Journalist on 15 years of solo female travelling adventures

Former Lynn News reporter Lucy Ruthnum has been travelling the world for 15 years, visiting nearly 60 countries. Here, she talks us through her inspirational adventures…

I still remember the moment I boarded the plane. Fifteen years ago, I was better known locally as Friday’s Girl through by column in the Lynn News, where I was a reporter. Then, I decided to take a chance. I packed up my life, sold my things and boarded a one-way flight to Thailand. Everyone told me travelling alone as a woman was “too dangerous”. But if I’d waited for someone to come with me, I’d still be waiting.

As the plane touched down in Bangkok, adrenaline rushed through me. It was my first time travelling anywhere on my own – and within seconds I knew I wasn’t coming home at the end of the year. That trip was the start of a journey that has now taken me to nearly 60 countries and inspires the blog Absolutely Lucy and my solo female travel community, Solo Adventure Gals, for women who want to travel safely and confidently.

Thailand was my training ground for solo travel. It gave me a crash course in trusting my instincts and helped me to discover how I truly love to travel. While other backpackers stuck to beach bars on the islands, I was travelling slowly, chasing an authentic connection with the locals through volunteering and giving back to the local community.

Hiking in the north to stay with hill tribes and cycling to explore ancient temples of the kingdom’s past. A highlight was hearing wild elephants crashing through the jungle in a 160-million-year-old rainforest, before sleeping in a floating cabin on the lake while bats swooped overhead.

Things didn’t always go to plan, and as I continued exploring Southeast Asia, I was in a series of bus crashes that left me shaken in Vietnam and Cambodia. This was a sharp reminder of how isolating solo travel can feel at times when you have no one but yourself to rely on. These were the moments that built my resilience.

Moving to Australia doesn’t sound like something you can do without a lot of forward planning, but I did it by accident. I planned to visit for a few months before continuing my travels, but how naive I was to think I could leave after just a few months. Luckily, my working holiday visa meant I could stay for two years.

Those two years were a rollercoaster with extreme highs, including a road trip through Western Australia with friends where we wild camped under the stars and swam with whale sharks. Australia is a hiker’s paradise – from scaling Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain in the snow, to hiking the Top End’s dry, dusty national parks, to hidden waterfalls. There were also the challenging times – including three months over Christmas working in a rural town as an au pair and battling cockroaches.

My travels continued across Europe when I moved to Germany and converted a camper van for a road trip that spanned the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and France. After a year of exploring Germany and the surrounding countries, it was time to return to the UK to plan my next big adventure. I was finally making my dream of travelling Central and South America a reality – it was the trip I had dreamt of taking for years, but had been too scared to take the leap.

Touching down in Mexico, I lifted the backpack that once again contained my entire life and felt the spark of excitement. From hiking through jungles to Mayan temples for sunrise, to exploring cloud forests and hot springs in Costa Rica, and even braving a festival alone. I said yes to every opportunity on this trip and firmly stepped outside my comfort zone.

One of my most memorable trips was to Guatemala for an overnight trek up Volcán Acatenango, a 3,974m peak opposite the erupting Volcán de Fuego. We camped above the clouds, watching fiery lava bursts streak the sky, then woke under a blanket of stars for the final push to the summit. At dawn, it felt like walking on Mars.

Celebrating 10 years of solo travel in 2024 was a huge milestone for someone who thought she was taking a gap year. I’ve spent years full-time travelling the globe and turned it into my career, but even better, I’ve created a community of women who also love adventure.

In the last decade, there’s been a remarkable shift, and now 71% of solo travellers are women. The same women who were always told the world was “too dangerous” for them are now packing their bags and taking a solo trip. Those dangers we are warned about – of lone women being more vulnerable and the threat of drink spiking – remain prevalent across the globe.

After travelling to nearly 60 countries worldwide and most of them solo, I realised that yes, the world is a dangerous place for women.

But, I’ve found more danger in “developed” countries such as the UK, Germany and Australia than I ever found exploring the destinations deemed far more dangerous. Solo travel is a lot safer than we are led to believe.

Your first solo trip doesn’t have to be scary. It can be the best thing you’ve ever done – a chance to step outside your comfort zone, grow in confidence and design your own adventure. If I can do it, starting with one nervous trip from Lynn to Bangkok, so can you.