How to be a professional solo traveler- with Lindsay Mukaddam (US)

Hi everyone,

Please welcome with me Lindsay Mukaddam from the US. Lindsay is a passionate solo traveler who also curates incredible group trips, primarily for women—but anyone is welcome to join. Her mission is to inspire people to stop waiting for friends or family to travel with them and instead take the leap to book the trip themselves. 

In this episode, I chat with Lindsay, founder of One Girl Wandering, about how she discovered solo travel while married and realized the importance of challenging herself and stepping outside her comfort zone to keep growing. After a less-than-ideal trip with a friend, she took the leap into solo travel in 2017—and never looked back. 

Lindsay, who has lived with major anxiety, shares how solo travel has played a big role in helping her manage it. Over time, she’s gained confidence and even embraced spontaneity—something that once felt impossible. Her biggest advice for aspiring solo travelers? Start small—dining out alone, exploring a nearby town, or visiting a museum solo can build confidence. She also opens up about how solo travel has positively impacted her marriage, allowing her to pursue her own adventures while strengthening her relationship.

Now, Lindsay curates extraordinary group travel experiences, from spotting polar bears in Canada to attending a masquerade ball in Versailles. Her One Girl Wandering community continues to grow, with many travelers returning for more unforgettable journeys. Tune in to hear her insights on solo travel, community, and making bucket-list dreams a reality!

Find her on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/onegirlwandering/

Or through her own website:

https://www.onegirlwandering.com/

Feel free to connect with me on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/hanna_worldwide_and_friends/

or email me under:
hannaworldwideandfriends@outlook.com

You can find this podcast also under its own website:
https://www.buzzsprout.com/2110137
or on Spotify, Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Podcast Index, iHeartRadio, Podchaser, Deezer and PlayerFM

Thank you so much for being here, I appreciate every single one of you!

Love,
Hanna

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Transcript

00:01.59
Johanna Marks
Hi everyone, please welcome with me Lindsay Mukaram from the US. Lindsay has started her solo travel experience in 2017 and is now also organizing trips for women all around the world to encourage them to not just wait for the one person to join, but just to book that trip.

00:22.38
Johanna Marks
Thank you so much, Lindsay, for your time. I know you are a very busy woman and I'm really grateful that you made it happen to talk to me today and to share your travel experience.

00:34.05
Lindsay Mukaddam
Well, thank you so much for having me. I'm super excited. and

00:36.99
Johanna Marks
Thank you. Do you mind sharing with us how your solo travel started in the first place?

00:44.58
Lindsay Mukaddam
Sure. so um it's It was kind of a combination of a few things. um One was getting off of a trip that I um was with somebody else and we just were not good travel buddies. and I was just like, gosh, you know I keep on waiting for my friends or my family to be able to like go with me and to travel with me and like this is just getting so frustrating because you know the entire process of planning a trip with another person. And then um the other thing was that I had started to realize that I had gotten very comfortable in my life where everything was very routine. I had a very wonderful job. I was very secure and

01:25.86
Lindsay Mukaddam
my relationship with my husband and I realized that I had stopped growing as a person because I had stopped doing things that were uncomfortable to me and so I started thinking about like what would most uncomfortable situation I could put myself in and um that the thing that popped into my head was ah being alone in a foreign country.

01:34.35
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

01:46.38
Lindsay Mukaddam
And so I kind of took solo travel as this combination of something that i I wanted to travel and I wanted to stop waiting on people. And then I also wanted to challenge myself to do it on my own. And so those two things kind of like led me to going on my first solo trip. And I thought that that was going to be like a one-time deal, um but turns out I got addicted to it. and now full-time solo traveler and I'm a full-time content creator and now I help other women to to bust out of their comfort zones and to also take on solo travel and see the benefits of that in their own lives.

02:23.98
Johanna Marks
That's awesome. It's so fascinating to see. And also I can relate a lot to it because I think my experience with moving to another country started with the same thought. I thought I need to grow somehow. I need to have a challenge and thought one of the most uncomfortable things out of the comfort zone would be living in a foreign country on my own. So I can very much relate to that. What has been your most favorite part of doing solo traveling?

02:54.60
Lindsay Mukaddam
I think really getting back in touch with um everything that I want to do. So i'm I've been married now for 11 years, um very happily married. um And I really do think that as women, we are caretakers, and we put a lot of people's needs and wants in front of our own, um even if you are in a good, healthy relationship. like I check in with my husband on a regular basis, like, what are we going to do for dinner? like ah What are we going to do? What are our plans for this weekend?

