Help! Solo female travelling Trivandrum to Goa in 5 weeks

Hi All,

I am 26 years old (1st time solo traveler!) and flying from Delhi to Trivandrum mid September and will be travelling up to Goa to leave from there at the end of October.

I am not to worried about travelling alone (I have read up on etiquette and how to avoid unwanted attention etc and know to keep my wits about me).

I am more worried about finding the right sort of places to stay so that I can meet other travelers and share our experiences and even travel together for a bit. I am pretty much planning on going north along the coast until I reach Goa - so if anyone has any ideas suggestions of places to stay / things to do so that i can meet other travelers and make friends that would be much appreciated

Thanks

Emma

Hi Emma,

Suggestions for Goa: If you want the hustle bustle of Goa then head to Calangute, there are way too many Resorts & Hotels along Baga Beach. If you want a bit of peace and quiet then head to South Goa's Resorts.

It might well be raining at that time so keep that in mind. Sep-Oct is no way near the peak season so you might get decent discounts along as well. It would also not be very crowded at this time, so best of luck.

In case you need specific suggestions on which resort or hotels to pick, do let me know.

Happy Travelling!

Hi Emma ,

arriving at Trivandrum you can head to Kovalam , stay at the light house beach hotels

then head to Alleppey , do the backwaters in houseboats, or motor boats or use the government operated SEE KUTTANAD cruise , you could also think of staying couple of night at Alleppey

then catch the Alleppey - kottayam ferry and then head to Thekkady / periyar . few nights at this nature reserve

then head to Munnar hill station, couple of nights there
then down to FortCochin

you could head to Goa from here by Train, which is an overnight journey

hey emzy55 .. depends on what kind of accommodations you are looking at? at trivandrum you will most likely head to Kovalam and from there move up slowly towards the north .. one stop you can make along the way is Varkala .. there you can find suitable accommodation where you are likely to meet a lot of other travelers. in Aleppey and Cochin you will be able to find many good homestays or budget dorms as well. do your research and you will be able to get a list of popular cafes or spots where tourists do end up in each city or town and thats also a great way to meet people to travel with .. swap stories and get pointers for example a popular spot that like in Cochin is the Kashi Art Cafe in Fort Kochi ..

Hey Ems.

Make sure you stop in Varkala, Fort Kochi, Allepey, Gokarna, Palolem, Anjuna and Arambol.

These are the major backpacker stops along the coast from Kerala to Goa and all are worth a stop. If you can stop in Munnar too - excellent.

Very jealous!

NB

Recommend Arambol in North Goa. Fantastic beach. Young and international crowd.

On a serious note, start booking your train tickets now. Leave it too late and they can sell out.

Most south Goa beaches will be closed during monsoon, so please try north Goa where the cliffs will still have nice restaurants open.

Try to Avoid Calaungute, you will find a lot of single " Drunk " indian guys there mostly, unless you dig that.

Hello Emma, I will be back in Kerala mid September after my European travels. Please feel free to contact me if you need any travelling tips. Cheers Alex

Hey emzy,

Since you are travelling alone to Goa, there are few things you must consider.

1. Be in senses all the time
2. Stay - North Goa is a perfect place to stay since it is crowded and is safe all the time

Anyways I am also a traveler like you and going solo from 23rd - 28th Oct 2012.

Wish you all the best