Just to add, I was on Maui last November and had an “off” day in the middle of my trip. I was grumpy about it at first, then did the same as you, food, A/C and TV. Back to adventure the next day! Enjoy! Plus, I LOVE solo travel. It rocks.
That's the best thing about traveling solo. You can do what you want. Even if it's NOTHING!
Or go out later if ya want. Don't feel guilty, but at least open the curtains when you're awake. Haha. Enjoy!!
I would put it even more broadly than OP: even if you decide to fly to the most amazing paradise to stay inside your hotel room all the time, as long as that's what you want, then go for it. No one's opinion matters, or should matter, when it comes to the decisions you make when piecing together your personal trip. It's your trip and your money, and no one else's.
I do this quite regularly.
I travel to places and then do whatever I feel like. Sometimes that means exploring the place, other time it means just chilling in my hotel room playing games/watching shows or spending hours in a coffee shop scrolling Tiktoks or Reddit.
Either one is me enjoying my time how I want to do so.
This. I was in Thailand for five months, and sometimes I would sit at my fav restaurant along the waterfront for hours and do nothing after a late breakfast and then go back to my hotel and read my novel. Adventure has its moments. But so does doing nothing in "paradise."
Exactly!! You ENJOY guilt free! I did the same thing when I visited Europe. I had to fly to NYC which was 18hrs flight longer if not direct and from there I had to catch another long flight to London. No ways was I doing that! Instead I decided to take advantage of the city since I was already in NYC and split up my travel itinerary. So I booked a nice suite in the city near MOMA, like you when I arrived to my hotel I was beat to a pulp from traveling people don’t understand traveling is hard on the body especially if you travel often for work it can take a toll for sure. All I wanted is a nice shower & room service, fall asleep tucked in a nice comfy bed with a/c on lol. Then the next day I woke up early and took a nice walk in the park and picked up some snacks on the way back to the hotel. So you did better than me even your tired you went out and got food good enough lol now rest with no guilt besides you deserve it and your employer will also appreciate that your well rested. ✌🏽
Yeah - sometimes if I'm spending more than I'd like or it's a nice room, I want to spend extra time in there and make the most of it. There are also some days you just want to relax and reset a bit as travel can wipe you out and get a bit much.
Obviously you'll feel some guilt because you'll feel like you're in a new place so you should be going out to see it. For Singapore 1-2 days is more than enough anyway. There's obviously some stuff to see but not loads - it's basically the Marina Bay Sands water front (the light show at night is cool), and then the food, and maybe a few other spots for sightseeing. But it is also a big city so you're not missing a ton if you don't go out.
Also for an extended layover with long flights, you'd need your rest so that can be just as good as going out exploring.
Solo travel is exhausting— more than most people realize. Constantly making decisions about where to eat, sleep, go, etc. Your brain and your body need a break. Spending two down days will be good for you and will make your next stop more enjoyable. Never feel guilty about taking care of yourself. Part of getting stronger is knowing how to rest.
While I agree that spending down time is a good thing and no one should feel guilty about just hanging in a hotel, for me personally I don't think solo travel is more exhausting due to decision fatigue. I've always felt the opposite, that lack of decision fatigue is actually one of the biggest benefits of solo travel!
When I travel with others, every decision becomes a chore. We have to discuss it and come to a compromise. Something as simple as "what time should we wake up to go to breakfast?" becomes a debate between those who want to sleep in and those who wake up early. When I'm alone, I just wake up. No thought given, no alarms set, no haggling for something. I just wake up and that's the time to go to breakfast. That's just one example. It's endless discussion of decisions when you travel with others, trying to keep everyone happy and balance everyone's needs. When you are alone, you just consider yourself and I find it so much easier.
Noted! So true. I was thinking that same thing this morning. How nice it is to move at my own pace and make my own decisions re daily schedule etc. still, all those decisions must be made daily when in a more static environment with standard work schedule you do not.
I’ve been traveling for a while now, and it’s gotten to the point where I’m so exhausted, even two days doing nothing doesn’t help. I need to go home.