03:22.44
Lindsay Mukaddam
Like, are we going to make this like big purchase or whatever? You know, things like that. But when you are on a solo trip and when you're planning a solo trip, you don't have to ask anybody else for their buy in when you are thinking about what you want to do or how you want to spend your time.

03:40.71
Lindsay Mukaddam
And that even comes down to the day of if you decide that you just want to hang out in your hotel room and order room service for the day and scrap all of your plans, there is no one who is going to be disappointed or upset with you or you're like, you can do whatever you want. And that was just such a very freeing feeling when I figured that out when I was planning my first solo trip.

04:04.52
Lindsay Mukaddam
And I really came back from from that first solo trip feeling refreshed and renewed and like very much more in touch with myself and just kind of like ready to like swing back into my day-to-day life.

04:20.23
Johanna Marks
Yeah, absolutely. That makes total sense. Where did your first solo trip go to?

04:27.03
Lindsay Mukaddam
So I went to Europe. I started in Luxembourg. And then from there, I went to France and then ended in Switzerland. And this is like one of my biggest pieces of advice for anyone who is thinking about perhaps going on like ah a big international solo trip is I had already been to France and Switzerland before. um And Being there solo was a totally different vibe than I had been there with friends and with my husband.

04:55.85
Lindsay Mukaddam
um and It wasn't so far out of my comfort zone that I felt like so so scrambled or whatever, but it was enough out of my comfort zone that I was still able to like enjoy it.

05:04.85
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

05:09.17
Lindsay Mukaddam
so I feel like if you if solo travel feels very daunting, there's a couple of different ways to kind of like dip your toes into it. One is like you know going to someplace that's nearby your own hometown,

05:19.70
Lindsay Mukaddam
going to a country that's maybe like culturally adjacent to yours, but also revisiting places that you know that you like, but doing them solo. And so that's that's the approach that I took to my first solo trip was going back to places that I knew that I enjoyed, um but kind of getting to do them on my own terms.

05:38.08
Johanna Marks
Yeah, I think that's a such a great advice because there are so many people out there, not just women, but I mean, you are focusing on women particularly, but so many people out there who really struggle to get with this first step step outside of their comfort zone to get that going.

05:58.07
Johanna Marks
So actually having that advice to choose something which is just enough out of your comfort zone that it challenges you, but not too far out that it scares you so much that you will not end up doing it at all. So that's really cool. What other benefits would you think have solo traveling for women?

06:18.59
Lindsay Mukaddam
It's made me a much more confident and secure person. um I definitely feel like when I've come back from a new destination or or any sort of solo trip, I i feel like i've I've conquered something, I've accomplished something, and sort of like any sort of challenge that I find in my day-to-day life doesn't seem so daunting.

06:41.90
Lindsay Mukaddam
and I feel more ready to try new things. like you know Going to a workout class on my own doesn't seem so intimidating because I went to a foreign country by myself. you know so There are definitely benefits that I see in that where i'm I'm gaining that confidence to try new things at home because I know that I've done sort of like these big steps outside of like my hometown. so um i I feel like that's kind of like the biggest thing is that that huge confident boost that you get from from being able to like kind of like conquer a destination on your own.

07:17.41
Johanna Marks
Yeah, absolutely. Have you encountered any difficulties on your trips as well, especially traveling as a woman?

07:24.39
Lindsay Mukaddam
Oh, yeah.

07:27.15
Lindsay Mukaddam
um Yeah, of course. um There's been times where I've gotten lost. There's been times where there's destinations that aren't necessarily like solo travel friendly. like Um, there's been a couple of places that I've gone to where, uh, I have had to book for two spots because they only book for two people.

07:52.70
Lindsay Mukaddam
Um, and that's been, uh, yeah.

07:53.20
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

07:55.09
Lindsay Mukaddam
So it's like, you know, you're having to book for two people, but you're like one person and you're like, well, this is kind of annoying because I want to have this experience, but I'm a solo traveler and it's kind of, it sucks that I'm having to pay extra for that.

08:03.53
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

08:06.89
Johanna Marks
Yeah, absolutely.

08:07.10
Lindsay Mukaddam
Um, But I mean, as far as like being a woman, I would say that I mitigate safety the same way that I do here in the United States. um And I would say majority of the time I feel safer traveling outside of the United States than I do here.

08:27.75
Lindsay Mukaddam
um just statistically and things like that.

08:28.64
Johanna Marks
Right.

