How to Solo Travel on a Budget

Think solo travel has to be expensive? Think again.
In this episode, Kelli is joined by travel writer, bestselling author, and TEDx speaker Jen Ruiz, known for her popular Instagram @jenonajetplane. With over 50 countries and hundreds of solo trips under her belt, Jen breaks down how to explore the world on your terms — and your budget.

From mistake fares and travel credit cards to budget airlines and $9 hotel rooms, Jen shares how she made 12+ trips in 12 months while working full time. She opens up about cultural money mindsets, how to prioritize spending, and why solo travel gives you unmatched freedom.

Whether you’re planning your first solo trip or just want to travel smarter, this episode will leave you inspired — and equipped.
📍Tips for finding cheap flights
📍How to make solo travel more affordable — and fun
📍Smart splurges that are worth every penny

Follow Jen on Instagram: @jenonajetplane
Follow the show: @SoloTravelUnpackedPod

Transcript

Kelli Wall (00:38)
Welcome to Solo Travel Unpacked, where we explore the world one solo travel story at a time.

I'm your host Kelli and I believe that solo travel.

is a journey of self-discovery, empowerment, and connection.

Each episode, we'll meet a different solo traveler and hear their insights, experiences, and lessons learned.

We'll also take a look at a key solo travel topic

to give you the tools and inspiration for your own adventure.

It's time to hear from today's guest and unpack another solo travel story.

Kelli Wall (01:08)
Welcome back to Solo Travel Unpacked.

of taking a solo but your bank account had other plans, You're not According to a 2023 Solo Traveler Survey,

Nearly 70 % of respondents said budget is the biggest barrier to traveling solo.

more possible than we think?

Today's guest, is living proof.

travel writer

who has visited more than 50 countries, taken hundreds of solo trips.

trips and 12 months all while working full time.

She's a bestselling author, TEDx speaker.

A Top Latina Travel Advisor by Points Guy.

an award-winning journalist.

popular Instagram account, Jen on a Jet Plane.

And she's here to break down how we can explore the world on our own without breaking the bank.

Kelli Wall (02:04)
Jen, I'm so glad to have you on Solo Travel Impact and so thankful that you've responded to my message on Instagram. You've built a life around solo travel and helping others to see what's possible. And today we're diving into something that feels especially relevant right now, which is how to solo travel on a budget. So again, thank you so much for coming on.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (02:26)
Absolutely, I'm happy to be here. Thank you for having me.

Kelli Wall (02:29)
Of course. So before we jump into all of your expertise, I would love to know a little bit about your life outside of travel.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (02:36)
Or, well, I am currently based in Florida. I will be getting a new puppy in two weeks or so, which is a big life change for me because I haven't really had a life outside of travel since I went into full-time travel entrepreneurship seven years ago. It's really been, you know, all vacation is travel and work. And so it's been a really wonderful journey. It's been seven years of doing this full-time now. And I'm looking forward to the next chapter and what the next iteration of that looks like for me.

Kelli Wall (03:04)
Amazing, I'm so excited for you to get a little puppy. Do you know what you're getting?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (03:08)
I do, I'm getting a golden doodle.

Kelli Wall (03:10)
Absolutely precious, absolutely precious.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (03:11)
Yes, I'm

really excited. It's going to be a new adventure, buddy.

Kelli Wall (03:15)
I love that. That was going to be my next question for you was, will the puppy go on trips with you? These are very important details.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (03:22)
Absolutely, yeah, hopefully.

I've seen this shift with a lot more domestic travel now over the next few years, and I think it's a good time for a pup and I. Also a puppy that just kind of brings people together, something that's very kind of likeable, lovable, and so maybe at a time when people are feeling a little bit worried or nervous about traveling, this is a really good way to...

promote places around the US, promote small businesses, smaller towns, hidden gems kind of things. I know that's an overused term, but just things that people would be interested in seeing in their own backyards.

Kelli Wall (03:54)
Yeah, and what a good conversation starter. I think anytime a puppy or a dog or an animal around, it's an easy thing to go up and start talking to somebody.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (04:04)
Exactly, exactly.

So hopefully it helps put people at ease. And I've seen just, yeah, I think that'll be a good shift for me. think I've done, I have done a lot of solo travel, but now hopefully solo and pup would be a good way to reach new audiences and have different types of experiences.

Kelli Wall (04:19)
I see a whole nother niche for you to get into.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (04:22)
It's actually a really lucrative

I've seen a lot of different, like, it's not just dog travel, but dog training, know, dog places, there's tourism boards that are working particularly to make dog friendly itineraries, hotels that have dog packages. So there is really a whole subdivision there. Yeah, and an opportunity for Pup himself to be an influencer.

Kelli Wall (04:45)
I love it. Well, we're gonna have to bring you back for an episode all about solo travel with dogs.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (04:49)
Yes, hopefully I am good and I make it through the puppy stage. I am really nervous because I've been alone for so many years that like having to deal with the energy of something else. I just hope I do a good job. I'm very, very nervous. But yes, solo travel and solo living has been the default for me for many years because it allows me the freedom to just kind of pick up and go as I choose to, which I have had the privilege of doing for a while now.

Kelli Wall (05:13)
Yeah, amazing. I'm sure you will be a fantastic dog mom. And so speaking of solo travel, I want to jump into it. I know it's a little bit more timely right now, but certainly in any economic environment. When people hear solo travel on a budget, they often picture maybe some uncomfortable hotels or maybe some travel that they don't really want to

What does budget travel mean to you personally?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (05:39)
I think it means spending where you want to spend and on what matters to you. So if you're

who really does care about traveling in style and in luxury, then you can figure out your plan to get that first class flight within your budget, within the range that is affordable for you.

