For solo women, tech is making travel safe and easy

TECHNOLOGY PLAYS A ROLE IN ENHANCING SAFETY

Live location sharing
Solo travellers make it a point to share their live location with friends and family for safety reasons. Tour curator Divyakshi Gupta (35) explains, “Technology has made things safer for sure. While travelling alone, I generally share my live location through WhatsApp with my family so that they can track me.” Rashmi adds, “While using cab services, keeping the SOS app handy is essential.”

Ride hailing apps
These apps prove to be especially helpful if you’re travelling in a foreign country. But this requires a bit of research before you fly to your destination. “I like to use local taxi apps like Grab, Yandex and other locally developed applications as these are often cheaper and help you to get a cab easily,” says Manjulika Pramod, a solo traveller.

Food aggregator apps
Gone are the days when you’d reach your destination late in the evening and after checking in, would have to roam the streets for a decent dinner. A late-evening hunt for food in an unfamiliar place could also compromise your safety. “But that’s not the case anymore. It’s much easier now, as you have your meals delivered at your place of stay,” says Bengaluru-based solo traveller Rashmi Shenoy.

Translator apps
Language translation apps like Google Translate are useful when travelling in areas where the local language can be a barrier for travellers. “During my Thailand trip, I navigated entirely with the help of only Google translate which helped a lot to communicate with locals as I don't like travelling in organised groups,” says Shenoy.

Online and offline maps
For solo women travellers, having access to a live map does away with the need to ask strangers for directions, especially if there is a language barrier. “Moreover, while travelling solo, I always download offline maps for the entire region I am travelling to, as we don't always get good network, especially in mountain regions,” shares Rashmi. According to Manjulika, Google Maps has been a boon for her, especially when she was travelling to countries like Uzbekistan, where communicating with locals can be a problem due to their limited understanding of English.

Local guide apps
Many solo travellers – and not just women – depend on online photos and personal reviews from the traveller community to do their research about their destination. “Pictures and reviews posted by Google’s Local Guides are the best first-hand reviews any traveller can search for. I also leave give feedback as a traveller by posting pictures and sharing minor but important details like the nearest washrooms and fun cafes as a local guide,” says Manjulika.

Data on Women Solo Travellers:

• Around 10% increase in women travellers in 2023
• 43% YOY growth in flight booking and 30% YOY growth in hotel booking in 2023 compared to 2022
• Over 20% increase in solo women travellers in 2023 compared to around 10% in 2022
• Approximately 50% of women travel lers choose to book a four-star hotel, followed by 30% choosing five-star and 20% choosing three-star, while booking from a particular travel company site
• 60% of the women travellers do one-month advance booking, which is higher than the male travellers

(Cleartrip yearly data)

"Safety and trust as parameters play an important role while booking travel. So while booking or planning for a hotel, the reviews, ratings, and photos shared by solo travellers stand to be of paramount importance," says Karthick Prabu, Head of Strategy, Cleartrip.

TIPS AND ADVICE ON STAYING SAFE
- Always let your family or close friends know about your location and your travel plans. You can also share your live location
- Keep offline maps of the place/city you are travelling to handy

- Do not share live updates on social media by immediately posting photos, as it can compromise your safety
- Buy a local sim card