08:31.20
Lindsay Mukaddam
um it's It's just, I feel i feel better. and i ah i also like you know as As women, you know we are you as long as you stay aware and you you know you do all the things that you do when you're you're at home, you you're going to be fine.

08:48.69
Johanna Marks
Yeah, yeah.

08:49.06
Lindsay Mukaddam
And i also I also like to tell people that um unfamiliar doesn't equal unsafe. um A lot of times when we are in a environment that we are unfamiliar with, for some reason that lights up the same parts of our brain that makes us feel unsafe, but that's not necessarily the case. So getting to know what the difference between feeling uncomfortable and unsafe um and being able to distinguish between those two things I think is very important um because there's obviously times where I feel comfortable in my space here in the United States because it's familiar to me, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it is a safe environment.

09:34.45
Johanna Marks
Yeah, yeah. That's such a good point to bring up as well. Just the difference between feeling unsafe and uncomfortable. Because I think many people have that fear of getting out of their comfort zone and traveling by themselves. But it's actually not dangerous as such. Of course, there are countries where it's probably also dangerous and you need to take extra precaution. But in general, the idea of being alone in a different country is scary, of course, but it doesn't mean dangerous. It's just that uncomfortable feeling of, I haven't done it before. It's the first time, things like that. So these are really good points to bring up. You mentioned you got lost also before. How did you navigate that? Did you kind of always find, I mean, obviously you always found a solution, otherwise you wouldn't be here. But how did you navigate a situation like this?

10:32.70
Lindsay Mukaddam
I have discovered overwhelmingly people are kind and want to help you. So asking for help. I mean, that's the biggest thing. i Because I'm in the United States, ah the majority of the United States does not have good public transportation. So public transportation has always been something that has been very daunting to me. um And so learning to navigate that.

10:57.04
Lindsay Mukaddam
all over the globe has been a huge challenge, but it's also been very rewarding for me to get to do. um so That's been kind of like the but the biggest thing for me. but Once you realize that there are helpers everywhere,

11:11.29
Lindsay Mukaddam
um you it starts to be not super scary. and Then also realizing that you're never the first one to have a problem and that like everything is searchable and everything is fixable.

11:25.02
Lindsay Mukaddam
so um I think that's that's the biggest thing is is to never be embarrassed to ask for help.

11:31.04
Johanna Marks
Yeah. Have you realized that solo traveling made you more optimistic or like have a better outlook on life, just being more positive and think like there's always a solution and it will always be okay in the end?

11:47.88
Lindsay Mukaddam
Absolutely. so I have major anxiety. ah And i I have noticed that the more and more that I have solo traveled, the better that has gotten because I have realized that um even if I don't have an exact plan, because I used to start out solo traveling where I would have everything planned, like every part of my day would be planned. And a lot of that had to do with my anxiety because I would i would know that if I had had it planned, then if I had anxiety when I was on um my trip, then I could go back to the plan. And I know that like past Lindsay was taking care of present Lindsay and I could just follow the plan.

12:29.74
Lindsay Mukaddam
And now I've gotten much more loose about that because I know that like everything's going to be okay. And I don't need to have that plan in place. But that is something that has has happened over multiple years of solo travel and like understanding that I don't necessarily need to have every minute planned. So that's definitely changed for me.

12:52.97
Johanna Marks
Thank you so much also for sharing that you struggle with anxiety. I know it's like a lot of people do and um a lot of people don't talk about it. I know it's getting more and more out there and people get more comfortable to talk about it, but I feel like it's all around us and it's so common to experience it at least once in your lifetime.

13:14.22
Johanna Marks
And research says once your body feels it, it's more amplifying rather than going down um just naturally. So finding ways to deal with it. Like, for example, your safety blanket with your plan that you kind of have something to follow, to fall back on and to just be like,

13:37.24
Johanna Marks
secured in a way with your organization, but then also seeing that you have grown so much that you don't necessarily need that anymore. That's like a major improvement for yourself and just probably also amazing to look back to.

13:52.37
Johanna Marks
And I hope you're also proud of yourself being like, okay, this is how I started and this is how I have become and what I have achieved now. So that's pretty awesome.

14:04.73
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yeah, it's yeah it'ss pretty wild.

14:04.75
Johanna Marks
What do you think? Sorry.

14:07.48
Lindsay Mukaddam
like I look back at like all the plans that I used to do with my first like few solo trips. And then like this past year, I was in Japan for two weeks. And I booked that kind of on a whim and had no plans, like down to the point where I was like booking my hotels while I was in the country, which is something that I would have never done before.

