Want to go somewhere out the country that's beautiful and affordable that's not Mexico or Jamaica? Well look no further! Panama is definitely a MUST visit. They have the views activities and the food. I visited Panama in March 2023 as a consultation trip when my flight for Bali didn't workout. I'm a avid solo traveler and love to explore and learn about the culture, as well as relax. I moved around a few times. The first hotel was very inexpensive - about $50 a night, but was in the man part of Panama City. Was close to restaurants and night life. The locals were kind and the food was inexpensive about $20 per meal including a drink. In Panama city the food I ate was just ok. The 2nd day I booked a trip through viator to do a cultural experience with the Embrerea Village and it was very eventful. It includes a engine canoe boat ride, waterfall hike to the village, lunch and history with a dance show from the villagers, and a market to shop with them. I had some of the best fish there also. However, things changed when I stayed a few days in old town Panama also know as Casaco Viejo. This time I stayed in an airbnb that was about $75 per night. In old town the food was great and still inexpensive! I ate few restaurants but one of my favorites was called Nomada eatery. In old town there's of history and culture. They have street markets, nice hotels, missed l museums, cafes and some of the best rooftops I've ever been to. The rooftops were actually apart of my best memories. They have mixtures in the crowd with locals and tourist, and the music can be a mixture of hip hop, afro beats, salsa and more. I took an airbnb experience one of the days and did a salsa dance class with Salsa Safari, and I was having the time of my life! They start in the restaurant and then head over to a night club space that's private. The instructors were friendly and fun, you don't have to have a partner if you're solo like me, but they take partners and groups as well. I would definitely recommend this class with the night out option, but you can just do a private class as well. The mainland is nice, but I'm a girl who loves the beach so I headed there for a few days as well. I flew from Panama city to Bocas Del Toro for about $150 roundtrip and it was everything I needed! They have over the water bungalows and that was where I decided to stay. They have a few options but I was last minute so the nicest ones were sold out, but I stayed at Aqui House. It was nice, clean and quiet. There are only about 8 rooms and only 3 were occupied. You do have bro take a body to get there from the mainland once you fly in, but it was only $5-10. The hotel had good food and drinks an is more family ran, so not too many extra actives. You can take a boat to visit other restaurants or the main island. There they have an island party hop called Filthy Friday and you can get tickets in advance or day of if still available. The start on the main island and then take you by taxi boat to a few beach clubs and it's all about the party! I had fun solo and met a few cool people during the trip as it is and all day thing. The fire show at the last spot was my favorite part. Course it helped that the men were afro-panama. My last leg of the trip I went back to panama city and stayed at the W Hotel and it was solo relaxing! The hotel is beautifully designed and have several different room setup. The room with the ball swing was taken, but my room was still nice. The rooftop bar and pool were my place of peace and had the vibes I was looking for. I met more dope people and even got invited to a locals birthday party. Overall I had the BEST time and would definitely visit again. I felt safe as a single black women,I even walked the streets alone late at night without anyone bothering me. The streets near old town do lead to the favelas(hoid) so definitely use caution, but it was a great way to spend my birthday with no regrets! Salsa Class link to their Instagram https://instagram.com/salsasafari_panama?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Link for village tour https://www.viator.com/tours/Panama-City/Tour-Embera-Indigenous-Village-and-Chagres-Rainforest/d950-71405P4 Filthy Friday Bocas island hop party https://filthyfridaybocas.com/

