Young women bolder than guys as solo travellers

In another blow to male vanity, a new study has found young women are more adventurous than their male counterparts when it comes to traveling by themselves. The study by British Airways was sparked by cabin crew observations about the rising number of women traveling solo and found more and more were choosing to do so. Mostly this was because of the feeling of freedom and independence but some were also keen to meet new people and have unique experiences. About one in 10 UK travelers confessed they traveled alone to get over a break-up. The BA Global Solo Travel Study looked at almost 9,000 18-64-year-olds across the UK, US, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, India, and China. It found 75 percent of women across all countries were planning a solo trip in the next few years and  that women tended to be bolder when it came to jetting by themselves off at an early age. About  40 percent of women aged under 25 took a solo trip aged compared to just 35 percent of men. And while men retained the edge across all age groups, with six out of 10 having traveled by themselves, women were not far behind at 48 percent. READ: How BOAC's Comet set the stage for the trans-Atlantic jet set. Long backpacking adventures were popular: more than 30 million women across the surveyed countries had taken solo trips of more than six months. Italy proved the most adventurous nation in the survey with  63 percent of women aged 18 -65 saying they had explored another country alone. That was followed by Germany at 60 percent. The least inclined to venture overseas, at only 16 percent, were women from the US but change may be in the wind with 62 percent planning a getaway in the next few years. Sixty percent of UK women were planning to travel alone in the next few years and 16 percent in the next two to three months. Travel blogger and solo trip organizer Zanna Van Dijk said modern travel had undoubtedly changed. “What women are looking for with time to themselves is to explore, discover and uncover,’’ she said. “We are no longer bound by traditional family holiday concepts or stigma around heading out alone. “I organize trips for solo travelers who are looking to push themselves. (and) meet like-minded individuals that they wouldn’t otherwise.” The overall survey found German travelers were most likely to head off alone with one in five having treated themselves to a solo trip more than 10 times. Britain boasted the biggest proportion of travelers — 14 percent —  who waited until they were over 50 before they took their first solo trip. Most travelers heading off alone did so for about a week and about half chose a short-haul overseas trip. Indians were the most likely among those surveyed to travel outside their continent and the nation most willing to travel long distances was China, where almost half of travelers flew more than 11 hours on their last international trip.