14:25.51
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

14:27.17
Lindsay Mukaddam
um And Japan is a country that I'm very comfortable in now. But um you know in the past, it's never something that I would have done. But that's one of the ways that I've grown and been able to so feel better and more comfortable with travel.

14:42.73
Lindsay Mukaddam
um That's not to say that I don't get nervous. like Obviously, there's always that little voice that tells you like home is safe. and like things are scary out there.

14:50.28
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

14:51.59
Lindsay Mukaddam
But you also have to remember that that voice lies and that it's it's always been worth it to travel for me.

14:55.28
Johanna Marks
Yeah, yeah

14:59.46
Lindsay Mukaddam
And I have to remind myself that anytime that that voice does come to the surface, that um that it's it's just anxiety lying to me.

15:08.78
Johanna Marks
yeah because that's what our mind does sometimes, right? i wrote I remember my very first flight on my own without friends and family. And I was literally afraid that I would go into the wrong airplane and it would fly me to the wrong country. I was just afraid of everything. And even though logically it's not possible because I wouldn't let you in, but I was just really nervous. And then after that flight, the experience was so amazing. I actually flew to the US, to New York and spent a few days there by myself. And I really loved it.

15:48.95
Johanna Marks
And the feeling of confidence and how you have grown in the moment is really amazing. So I also can only recommend it to everyone. But yeah, it is definitely outside of the comfort zone and anxiety will be there.

16:05.00
Johanna Marks
And that's just such a rewarding experience. That's that's for sure. Yeah. How you said you are married since many years now.

16:12.26
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yes.

16:14.36
Johanna Marks
How has this changed? the relationship to your husband while you are doing solo traveling because you are still doing it and you are organizing trips and you are on the road. How would you think has that impacted your relationship?

16:31.19
Lindsay Mukaddam
Um, it's, it's definitely a benefit to our relationship. One, um, there's a lot of places that I want to go that my husband is simply not interested in. So it's like, why would I wait for him to get his vacation days in order to take him to a place that he's not interested in going to. like That doesn't sound like fun for either of us. So that's one of the ways that I think like solo travel is very important if you are in a relationship is because you are able to explore

17:02.07
Lindsay Mukaddam
your own interests. We are two very different people. um We enjoy different things. We also enjoy a lot of the same things, but um you know having that freedom and that flexibility to know that I can go do something on my own that he might not be interested in without feeling like I'm dragging him to go do something or he's complaining about something, and then that's making me not enjoy my trip. So there's that.

17:25.30
Lindsay Mukaddam
to, um, I think like being able to get out and go do stuff on my own, um, just like having that like clear head space and being away for a bit is like really important to our relationship. Um, being able to like come home and like, you know, distance based on heart growth.

17:40.70
Lindsay Mukaddam
fonder and all that good stuff is definitely true. Um, so that is really, really important. Um, and then when it comes to like my work, um, because now this is like a big, this is now my job, um, beyond like when I was just solo traveling for fun. Um, he sees how it has impacted the women that go on my trips. He sees like the impact that my platform has and, um, he, he gets it. like He's been on one of my group trips last year. He's joining me in Antarctica later this year, and which is another group trip. And he he gets it. like He sees the importance of the work, and he sees how it's changing other women's lives. So he he understands like the mission, and he he fully supports it.

18:27.56
Lindsay Mukaddam
so that's That's, that's it. He's, he's so, he's just so wonderful. Like I, I really, mean I really, really am so lucky. And like, I'm so fortunate and I have such a great partnership and um he, he helped me with my business and he, he fully supports it.

18:39.33
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

18:42.70
Lindsay Mukaddam
And I didn't start solo traveling until after I was married. So that's something that he has always encouraged from the beginning.

18:46.79
Johanna Marks
yeah Yeah, it's amazing to have such a supportive partner, because I guess a lot of people think I'm too old for this now, or I'm married now, I can't do it on my own, we do everything together.

18:50.08
Lindsay Mukaddam
So.

19:02.36
Johanna Marks
And also the fact that you think um in a perfect relationship, we have to have the same interests. It's like you are a really good example that you can have a partner who is perfect for you.

19:15.41
Johanna Marks
But he has different interests than you. And you just do it on your own, not forcing him to join you. As you said, you might drag him down or he might drag you down and make you feel uncomfortable or sad or not enjoying your trip as much. And to have this supportive partner who is actually saying, okay, you do your thing and I want you to be happy and I do my thing. And then we come back together and are just happy that we are together.