You've might've seen it more recently on social media pictures and wondered is it worth it? But if nobody else has said it, the S Hotel in Montego Bay Jamaica is EVERYTHING!! I was last minute with my planning so i didn't book the hotel until the day of arrival on the plane. It was for my birthday trip and I had been being indecisive about what I wanted to do, and due to covid requirements, wasn't sure if I'd get my test back in time. Jamaica does require a test within a 3 day period as of 3/10/21. So after staying 1 night in Orlando from Oakland, I got my results i the early morning and flew into Montego later that morning. I had already been looking up places before arriving but didn't want to book because of the nonrefundable payme, so I waited. I'm usually an airbnb person, but this place had me more than curious with it's wonderful views! Upon arrival they give you a welcome drink, your choice between rum punch, water, or tea/coffee. I definitely went with the rum punch. Then to my surprise, they upgraded me into a better room at no cost, as well as through in a spa treatment. They also invoice included dinner breakfast, with options for american or Jamaican. The rooms are beautiful with the open glass door 3way showers, 2 sinks, 2 couches, nicely decorated with a lovely bamboo bathtub. There's an option to have a curtain between the bathroom and bedroom. The best part of the room the am amazing oceanfront, and pool view from the balcony. The Hotel is newer and just constructed so beautiful with tons of photo opps everywhere including the lobby. They not only have a large regular pool along with the ppole bar, but they also have a terrific rooftop infinity like glass pool. As well as a rooftop bar and lounge area. They have swings and even a pool table there. Downstairs there are a few games as well. When you get tired of the pools, and the beach, you can make your way downstairs to the Spa. The spa offers many services from the detox session, massages, sauna, and even hair and nailcare. With braids being an option for haircare, and very reasonably priced too for a resort. I did the detox healing pools which consisted of a cold pool, sauna, and then warm pool. I had it all to myself for an hour and felt relived after it was done. You can watch the sunset from the rooftop which I definitely recommend or from the beach as they provide mats and towels free of charge. The nightlife during covid could've offered more, but there is an 8pm curfew at the time. There was not much offered during the week at this time. Mostly hanging out by the pool beds and listening to music was what guess did at night. Dinner is until 10pm and they play live music, which their inhouse talent was really good, playing the piano and saxophone, as well as singing. On the weekend they have a live band and dinner is done buffet style, opposed to per table during the week. The staff were nice and sometimes a little slow with room service request. You can book excursions through the front desk or you can go to the beach and they have tour guides down there who sometimes offer better deals. The location is close to margaritaville, you could walk and that place has good vibes. The food was good, I ate the fish most nights because I don't eat meat. But they did serve it different each night. The breakfast was decent, and pretty standard with options of eggs to your choice, pancakes, French toast, hash browns and bacon bacon with fruit, if you go with the american style. The drinks were good and mostly $10, but there are stores right next door and you can buy your own bottles, which i recommend. Overall I think this is one of the best hotels I stayed at and would definitely go back. I did venture out, but my first reason to travel was to rest and relax and this was the perfect place to unwind and get peace. I give it 5 stars for sure.

I only stopped in Istanbul on a layover to South Africa. I flew with Turkish airlines, which I might were better than expected. They offer free wine and drinks, as well as their complimentary meals are decent for the most part. They also give you a nice little long flight kit, with slippers, a sleep mask, earbuds, and toothbrush and etc. I had a been unaware at first but was notified that they offer a free city tour if you have a longer layover. They hold your bags and everything, so of course I had to take advantage of getting another stamp and seeing another country for FREE!! Well included in the price of my ticket with them. You get on a tour bus after going thru the customs process with a group of people. You go to the main city and are allowed a few hours to roam on your own, but they also give you a small tour and info. It was in March when I went and a bit chilly, but my hoodie kept me warm enough. They have plenty of historical mosque and buildings in the area. You definitely can get all the photo ops and walk the neighborhood with colorful buildings and eat at the local restaurants. They have stores for shopping and plenty of coffee shops and cafes. They also had a very heavy police presence and they had big guns. I felt safe and nobody bothered me as I was solo. People were nice and didn't mind taking pictures for me. They had a small central park area where you could rest and just take in the day and views. It was a great time for the few hours that it was. I hear that it has a whole lot more to offer and I definitely wouldn't mind visiting again in the warmer seasons.

