Solo Travel Community: Group Tours, Retreats & Co-Living for Women

Updated for 2026 — Accurate as of March 2026.

Looking for specific app recommendations? Our comprehensive guide to apps for making friends while solo traveling covers Bumble BFF, NomadHer, Tourlina, and more with full safety tips and real-world reviews.

Solo travel does not mean traveling without human connection. It means traveling without a predetermined companion — which, paradoxically, opens you up to meeting far more people than you would if you were already traveling with someone. But apps and spontaneous connections are only one piece of the puzzle.

This guide focuses on structured community: the women-only group tours, solo retreats, co-living spaces, and organized communities where connection is built into the experience rather than left to chance. These formats are particularly valuable for introverts, first-time solos, and anyone who has tried the solo-at-a-hostel approach and found it exhausting.

This guide covers the best offline and semi-offline community structures for meeting people while traveling solo as a woman in 2026, with specific attention to safety, cost, and who each format suits best.

The Best Apps for Meeting Fellow Travelers

NomadHer

Platforms: iOS, Android Price: Free (premium features available) Best for: Solo female travelers specifically, safety-focused community

NomadHer is the only major social travel app built exclusively for women. The platform connects solo female travelers through profiles, messaging, and location-based meetups. Users report feeling safer interacting on NomadHer than on general-audience platforms because the women-only environment eliminates the concerns that come with meeting strangers from mixed-gender apps.

The app organizes regular meetups in major cities where users can meet other solo female travelers in person. These events are moderated and take place in safe public venues, making them ideal for women who want to meet people but are cautious about informal meetups with strangers.

NomadHer also functions as an information-sharing platform — users post destination tips, safety alerts, and recommendations that are specifically relevant to solo women. This combination of social networking and practical travel information makes it the most valuable single app for solo female travelers.

Bumble BFF

Platforms: iOS, Android Price: Free (premium features available) Best for: Finding local friends and other travelers, familiar swipe interface

Bumble BFF uses the same interface as dating Bumble — swipe right on people you want to meet, match, and message — but exclusively for platonic friendships. Set your location to your current travel destination, and Bumble BFF shows you people nearby who are also looking for friends.

The user base includes both locals and travelers, which gives you access to two different types of connections: locals who can show you hidden gems and share authentic cultural experiences, and fellow travelers who understand the unique social needs of someone on the road.

The 24-hour window to send the first message after matching creates urgency that results in more actual meetups than platforms without time pressure. For solo women, the women-first messaging protocol (in some versions) adds a layer of safety and intentionality.

Hostelworld Social Features

Platforms: iOS, Android Price: Free Best for: Connecting with other hostel guests before arrival

Hostelworld has evolved far beyond a booking platform. The social features now let you see who else has booked the same hostel on the same dates, message them before arrival, and coordinate plans. This means you can arrive at your hostel already knowing someone — or at least having a conversation started.

The app also shows social events and meetups organized by hostels, from pub crawls to cooking nights to day trips. These organized activities are the lowest-barrier way to meet people because the social structure is provided for you — you just show up.

Even if you are not staying in hostels, the Hostelworld app is worth having for its social features. For hostel recommendations, see our best hostels for solo women guide.

Travello

Platforms: iOS, Android Price: Free Best for: Social networking for travelers, finding activity partners, joining group tours

Travello is a social network built exclusively for travelers. The app shows other travelers near your location and lets you browse their profiles, see their travel plans, and send messages. You can also join group activities, book tours, and find travel companions for specific legs of your journey.

The group activity feature is particularly useful for solo women who want the safety and sociability of group experiences without committing to a full group tour. Finding someone to share a sunset hike, a cooking class, or a day trip through the app is easy and takes the awkwardness out of approaching strangers.

Nomadtable

Platforms: iOS, Android Price: Free Best for: Activity-based meetups, casual social connections

Nomadtable takes a different approach to travel socializing — instead of profile-based matching, you post what you want to do and see what other nearby people want to do. Want to go for coffee? Post it. Looking for a beach buddy? Post it. Need a dinner companion? Post it.

This activity-first approach reduces the awkwardness of cold-messaging a stranger. You are not saying “let’s be friends” — you are saying “I want to go to the beach, does anyone else?” The shared activity provides structure and purpose that makes the interaction feel natural rather than forced.

TripBFF

Platforms: iOS, Android Price: Free Best for: Finding travel companions for specific trips or destinations

TripBFF matches travelers based on destination, travel dates, and interests. If you are heading to Lisbon next month, TripBFF shows you other solo travelers with similar plans. You can coordinate arrival dates, share accommodation, split the cost of day trips, or simply plan to meet up for dinner.

The app is particularly useful for longer trips where you might want a companion for specific activities — a multi-day trek, a road trip segment, or a week of island-hopping — without committing to traveling together for the entire duration.

Meetup

Platforms: iOS, Android, Web Price: Free Best for: Finding local interest-based groups, regular events, language exchanges

Meetup is not a travel-specific app, but it is invaluable for solo travelers who want to connect with local communities. Every major city has Meetup groups for activities like hiking, language exchange, photography, running, board games, and socializing.

For solo women, the advantage of Meetup is that events take place in public venues, are organized by established group leaders, and attract regular attendees. This creates a safer, more structured social environment than ad hoc meetups with individual strangers.

Language exchange meetups are particularly valuable — they attract a mix of locals and international residents who are inherently open to meeting new people and practicing communication across cultures.