19:45.20
Johanna Marks
It's pretty awesome. And you already mentioned quite a few of the group trips. Do you mind telling us a little bit about how that idea of organizing group trips for women came about?

19:59.54
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yeah, so um one of the things that I started my platform on the idea of like solo travel is and like going completely on your own. um But i I kind of realized that my mission is more about traveling without waiting for other people. And group travel is like another one of those great stepping stones of doing that because if you are not wanting to go completely on your own, or you maybe it's not for you, or it's it's something that you're not ready to do. um Group travel is a great way to like start that process, um because you can sign up for a group trip completely on your own, and you can um leave the planning up to somebody else. you have

20:45.33
Lindsay Mukaddam
a local guide who's going to be with you who knows everything and can also like problem solve anything that may possibly go wrong. You have an itinerary, so you don't have to worry about any of that. and just like Everything is like done for you, taken care of, so like you don't have to to worry about that. and You also don't have to rely on anybody signing up with you. um like The trip is going to happen. and You're also going to get to meet a lot of really awesome people who um have the same like

21:17.67
Lindsay Mukaddam
interests as you do, um which I think is one of the awesome parts about group travel is like the community aspect of it. um And I think a lot of us, especially you know coming out of the pandemic, um even years now, are craving community, craving friendship, especially as we get older as adults. It's harder to make friends, and that community aspect of group travel is so important.

21:36.65
Lindsay Mukaddam
so For me, group travel has been um a way to bring women together, especially. um Although my my trips are, you don't have to identify as female to go on my trips, and I do have quite a few guys who come on the trips. Most of them are brought by their significant others, um or they are brothers or dads um who come. A few solo guys, but majority is all women.

22:02.92
Lindsay Mukaddam
But bringing women together in community to travel together um without having to wait on anybody else has just been like really, really rewarding. I'm about to go on my 20th group trip to South Africa.

22:14.58
Johanna Marks
Wow.

22:15.63
Lindsay Mukaddam
I leave next week, which I'm super excited about.

22:17.21
Johanna Marks
Oh.

22:18.89
Lindsay Mukaddam
um So it's it's just been really, really awesome. This is my fourth year hosting group trips.

22:26.40
Johanna Marks
Wow, congratulations.

22:27.71
Lindsay Mukaddam
Thank you.

22:29.49
Johanna Marks
That's really cool. And you brought up a really important part as well. And that's the connection or how hard it is as an adult to actually make friends. We sometimes um forget that a lot of people feel really lonely and don't even know how to connect to people.

22:46.96
Johanna Marks
And as an adult, it's so much harder to actually make friends because when we were at school, we had people around us, children around us, same age, same interests sometimes. And we were constantly together. And then we went to high school and uni and we always had people same age group or similar age group.

23:10.78
Johanna Marks
in our closest circle. So it was so much easier to actually connect and find people who are vibing with you. But now we are going out in the world working. There is a whole range of age groups and interests and you don't necessarily become friends with your coworkers as well. And therefore it's so important to actually make new connections. And as you said, you find people with the same mindset, you will find like fellow um traveler and who love to have an adventure and to explore the world. And it's so great to bring those people together. And I'm pretty sure a lot of women after your trips, stay connected and either come on another trip again, or stay connected and be friends and visit one another again. So that's just such a great platform you have.

24:05.08
Johanna Marks
formed and you give space to make that happen, which is amazing, which we definitely need in our world at the moment.

24:13.46
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yeah, I'm very fortunate. I was doing the math on my group trips for last year and I was doing like a travel wrap up and it was like 50% of my travelers last year were returning travelers. So I do have quite a few that sign up again and again to travel, not with just me, but with each other, with the community, um which is fantastic.

24:22.74
Johanna Marks
Wow.

24:30.84
Lindsay Mukaddam
um So it's it's really lovely to see that. And then to see them go off and either they are encouraged to travel with each other later, like outside of my group trips, um or they are solo traveling after that because they gain that confidence, um which is really, really lovely.

24:40.83
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

24:47.88
Lindsay Mukaddam
So it is it is definitely like a ah community of really awesome people. And that's kind of like the nice thing is that like I was seeing that in my DMs and stuff, like I have this platform and I'm i'm talking to like all these incredible women um on social media and it was like,

25:03.92
Lindsay Mukaddam
It'd be really cool if we could all like get together and meet each other. And so like these group trips are a really great way to bring these people who have been i've I've been talking to online for literally years um together in real life and really kind of like make this less of me um as like a megaphone online and more of a community.