As the pictures on Instagram captured my adventurous heart, I wanted to go see the beautiful red mountains of Antelope Canyon, and so I did. It was a short 2 day visit in the scorching season of June, but it was worth it. I am a firm believer in seeing things for myself and not just hearing stories, so I wanted to make the journey on my own. I flew in to Phoenix from Oakland and stayed at an Airbnb where I just rented a room, as I'd only be there for the day. I rented a car, and toured the city on my own. i went to the local mall, and it was pretty typical, but they had one of my new favorite chain restaurants that's not available in California, Kona Grill. I found out about that a few months before during an east coast trip and had to have more, while I was there. Try the honey glazed salmon, with brussel sprouts and seafood rice, you won't regret it! I also went to the movies and seen I think John Wick 3, which was great! movie theater was nice, had reclining seats, and served alcohol. I went for shaved ice at Snoh Ice and it's delicious. I tried to find tge night life over in Scottsdale but it was midweek and not too much going on. The W and Floor 13 Rooftop Bar were nice venues and probably would try again on a weekend trip. I did find a strip of clubs close to the W, where one had good music and is open view to the streets with no windows and decent drinks. The next morning I made the 4 hour journey by car, which is actually such a beautiful scenic route. You get everything from cactus deserts, to green forest covered streets, and as you get closer to Page, the red rocky grand canyons. I did Ken's tour for about $50 and I recommend it for the bottom of antelope Canyon. That's where you get the infamous photos everyone post. It is super crowded, and hot as I was there in summer. Going in winter or spring could be a better option. Make sure if you're a solo traveler like me you befriend someone or the tour guides to take your pictures, they don't allow tripods. They have a small cafe on location if you need something to carry you over. I recommend driving the extra 15 minutes or less over to the Horseshoe Bend and see the great views of the canyon from the top and it's even possible to do a kayak tour thru the canyon, I didn't oblige this time. It does involve a small hike up to and back from the views, but nothing crazy, just bring water if it's hot and parking cost. Overall it was a good time and I'm glad I got to see more of Gods creation, next time I might do more exploring of the grand canyon or camping.

I fell in love in Mykonos, well at least for 3 days, and I'd do all over again!Lol Mykonos was my last stop on 10 day solo Greece tour from Athens, to Santorini and finally Mykonos. As a single-solo traveler it was a great place to meet people and have a good time. .It could be the fact that I'm a water sign and if I'm near a beach I'm at peace and love is in the air for me. Whatever it is, Mykonos definitely gave me all the feels. The great thing about Mykonos is that they have several different beaches throughout the island. I had an Airbnb next to Ornos beach, which was nice but more of a quiet area as far as parties. So I was able easily to get transportation by the local bus to Mykonos town which is the center location for all buses and then head to different beaches in the island. You also can beach hop by taxi boat, I believe they go from beach to beach every 45 minutes. I spent the first day and night enjoying the night beach club on Paradise beach club. Paradise beach, not to be confused with Super Paradise beach is a beach that has two beach clubs right next to each other, the other being Tropicana. Both are beachfront and offer cabanas and lounger chairs for a fee. Paradise beach club seemed to have better music and offered 2 for 1 drinks. They also have a food market and a few store in between them. The food market has a place with great gyros, please don't leave Greece without getting a gyro, or you'll definitely be missing out, They also have another club that is up further than the beach, but that one is more of a night only, while the other two are from day to night parties. You can expect loud music and drinks, as well as the beautiful views of the ocean views. Another great thing that I got to do was visit the windmills. Great photo opp and amazing views there, and then you can have lunch or go shopping in the stores nearby in Mykonos town.. I had a semi-private yacht day, that included beach tours, lunch and a stop on one of the nicer beaches. During that time I got a great foot massage on my lounge chair after lunch. There was also opportunity to snorkel, but I skipped that this time. They have a nude beach there as well, you can see from the boat, but it was mostly only men I seen occupying it. It's said to be know more as "rainbow beach". Mykonos has a lot of different areas and hidden gems there, with a far better party scene than Santorini, I definitely recommend adding this stop, just make sure it's not off season.

Krabi was my last stop out of a Multi-city tour throughout Thailand. i went from SFO to Bangkok, to Phucket, to Phi-Phi Island and finally Krabi for only 2 days. Krabi was a beach city similar to Phucket, but to me better because it wasn't as crowded from tourist, thus making it more relaxing. It was the end of my birthday trip with 2 other ladies in my family and it came right on time. As you've probably heard everything in Thailand is inexpensive for the most part. Our hotel was nice and small but had great gems like a rooftop pool with a beautiful view of the city and super friendly staff. The beaches were nice and you can get amazing and cheap massages right on the beach, as well as in the hotel or other nearby locations. Stop in any local restaurant and get some great shrimp pad thai for under $10. Go shopping at the local jewelry stores or street vendors and small stores. The beaches are less crowded and you can sit there on your blankets or rent the chairs and umbrellas for a low price. You can also do excursions, as they offer many. However, this time I just relaxed on the beach and actually got use of the nice rooftop pool and a massage. Krabi is the perfect place to get enough beach and city mix without it being overwhelming crowded like Phucket.