Couchsurfing Hangouts

Platforms: iOS, Android, Web Price: Free (verification fee optional) Best for: Meeting locals and travelers for spontaneous meetups

Couchsurfing’s Hangouts feature shows you people nearby who are available to meet up right now. Post that you are looking for a coffee companion, a walking partner, or a dinner mate, and see who responds.

The Couchsurfing community attracts travelers and locals who are genuinely interested in cross-cultural connection, which often leads to deeper conversations and more meaningful interactions than purely tourist-oriented platforms. However, as with any platform that connects you with strangers, exercise standard safety precautions — meet in public places, tell someone where you are going, and trust your instincts.

Safety Guidelines for Meeting People Through Apps

Meeting strangers through apps while traveling solo requires the same safety consciousness as meeting people in any other context, plus the additional awareness that comes with being in an unfamiliar environment:

Always meet in public places. Coffee shops, restaurants, parks, and popular tourist areas. Never agree to meet at someone’s home or a secluded location for a first meeting.

Tell someone. Share the details of your meetup — who you are meeting, where, and when you expect to be back — with a friend, family member, or your accommodation host. Our safety apps guide covers location-sharing tools that automate this process.

Trust your instincts. If someone’s messages make you uncomfortable, if their profile feels inconsistent, or if anything about the interaction raises a flag, cancel. You do not owe a stranger on an app your time or your presence.

Check profiles carefully. Look for verified profiles, multiple photos, detailed bios, and reviews from other users. Sparse profiles with a single photo and no reviews deserve extra caution.

Have an exit plan. Before every meetup, know how you will leave if you want to. Have your transportation arranged, keep your phone charged, and do not rely on the person you are meeting for anything logistical.

Limit personal information. Do not share your accommodation address, your full travel itinerary, or your last name with someone you have just met online. Share these details gradually as trust develops.

For comprehensive safety strategies, see our personal safety devices guide.

Beyond Apps: Analog Ways to Meet People

Apps are powerful tools, but they are not the only way — or even the best way — to meet people while traveling solo:

Hostels. Common rooms, shared kitchens, and organized events make hostels the original social travel platform. Choose hostels with high social ratings and active common areas.

Walking tours. Free walking tours (tip-based) attract solo travelers and provide natural conversation opportunities. Many friendships that form on the road start on a walking tour.

Classes and workshops. Cooking classes, art workshops, dance lessons, and language courses put you in repeated contact with the same group of people, which is how genuine friendships develop. A single two-hour cooking class can produce more meaningful connections than a week of hostel socializing.

Co-working spaces. If you work remotely, co-working spaces provide daily social structure with a community of like-minded people. Our co-living spaces guide covers options that combine workspace and accommodation.

Volunteering. Working alongside others toward a shared goal creates bonds quickly. Even a few days of volunteering can connect you with locals and fellow travelers in ways that tourist activities cannot. See our volunteer travel guide for women.

Religious and spiritual communities. Churches, temples, mosques, meditation centers, and yoga studios are welcoming spaces in almost every culture. You do not need to share the faith to attend a community event.

The Art of the First Conversation

Meeting someone — through an app or in person — is only the first step. The conversation that follows determines whether a meeting becomes a connection. Here are strategies that work consistently for solo women:

Ask questions about their travels. “Where have you been?” and “Where are you going next?” are universal conversation starters in the travel world. People love talking about their experiences, and these open-ended questions can sustain a conversation for hours.

Share your own story. Connection is reciprocal. When someone shares their experience, reciprocate with yours. Vulnerability — sharing that you are nervous about solo travel, that you miss home, that you are not sure what you are doing — often deepens connection rather than weakening it.

Suggest a specific activity. Vague plans (“we should hang out sometime”) rarely materialize. Specific invitations (“I am going to the market tomorrow morning — want to come?”) almost always do. Be the person who makes the concrete plan.

Exchange contact information early. If the conversation is going well, exchange phone numbers or social media handles before you part ways. Travel friendships are fragile — without contact information, a great connection can evaporate when one of you changes hostels or cities.

Building Lasting Travel Friendships

Most travel connections are temporary — brief, beautiful encounters that exist only within the context of the trip. And that is fine. But some travel friendships have the potential to last if you invest in them:

Follow up within 24 hours. Send a message after meeting — a simple “great meeting you” keeps the connection warm.

Share photos. If you took photos together, send them. Shared photos are the anchors of travel memories.

Stay loosely connected. Follow each other on social media, react to each other’s posts occasionally, and send messages when you see something that reminds you of your shared experience.

Plan to meet again. The ultimate test of a travel friendship is whether it survives beyond the trip. If you connected deeply with someone, suggest meeting again — whether on another trip, in each other’s home cities, or at a midpoint destination.

You Are Never Truly Alone

The fear of being alone — truly, completely alone — is the single biggest barrier that prevents women from taking solo trips. But the reality of solo travel in 2026 is that genuine isolation is almost impossible unless you actively seek it. Between the apps, the hostels, the tours, the classes, and the simple fact that humans are social creatures who naturally seek connection, you will meet people. The only requirement is that you show up, put yourself in situations where connection is possible, and be willing to say hello first.

The connections you make while traveling solo are often deeper, more authentic, and more surprising than anything you experience at home. When two solo travelers meet, they share a bond — the courage to travel alone, the openness to connect with strangers, the understanding that the best experiences are often unplanned.

Download the apps. Join the tours. Sit at the communal table. Say hello. The people you are about to meet might become the best stories you bring home.