25:23.57
Johanna Marks
yeah Yeah, I'm sure it's definitely also the first step for a lot of women to then take or have the current courage to go do their solo traveling and realize it's actually not that scary and I can do it.

25:25.14
Lindsay Mukaddam
so

25:39.58
Johanna Marks
and to just encourage people that's amazing as well. I also saw on one of your trips, you went to Versa, I don't know if I pronounced it correctly, to the masquerade ball.

25:51.79
Johanna Marks
I thought it just looked absolutely amazing. Like I wouldn't have A, known that it exists and B, that it's possible to go there. Like that looked just out of this world, to be honest.

26:06.13
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yeah, so I definitely work hard um to craft and create some very unique um experiences with my group trips.

26:06.14
Johanna Marks
So,

26:16.02
Lindsay Mukaddam
um That was one of them with my my France group trip that I did last year was that we kind of had this optional activity that I brought together and I was like, Hey, we're I planned this group trip around the time that the masked ball at Versailles is happening, um which is this, ah it's not even, it's not like a proper masked ball.

26:34.22
Lindsay Mukaddam
It's basically like a rave where everyone is dressed in like like Marie Antoinette and it takes place in the Anjuris and it goes overnight. So it starts at like 10 PM at night and goes till dawn.

26:45.31
Lindsay Mukaddam
Um, and I was like, if anyone's interested in doing this, and basically almost, almost everyone in the entire group, we only have like one person who wasn't, it was a traveler. She was actually pregnant at the time. So she was like, I'm going to Disney.

26:55.90
Johanna Marks
Right.

26:57.07
Lindsay Mukaddam
And I was like, that's great.

26:58.01
Johanna Marks
but

26:59.55
Lindsay Mukaddam
So, um, so everyone came and everyone dressed up and it was, it was just like really fun. And honestly, part of that was a little selfish because it's something that I've always wanted to do.

27:06.00
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

27:08.90
Lindsay Mukaddam
That's been on my bucket list. And I was like, It'd be really fun to plan a trip around this so that I could go with like a bunch of girlfriends. um And I was just like really lucky that my community was kind of like, hell, yes, let's do this.

27:16.10
Johanna Marks
yeah

27:20.61
Lindsay Mukaddam
And we had a great time. So, you know, stuff like that. I'm always looking for really unique experiences to like bring to the community um so that we can do it together as a group.

27:32.45
Lindsay Mukaddam
um You know, it might might be stuff that like people would necessarily want to do, but they don't have anyone else to to do it with them. So, yeah.

27:41.18
Johanna Marks
Yeah. As I said, it looked just amazing. And I'm sure like all these things where other people don't even know that it exists, it's drawing people into it. And i mean it just makes sense for you as well, offering it as a business. It's your full-time job to go with really extraordinary things, not just the normal things. Of course, you probably also include some typical sightseeing.

28:10.07
Johanna Marks
But just having these extra things that no one else is offering is making it probably one of the best experiences they've ever had in their life. So that is really awesome. What type of feedback do you usually get from the women or also from the men who are joining?

28:30.41
Lindsay Mukaddam
um I've been very fortunate that I get, I get very positive feedback from my travelers. I think that my return rate is really speaks to itself. um The fact that I have people who are signing up for three and four trips with me.

28:44.54
Lindsay Mukaddam
um and and i like I say me, but really it's the community, um the fact that they want to come back and and travel with each other and sign up for multiple group trips. and we see a lot of I see a lot of reunions coming back where it's like people who are on the same trip want to sign up.

29:00.54
Lindsay Mukaddam
to be with each other again on another trip. um I see that especially with like some of the bigger trips that I'm doing with like Antarctica, which is a fully chartered cruise that I'm doing as well as a Christmas markets cruise at the end of this year. Again, another fully chartered boat, so like pretty large trips.

29:20.09
Lindsay Mukaddam
um But yeah, I mean, it's it's just kind of incredible and very humbling to have these people who who want to travel again and again with the OGW community. And I think that it really just speaks to that power of the community and the fact that this isn't just a vacation for a lot of people.

29:39.20
Lindsay Mukaddam
um these are really like bucket list experiences and like really kind of like turning points in people's lives. And it's, it's really awesome to be able to curate that and, uh, and being part of that for people and and help bring that to life for them.

29:54.68
Johanna Marks
Yeah, absolutely. Would you say you found new friends and like your own group of people as well with it?