If you're somebody who enjoys similarly staying at really nice hotels, really nice places around the world, having really lovely spa treatments, then maybe that's what you're prioritizing on your trip. So I've learned that budget in itself is not a bad word. It's more shifting where you choose to prioritize spending the money.

it's not that you are cutting, right? Because I think a lot of people hear budget and have a visceral reaction of, like,

No, treat yourself, right? Like I want a good life. I don't want to be stingy with myself. And so I think it's just a way of, if you reposition that and think that budget travel is a way of deciding what it is that you want to spend your money on so you can prioritize your spending towards those things that you personally value, because it's different for everybody else, then I think that's the best way to think about budget travel.

Kelli Wall (06:42)
That is such a good point and something that you had started to say, but are there any other misconceptions that you tend to hear a lot when people talk about cost or really that it's too expensive for budget travel? And I know you just spoke about what is it to you? know, can you do it if luxury is the way that you want to do it, there ways to do it, but are there any kind of broad sweeping misconceptions that you hear about traveling on a budget?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (07:06)
I think everybody assumes you're gonna be flying spirit, right? And that that spirit is bad. You know, I think you can, it's not

the airline. I think every airline has issues. Every airline gets delayed. I know people say, you know, no, this airline is super reliable. Every airline has had a problem, every single airline. And so it's really more about how you're flying on that airline, right? If you are last row,

Kelli Wall (07:16)
Mm-hmm.

Yes.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (07:33)
middle seat on Spirit, is going to be a very miserable experience. You're gonna get wafts from the restroom every time somebody opens the door. It's gonna be awful. But maybe if you're flying in the emergency row and there actually isn't a seat in front of you, so you have like double the leg room of anybody else and you can put your six foot tall legs all the way out and you have a window seat, maybe that's a much better experience for you and you got that for a price that is affordable.

So I think people unnecessarily rule out certain brands, certain things based off of the reputation that they may get as being affordable. And because of that, it's lower quality. Similarly, like hostels, hostels is something, and I don't stay in shared rooms, but I still look at hostels because a lot of hostels will sometimes have lower priced individual rooms for solo travelers.

Kelli Wall (08:22)
Mm-hmm.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (08:23)
So there's still private rooms, but you're paying a fraction of what you would pay at the hotel versus the hostel because of that title and because of the perception that it is a more affordable accommodation. So I think that there is, I don't think that you should rule anything out just by virtue of it being that brand, that particular type of accommodation, that particular type of experience, and instead find the way again to get what it is that matters to you, whether that's more leg room, whether that's a late checkout, wherever it is that you're going.

Kelli Wall (08:52)
Jen, it's such a good point because sometimes when we think about these things like hostels or certain airlines, immediately your brain starts to have a certain perception So that's such a great point to really do your research and don't just assume because there are other ways to make it work. It's such a good point.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (09:10)
Yes, I'm trying to think of what if it's the pot hotel in in Times Square Times Square during the summer can be insanely expensive. And so this is a hotel that has a lot of shared accommodations. I think it's the pot, but and they're right in the middle of everything, but on their higher floors, it's all private accommodation. So it is smaller. It's very space efficient, like most things in New York City, but it's, know.

one of the more affordable places that you'll find that isn't this kind of run down office actually really modern have a lot of amenities you know it's well staffed there's people there 24 hours and so I think yeah if you just be open to that and realize that you can find the way that you want to travel and how you want to experience things anywhere that you go.

Kelli Wall (09:51)
and can make it work and still have your privacy on a budget. Yeah.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (09:54)
Yes, I actually

don't mind those little like rooms with all the space really well done. I admire the way that they fit everything in and it's nice, it's cozy as long as I, for me personally, it's a deadbolt between me and the rest of the world at night and AC, unless I am like really in the frozen tundra where I will not need it and like I will usually need it so I need AC and those two things and I'm good to go.

Kelli Wall (10:17)
Yeah, again, what's important

to you, and I will echo that. I definitely need the AC, especially in those hot places. As I spoke about in your intro, you've been to more than 50 different countries and you've taken hundreds of solo trips, which is just incredible. I'm so envious. Was budget travel something you embraced from the start, or did that come with experience as you traveled more?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (10:39)
It was. So even my very first kind of big trip abroad, which was during law school, I went on a $10,000 grant and I realized very quickly that that was that evaporated. He just went so quickly on all the you pay rent weekly in Sydney, Australia, which is where I was doing my summer internship. And it was like a thousand dollars a week. And so that

grant was already spent, 8,000 to 10,000 was spent already just on the housing, not even transportation, not even food, not even electricity, anything else. so I ran out of money in Australia and I had to figure out what am I going to do? I still have this time here. And so yes, I do think that the budget has always been an aspect of travel because travel is costly. And because when you're alone, you're paying for it yourself

Kelli Wall (11:21)
Mm-hmm.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (11:24)
your pockets. That's how far it extends. Once your pockets end,

There's no other pockets there. So it is a really unique experience in that way where I do think you have to be budget conscious. That being said, I think the pro of traveling solo is that you again, you can choose where you splurge. So I have traveled before with friends to a really expensive place that had really expensive dinners. And for me, I thought the dinners were worth it, right? Because I'm in this place. I want to try the food. I like really good food. And so my friends were like, you know,

They did not, they did not think it was worth it. So they just went and bought like a pizza that they could get to go and that was fine. So for them, it's just sustenance. For me, that's part of the cultural experience is getting to see the cuisine. And so when you're by yourself, you also have that ability to spend with reckless abandon on whatever you want to without any judgment or worrying that other people can't keep up, right? Like you can go and spend your $200 on your Michelin.

star dinner and be totally fine and not have to worry about like you know this is the other person at this budget and I put an unnecessary strain on this so it really can be those treat yourself moments and I think it's fun again for what matters to you and that could be a really lovely dining experience could be treating yourself to a Broadway show or another performance it could be you know flying in a helicopter over the Great Blue Hole which I've done co-pilot like right in the front seat and so yeah I think that that's.

