{"id":61524,"date":"2023-06-13T20:47:59","date_gmt":"2023-06-13T10:47:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/?p=61524"},"modified":"2025-03-12T01:45:01","modified_gmt":"2025-03-11T14:45:01","slug":"for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/","title":{"rendered":"For this solo female traveller, her first trip abroad in\u00a0over 20 years was worth the wait\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Caroline Blakeney, 62, from South Gloucestershire, is just back from a Premium trip to Egypt \u2013&nbsp;her first foray abroad in over two decades.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It wasn\u2019t that Caroline didn\u2019t want to see more of the world. Life simply got in the way. \u2018I had always wanted to travel, but you marry a farmer, you\u2019re tied to the ground,\u2019 she says. Later, divorce, single motherhood, financial restraints and other family commitments kept Caroline on home soil for more than 20 years.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a solo traveller over the age of 45, Caroline&#8217;s not alone. In 2023, Intrepid has seen an 84 per cent increase versus 2022 in trip bookings from women aged 45 and over. We surveyed over 2000 women in the demographic to find out more about what\u2019s inspiring their travels and discovered that nearly three quarters (72 per cent) see mid-life as a period for&nbsp;personal growth and exploration, with travel being a key part of that experience. Caroline&#8217;s journey not only reflects this wider trend, but marks the start of a whole new chapter in her life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Taking the leap&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>When her father passed and left her some money, Caroline decided it was time to get away. Then COVID hit. Soon after, she lost a couple of friends \u2013 one of whom died of a sudden heart attack. These events only sharpened her perspective and determination.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2018It makes you think. You\u2019ve got to go and do these things. You can keep putting it off, but you never know what\u2019s around the corner,\u2019 she says. \u2018I thought, if I don\u2019t go now, I may never see the things I want to see.\u2019&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-scaled.jpg\" data-rel=\"penci-gallery-image-content\" ><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61528\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-425x239.jpg 425w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-scaled.jpg 1920w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-1170x658.jpg 1170w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Anubis-tomb-of-Queen-Nefertari-585x329.jpg 585w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Anubis in the tomb of Queen Nefertari<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>And it was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/egypt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Egypt<\/a> that she wanted to see first. She went straight to her local travel agent and booked her first ever small group adventure.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote alignright has-text-align-left has-border-color has-white-border-color\"><blockquote><p>I thought, if I don\u2019t go now, I may never see the things I want to see.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2018I\u2019m not a hotel, sit on the beach person. I knew that I didn\u2019t want a holiday like that. <a href=\"\/egypt\/premium-egypt-depth-159935\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Intrepid\u2019s Premium Egypt in Depth trip<\/a> sounded like a good balance of getting to see everything you want to see, without being too regimented. And it proved to be just that,\u2019 says Caroline. \u2018We didn\u2019t only see the highlights. We wandered the streets drinking sugar cane juice and were welcomed into local people\u2019s homes to share\u00a0meals. We saw both sides of the coin.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3.jpg\" data-rel=\"penci-gallery-image-content\" ><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61537\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3-425x239.jpg 425w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3-1170x658.jpg 1170w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3-585x329.jpg 585w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Abu-Simbel-3.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Abu Simbel at dawn<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">An adventure to remember&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>For history lover Caroline, the flexible itinerary meant her group got to see the wonders of Abu Simbel at sunrise, in solitude, instead of a crowded, hot afternoon \u2013 with their \u2018fabulous\u2019 local leader and Egyptologist, Noha, on hand to enlighten them.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2018You could ask Noha about anything \u2013 and I\u2019m terribly curious \u2013 so I would! She soon realised I wanted to collect a few history books to take home, so she\u2019d go off to the tradespeople and buy the appropriate one at the right price on my behalf. Nothing was too much trouble for her.&#8217;&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Noha-and-the-group-in-Nubian-village.jpg\" data-rel=\"penci-gallery-image-content\" ><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"61532\" src=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Noha-and-the-group-in-Nubian-village-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61532\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Noha-and-the-group-in-Nubian-village-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Noha-and-the-group-in-Nubian-village-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Noha-and-the-group-in-Nubian-village-585x780.jpg 585w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Noha-and-the-group-in-Nubian-village.jpg 960w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Leader Noha was also happy to take the group selfies<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-local-family-Egypt.jpg\" data-rel=\"penci-gallery-image-content\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"768\" height=\"1024\" data-id=\"61531\" src=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-local-family-Egypt.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61531\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-local-family-Egypt.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-local-family-Egypt-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-local-family-Egypt-585x780.jpg 585w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Caroline had an unforgettable birthday at the Nubian village<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This kind of personalised service also ensured Caroline spent her 62<sup>nd<\/sup> birthday sharing a giant chocolate cake with a community of Nubian villagers, along with her fellow travellers \u2013 who quickly became friends. \u2018We all got on like a house on fire. We\u2019re still in contact and will be for life, which is nice\u2019, she says.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Another memorable moment for Caroline was an early morning hot air balloon ride over the Valley of the Kings \u2013 an optional extra that almost all of the group chose to do. \u2018You\u2019re only there once, theoretically, so why not?\u2019 she says. \u2018It was absolutely outstanding. It was just so calm&#8230; it really was incredible.\u2019 &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon.jpg\" data-rel=\"penci-gallery-image-content\" ><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"576\" src=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-61535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon-425x239.jpg 425w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon-1170x658.jpg 1170w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon-585x329.jpg 585w, https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/hot-air-balloon.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Finding peace above the Valley of the Kings<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Where next?&nbsp;<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>With her next <a href=\"\/premium\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Intrepid Premium trip<\/a> already booked (\u2018<a href=\"\/india\/premium-india-depth-160575\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">India<\/a> \u2013 there\u2019s a culture I just have to experience\u2019) and another in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/turkey\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Turkey<\/a> on the cards, it\u2019s safe to say Caroline\u2019s wanderlust has been well and truly unleashed.\u00a0 And she\u2019s quick to encourage others to follow their travel dreams too.