Grab a pen and meet your newest bestie.
Beth Santos is practically a celebrity in the travel industry for her role as founder of the epic women’s travel community Wanderful (she even serves as godmother to a cruise ship), but to the average reader and traveler, she’s your new BFF.
Dear BFF, you ask her, Where should I travel? What do I need? How can I do it all solo–and why would I want to?
For women, it’s the golden question when it comes to travel: what’s so superior about going solo rather than with a companion? That’s Beth Santos’ gospel. Travel is a leisure activity so aggressively pursued because (at a minimum) of the buzzy feeling of joy it elicits. And travel joy can be profoundly amplified in and by solitude–spurring revelations, shifting perspectives, and even changing one’s entire life–that’s not even an exaggeration! Harnessing such an inspiring power by their own self-determination can be extremely empowering for women who travel solo. As for what you absolutely need for solo travel, Santos has a surprising recommendation.
Her must-have travel item recommendations are just the tip of the iceberg of what your now-BFF Beth Santos provides in her new book Wander Woman: How to Reclaim Your Space, Find Your Voice and Travel the World, Solo. With her warm and funny voice, Santos gives travel advice to you straight, while challenging readers to face deceptive thoughts and unconscious biases about people and places. And like any good BFF, she advocates for you, the reader and her bestie, to tackle the trepidation, make sense of the overwhelming, and get out into the world and travel solo.
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Wander Woman is part instructional guide, part memoir, and part philosophical treatise about how and why women travel with such considerable zeal–Santos opens the book with the staggering statistic about how women are the majority of travelers and make 80-85% of consumer travel decisions. Her personal anecdotes and professional insider expertise are laced throughout a wide range of travel topics, pressing travel concerns both existential and pragmatic. How can I be a more thoughtful and culturally aware traveler? How do I thwart unwanted sexual advances? How do I pack for my period? How can I get the single supplement hotel fee waived? How can I be responsible and still have the maximum amount of fun?
Among all the excellent advice Santos delivers in Wander Woman is the standout reminder of why travel can heighten a sense of joy and empowerment, and how at its core, that stems from self-reflection. Santos reminds us that while we might need money belts and passport holders and luggage tags and diva cups, the old-fashioned journal might just be the most underestimated and important thing to bring while traveling solo. Why? Because of the opportunities it provides and encourages for all that critical self-reflection. That’s what makes travel transformative.
And there’s the bonus that you can use said journal to look mysterious and busy while dining alone. But I won’t give away all your BFF’s best tips. Check out Wander Women for yourself–or pass it to your bestie.