It is, budget is always a consideration, but there are ways that you can get things cheaper on a budget. Like cheap flights were a big one for me and where I saved, where I was fine just being human origami in a random seat in a random aisle as long as I get there and I have money to spend once I get there. But yeah, budget's always a consideration, but it really is budget on your terms.

Kelli Wall (13:06)
Mm Yeah, exactly right. And that's such a good point that you're making because budget is different things to different people, right? Like we say budget and your budget might be different from my budget and somebody else's budget that's listening. So when you travel solo, it's just your budget. Like you said, you don't feel any guilt or worry about putting a strain on anybody else. So that's, you know, something where you can be flexible, where you're comfortable.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (13:21)
safely.

Exactly, exactly. It's fun. It's a level of freedom and you know, this is my money. I choose to spend it here. This is my time. This is where I choose to spend it. And that includes napping. That includes spending five hours at the museum. It's really such a freedom of being able to decide and that autonomy because you are handling your own individual person in this foreign country. You're getting yourself around somewhere completely foreign. You're interacting with people that you don't know. So it is a really wonderful level of expressing.

Kelli Wall (13:45)
Mm-hmm.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (13:58)
that inner self and letting yourself decide what do you want to do, which I think a lot of times, particularly as women, that is not a question we ask often enough and we're always asking, know, what is expected of me, what is needed of me, where do I have to be, you know, and it's always tending to others usually before ourselves. So traveling solo, I think is just a great way to put yourself first and your needs first.

Kelli Wall (14:19)
And speaking of expressing yourself, another one of your accolades is that you are a best-selling author. So your book, 12 Trips in 12 Months, which we know you actually did more than 12 trips in 12 months, is such a good example of how you made traveling a priority. So how did you fund those trips? I know that you were also working full-time. What did that budgeting look like to you during those trips?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (14:43)
Sir, so when I first set out to take that mission, that goal, that journey, that

I was working at a nonprofit. I was a nonprofit attorney and I had a lot of fear over credit cards because I had been raised to think that credit cards were irresponsible, that you should only be spending the money that you have.

that people would very quickly spend beyond their means and get into this hole that they couldn't get out of. So I had just been terrified because of my culture and because I'm Puerto Rican and just credit cards aren't a big thing on the island, or at least they weren't when my mom was growing up. And so I didn't grow up with any healthy examples of credit card use. Everything around credit cards was like fear and stay away from it. Like this is bad. And so

When I set out to take this challenge, it became very evident to me that I would have to learn how to use credit cards to my favor because I was missing out on so many freebies. And so I started very simply. I went to the library, I got all the free books I could on travel hacking, travel tips. Scott Keys, the founder of Scott's Cheap Flights, formerly now Going, the flight alert program, he wrote two books before he got his traditional book deals. And those books were super helpful for me and just learning about

how to find affordable flights. yeah, so I just learned everything I could listen to every podcast I could, know, podcasts are such a great way again, a free knowledge. And so I would be working during the day, but I would come home and I would be listening and I would be learning and I took out my first travel credit card. was a JetBlue card and it was, and I think a co-branded airline card is always an easy way to start because it's so clear for anybody who's nervous about how this works you get.

X amount of points with X airline, you go to X website, you redeem X points. Like it's super straightforward and you can immediately see how your spending results in a free flight. So it's encouraging, it's easy, and it's just a straightforward way to start, I think, in a travel hacking game. So, and for me, the JetBlue card at the time was especially alluring because I had a really low minimum spend. It was like a thousand dollars in three months. And

Kelli Wall (16:27)
Mm-hmm.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (16:47)
At the time they were also launching a new route to Aruba. And so I was able to get those kind of cheaper new route tickets, right? That are slightly discounted, coupled with the points and miles. So I was able to get a round trip flight to Aruba total for like under $70 round trip. and that was, you know, that immediate win of like, Oh, I did this. I did it. I got the flight. I'm now here in Aruba. Like, great, maybe we can repeat it again. Like very carefully learning about that whole process.

And at the same time also learning about flight alerts. So I did, you know, become friends with Scott Keys and I got on his email list, which I've now been on for 10 years almost, you know, it feels like for very long time. So I learned about flight alerts and it was with an alert that I got notified of a mistake fare to Argentina when somebody puts in the wrong fare. And if it's not picked up immediately by the airline and you book directly with the airline, there's a high chance it'll be honored.

There was a point where British Airways had like $150 mistake fare. And unfortunately, a lot of people booked it and they didn't honor it. And so they had a horrible publicity. And so most airlines will honor it they'll try to, know, but because of that, it's only up for a very limited time, like while you can catch the mistake. And even then it's still a risk that they won't honor it. If they don't, you'll just get your money back. You don't have to read books. Nothing, you know, lost there, but you should wait a little bit to make sure you get that final confirmation if it's going to go through or not.

Kelli Wall (17:59)
Mm-hmm.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (18:13)
But with that, I was able to find that $300 round trip flight to Argentina, which was also a really great deal. So, flight alerts, points and miles, and budget airlines. So at the time, it was Wow, now it's more play, North Atlantic Airways, French Bee, but I was able to find a hundred dollar flight from Miami to Iceland nonstop.

