By BARBARA CONELLI

The best trips of my life have been those I have taken alone. I am a solitary traveler, and I love it with every inch of my traveler’s soul. Many women are afraid to travel solo – they are worried about feeling lonely and not knowing what to do, or are busy creating worst case scenarios about the risks they may encounter. But once they discover the beauty and zest of solitary travel, they swear by it for the rest of their life.

Today I would like to share with you the top three secrets of solitary travelers, and give you a juicy tip that will help you take your first baby step into the adventure of solitary travel.

Secret #1: Solitary Travel Helps You Grow

When you travel on your own, you grow as a person and discover the true you that may have been hiding under the expectations, wishes and desires of others. As a solitary traveler, you learn to rely on yourself and take responsibility for your actions. You become more open-minded and tolerant to other cultures, religions and opinions. You turn into a keen observer excited to discover the real face of the places you visit. You have time to think about yourself, about what you really love, and about who the beautiful woman in the mirror really is.

Secret #2: Solitary Travel Helps You Make New Friends

When you travel on your own for the first time, you immediately discover that you’re never alone. As you pay more attention to people around you, you are approached by strangers, exposed to their life stories, and you make new friends easily and effortlessly. When you travel with your usual clique, your chances to meet knew people and really get to know them are quite small. When traveling the world, I have met dozens of amazing people and most of them have become my closest friends.

Secret #3: Solitary Travel Helps You Taste True Freedom

When you travel on your own, you can seize your days, you can seize your nights, and how you do it is only up to you. You can go wherever you want and whenever you feel like it. You can eat what you want, wake up when you want, and do crazy things without being judged by your “wise and reasonable friends”. You are free to explore the world and yourself. You can wear crazy hats, and go make-up free, and be childish, and flirt, and laugh, and eat lots of chocolate, and hike, and swim, and sleep, and maybe for the first time in your life live the way only YOU want, in the present moment, just for yourself.

Dolce Vita Solitary Travel Tip

Okay, maybe the idea of becoming a solitary traveler excites you and scares you at the same time. Why don’t you start small? Choose a city close to your home where you’ve never been. Or a nearby city that has a restaurant or spa you have always wanted to try. Or a city with a wonderful theater play or exhibition you desire to see. Book a nice hotel for the weekend, pack an overnight bag, take your camera, get in your car, take a deep breath and go! Very often we think that traveling means flying far away without realizing that beautiful treasures can be found just a few miles away waiting to be explored by the beautiful newborn solitary traveler – YOU.

Barbara Conelli is an internationally published author and Chiquenist on the mission to bring Fantastic Fearless Feminine Fun into women’s lives. In her charming, delightful and humorous Chique Books filled with Italian passion, Barb invites women to explore Italy from the comfort of their home with elegance, grace and style, encouraging them to live their own Dolce Vita no matter where they are in the world. Barb lives between New York and Milan, and as a real globetrotter, she’s always on the move, accompanied by her adorable and very spoiled beagle. To her, writing is like breathing, and she’s currently working on her new book.

Her latest book, Chique Secrets of Dolce Vita, is a narrative travel nonfiction book full of charming, poetic, delightful and humorous travel and life stories about extraordinary Milanese women and men who have succumbed to their temptation and the art of living your own dolce vita no matter where in the world you are. You can visit her website at http://www.barbaraconelli.com/ or connect with her at Twitter at www.twitter.com/barbaraconelli or Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/barbaraconelli.