Lori Barbely
Hi, I’m Lori, the Chief Travel Officer for Mostly Solo Travel! I created this site for solo (and would-be solo) female travelers. My goal is to inspire your trips, give you practical advice on how to plan, and to ease your fears so you can explore the world on your own.
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Big 5 Safari Animals
What Are the Big 5 Safari Animals? People go on safari for one reason: to see animals. You may have heard the term “the Big 5 safari animals” and wondered exactly what that means. Africa’s big five animals are the lion, the leopard, the elephant, the rhino, and the African buffalo. A lot of people think that the Big 5 safari animals includes the giraffe, but this is not the case! See why below. Why Are They Called the Big 5? The term “the big 5” was coined by hunters as these five animals are the most difficult in Africa to hunt on foot. This is the reason why giraffes…
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Why You Shouldn’t Use AI to Plan Travel
Lately, I’ve been seeing a lot of people talk about using AI to plan their trips and it got me thinking, is this brilliant or is it a disaster in the making? So I asked a popular AI website to help me plan the perfect day in Orlando, Florida (where I’ve lived for almost 19 years) to find out. Read on to find out how it went and my thoughts on using AI to plan travel. Prompt: Plan the perfect day for me as a tourist visiting Orlando, Florida Response: Sure! Here’s a plan for a perfect day in Orlando, Florida, balancing fun, exploration, and relaxation. It can be adjusted…
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The Pros and Cons of Going on Safari Solo
Taking a big trip can be overwhelming and it can be especially overwhelming for some people to do it solo. Going on safari definitely qualifies as a big trip, but going solo doesn’t have to be scary or overwhelming! I recently took a 15-day solo trip that spanned Kenya, Tanzania, and Qatar and had a blast so I wanted to share the pros and cons of going on safari solo! PROS PRO I think the biggest pro of going on safari solo is that you can do whatever you decide! The day I went and saw the Great Migration, my driver pitched it and said it was going to be…
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Solo Travel
Solo travel can be a lot of things: scary, empowering, affordable, expensive, exhausting, and energizing. I’ve been to 34+ countries, most of them as a solo traveler, hence the name of this site. I’ve been to Africa, Abu Dhabi, and Qatar alone. I’ve snowmobiled atop a glacier in Iceland, I’ve surfed in Hawaii, and I’ve snorkeled in the Great Barrier Reef. Was I anxious? At times. And at times even I still get travel anxiety, especially when I solo travel! But amazing adventures exist just outside your comfort zone. My goal is to inspire your trips, give you practical advice on how to plan, and ease your fears so that…
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Serengeti Safari: Know Before You Go
Booking a Serengeti safari can feel complicated and overwhelming—trust me, I’ve been there! I definitely learned a few things along the way, so I’ve compiled this list of things to know before you go so that ou can learn from my mistakes! Types of Safaris Before you start planning your safari it’s important to know that there are two different types of safari experiences: point-to-point driving safaris and fly-and-drive safaris. Both types can provide excellent safari experiences, but it’s important to know the difference and choose the type that’s right for you! Point-to-Point Driving Safaris On a point-to-point driving safari, you’ll spend almost every night at a different hotel and…