It was bare bones. know, I didn't realize this was before I now I never step on a plane without several hours of stuff downloaded on my Netflix just in case you never know when their TV is not going to be working. And it's a really long flight. So I don't make that mistake anymore. But at the time I wasn't a savvy. So I was on there stuck with like no entertainment, no nothing on the back of the screens. It's the most bare minimum flight ever. But it was 100 bucks and it got me to Iceland. So yeah.

Kelli Wall (18:41)
You

Yes.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (19:02)
You

Kelli Wall (19:02)
And

priority is safety and you got there safely and you're back to tell about it. It's I have some, making mental notes. like, I have some email lists to sign up for after this because again, it's all about doing your research. I'm learning, you know, there's so many assets and things available to you that you can leverage to really make whatever your budget is work. So you talked about the credit cards shifting your mindset from

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (19:06)
Exactly.

Kelli Wall (19:28)
your previous thinking about them and we're really able to jump in with the JetBlue, signing up for the different email programs. Is there any other habits or cost saving decisions that you've implemented within your 12 or 12 plus trips for your book or just outside of that in general?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (19:45)
So we talked about those flight alert programs and they come for all kinds. So don't again, if you're thinking like, budget spirit, like you can have flight alerts for only business class flights. You can have flight alerts for, you know,

whatever it is that you decide that you want. And they have private airlines. Like there's all kinds of ways that you can fly for less.

So one of the things was, the flight alert programs, because a lot of people, they'll prompt you to enter your home airport so that you can get flight alerts from your home airport. I don't do that. I get flight alerts from anywhere because if I see a good enough flight alert, I can get to that place. For instance, I once saw a flight alert for $70 one-way flight from Pittsburgh to Tokyo, nonstop.

I don't know if it was nonstop. was one way, $73 to Tokyo. So I was like, I could get to Pittsburgh. I can get to Pittsburgh. I can figure that out. So I never narrow it down and also bigger airports that may not necessarily be where you live. Chicago, New York, Dallas, LA.

San Francisco, Atlanta, these airports routinely have a lot of sales, Boston. And so I don't want to miss out because I can get to any of these major airports from my airport for, you know, a hundred bucks. So I don't limit myself to my regional city. And also I will drive if it's so in Florida, I think it's fair game to look for.

Orlando, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Tampa. Like these are all airports that I would look for flight deals out of. And if it's a good enough deal, again, I can drive a few hours, but I've just spent, you know, $300 versus $1,200. So it's a big deal. And I also would do the same at the arrival destination.

I think once you get in the general vicinity of where you're going, particularly with Europe and particularly with Southeast Asia, you can connect almost anywhere from there.

Kelli Wall (21:37)
I would have never thought to do that. That is such a good suggestion. I love your sense of adventure. It's like, it's fine. I'll get there. I'll make it work. ⁓

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (21:44)
Yeah, yeah, it's

it's so easy. Honestly, that's what I did all throughout the 12 trips. I would just find a deal and then I would just book to wherever it is I ultimately want to go. I think I ended up in Athens by way of London because I had found a really cheap London deal and then from London to Athens was like 30 bucks. And so it's not if you do have to plan like an appropriate layover time. You don't want your flight to be delayed, you know, and then you miss it. It's in a different airline. That's always a possibility. But generally, if you give yourself enough of a buffer two or more hours, you'll be fine.

Kelli Wall (22:05)
Mm-hmm.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (22:14)
And especially with Europe, because Europe has stricter airline compensation rules for delays. So they don't play around. That's not like in the US where you're just sitting here on the tarmac for five hours and they're like, maybe, maybe we go, maybe we don't. That's not how it works in Europe. They get fined and they have to pay you per hour that they're late, like, and per mile that they're going. Like there's a whole, I've gotten $700 from a delay before with Europe, coming back from Europe.

Kelli Wall (22:23)
Mm.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (22:38)
So they will not play around. They're not trying to pay everybody on that flight $700. So they will likely take off on time. So especially in that area, you have more of a likelihood of that not really having an issue.

Kelli Wall (22:47)
Yeah, in worst case, you get stuck in London for a day or so, wherever your connection is. But I wish the US did that because that is just the worst. Sitting there on the tarmac, maybe if I was getting some money, I'd feel a little bit better about it.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (23:01)
Yeah, it's actually illegal for them to keep you on the time map for more than three hours without giving you the opportunity to disembark, without giving you food and water after an hour. There's regulations, but they get a little bit crazy with it. They get real lax. I've been at the over three hour mark before, and the problem is you can disembark, but likely that plane will then take off without you and then see you. It's not like you disembark and then you come back and we're ready to go. It's like you disembark and now you're off.

Kelli Wall (23:27)
Yeah. Yeah.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (23:28)
⁓

There are regulations, but it's nowhere near as good and as thorough as the EU regulations, definitely.

Kelli Wall (23:34)
I think at that point, if they just open the door, just helps me. I'm like, can we just get some fresh air in here after sitting?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (23:39)
It's.

There's a reason there's that rule. No, it is pretty serious to be on that plane. February I was just in the tarmac, especially on like hot ones, hot tarmacs like where there's sun like it's the middle of the day. Like I've had that people are just like sweating like it's really intense. Yeah, that's been intense too. So there has been some more movement towards some stricter regulations by the last administration with the DOT and Pete Budashek, but.

Kelli Wall (23:48)
Mm.

Yeah.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (24:03)
I don't think that it's anywhere near again. feel like at most he got us what like was a given and we should have had like at most solidified like if you don't take this flight, they owe you your money back not in points or vouchers, but like the money that you paid them. And it's like, yeah, no kidding. That's like the basics of contract law. Like that's how it should be because they didn't fulfill their end of the contract. This is very cut and dry.