30:04.97
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yeah, a hundred percent. Um, yeah, I'm very, very fortunate that I have ah i have I've gained my own community out of this and I have a ton of friends and I have people that I get to talk to like every single day and that I get to connect with and I get to meet in real life. and just i so I'm so excited whenever I get to see like who's signing up for the trips and who I get to travel with and who I get to travel with again and who I get to meet. like it's It's a ton of fun. I'm so excited. like you know Next week I'm going to South Africa and I'm

30:36.77
Lindsay Mukaddam
I've got a bunch of returning travelers and some new people on there. And I'm just i'm so excited to go see them and like hang out with them for like a week. And like it's going to be it's goingnna be the best.

30:44.30
Johanna Marks
yeah.

30:46.51
Lindsay Mukaddam
And like that that's what I get excited for. That's why I keep doing it. And that's why I do as many trips as I do in a year, is because I have so much fun.

30:52.45
Johanna Marks
o

30:55.10
Lindsay Mukaddam
And yes, it's a job. Yes, it's work. And I take it very seriously. But it's also um just so rewarding.

31:00.32
Johanna Marks
yeah.

31:03.23
Lindsay Mukaddam
and and just i am I feel so lucky that I get to do something that I absolutely love and with people that are just absolutely incredible. I'm very, very fortunate for it having what I think is the best community.

31:16.14
Johanna Marks
Yeah. How long are your trips usually? Are they usually like around a week or is it really bearable depending on the country you go to?

31:25.46
Lindsay Mukaddam
I've started making them longer. When I started out, they were about seven days, like six nights. um And now I've started making them longer, especially for certain destinations.

31:35.84
Lindsay Mukaddam
um So this one that's coming up for South Africa is like 10 days. um So it's a longer one. um My longest one that's coming up is going to be in 2026.

31:50.55
Lindsay Mukaddam
It's New Zealand, Australia. And that's like two weeks because that's

31:53.11
Johanna Marks
Yeah. You have to, yeah.

31:55.81
Lindsay Mukaddam
If you're going all the way over there, like it's it's a haul for us. So I've definitely tried to make them longer. um it's It's a balancing act, especially here in the US. s Most of my my travelers are based in the US, and we have the delicate balance of like PTO time, which is paid time off. So our vacation time is is pretty limited over here in the US, and then also budget. So I try to strike a balance there.

32:22.81
Lindsay Mukaddam
um between finding that and then also you know being able to like find really, really cool experiences. So I try to have various trips throughout the year that are different budget ranges and also different lengths so that I'm able to ah cater to a wide variety of different travelers.

32:42.07
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

32:46.17
Lindsay Mukaddam
so

32:47.17
Johanna Marks
Yeah, that's really cool. And um I had a thought and it just slipped my mind.

32:55.30
Lindsay Mukaddam
ah sorry

32:57.60
Johanna Marks
um

33:02.23
Johanna Marks
Ah, right. You mentioned the next trip is South Africa and the one after is Antarctica. Is that correct?

33:10.56
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yes, yep.

33:11.46
Johanna Marks
Which it's like already great destinations. I definitely have both of it. Also on my list, it's, it's really cool. Um, how would people like, first of all, are there still spots?

33:26.73
Johanna Marks
Can people still book them themselves in and Next, how would they find you?

33:34.16
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yes, so South Africa is completely closed because that with that we leave next week. um But Antarctica is still open. We still have, like I think, 10 spots left if anyone wanted to to to book in last minute and join us on on our ship. It's going to be really, really awesome.

33:54.38
Lindsay Mukaddam
um ah that's That's the next one. And then the one after that, I believe, is Japan. think

34:01.07
Johanna Marks
Hmm.

34:01.72
Lindsay Mukaddam
That one is a wait list right now, but things always happen. That's in May. And then later on, probably in the next few weeks, I'm going to be announcing Egypt and Jordan for later this year.

34:13.21
Johanna Marks
Wow.

34:15.41
Lindsay Mukaddam
um Yeah. And then I've also got a really, really cool trip um coming up for 2026, the end of 2026, where we're going to be going up to Churchill, Canada um to go see polar bears.

34:26.88
Johanna Marks
Right. Aww.

34:28.54
Lindsay Mukaddam
It's going to be really cool. um You can find me at onegirlwandering dot.com. um You can also follow me online on the social media platform of your choice, um Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest, Facebook, at onegirlwandering, and the one is spelled out.

34:48.69
Lindsay Mukaddam
um And that's where you can keep up to date with all of my group trips. I've got links in my bio um to pretty much everything that you can possibly sign up for or get on the wait list for.