San Andres was my last stop in Colombia, after going to Bogota, and Cartagena first, and with a friend, it was just the solo beach get away I needed. I did a lot of walking and touring and exploring in the other 2 cities, so I was in need of a place of relaxation. It was the end to a beautiful 11 day birthday trip, I flew there with LATM airlines from Cartagena, which was inexpensive and only an hour flight. It's a beautiful island and not expensive at all. You can easily find decent places to stay for under $100 a night, right near the beach. I recommend staying near the city center, unless you want to rent a scooter or ATV for the days you are there. Most of the main food, shopping, and activities are near the main beach and what they call they city center. I didn't book my stay there until the night before so I just got a pretty basic clean room, in a good location at the Aparta Hotel Marbella. However, around the corner from me was a place that had food, drinks and massages all inclusive for about $140 a night, called El Dorado Hotel. I will prepare you to say that Colombia is a SPANISH speaking country and most do not speak much English. So break out your google translate, or brush up on your Spanish. Also it isn't super fancy hotels there, but they do have nice clean ones on the beach and bigger ones further away from the main city. The beach there the water is blue and warm unlike Cartagena, and you can do just about all the water activities you can think of. I did the jet skies one day, a trip to Johnny Cay island, with some snorkeling and relaxing. There's a night party boat another, where they give you a live show, dinner and open bar for about $50 usd or less. You can eat and drink on the beach at the many restaurants within walking distance, one that I like was called Nikos Seafood. You can rent a scooter or ATV and drive around touring the full island, you can take your time or do it in about an hour if you just want to look and not stop. There are plenty of more tours, but I recommend the one where you stop at Rose Cay and Johnny cay in one day, and visit 2 other places along with sting rays, spend the extra $20 and get a picture with it if you aren't afraid. It was a highlight of my trip. I totally loved San Andres and think it's a little piece of paradise. It's beautiful, simple and yet still amazing!! I think people don't really know much about and it gets looked over because of Cartagena's culture, but I definitely got plenty of island vibes and culture from visiting there. It it a beach city and reminds me of a mix of Jamaica and Miami. They party on the beach strip til late night, they do have few clubs I think the big one was called Coco Bongo, but I didn't go. For me it was all about the beaches and water activities along with food. They have plenty of bars and liquor stores to get drinks for your satisfaction.

Accra, Ghana was a great experience and overall good time. I had already been to Africa once, by way of Capetown, but Ghana was exactly the part I was missing from my South Africa trip. I went during, "The Year of Return 2019," it was such an amazing time. I flew with Ethiopian Airlines, who was decent, but the flight was forever from SFO because of the layovers. So i would recommend buying your ticket months in advance, to get a shorter reasonably priced flight. My stay time was for 10 days, so I should've had plenty of time to do things, but somehow that still wasn't enough time. The thing about the time I went in "Deczemba" was that it was so many people there and events going on, it was hard to separate the party and culture, from the normal adventures. I went to Afrochella, which I recommend, just prepare yourself as concerts/festivals there are all day events. It started at 12pm, but little did I know it would go until 3am. I did not stay that long, but if you want to see the main acts, a heads-up they don't come on until the end for the most part. The festival itself was nice and had activities, food and plenty of photo ops available. I would spring for the v.i.p bands as they allow better access to everything and closer to the main stage. My first location was way outside of the main city, which wasn't what was told so be careful when choosing Airbnb's and hotels. The best location to me to stay in is East Legon because it's central to most things there. There was also Afronation going on , which is a multi-day festival. i would recommend that, as it takes place on the beach and has several artist and things to do within the festival. Again it is an all day event, and the same rules apply as far as main performers going last as 2am. It is a bigger set up, and less photo ops, but a good time. There are many places to eat in Accra, from local food to american. A good I tried was, Coco lounge inside of the Icon house building, there also is Urban Grill, even though I didn't make it there, but it was highly reccomended. There is also a nice club called Carbon, which is good on Thursdays. a few other good eats was Azmera, which was great for the local food buffet, Fatfish was great and upscale, you can also visit the skybar lounge if you go there. The best clubs were Twist, Bloom Bar, Luna Rooftop bar, and the NYE at the Polo Beach Club on labdi beach. Ghana wouldn't be complete without a trip to Cape Coast going to see the castle where slaves were kept before being shipped off, be prepared to be emotional. Amother thing you can do is visit Aburi gardens to get good pictures, or have a picnic. Lastly you can do the canopy walk which is closer to cape coast, but go early and do that first. Overall Ghana is great and the people are friendly for the most part. The city is developed, but there is still poverty there in areas as well, so supporting the street vendors is good for their economy. If you're not there in December there's still plenty to do, and there's uber so its easy to get around.

