Traveler Story: Advice On Solo Traveling Central America After Months On The Road

That is so so relative and has quite a bit to do with the way you personally wish to journey, the areas you select, your capability to ‘mix in’ with the locals, the kind of lodging you favor and a lot extra. Usually talking, I felt protected as a Black lady solo traveler in Central America. There have been definitely locations the place I felt my security challenged extra, earlier than I focus on these locations, I want to level out that that is very private. 

That being mentioned, Managua is a vacation spot recognized for its safety points. My Airbnb was a few 7- minute stroll from the Metrocentro and on my road there have been (I child you not) at the very least 10-12 cops in that brief strolling distance. Though the capital of Nicaragua, Managua shouldn’t be a predominant cease for vacationers. This would possibly contribute to the poorly-maintained state of town and the upper ranges of crime. 

Equally, I felt much less safe within the capital cities resembling San Jose and heard related tales about elements of Panama Metropolis. My idea is that, rising up in London, I understand how to function in metropolis mode- it’s the reverse of island-living, coastal life and so on. Naturally, being in a metropolis makes me really feel like there’s much less heat. There may be sometimes a scarcity of group and familiarity as a result of it’s not a small town-like vibe. Whereas crime charges are helpful to pay attention to, I usually most well-liked being in smaller communities the place you will get to know folks personally and there’s extra accountability in ways in which I don’t really feel exist in capital cities. It’s helpful to know what you favor and navigate in that means. 

As a Black lady solo traveler I felt that in Panama (Bocas del Toro) and Costa Rica (Puerto Viejo) I met different solo ladies travellers which normalized it and made me really feel protected. The tradition in the entire locations to this point felt acquainted to me as a Jamaican which made me really feel extra comfortable and so protected.