Solo travel is a great gateway to exciting connections and opportunities – but there’s the safety aspect to consider too. Read on for our top tips for staying safe in your hotel room as a solo traveller.
This article may include mentions of products from one or more of our affiliate partners. Unless explicitly stated, we are not being paid to include these. To learn more about our advertising policy, please refer to our Terms of Service.
Solo Travel Tips for Staying Safe In Your Hotel Room
Travelling alone can be a real treat – you get to do exactly what you want, with no compromises on itinerary, wake-up times, or even budget.
It can also be easier to meet people, because you’re not focused on a travel companion and so perhaps more approachable or open to conversation,
But practically-speaking, going solo can come with a few challenges too.
There’s no-one to automatically help you in a sticky situation, and you can end up spending a lot of time by yourself. These things can make you feel a bit more vulnerable, so our tips for staying safe in your hotel room will help give you peace of mind throughout your stay.
1. Check the locks
Make sure the locks in your hotel room work properly. It might sound obvious, but if you arrive in a rush or late at night, you might not automatically have this at the top of your list to check.
Whether your hotel room has a key or a key card, make sure you know how it works and don’t be afraid to ask hotel staff to explain.
I find some hotel room doors automatically unlock when you use the handle to open it from the inside – which makes it hard to double check how it works!
As well as the door, don’t forget to check things like balcony or terrace doors and windows too. It’s about the safety of your belongings as well as you.
2. Bring an extra lock
Bringing an extra door lock as an easy way to boost your hotel room security – and your peace of mind.
Staff will always have a master key – and this is super important if you’re locked out, or in the unlikely event you become unwell. But – it does mean your room isn’t totally inaccessible.
Adding a lock of your own gives you complete control of who comes in.
3. Book a hotel with a 24-hour reception
Hotel receptions aren’t always staffed around the clock – and it’s not uncommon for some hotels to be fully automated without a reception altogether.
So if you’d feel more comfortable knowing someone is always available, book a hotel with 24-hour reception.
4. Don't share your room number out loud
Avoid saying your room number too loudly if you’re collecting your key at reception, or adding something to your hotel tab. That way even if someone has clocked you’re on your own, they don’t know which room is yours.
They are trained to not do this, but if the person on the desk declares your number loudly to others, you are well within your rights to politely ask if you could get assigned another room whilst requesting they don’t say the number out loud.
I know this can feel awkward, but I’ve found sharing that I’m only asking because I’ve had a bad experience before can help them be less defensive and assist straightaway. It’s a shame you have to think about this too, but when it comes to safety it’s sometimes worth going above and beyond to get the best outcome for you.
5. Pretend you're staying with someone
If your room booking is the same price for 2 people, it could even be worth booking it for two people which gives you the option to publicly ask for another card key and say they’re arriving soon.
Official booking aside, it can also be helpful to drop into conversation that you’re staying with a friend or partner if someone seems a bit too interested in having a conversation with you as well.
6. Delay socials
If you like to post your travels on social media, it’s a good idea to wait until you’ve checked out.
Otherwise, it can be possible to identify where you’re staying from your pictures – even down to the room you’re in, depending on what you share.
Also consider that some social apps have location enabled, which could help someone zero in on your whereabouts.
7. Use the hotel safe
This is an obvious one, but if you’re keen to be out by the pool or go sightseeing, you might not feel like taking the time to operate the safe.
But the safe is there for a reason, and it’s a good idea to keep your valuables locked away. Things like cash, your passport, any tech or jewellery that’s valuable (or sentimental) and anything else that you really would hate to lose.
If you worry about forgetting things in the safe when you leave, the trick cabin crew swear by is to put one of your shoes in there too! Then you can’t forget it!
Also – the safe isn’t just about keeping things safe, it also helps you know where they are! I find I often ‘lose’ things in hotel rooms because I put them down in random places. Using the safe can save me a lot of time rummaging and panicking that I’ve lost something!
8. Talk to reception
Reception staff are on hand to help hotel customers, so if you feel like you need help or you have a question, don’t be shy about asking them.
If you’re unsure about anyone who’s trying to access your room – like housekeeping – just ask reception to check. Try not to feel like you’re being a nuisance – it’s your safety we’re talking about.
9. Use WiFi with care
One of the first things a lot of us do is connect to WiFi, and if we really need to get internet access, we can forget to be vigliant about the kind of network we’re joining.
Just remember that any public network has its risks, so using a VPN (like Nord VPN) gives you an added layer of protection. They encrypt your web traffic so no-one on the same network can snoop.
Avoid accessing anything really sensitive, like online banking, on a shared public network. And make sure you’re joing the hotel’s offical WiFi network, not a lookalike.
10. Know your emergency exits
It’s sensible to orientate yourself when you go somewhere new, and to work out your exit strategy in the unlikely event of an emergency.
From sussing out how you’d leave your room, to locating the nearest fire escape, it takes just a few moments and it could make a huge difference in a crisis.
Hotel rooms usually have a map of emergency exit routes – but if you’re not sure, check in with reception.
11. Share your location
This is a good rule for solo travel in general, but sharing your location with a friend, partner or family member can help you rest easier knowing that someone knows where you are.
And remember – these are all simply a precaution to make sure you have the best trip ever. So whilst you should absolutely keep your wits about you, also remember that most people are good and solo travel is amazing!
