

Cyber Security Safety Tips

Six things to keep your data safe

Self-Defense Tips from an Expert

Lorna Selig shares her top tips to empower you

Staying Safe in Hotels

Women need their own checklist

Sex with Strangers

Tips for ensuring safety

RV + Road trip Safety Tips

Advice from experienced women RV owners

Survey Says Women’s Solo Travel Safety is Still an Issue

Read all the findings here

This Woman is Making the World Safer

Ways to stay safe online

12 Things Every Solo Traveller Should Pack

Pack light, pack safe

Not all travel has a happy ending

What you need to know

Planning for Natural Disasters

Tips to help you prepare for an earthquake or tsunami

Best Safety Products for Solo Women Travelers Over 50

Stay safe with these products

Six Safety Tips for Online Dating

How to protect yourself from online harrassment

Walking and Mobility Tips

Tips to avoid injury for the ‘slower-moving set’

12 Ways to Trick Thieves

Proecting your valuables on the road

What to Wear Guides

What you wear is an important part of safety.

Self-Defense Tips From an Expert

Let’s take back our power

Regardless of where we are, or what age we are, or whether we’re abroad or at home, we need to feel empowered and confident. Safety starts with the right mindset, using proven safety tips and common sense. The next step then is to empower ourselves with self-defense skills so that we can be ready for any situation, at home or abroad. We need not be victims. 

Tip 1: Find your voice: scream, yell and shout!

Tip 2: Fight, Punch and Kick!

Tip 3: Run like hell!

Women's self defense tips - run like hell, like this woman!

Tip 4: Manage Your Adrenaline

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Four Keys to Personal Safety 

Lorna Selig of Safe4 Life recommends four keys to personal safety to keep you protected and safe, regardless of where you are in the world, of how you’re showing up and what your environment looks like.  

#1: Be aware: Put the phone away, make eye contact, briefly, Trust your instincts, Walk confidently

#2: Establish and protect your boundaries: Step back. Walk around and go to the back of the line-up. 

#3: Confidence and Skills: Learn self-defense skills and practice them.

#4: Have a Safety plan: It should include fighting, shouting, running to safety, and breathing.

Watch the video of our self-defense training to learn more 

Pacsafe travel gear

Destination-Specific Resources

Safety isn’t specific to a destination, but certain places require extra planning and preparation for solo women

Recognizing that safety is subjective, JourneyWomen recommend the countries below as more or less ‘safe’, based on their own personal experience.

Safety Tips for Morocco

6 Tips for Women Travelling Solo

12 Things You'll Find Difficult in Northern India

Be smart and follow your judgement

20 Things Women Should Know Before Visiting Jordan

Culture and etiquette tips

Preparing for a Solo Trip to Cuba

Be culturally correct in Cuba

20 Things to Know Before Visiting Turkey

Travel expert Sally Peabody shares her tips 

Hiking the Camino

Practical tips for solo women

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