Over Spring Break, I was fortunate enough to switch coasts and spend some time in New York City and Boston for a week. I went by myself, and being that this was my first solo trip ever, I was overwhelmingly excited and equally terrified.
I won’t lie, for every booking I made, I paid a little bit extra to make it refundable. I wasn’t fully committed to this trip until I was quite literally putting my carry-on luggage into the overhead compartment. My hesitation was rooted in fear of being a 21 year old woman traveling alone, as well as a near insecurity that traveling by myself was lacking in some way, especially in comparison to the renowned wild college spring break trip. But, I was genuinely excited for this experience, and my long-term drawing towards the east coast overshadowed my doubts and anxiety.
the itinerary
In a nutshell, I lucked out on a $150 roundtrip flight through Southwest, flying into New York and out of Boston. I had plane changes both ways, but the insanely cheap fare completely outweighed that. I stayed in a hostel in New York for three nights, took the Amtrak train to Boston for about $120, and stayed in a private room in an AirBnb there for another three nights. Throughout the trip, I saved money by either walking everywhere or taking public transportation – the Subway in New York and the T in Boston. Let’s just say the Transit app was my best friend.
The first day in New York was mostly a travel day, followed by grabbing a slice of pizza and enjoying the sunset at Hudson River Park. The next day, I walked around one of my favorite areas, Greenwich Village, and then used Groupon to purchase a $10 ticket for a cruise to the Statue of Liberty. We didn’t go on Ellis Island, but close enough for a spectacular view of the landmark. After we docked, I headed to Brooklyn for a walk along the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, a solo dinner date, and another sunset accompanied by the Manhattan skyline. My final day was spent in upper Manhattan, where I visited the campus of Columbia University, had a picnic and walked around Central Park, then visited the Museum of Arts and Design to see the Taylor Swift exhibit. I wrapped up my time in New York with my first ever Broadway show, and it was unforgettable.
The train ride to Boston took about four hours and it was surprisingly peaceful and very comfortable. I got some work done, played Ariana Grande’s new eternal sunshine album on repeat, and enjoyed the views as we passed through Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Arriving in Boston, I was a bit more nervous, as I’d never been there and the public transportation was completely foreign and new to me. After checking into my AirBnb, I headed into the city and grabbed dinner at Trident Booksellers & Cafe, which was a combination of two of my favorite things – vegetarian food and books! I walked along Newbury Street which was so cute and grabbed a milkshake from Shake Shack which was heavenly. My second day in Boston was spent visiting Harvard University, eating the famous seafood, and exploring the historic Boston Common. Before heading back to my place, I caught a spectacular sunset behind the Boston skyline from Piers Park – if you couldn’t tell by now, I love sunsets. For my final day of Boston and the trip, I went to Central Perk (yes you read that right, like the place from Friends) and it was one of my favorite parts of the whole trip. The interior and exterior were decorated like the coffee shop from the show and the vibes were exquisite. I spent the rest of the day at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum and the Boston Harbor area, and treated myself to a nice Italian dinner to wrap up the trip on a high note.
solo travel
So back to my “why.” The truth is, I couldn’t really pinpoint the exact reason I wanted to take on this trip by myself. I love going on trips with friends, but the thought of doing this alone brought me a sense of peace. In college, alone time is a bit of a luxury, especially in large dosages. These past couple years, quite a lot has happened in my personal life and my mental health has gone through some drastic ups and downs. Traveling solo, even in a big city such as New York or Boston, was quiet. In just a week, I was forced to face my thoughts head on and genuinely learn and address aspects of myself and my life that I’d been avoiding. What do I really want to do post-grad? Where do I see myself in the next year? Why can’t I let go of that person? What’s actually important to me? What friendships are truly contributing to my growth as an individual?
I’m not saying I answered all of these questions with full clarity in as little as a week. In fact, in some ways, I came home with several questions even more unresolved. Yet, this was the first time in so long I gave myself permission to actually address these things and reclaim ownership over my priorities and values. Being in charge of my own time, ending each day with an in-depth journaling session, and embracing this form of independence was liberating and genuinely healing.
There were certainly moments throughout the trip when I felt lonely. In fact, I ended up being on a train with a ton of college students heading to the St. Patrick’s Day parade, and it instantly made me miss my friends and Chico. Immediately though, this also made me realize how lucky I am to have female friendships in my life to miss and to hold on to. I felt so thankful that I had parents that I knew I could call if I was scared or confused at any point during the trip. I found so much gratitude in those moments of missing the people who are important to me.
Most of all, traveling by myself drove me to appreciate my own company, something I don’t think I’d genuinely done in months. I’ve always put so much value into other people’s opinions of me and external validation from grades, friends, achievements, and most of all – boys. My self-worth has been one of my primary struggles since early high school, and navigating this in college, especially within hookup culture, party culture, and Greek life, has been far from easy. The time spent with myself during my solo trip was a powerful first step towards truly believing in myself and all that I have to offer. I built a sense of pride and confidence from overcoming my own anxiety and traveling alone, but even more-so, I realized if I don’t appreciate my own company and acknowledge what I actually bring to the table, I’ll never be able to truly believe that another person (platonically or romantically) could truly enjoy being around me, and that’s what has repeatedly driven me to settle for less.
This trip meant a lot of things to me. It brought me a newfound sense of independence, it was healing, it was fun, and it even helped me decide on moving to New York after graduation (yay)! Most importantly, though, it symbolized my first step in becoming my own best friend and believing in my own unconditional self-worth, a journey I’m so excited to continue for my final months at Chico State and into the next chapter of my life.