I traveled to Quepos, Costa Rica this year in May 2018 to celebrate my brothers 35th birthday. We flew in to San Juan costa, mostly all of us out of 10 had different flights. I got there the night before everyone else and stayed in a small hotel not far from the airport. They had uber available in San Juan so it was easy to get around as well as taxis. I got in pretty late so didn't really have time to explore and was too tired to enjoy the nightlife. The next day met the rest of the group and we were transported over to Quepos, which is about 3 hours away. We rented a beautiful Airbnb, right on the tip of the jungle. It had 6 bedrooms, 3 floors and infinity pool. The balcony was glass doors, so had theb most amazing view. We literally could see monkeys in the trees. The only bad part about that was the jungle bugs who invaded the house when we left the doors open. Our first night there we hired private chefs, who were recommended by the airbnb owner and they cooked a delicious 4 course meal. The next day some went to the hotsprings and enjoyed some outdoor relaxation. I just hung out by the pool. The following day we booked a zilpining excursion with Quepos Canyoning and it turned out to be quite the adventure. It included about 5 ziplines, hiking, tree climbing, and water rappelling down 100ft waterfall. The water rappelling was a little on the dangerous side, but was a great experience and our guides made us feel safe. They fed us onsite and transported us back home. I think the whole excusion was about $75 per person. We went to the local farmers market type set up near the beach, there you could find food, souvenirs and more. They were caught a wonderful sunset. There were also a lot of restaurants near by that served local cultural food. We did make it out one night for the turn up and went club hopping. I believe one club was called Republic, they played hip hop and Spanish music mixed. The locals are out down there as well, and there are plenty bars to hop around to. Another day we went to another beautiful beach, but it did rain on our parade for about 30 minutes. In our neighborhood it was local small restaurants to eat at, and corner stores that had mostly everything you need. Overall Quepos. is beautiful and very relaxing, one thing I will note is that they don't have numeric addresses so that can present some difficulties if renting a car. Some of us in the group did and got lost ba little, but with team work was able to figure it out. If you visit, and love adventures, please do the excursion with Quepos Canyoning. It was very exhilarating!

I always wanted to visit Africa and I felt starting in Capetown was the easiest thing for me to do solo. Last year I took my talents to South Africa and I'm so happy that I did. I booked my first set of days thru dream trips, which I'm a member of and have only used once. They included the excursion to table mountain and a city bus hop on and off tour. The first set of days were more formal as we were on a semi-schedule as far as meeting other members and having a welcome drink and a dinner another night. My hotel was nice and in a nice area in Seapoint. The beach on that side had a lot of boulders, and wasn't very touristy. However the neighborhood did have many restaurants and tourist around, as it is a nicer area. Over there is where I caught the city tour bus, which takes you around town and gives you some history, sight seeing and views. It takes you to table mountain and you have the option to get off the bus and go view it. Table mountain has one of the BEST views I've ever seen in my life, and the feeling i had was indescribable. To get to the top you can either take a sky lift or hike. I took the easy way out and sky lifted. Once at top it's a pretty big area to walk around and see the different sides. In that moment staring out into the world before me, I felt lobster liberated. Then after you can purchase items at the gift shop or the pictures you took in the start of the line. I went out to the club scene in the popular downtown areas but it was to my surprise not very African. The club was very Americanized, with white gogo dancers and patrons too. I was disappointed somewhat that even in Africa the vine didn't cater to black people as far as entertainment. I visited the really beautiful Camps Bay Beach and it had kind if a south beach vibe to it, as far as the set up. Met some really cool people there and we all ate, and did a champagne sunset cruise. Which was pretty nice and I inexpensive, under $75. However, things got better the second half of my trip when I switched locations to the other side of town to Long st. Long st is like the bourbon st of New Orleans, in Capetown. There's good food, shopping, and several bars and clubs. There I found good local food. they have uber and its super cheap because the