Welcome to The NEW BTravelsBetter

Phase One: Day 1/560

When I had originally started BTravelsBetter, my idea was to create a space for female solo travelers to connect, share, and learn from each other. I started writing while I was doing research for my first solo trip to Europe, which I returned from in March 2015. I used this space to document and organize my thoughts and itinerary for my trip. It became more of a compilation of stories that the collaborative space I had envisioned. However, researching and writing about amazing destinations made it obvious to me that I needed to follow my passion for travel and that I should share my experience with the world. Subconsciously, I think I made the decision to move abroad a long time ago, but I recently said it out loud (which I hear makes its real). I want to be able to give people an accurate idea of what is really involved in planning, moving to, and living in a foreign country.

For those of you who will be following my story (which you should), I want to set some expectations now:

• I probably won’t post every day, but sometimes I may post more than once to compensate.
• During Phase 1 and 2, the photos will not be mine.
• During Phase 3, posts will be sporadic, but stick with me. I promise it will be worth it.All content will be original.
• Phase 1 will contain my research, itinerary and cost breakdown, mixed with my irrational fears and inexplicable highs that are likely to occur during this phase.
• Phase 2 will be the shortest phase. It will simply document the process of selling everything I own, packing what I didn’t sell, currency exchange and my flight to my new home.
• Phase 3 will last 365 days. This is where things will start getting good.
• During the entire course of the story, I will try to write so that new readers can join at any time. I feel that it’s important to be inclusive.
• I LOVE hearing other people’s stories, so please share yours with me. If you are interested in featuring content, you can reach me at [email protected].
• I expect that the blog will be active for the next 3 years, so grab some popcorn and sit tight!

Now that we got that out of the way…

Below is a list of my possible base camps for my gap year, ranked in order. Comment with any suggestions you have for me, or if you think I overlooked a possible destination. Your feedback is greatly appreciated!

Ecuador

Thailand

Australia

Vietnam

Panama

Cambodia

Japan

Guatemala

Brazil

The Philipines

So what do you think? I made this handy poll below to help record everyone’s opinions :)