Kelli Wall (24:19)
This is obvious. Yeah.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (24:28)
And yeah, it's just really wild that we have to fight just to get these basic things like solidify and be like, it is official now. But so I think we have a ways to go where we could be EU level protections. Everybody's getting paid for their inconveniences.

Kelli Wall (24:40)
Yeah, God, I hope that the three hour rule goes into effect. That would be amazing. But hopefully everybody's travels, you don't get stuck on a tarmac for three or plus more hours. But Jen, you have gone to, like I said, more than 50 different countries. You've done so much travel. Are there any destinations that you might recommend for budget conscious travelers where you found it to be a little more budget friendly? Again, I realize this is a blanket comment, but curious if there's any that you could recommend.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (24:51)
guess.

you

Yeah, I think again, as a very blanket rule because there's

to every rule, but I think generally the more south you go, the more affordable you get and the more north you go, the more expensive you get. So like once you get UK, Scotland, Norway, like Finland, my God, ridiculous. Iceland was like $300 a night, bare minimum, most basic place, right? Whereas you can find

in Cambodia, I stayed for $9 a night at a beautiful place with AC and everything and a huge room. So yes, I think generally Southeast Asia, Central America, South America, less expensive. On the ground in Africa can be less expensive, but getting there is the costly part. So if you have points and miles, I would save it for something like that.

And yeah, so that's just a very generic rule. Obviously exceptions to everything. Antarctica is the most far south you can go and you're paying several tens of thousands to get there. So exceptions to every rule, but that's just a general rule to think of when you're considering where to go.

Kelli Wall (26:09)
Great tips. So Cambodia, sounds like you had this lovely room with AC, it was $9. Did you find it to be solo traveler friendly? And are there any other places, again, that you would consider more budget friendly that you also found solo traveler friendly?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (26:26)
I did, thought it was very solo travel friendly. There were a lot of people

I was in the Angkor Wat area, because I went to obviously see this major tourist attraction that they have in the country. I was actually getting in Thailand and I just happened, I was like, well, I'm here, I may as well pop over to Cambodia, see this major thing and then come back. It's only a $30 flight. So that's how I ended up in Cambodia for just a few days to see the Angkor Wat Monument and I.

Had a guide from Tours by Locals who was wonderful, picked me up in this like escalade that had really frozen towels in the back in a cooler, which was, you will never appreciate what that is until you are in the middle of the blazing hot sun, like exploring temples, melting. And then this man just opens the trunk and he's like, here's your fresh ice towel. And he's like, my God, I like a princess, the sweatiest princess ever. But yes, but a princess nonetheless.

Kelli Wall (27:11)
Saved your life.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (27:15)
It's just such a royal experience and all that was $100 for the whole day tour, know, private VIP, full guide, private photographer. Essentially, he was wonderful, wonderful. So yes, I found it very worth my time and easy to navigate. Generally, I went and I walked around the Old Town area, you know, went to shows, different performances. I thought it was great. I had no issues whatsoever. What else did see there? I saw like a Cirque du Soleil type of performance.

I went to different pool sides because there you can pay admission just to get into their pools. It's really hot. And so they're like, we know you want to be by the pool. If you pay us money, you can come in. So I went to the really fancy hotel and the fancy pool and I spent the day there. Yeah, so I thought I had no issues whatsoever there. But I am a very not. I do this for a living, so I feel like I plan ahead. I know what I'm doing. I know how to react to things and I have my.

background and experience and titles to leverage if I feel like anything's getting crazy. If anything's getting crazy, I just want you to know y'all are gonna get really bad publicity from this. Because I'm a professional travel writer, so like nobody should do anything really mean to me. And I think that has helped me a lot. anything, it's helped me, it has opened a lot of doors and that people go out of their way. And I think this is the case for anybody when you're solo traveling and curious, but definitely if I mentioned that I'm there,

to do an assignment, to write about something to promote people, they do go out of their way to show me the best that there is and make sure I have a good experience. And I'll use every card I have at my discretion. I feel no shame about that at all because I am a small woman traveling in countries that I'm not familiar with with nobody there. So if I have to be like, if that's my bark, so to speak, and I don't always use it, I don't volunteer that information at an airport, but I do think that generally.

You can have good experiences, easy experiences traveling solo if you are confident, you are prepared, if you have research and know where you're going. If you're wandering lost and everybody's like, there goes this tourist, she looks super lost and she looks like a walking wallet as opposed to like, I'm heading here, I have this reservation here, this is where I'm going next. Like, know, so-and-so is waiting for me, that's my person right there, that guy that's picking me up. I think you have an easier experience that way. And so I would recommend to anybody who's nervous, no matter where you go.

Those are things that will help you navigate better.

Kelli Wall (29:33)
Yeah, and I agree and using those cards and leveraging them and I'm thankful that you do that because now you're here sharing all these points with us.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (29:41)
Yes, yes. just, there's so many different, I mean, people really do want you to have a good experience. Nobody wants you to go and be like, that country sucked. Like people want you to like their country. Some other general tips, like I always get the address of where I'm staying in the local language written down, especially if you're somewhere that the language isn't very common. Like in Japan, this was super helpful versus trying to explain in a taxi where to take me. I just show you the address and then like,

And then they just go. So I do think that that helps just because you want to be able to get back to home. Right. And so that in the local language, which the clerk will write for you is just something again in Greece, the taxis were just like curmudgeonly and he's like, they don't want to help me because he saw I was clearly an American, but I show him the writing in Greek and he's like, fine. Like he was like, fine, just get it. Like, you know, and so I think that helps you sometimes.

