I spent a week alone in Europe and learned 9 lessons about solo travel

Business Insider's reporter traveled solo during a train trip through Europe. Joey Hadden/Business Insider I had plenty of experience traveling alone before I went to Germany and Austria. But solo travel in Europe was a different beast. I learned how to tame it. I thought I knew what I was in for. I thought I had it all figured out. I'd taken 30-hour train trips up and down the East Coast, spent seven nights sailing the Caribbean on one of the world's largest cruise ships , and traveled by rail to Niagara Falls , Montreal, and Quebec City — all by myself. So I was pretty used to traveling alone by October 2022, when I went backpacking through Europe . I took a two-week train trip through Germany, Austria, Italy, and Switzerland.