You have to let her go, of you instilled strong morals and she is smart she will be fine

Would she consider a Contiki tour of Europe? My friend’s daughter is 21 and is on one now. She’s made some great friends on the trip who are he roommates and they are having a ball. A bit safer too as she always has someone to go with.

If she can find someone to travel with, it will be fun for her, and will give you a bit more peace of mind. But if she’s a sensible kid, and reasonably mature for her age, then traveling on her own might not be a bad thing either. I did both when I was younger, and I found that I made more friends when I was traveling on my own, as I was more inclined to talk to people. Technology makes it easier to keep in touch these days, and get in contact if there’s an emergency, so she’ll never be far away. And I hate to say it, but you can’t keep her wrapped up in cotton wool for the rest of her life, as bad things can happen just around the corner from home, the same as they can happen on the other side of the world.

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  • • hopefullyheidi replied
    • 23 Jul 2014 , 9:20 pm

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  I’m like you I travelled with my girlfriend to Thailand and we had a ball, but I would have gone on my own had she not been willing to come, as I feel you are more easily able to engage with others. It also depends on your travelling partner – some traveling partners have completely different interests to your own and you want to do different things. I quite like traveling on my own, although these days I would never be without my little 8 year old companion lol!

The world is her oyster & 21 is a great age. I think it would be fun with a friend & safer but with internet, face time, Skype etc you literally are phone call away.

21 is a good age. It would be ideal if she could travel with somebody. These days it’s hard to find a travel buddy with people having so many conflicting commitments. I think the best thing about travelling now, as opposed to many years ago is the fact that you can now check in with worried mums and dads etc via technology. There are so many ways you can communicate cheaply from other countries to let your parents know you are safe.

Like you, I travelled alone – and like you, I’d now advise my daughter not to! Sons too, actually.

I think these days it is a must for safety to go traveling in numbers and not alone and what a great thing to do while you are young and not tied down.