Kelli Wall (30:07)
Very smart, yes.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (30:29)
It doesn't necessarily matter the country, but yeah, Cambodia is a great country to travel anywhere that has first off every country, the main and every country has something wonderful to offer. But any country that gets a lot of tourists is obviously going to be very well versed on how to handle you. Right. Like they're going to have a ton of people that already speak English. They're going to have time. They're going to know where to put you in your like tourist spot. And so if you're nervous, I do think that those really highly populated places, Italy.

There's no place in Italy that hasn't seen the tourists. They're so well-versed with dealing with tourists. Their museum ticketing structure and how they deal with everything is very precise. If you know that you're nervous about that, just go to somewhere that's used to dealing with tourists. There's nothing wrong with being a tourist and seeing those main sites. They're popular attractions for a reason. So don't feel bad that you have to be in the super-hidden neighborhood of France and that you can't just be enjoying your baguette in front of the Eiffel Tower.

Because you can have a good time at either one depending on what you value.

Kelli Wall (31:25)
Yes. And depending on what you value. I know you spoke about this at the very beginning of kind of what budget means to different people, what you'll splurge on, what you might not splurge on, what that may look like.

So when you're traveling solo, where do you believe it's smart to save money? And where do you think it's worth it to spend?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (31:41)
I think it's always worth it to spend on anything you need to spend to keep your phone working. I depend a lot on my phone for directions, if I need to call anybody, if I'm looking anything up for reviews, like literally everything. It's hard. And people used to have, you know, full guidebooks and maps. And that obviously makes you look like a tourist. So I'd like to be more discreet. I'd like to have my phone to research and know where I'm going and check the prices and all of that. So

think anything I need to do to keep my phone running, if that's an international phone plan, if that's an eSIM, if that's a physical SIM, if that's a VPN, I've done it all. And so anything I would need to keep my phone running, that's the first and foremost most important splurge. And usually if you are going for a prolonged period of time, it doesn't even have to be a splurge, a SIM card can cost you 20 bucks for the month. that is something where I will look and I've been hacked before. So having a VPN is important. I've been hacked on a public cruise wifi before.

So I'd be very weary about public Wi-Fi's and I would get a VPN because being hacked really sucks. And then, and when you're abroad, there's no way to fix it because then every activity that you're doing while abroad looks suspicious. it's just super stressful and ruins a trip. I think other than that, I will splurge on the backup batteries to keep my phone running from going out of batteries. I always have at least one and always fully charged.

I think possibly those private guides if it's place or an atmosphere where I'm nervous about visiting. So like for instance, I was really nervous about going to the red light district in Amsterdam because it's like seedy and it's like nighttime and I'm alone and there's like, you know, stuff happening here. So I ended up taking a walking tour with a group and then that's how I was able to see it with a person that knows this place.

Kelli Wall (33:14)
Yeah.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (33:23)
that is responsible for getting me back safely that is incentivized to get me back safely because they want my tip at the end of the night. And so I feel and then you have three to four hours in a setting that maybe you're nervous to go out at, you know, I did the same thing a cocktail tour before I've done a haunted walking tour in New Orleans at night because New Orleans is very much a drinking partying city. And so if it's just you, you know, that might be.

awkward. And so when you're on a walking tour, you have this built in group of people that you're talking with. have this like, it's just a built in safe activity that you can do to see the things that you want to see that you maybe are nervous about doing alone.

Kelli Wall (33:57)
Yeah, that's a really great point. And last summer I went to Rome. I was in Rome for a day because I was just flying through there, but I used Airbnb experiences and I had never used that before. And it was really wonderful because I have my own guide. I popped around, I did a Vespa tour, I did this tour and I could see all the reviews before. I knew exactly what to expect. And it was just to your point, such a good way to feel, you know,

Safe, I have my guide with me, he was able to point things out, but it also was well organized, so I could get to where I needed to be and it was quick. you talk about the walking tours and that's a really great way to get out and see the city. Are there any other low cost or maybe even free experiences that you like to do when you travel?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (34:40)
You can look and see what's available in your particular city. So maybe it's a park, maybe it's like Shakespeare in the park.

Maybe it's a particular free performance or special event or festival. Maybe it's after hours museum admission. When I was in Amsterdam, I got in at a reduced rate to the Van Gogh Museum. I think it's Friday nights after a certain time, after 5 p.m., you pay less.

So knowing that they had these reduced price hours, I was able to plan my itinerary around that. And that's what I would suggest

do is first pick what are the things you want to see? What are the most affordable ways to see them? Can you buy advanced tickets, right? Sometimes also buying tickets in advance can save you 10 % or something of the like. And then once you have these things that you know you're doing that are your non-negotiables, you plug that into your schedule. So, okay, I'm going to be at the Van Gogh Museum Friday at 5 p.m. I already have my ticket reserved that I booked.

to see the Michelangelo, David, you know, these are different cities, I've gone wild now, but I already have my ticket that I've booked to see the Michelangelo, David, you know, first thing in the morning, 9 a.m., you know, skip the line tickets, I've already gotten them. And so then how do I build in my itinerary around that? What is in the vicinity of that particular museum? Is there a really nice place to eat around there that I might wanna go to lunch afterwards? You know, and then kind of that's how you fill in your itinerary from there, but I think definitely,

booking ahead, finding reduced price hours, maybe even checking out, Airbnb experiences is good. I've used them before, but they're not necessarily a discount site they can usually they charge more to the provider to list them on there. So there's actually a slight upcharge. So if you can find who the tour guide is, maybe you can book directly with them and save that extra just platform booking fee, like 10 % or so. I've done that with a mosaic tour in a mosaic art class in Lisbon.

because not many people do mosaic art classes. it easy to figure out which one it was. And then I went and booked directly through them and I saved like five bucks doing that. But yeah, also Groupon sometimes will have, you know, some big activities that are essential activities in that city that they might have discounted. If you're regionally traveling, so if we're not talking, you know, Italy, Japan kind of thing, but your own state, some places also have like library passes for free admissions to things.

and you check those out and they can have it like for a family of four, can get a free admission to this particular museum or things like that. So I would check that out as well.

