One of the biggest fears of new travelers are that they'll end up alone and afraid in a hostel dorm room, wondering why everyone's hanging out together but they're all alone. Fortunately, this scene is unlikely to take place anywhere but in your head. It's almost too easy to make friends when you're traveling! 

It's Harder Not to Make Friends

Making friends while traveling is actually far easier than not making friends, especially if you decide to stay in dorm rooms.

The great thing about dorms in hostels are that everyone's there for the same reason, so everyone's looking to make friends. Most of the time all you need to do is walk into a dorm room and someone will strike up a conversation with you.

Everyone's keen to know where you've been, where you're going, where you're from, and how long you've been traveling, so be sure to return the favour to keep the conversation going. You'll likely even pick up some travel tips from conversations like these.

What if You Don't Want to Stay in Dorms? 

While dorm rooms are the easiest places to make friends if you're a traveler, you can also make friends very easily if you're staying in private rooms in hostels. Before you book a room, make sure the hostel has a common room and you'll be set. Most travelers hang out in the common room when they're not out exploring a city, so it's a great place to meet new people. Just turn up, sit down, and someone will start chatting to you within minutes. 

How to Make Friends if You Don't Stay in Hostels

What about if you don't stay in hostels at all?

Fortunately, you're still able to make friends while you're traveling. Head to the Couchsurfing website to see if any meet ups are going on while you're in town. You don't have to be an active Couchsurfer in order to attend, and you'll be able to meet expats, locals, and travelers at these events. 

Signing up for a tour is a great way to meet new people, even if it's just a free walking tour of the city. Spending half a day with new people is great for getting to know each other, and it's not unusual to decide to head out for a drink to get to know each other better, either. If you decide to head out for a full day of activities, you'll be even more likely to return as firm friends. 

Take a class

Travel is all about learning and experiencing new things. What better way to do so than by taking a class in one of the countries you're visiting? Some fun ideas are cooking classes, gym classes, or even something like a diving course in Southeast Asia. 

Through you're class, you'll be able to both learn new skills and meet new people who have the same interests as you. Even if you wouldn't otherwise have much in common with your classmates, you'll have plenty to talk about as you progress through the course.