Solo Female Cyclist Shares 15 Safety Lessons From 40 Countries
Four years, 40 countries, and roughly 35,000 kilometers solo on a bicycle. What started as a one-year sabbatical became something larger. The safety lessons emerged from experience—some hard-won, others observed from fellow travelers who weren’t as fortunate. These aren’t paranoid precautions; they’re practical strategies that let solo travel be genuinely safe.
Lesson 1: Trust Your Instincts, Even When You Can’t Explain Them
Something feels wrong about that campsite? Leave. The village seems unwelcoming? Keep riding. Your brain processes information faster than your conscious mind can articulate. That uneasy feeling exists for a reason.
In practice: I bypassed seemingly perfect campsites because something felt off. Most of the time, nothing would have happened. But the few times I ignored that feeling, I regretted it. Trust costs nothing; ignoring warnings can cost everything.
Lesson 2: Be Visible During the Day, Invisible at Night
Daytime riding should be conspicuous—bright colors, lights, flags. You want drivers to see you from a distance. But nighttime camping is different. The less visible your camp, the fewer visitors you’ll receive.
The strategy: Camp late, leave early. Set up after dark when possible, pack up at dawn. Use neutral-colored tents and tarps. Avoid fires that advertise your location. The goal isn’t secrecy from everyone—it’s avoiding the kind of attention that arrives uninvited in darkness.
Lesson 3: Local Women Are Your Best Intelligence Source
When I needed to understand whether an area was safe, I asked local women. They know things men don’t—which neighborhoods have problems, which men to avoid, where women travel alone without issue.
How to access this network: Markets, schools, and churches are entry points. Other women recognize the vulnerability of solo female travel. They’ll tell you which route to take, where to sleep safely, and what the real risks are versus overblown fears.
Lesson 4: Your Story Matters More Than Your Gear
People asking questions want to understand why a woman is traveling alone. Your explanation shapes how they perceive and treat you. Develop a story that makes sense in local context.
What works: In many cultures, “meeting my husband” or “joining my family” provides social legitimacy. In others, professional reasons (research, writing, photography) earn respect. Choose explanations that satisfy curiosity without revealing vulnerability.
The ring: A simple wedding band signals status and discourages certain attention. It doesn’t work everywhere, but it’s one tool in the social navigation toolkit.
Lesson 5: Accommodation Security Varies Wildly
The cheapest guesthouses often have better security than mid-range hotels—family operations where owners live on-site and monitor who enters. Expensive hotels assume security exists and don’t actually provide it.
What to evaluate: Who has keys to your room? Is there a deadbolt? Can windows be secured? Does management track who enters the building? Sometimes a family home-stay is safer than a hotel because accountability is personal.
Lesson 6: Controlled Information Sharing
Be selective about what you reveal. Where you’re from, where you’re going, how long you’ve been traveling alone—each piece of information can be used by someone with bad intentions.
Practical techniques: “I’m meeting my group tomorrow” even when you’re not. Generic home country descriptions rather than specific cities. Vague itineraries rather than specific routes. You’re not lying to be deceptive; you’re protecting yourself from those who might be.
Lesson 7: Morning Departures Beat Evening Arrivals
Arrive in new towns early. This gives time to assess the situation, find good accommodation, and settle in before dark. Arriving at dusk forces quick decisions with less information.
Planning implications: Shorter daily distances mean more control over arrival timing. Rather than pushing for maximum kilometers, prioritize arriving with daylight remaining. The extra cushion makes better decisions possible.
Lesson 8: Technology Enables but Doesn’t Guarantee
GPS tracking, satellite messengers, and emergency beacons provide real security value—if someone is monitoring them and able to respond. Technology without backup response is false security.
What actually helps: Someone knows your rough itinerary and expects check-ins. A satellite messenger with subscription service that can coordinate rescue. Location sharing with people who would notice if updates stop.
Lesson 9: Physical Fitness Is Safety Insurance
Being able to ride away from a situation—fast, uphill if necessary—has practical value. Physical capability creates options that weakness doesn’t allow.
The scenarios: Dogs chasing, sketchy vehicles following, uncomfortable situations developing. Speed and endurance can extract you from problems before they escalate. Train accordingly.
Lesson 10: Strategic Companion Acquisition
In areas where solo female travel draws negative attention, temporarily joining other travelers transforms the social dynamic. Even a day or two of company through uncertain territory provides protection.
Finding companions: Hostel bulletin boards, WarmShowers, online cycling forums, and chance encounters all produce potential riding partners. Brief company through difficult stretches doesn’t compromise independence—it’s tactical.
Lesson 11: Understanding Local Threat Patterns
Different regions have different risks. Rural areas might have property crime but low violent crime. Urban areas might have street harassment but excellent emergency services. Understanding local patterns allows appropriate preparation.
Information sources: Other travelers, particularly women. Embassy travel advisories (often overcautious but informative). Local news coverage. Long-term expatriates who understand nuance beyond tourist zones.
Lesson 12: Financial Security Layers
Robbery prevention and mitigation require distributed assets. Cash in multiple locations. Cards from different banks. Emergency reserves hidden in luggage. If thieves get one stash, others remain.
The decoy approach: A wallet with expired cards and small cash satisfies robbers. The real resources are elsewhere. Handing something over quickly often ends confrontations before they escalate.
Lesson 13: Alcohol and Safety Don’t Mix
Impaired judgment, reduced physical capability, and increased vulnerability. Every safety system depends on clear thinking. Drinking while traveling solo—especially in unfamiliar environments—creates unacceptable risk.
The social challenge: Declining drinks can be culturally complicated. Nursing a single beer across an evening, claiming medication restrictions, or simply accepting then not drinking all work depending on context.
Lesson 14: Emergency Exits and Backup Plans
Before every situation—camping spot, accommodation, social encounter—know how you’d leave if things went wrong. Where’s the door? What’s the fastest route out? Who could help nearby?
Mental rehearsal: This isn’t paranoia; it’s preparation. Running through exit scenarios takes seconds and becomes habitual. The one time it matters, you won’t have time to figure it out in the moment.
Lesson 15: When to Simply Not Go
Some places and situations aren’t worth the risk, regardless of how carefully you prepare. Learning to recognize unacceptable risk—and accepting the disappointment of skipping something you wanted to see—is the most important safety skill.
The hard decisions: Routes through conflict zones. Countries with documented targeting of solo female travelers. Areas where emergency services don’t exist. Some adventures aren’t worth having.
The Reality Check
The vast majority of people everywhere want to help, not harm. Hospitality shown to solo female cyclists has been overwhelming—invitations to homes, protection through difficult areas, generosity that asked nothing in return.
These lessons aren’t about expecting the worst from everyone. They’re about being prepared for the rare worst-case while remaining open to the common best-case. Most days involve no security decisions whatsoever. The preparation exists for the days that do.
Four years of solo travel taught me that the world is generally safer than feared, that preparation enables freedom rather than limiting it, and that other women have been doing this since long before social media made it visible. The road is open to those who approach it with appropriate respect for its challenges.