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u2018Do it. You\u2019ll be absolutely fine. You\u2019ll enjoy it; you\u2019ll be looked after \u2013 and you\u2019ll probably want to go on another one next year, like me!\u2019&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Follow in Caroline\u2019s footsteps and experience <\/strong><a href=\"\/egypt\/premium-egypt-depth-159935\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><strong>Premium Egypt in Depth<\/strong><\/a><strong> for yourself.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It&#8217;s never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who&#8217;s just back from her first adventure abroad in over two decades.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16279,"featured_media":61540,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1408,3108],"tags":[54,2764,2247],"class_list":["post-61524","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-good-stories","tag-egypt","tag-premium","tag-solo-female-travel","ipf_region-egypt"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.3.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>This solo female traveller&#039;s first trip in 20 years was worth the wait | Intrepid<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"It&#039;s never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who&#039;s just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"This solo female traveller&#039;s first trip in 20 years was worth the wait\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It&#039;s never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who&#039;s just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Good Times by Intrepid\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/intrepidtravel\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-06-13T10:47:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-11T14:45:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1536\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"864\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Emma Sparks\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"This solo female traveller&#039;s first trip in 20 years was worth the wait\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"It&#039;s never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who&#039;s just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@Intrepid_Travel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Intrepid_Travel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Emma Sparks\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/\",\"name\":\"This solo female traveller's first trip in 20 years was worth the wait | Intrepid\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-06-13T10:47:59+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-11T14:45:01+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#\/schema\/person\/7e9d7cb4707019b085a89683dd9ac16e\"},\"description\":\"It's never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who's just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg\",\"width\":1536,\"height\":864,\"caption\":\"Intrepid traveller Caroline playing with perspective, pretending to hold up a pyramid in Egypt\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"For this solo female traveller, her first trip abroad in\u00a0over 20 years was worth the wait\u00a0\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/\",\"name\":\"The Good Times by Intrepid\",\"description\":\"adventure news\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#\/schema\/person\/7e9d7cb4707019b085a89683dd9ac16e\",\"name\":\"Emma Sparks\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cfef74a18350c0773cbae5bd033ef3511e54faf69fc5c3e54865e0d84eade5a8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cfef74a18350c0773cbae5bd033ef3511e54faf69fc5c3e54865e0d84eade5a8?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Emma Sparks\"},\"description\":\"The travel bug bit Emma when she moved to New Zealand with her family when she was 14. It sank its teeth in further during a solo RTW trip post-university. She never feels more like herself than when she's wearing a backpack and heading off into the unknown. See also: cat lady, geography quiz geek, editorial content lead at Intrepid.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.emmasparks.co.uk\/#\/\",\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/emmasparks\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/author\/emma-sparks\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"This solo female traveller's first trip in 20 years was worth the wait | Intrepid","description":"It's never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who's just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"This solo female traveller's first trip in 20 years was worth the wait","og_description":"It's never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who's just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/","og_site_name":"The Good Times by Intrepid","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/intrepidtravel\/","article_published_time":"2023-06-13T10:47:59+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-03-11T14:45:01+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1536,"height":864,"url":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Emma Sparks","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"This solo female traveller's first trip in 20 years was worth the wait","twitter_description":"It's never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who's just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.","twitter_image":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg","twitter_creator":"@Intrepid_Travel","twitter_site":"@Intrepid_Travel","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Emma Sparks","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/","url":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/","name":"This solo female traveller's first trip in 20 years was worth the wait | Intrepid","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg","datePublished":"2023-06-13T10:47:59+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-11T14:45:01+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#\/schema\/person\/7e9d7cb4707019b085a89683dd9ac16e"},"description":"It's never too late to go on your first solo trip. Take it from Caroline, who's just back from her first adventure abroad in over 20 years.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg","width":1536,"height":864,"caption":"Intrepid traveller Caroline playing with perspective, pretending to hold up a pyramid in Egypt"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/for-this-solo-female-traveller-her-first-trip-abroad-in-over-20-years-was-worth-the-wait\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"For this solo female traveller, her first trip abroad in\u00a0over 20 years was worth the wait\u00a0"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/","name":"The Good Times by Intrepid","description":"adventure news","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#\/schema\/person\/7e9d7cb4707019b085a89683dd9ac16e","name":"Emma Sparks","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cfef74a18350c0773cbae5bd033ef3511e54faf69fc5c3e54865e0d84eade5a8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/cfef74a18350c0773cbae5bd033ef3511e54faf69fc5c3e54865e0d84eade5a8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Emma Sparks"},"description":"The travel bug bit Emma when she moved to New Zealand with her family when she was 14. It sank its teeth in further during a solo RTW trip post-university. She never feels more like herself than when she's wearing a backpack and heading off into the unknown. See also: cat lady, geography quiz geek, editorial content lead at Intrepid.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.emmasparks.co.uk\/#\/","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/emmasparks\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/author\/emma-sparks\/"}]}},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/Caroline-in-Egypt-header.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4OQMK-g0k","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61524","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16279"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61524"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61524\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82372,"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61524\/revisions\/82372"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61540"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61524"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61524"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.intrepidtravel.com\/adventures\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61524"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}