35:00.84
Johanna Marks
Perfect. I will definitely mark this as well so that everyone can find you. um Is there any country you would not go to?

35:11.69
Lindsay Mukaddam
No, I think I'd be down to go to pretty much anywhere. um And yeah, I feel like everywhere is is worth visiting. And I feel like um i'm I'm eager to share even destinations that may surprise people as far as like ah being a ah tourist destination.

35:30.43
Lindsay Mukaddam
So um yeah.

35:31.63
Johanna Marks
Yeah. Also, maybe I find you, or you find me one day on your list because there are quite a few things I would want to do and I'm not really the person who enjoys going always by myself, even though I now know I can.

35:47.91
Johanna Marks
But sometimes it's just, as you said, nice to have a community. And I always wanted to go to Jordan as well to see Petra and those things I've just always dreamed of. So who knows, maybe I will be able to meet you in person properly as well one day.

36:04.73
Lindsay Mukaddam
I would love that. I mean, i I sign up for group trips as a traveler myself. It's something that I truly believe in the power of, and it's not it's something that you know I wouldn't host, and it wouldn't be something that I would offer if I didn't also um believe in it as a traveler myself.

36:18.99
Lindsay Mukaddam
So um yeah, I was a traveler on group trips last year and the year before that, and um I've already signed up for group trips as a traveler this year.

36:20.12
Johanna Marks
Yeah.

36:27.10
Lindsay Mukaddam
So um I think that they're they're wonderful, and i I fully encourage people to check them out.

36:31.07
Johanna Marks
Yeah. Amazing. Thank you so much. I usually end every episode with like quick three questions, which is just like short answers and just really intuitive.

36:42.56
Lindsay Mukaddam
Okay.

36:47.49
Johanna Marks
So question number one, what do you usually miss the most when you are traveling from the US?

36:48.87
Lindsay Mukaddam
Okay.

36:56.61
Lindsay Mukaddam
Uh, my bad. My own bad.

37:02.40
Johanna Marks
That's such a good one because it's definitely totally underrated.

37:03.97
Lindsay Mukaddam
yeah

37:07.55
Johanna Marks
Like your bed is so important and good sleep is also so important.

37:11.95
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yeah.

37:13.17
Johanna Marks
So.

37:13.81
Lindsay Mukaddam
I mean, that's, that's, it's also like, like my, obviously my husband and my dog as well, like being able to be home with them, but it's like, yeah, like being in the comfort of my own space, I would say.

37:19.13
Johanna Marks
ah

37:23.45
Johanna Marks
Yeah, yeah, 100%. Question number two, which country did you enjoy the most so far?

37:33.22
Lindsay Mukaddam
Japan is my heart home. I love it so much. I will go back again and again and again.

37:39.05
Johanna Marks
Good, good for us as well, because it means you will organize trips again and again and again. So if anyone wants to go, that will be like a good time, even if they can't make it this year, maybe next year there will be another trip to Japan.

37:44.94
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yes.

37:53.28
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yes, definitely.

37:56.51
Johanna Marks
Awesome. What is the one advice you would give someone who is considering doing solo traveling and is not quite sure yet or is still a little bit too afraid?

38:09.53
Lindsay Mukaddam
um I would say that there's a bunch of different ways that you can start out small, which we've we've talked about ah wait quite a few ways, whether or not that is you know just taking yourself out to dinner on your own, going to a museum by yourself, or just going to like the next town over for like a little staycation, and then building up your self-confidence from there, um you know going signing up for a group trip.

38:34.60
Lindsay Mukaddam
You don't have to go big your first time. You don't have to book the huge international trip the first time. um But you know taking those stepping stones and building up your confidence and seeing how you feel and like checking in with your gut, I think is is the the way to do it.

38:51.96
Johanna Marks
Yeah. Thank you so much. Thank you, Lindsay. It was wonderful talking to you about your experience, about your trips coming up, about just how you feel being a solo traveler and how you encourage other people to do the same. I feel like it's such a valuable job as well. And to bring people together, we need connection more than anything.

39:16.07
Johanna Marks
at this stage. And um I'm very, very happy that I was able to talk to you about it and to get some advice as well. So thank you for your time.

39:25.89
Lindsay Mukaddam
Yeah, thank you so much for having me.

39:27.96
Johanna Marks
And I hope everyone has enjoyed this episode as well. And I hope I see you next time. Bye.

39:34.08
Lindsay Mukaddam
Hi.