dollar has a way higher value then ran(SA money). I was able to take uber to the marina area, which reminds me a lot of San Francisco. There they have a mall, local vendors and boat excursions.. I did the trip to Robin island , where Nelson Mandela was prisoner and you even get to see inside the cell. The guide was actually once a prisoner there himself, which was interesting hearing his perspective. There were a lot of restaurants there as well, and some live street entertainment. Back on long street it really came alive a night. There was a special i think in Wednesdays where they had $1 shots and shooters drinks. I was fortunate to meet some locals as I was solo, and they took me out to a nice spot called Cabana.. it was like a restaurant bar with hookah. But there were a lot of locals who showed me some good cultural dancing in freeform. Another last highlight was going to MamaAfrica, a great local restaurant. But I'd advise making reservations, as it's pretty popular and fills up quick. They have outlandish things on the menu like ostrich, and alligator, which are delicious. For my actual birthday, in hired a private uber and he took me on a beach tour. I visited some of the most popular beaches like boulders beach, which has penguins on it. Overall Capetown is amazing and I'd definitely go again, but next time I'd include going to Joberg too.

This was my second time in Honolulu Hawaii and it was still just as beautiful. The first time I went in 2014 was for my cousins 30th birthday mixed with my college graduation celebration. She and I are also like best friends and she was already going with her son and wanted me to come too. The first time we stayed at Disney Aulani, and it was very beautiful. The sky is as blue as the water in mid July. I kept saying it was so pretty, it looked fake like on the Truman Show movie. Anyways, we booked all of our adventures through the resort which became pretty expensive, especially since the room is already about $500 a night. We went hiking in the rainforest with a guided tour, for about $150. We had snorkeling on the resort, in a pretty decent manmade tank resembling the ocean. The most exciting adventure was going shark cage diving. It was her idea, but we agreed to do that if she'd go skydiving with me(which she didn't). It was about $2-250. I was nervous at first, but there was another group who went before us, so we got to see what it was like. The sharks do come close to the cage, but only in a curious none aggressive manner. You can take pictures under water and they record the experience and offer you to purchase at the end, which we did. Still one of the best excursions to date. We went to Waikiki about 45 minutes away and went to the club in a hotel that had cages to dance in. It was fun, and they played hip hop. Overall that trip was nice and relaxing but expensive. My most recent trip was just this past week for a family wedding. I found tickets on Hawaiian airlines for $425, but later found a better deal for my other family on priceline for only $350. Then since it was a few of us not staying at the hotels, I booked an Airbnb for 5 days under 1,000 dollars, which only ended up being about $140 a piece for the entire stay. Most hotels go about $200 or more a night, so that was a great steal. Our place was in the oahu area and had a pool, was super clean. The neighborhood outside looked a little dry, but our place was nice. Since it was a larger group this time, we went bar hopping in downtown Waikiki, and there was a lot of people outside. We went beach bumming a few days, going from north shore to kapolei, which is closer to the aulani hotel but a public beach. North shore is where a lot of the boat excursions take place like shark cage diving. The wedding took place at Sheerwood beach, which is very beautiful. Has a lot if trees as well as a good view. On one of our Kay days a group of us did the catamaran trade wins cruise which we found on groupon and it was $25 a person for 90 minutes. It was fun and they serve drinks for $5, or just bring your own bottle. I definitely recommend a Hawaii visit, especially now knowing more cost effective ways to book adventures, and having airbnb to help with the price. Even though we are out some days, cooking meals inside is a great way to save. One thing I still haven't discovered about Hawaii is great local food. We went to the Luau at Paradise Cove both times, which is a great experience but even the food there wasn't anything special. Overall I'd recommend going to Hawaii, it's beautiful. But there are definitely places you can spend less money and see beautiful views. The first time we didn't have a rental and cabs are pricey there, the second time we did which saved more money. Going the first time prepared me to save money the second time around. Both were good experiences.