Kelli Wall (37:04)
Jen, you are just a wealth of amazing tips. These are all so helpful.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (37:10)
Yes, absolutely, it's my pleasure.

Kelli Wall (37:12)
Yeah, one of the things that you said, Jen, when I watched your TED talk was one of your biggest mistakes was waiting. So if we have somebody listening who really wants to travel solo, but financially it feels like it's a little bit out of reach, what would you say to them?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (37:27)
say to start small, I would say people underestimate how much there is to see

right, where they are. So I grew up in Philadelphia and I would, my mother was a teacher and we would go on educational trips throughout the state, right, because we didn't have money to vacation elsewhere. So I learned very quickly that there were cool things, right, where you are, right, we would go to Amish country where they make the best ice cream in the entire world because they hand churn it. And it's like amazing. It's so creamy and delicious. And you can learn about this other way of life.

We went to the Frank Lloyd Wright Fallingwater House, like one of the most iconic architecture places in the US, right there in Pennsylvania, like just a few hours away from Philadelphia. so, know, Hershey Park and this whole chocolate spa, chocolate streets, like chocolate everywhere. I love chocolate. And these are all things in.

rural like random Pennsylvania that people wouldn't expect. So I really I can and I can go on and on like this nerdy now like this for like almost every single state and be like what state do you have? did you know they have this? Like, did you know you can like hunt for diamonds and keep what you find at a park in Arkansas and that like somebody found a 13 carat diamond there that was worth a ton of money? Like, that sounds like a really cool park that I want to go to. And so they have stuff everywhere all over the US.

I would start small and I would find something really fun that there is to do near you. A good resource for this for unusual types of things is Atlas Obscura. So Atlas and then Obscure. But instead of ending with an E, it ends with an A. And then they have a list that's curated of just like random weird things from all over the world. It doesn't have to be weird, but just like things you don't expect to be there. Like I had seen that they have a whole...

like mosaic wonderland place close to me that I actually want to check out. even know it was there. So I would suggest that you start finding out what there is to do around you. You know, there's also city specific websites, like free things to do in Fort Lauderdale.com, like, you know, things like that. So check that out and see what's going on this weekend. What is this free activity I can go to start with a day trip, start with just like one thing that you're doing in your city and then build your way up. And then when you're ready, I would

I would say find something that really excites you so that when you're saving money for this, you get excited to save money for it. instance, I knew I really wanted to go on my 12 trips in 12 months challenge. The one trip that was non-negotiable, if we're talking bucket list and something I want to do, it's go to the south of France in July, see the lavender fields.

have that moment, right? Beauty and the Beast was my favorite Disney movie and I love Van Gogh. so again, so I just wanted to see all of this. And when that's the case and when you're that excited about something, I look at it almost like first, it's to be a joy. You get so much joy just from anticipating the trip, like even more than you do from actually going on the trip. You're so excited about the trip while you're planning it. Every time you're looking into the things you're going to do, like it just gives you like this burst of joy.

And then, yeah, and from there, I would say, layaways, ways that you can pay it off a little bit at a time. So the first thing you would do is find the cheap flight probably because the flights is not going to get any cheaper as you get closer and especially for a popular destination like France in July. So if I hadn't booked that by February, I would have been SOL. So that was the first thing I booked.

And then from there, you know, so now the flight is booked, I can wait and later on add the luggage, later on add the seat. So it's like a kind of like a layaway process. You don't have to pay all these expenses at once. I can book the hotel now, but I can do like a pay upon arrival type of situation. So I have it reserved, but again, that's an expense that I can space out. So I'm not getting hit by like this huge amount all at once, but rather.

breading it out, I it the layaway process, like, because I'm a 90s child and we did used to have layaway and that's how people would buy things, like a little bit at a time. They'd come back, they'd see it at the store, there it is on the shelf waiting for me, here's my little payment today. So you do the same thing with your vacations, put it on a layaway and that way you can spread out the cost and I promise you when it's something that you're really excited about, it will be worth it and that you can find affordable ways to do accommodations, food, activities, almost anywhere.

Kelli Wall (41:33)
Yeah, so smart. And I am very familiar with the Kmart layaway process. I'm not sure, but I'm an 80s baby. So I am right there with you. And again, these are things that I never would have thought of when I buy my flight. I'm like, okay, get me in the aisle seat. Get me the closest front leg because it's how I am. But that's such a smart idea to know you don't have to do that all at once. Right. You can, to your point, just get your ticket, pay that, pay another one. You get closer. I think that

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (41:38)
Do they still have it?

Hahaha!

Yes.

Kelli Wall (42:03)
Jen, my list of things I need to do after this episode is just growing, and I'm gonna put these things in the show notes so everybody listening can go look because you are a wealth of knowledge. It's fantastic.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (42:15)
Thank you so much. I'm feeling like a Kesha lyric here to clarify. Like I'm an 80s baby, but I grew up in the 90s. So I'm like a 90s B. so like, know, I feel like there's a lyric there to clarify that. But yes, either way, think definitely anybody can travel. I think that's the important lesson here. And I think so many people immediately go to think this can't work for me. So they'll hear my story and they'll go,

It's because of this that she was able to do that. And I encourage you to look at it like, how can I make this work for me? What is it that I value? How can I start? You know, I also took on a second job teaching English online. That was really big for me with my challenge was, you know, increasing my income stream. So side hustles, remote gigs, that's become much more common now than it was when I initially took my challenge. So I think that there's always a way that you can figure this out if it's something that really matters to you.

