Long drive and traveling alone

[polarbearfans]

So I know I probably wont get any replies before leaving today but any tips would be great.

I have to travel alone about 8 hours for a funeral today. It's a long drive through mountains for a bit. I've done part of the drive (about 3 hours) previously for a wedding but never this long drive. I'm also nervous about staying in the hotel alone. Or I should say motel that my husband booked for me. It scares me to stay on a ground floor that opens to the outside. If I had done the booking I would be in a nice hotel several floors up. The area doesn't seem bad but I won't even live in a ground floor apartment and I won't even consider any houses in our search that have a first floor master bedroom. He knows I hate motels but from previous visits I know the area is mainly the motel model even on the bigger named chains. My main concern is break ins through the windows. Is that crazy?

Any women that travel alone? Any tips for staying safe? I think I'm mainly paranoid because of comments from one of my friends family when I went to her wedding. My husband had to come later due to work but her family kept going on about how it wasn't safe for a woman to stay in a hotel alone and wouldn't let me go until they heard my husband would be there that night; he just couldn't make the rehearsal. They kept saying I couldn't trust hotel staff. I've always had good experiences traveling but I have never had to stay overnight anywhere alone.

[Brit]

You probably had your overnight already, but I wouldn't worry about it too much as long as you make an effort to stay safe. I would just do my best not to let anyone see me go into the room alone and keep the blinds closed. I don't really think that you should feel any more nervous about a motel than a hotel; I once had a guy follow me to my 12th floor room at a very expensive hotel in a big city, so being in a highrise definitely doesn't safeguard you from weirdos.

[polarbearfans]

Thanks for the reply. My overnight is going to be tonight. I made a quick appointment for an Oil change and tire rotation. I was past due and this is too long a trip to not have it done.

Good tip on not letting people see me go in alone and keeping the blinds shut. Hopefully i have some family at my motel or at least close.

[katieh]

"how it wasn't safe for a woman to stay in a hotel alone and wouldn't let me go until they heard my husband would be there that night"

I think your friends are a bit ridiculous (though I'm sure they mean well). Women stay alone in hotels and motels all the time.

Should you be careful? Yes of course. Bad things do happen, and can happen anywhere. But don't freak yourself out and be paranoid.

At the front desk, ask for two keys and don't mention that you are traveling alone. Don't tell anyone your room number. When I stay alone, I do a quick sweep of the room every time I walk in and then I lock and chain the door and I keep the blinds closed.

[hutchsl]

If you get this in time... check the window to make sure it is closed and locked. Make sure the lock actually work. When you enter your room make sure no one is too close. I travel alone a lot. Just be street wise and alert and you will be fine.

[alleinesein]

May 22, 2012 7:14:02 GMT -5 polarbearfans said:

So I know I probably wont get any replies before leaving today but any tips would be great.

My main concern is break ins through the windows. Is that crazy?

Any women that travel alone? Any tips for staying safe?

My advice...GET NEW FRIENDS! Seriously...women are perfectly capable of travelling alone and spending the night alone in a hotel room

You are being way too paranoid about this. Lock your hotel room door and if you are that freaked out that someone might bust in through the door PUT SOMETHING IN FRONT OF IT! (suitcase, chair, etc). Most people are not going to break in through the window; glass is noisy when it breaks.

Use common sense and if something seems off or suspicious pick up the phone in the room and call the front desk.

[polarbearfans]

Thank you for all the advice! I survived my first night. I got back to my room late from last night but with my husband on the phone I did a sweep of the room... Checked behind everything and under everything. Put a table in front of the door and checked all the windows to make sure they were locked and wouldn't budge.

It was mainly my friends overprotective family satin woman shouldn't travel alone. I also received a little heat from my family yesterday when they heard I was staying alone but luckily someone jumped in and said the area was very safe.

I get just as freaked out in my own apartment but it is much scarier in an unfamiliar area.

[Deleted]

OMG...this is 2012, not the 1950's! Women travel alone and DO NOT need a man for protection. If you have a brain, use it to be aware of your surroundings and dont do things to make yourself stand out as being alone.

[sunny]

This is very odd. I can empathize but I don't share your same concerns to the degree to which you seem to be worried. I opened this post thinking it was going to be asking for tips on how to stay awake by yourself during a long drive LOL!

You got some good advice already. Glad your trip is going well!

[polarbearfans]

It is hard to stay awake but once I hit the winding mountains the adrenaline woke me up lol originally it started out wanted tips to survive the long drive but people freaked me out over the hotel and I really haven't ever had to stay alone before other than a few random days on a super rare occasion.

[daringmiss]

I have traveled all over the US and a couple of foreign countries and slept in hotels alone. I will be driving 10 hours tomorrow (5 hours back and forth) to meet with contractors who are going to renovate our family cabin. Alone.

I love it. I like the drive time to think, to listen to audio books or to make leisurely phone calls to friends. I like being in a hotel room alone because I can watch whatever I want, spread out over the entire bed and use as many pillows as I want.

Embrace this opportunity. There is nowhere you can't go alone - especially in the US - with a credit car and a cell phone. With so many women traveling on business, there are even hotels that advertise that they specialize in women travelers.

[zitiqueen]

May 23, 2012 9:07:18 GMT -5 @susanh said:

OMG...this is 2012, not the 1950's! Women travel alone and DO NOT need a man for protection. If you have a brain, use it to be aware of your surroundings and dont do things to make yourself stand out as being alone.

No kidding. Do your friends also think women shouldn't go to college?

[zitiqueen]

May 23, 2012 23:03:21 GMT -5 polarbearfans said:

I really haven't ever had to stay alone before other than a few random days on a super rare occasion.

This is... really weird to me.

[magdala9]

May 22, 2012 7:14:02 GMT -5 polarbearfans said:

So I know I probably wont get any replies before leaving today but any tips would be great.

I have to travel alone about 8 hours for a funeral today.

Is that crazy?

Any women that travel alone?

Any tips for staying safe?

I am sorry for your loss.

Being concerned about your safety is never crazy.

I routinely travel alone for work. Due to the nature of my job, I am frequently traveling in the tough sections of a city. It is possible for a women to travel alone safely. Your family friend's comments are out of date and out of touch.

The tips for staying safe while traveling alone are the same as the tips from saying safe in any situation.

Pay attention to your surroundings.

Walk with your purpose and with your keys in your hand. Placing one key between your first and second fingers so that if you throw a punch you can inflict damage (one corollary is to know how to throw a punch).

Don't get lost inside your own head.

Wear comfortable clothing that you can move in (no teeters heels, no restricting skirts).

Be pleasant to people without looking like a doormat.

Be conscious of the condition of your vehicle--Fill the gas tank. Ensure tires are properly pressurized.

You can do this despite your doubts. It is not difficult.

[basilosaurus]

I can't imagine having friends like that. They'd die of perpetual heart attack for knowing that I travel alone all the damn time, without being a crazy person about checking my hotel room. Hell, I've shared rooms, in hostels, in a foreign country. Oh noez!

And an 8 hour drive is kinda nothing to me. It was 13-20 (depending on traffic) just to get home from college, and not even my worrywort grandma had anything to say about that.