And then if that's the case, I encourage you to take advantage of all these free resources, all the advice, all the knowledge, all the Facebook groups that there are out there so that you can see it really come to fruition as well.

Kelli Wall (43:20)
Absolutely. Well, I hate that we are nearing the end, but we are nearing the end of the episode. So I want to ask you, and this might be a really tough ask for you. I always want people to share maybe a favorite memory or an unforgettable experience that they had while solo traveling. So I'll ask the same from you. Is there anything that comes to mind?

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (43:40)
I've had honestly just so many. I've been very, very lucky where the desert meets the sea in Qatar really beautiful swing of the Bali off of the rice fields

descending into a volcano in Iceland. I I've just had so many, I narrow it down to like what types of experience, adventure, luxury, like connection, because there's just been so many wonderful memories. Like my best connection has been getting serenaded by a Italian man at an opera in Florence, because I showed up early. We can put that one as my favorite, because that one is hard to beat. I say it's at least top I showed up early

for Italian standards like early meant there was absolutely nobody else there. But I wanted to get there and I wanted to see it as a very private venue. And so because I showed up early, because I was curious, because I was by myself, I ended up asking questions to the people who were there, which were the people who were eventually gonna be in the opera and putting on the performance. And halfway through, right before the intermission, they said they were gonna announce a change in programming that they wanted to dedicate a very special song.

to a lady in the front row and that lady was me. I was looking around like, ooh, who is this? And it was me. And this man sat, stood feet away from me while serenading me, me, in Italian with this like booming voice and this church atmosphere where everything just resonated with such like beauty and magnitude. And it was just a gorgeous night. And it was then where I was like, wow. And this happened because I decided I wanna see an opera.

I recognized like then I was like 29. I recognize I'm 29. I'm probably not the audience for an opera, but this is what's gonna make me happy. And so I think when you go somewhere and you go with that happy energy, you really do attract people again that want you to have a wonderful and unforgettable experience. And I definitely did.

Kelli Wall (45:28)
How special and magical. Even before you got to the opera one, I was picturing all the sandboarding and the swinging and I'm like, my God, the life you've lived and the adventures you've had are just incredible. And thank you again for coming on and sharing. I'm absolutely beyond grateful to have you come on for an episode.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (45:47)
Thank you for having me. It's been fun.

Kelli Wall (45:49)
Thank you so much again for all of your incredible advice and tips. I'm sure people are going to love this episode and be able to take some great adventures with all the advice you offered. So we'll end today's episode with how we end every episode of Solo Travel Unpacked, which is asking the same three questions. So first up, the advice I'd give to someone considering solo travel is.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (46:14)
So I think the advice that I would give to somebody considering solo travel.

Plan. You will feel so much better if you know where you're going, if you have a schedule. I know people don't think it's sexy.

and you can be spontaneous later and you can even plan in, is my spontaneous time, this is my two hours to walk around the city and see what calls my attention. But plan your itinerary, you will feel better if you're nervous about going somewhere because you won't be lost and you will have a full schedule so you're not gonna be lonely, you're just gonna be excited about all the things you have to do that day.

Kelli Wall (46:44)
My favorite part about solo travel is...

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (46:47)
My favorite part about solo travel is that you will end up having the most unexpected experiences and connections with people that you would have never spoken to otherwise if somebody was there with you. So you don't realize how much connection is waiting for you to be made literally everywhere. Let's say you go into a taxi after you leave an activity, but you're with your travel partner. You're gonna debrief with that person, right? You're gonna be talking with them and there's nothing wrong with that, but.

you will have that experience like through Lens and with that person. Whereas if you get in that taxi by yourself, maybe you're talking to a taxi person, maybe you hear what his favorite place is, maybe you get invited to a family event that he's having, like you really never know where it's gonna lead. And so I think that's the fun part of solo travel, right? That you never know who you're gonna meet and you never know what's gonna happen.

Kelli Wall (47:39)
Absolutely.

Kelli Wall (47:40)
Something I learned about myself during solo travel is.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (47:44)
One thing I learned about myself during solo travel is that I enjoy light adventure. I enjoy activities where I can just kind of sit and hang on, zip lining, tubing, ⁓ anything where there's not really a lot of skill required. Some activities can be a little bit intense. if you're somebody who likes light adventure, I think that there's ways where you can get that kind of adrenaline rush and do something really cool.

but in a safe way. Another example of that is the hang gliding. I would never hang glide like off a cliff ever, but I went in North Carolina and I did some hang gliding on sand dunes like the Wright brothers did when they were testing flight. And that felt super comfortable for me because like you're maybe three feet above the air and there's like sand right underneath you. So that's as far as you're going. So light adventure, I think for anybody who also wants to try cool things, but is nervous is the way to go.

Kelli Wall (48:38)
I love it. Jen, thank you so much for sharing your tips, your incredible stories and making budget travel feel way more doable and less intimidating for anybody listening who's been putting off solo travel because of finances. I hope today's conversation helps you see that you don't need a huge budget, just a solid plan, some of Jen's tips, shift in priorities and maybe a little inspiration from her travels. And don't forget to check out Jen on Instagram with Jen on a jet plane.

Jen, this has been wonderful. I appreciate it so much. Thank you again.

Jen Ruiz @jenonajetplane (49:11)
Thank you.

Kelli Wall (49:13)
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