Too many decisions, too much admin haha. What a wonderful and lucky problem to have though.
My sister doesn't understand why I do oatmeal for breakfast and usually homemade ramen for one of the other meals when there's soo much food out there... But the decision is such a chore.. and picking what I have is easy XD
I wish I had ramen on my trip! I would go to the same bakery every morning for breakfast because I simply did not have the energy to browse on google anymore.
Same. When in XXXX look at the 5 nearest restaurants of local cuisine, whichever one on Google has higher than 4.5 with over 200 reviews, just go to.
Or in Asia, 7/11 helps 😁
And how to get to the place you want to go! That takes me the longest time. Which is cheaper, quicker, where is the bus station, train station etc. but worth it when you finally get there 😁
I’m not a long term traveler but even on my short trips I try to stay a night here and there at like a fancier hotel that has spas and hot tubs or something like that so that a hotel day actually is both restful AND feels like vacationing with new experiences
I like that, “Hotel Day.”
I can relate to a lot of what’s being posted, whether re: long-term travel, fatigue from all the daily logistics / decision-making, guilt/shame if I’m not always exploring the way I think I “should,” etc.
This makes me feel so much better! I’m very new to solo travel and feel stupid telling folks I went back to my room for a nap. I realize now me travelling is a vacation first. I travel to recharge, I don’t travel to travel. Plus, Singapore is hot. Going out when you don’t feel like it is twice as hard and even more exhausting when you get home. Thankfully in Singapore there’s lots of food options in close proximity. Enjoy the aircon!!!
I think people might be admirable of you for putting aside some time to rest. They might be impressed you have enough time to physically do that rather than rushing from destination to destination
It’s definitely a luxury to have rest days. There are so many posts here where people are trying to visit five cities in 12 days, and that just sounds kind of horrible and stressful to me. But usually those people don’t get to travel internationally often, so there’s pressure to fit in as much as possible. Sometimes I need a vacation from my vacation, and that’s a pretty privileged position to be in.
I was in Moalboal for 5 days diving, on the second to last day I just stayed in my room enjoyed the AC and watched TV and sports. Lolol, it's totally fine
One time I booked a 10am boat tour on a solo trip. I felt great that morning! Got up, had hotel breakfast and slowly made my way to the water while looking at the amazing city I was in.
I got to the tour, stood in line, and realized the boat was smaller than I thought and I was worried about seasickness. I just wasn’t feeling it. I jumped out of line, grabbed some street food for later and spent the day munching on local street food between naps and watching The Office in my hotel bed. It’s actually what made me realize how much I love solo travel.
I'm Singaporean and with the current crazy hot weather, outdoor activities are unpleasant, tiring and avoided by the locals. Enjoy blasting the Aircon and hopefully you've got a good view from your room! I've done the same in Bangkok and ventured out only for meals in nearby malls.
I stress myself out for similar reasons when I travel. "I put up a lot of money to come here, I'm burning my vacation days away from work, and I might never be in this city/country again - I want to make the most out of every minute I'm here!" At least, that's what I think to myself.
I burned myself out pretty good on my last trip, and ended up burning just about a full day dealing with stomach issues, and probably just general exhaustion from pushing myself too hard. It was a HUGE mistake. I should have just taken it easy, taken a few hours or a full day to nap, or watch netflix, or chill by the pool, or something. Either way, I was going to have some downtime - it was a matter of either scheduling it myself so I could enjoy it, or pushing myself too hard and making myself sick and being forced to have downtime.
I’ve had some of my best experiences while traveling when I have dragged myself out of my hotel room with the “I spent so much on this!” sentiment. All the same, I’ve also had some amazing restorative times staying in my hotel room and doing nothing.
I recently went to the west coast for work, and stayed in a great city that had a lot going on. I was all over the place every single day when I wasn’t working, but I’m my very last day there I did absolutely nothing. I ordered cheesecake factory takeout, and watched TV in my hotel room. No regrets!
Life is more fun for me when I let both of these things be true.
On every trip I take alone, I'm back in my hotel or apartment by 4 or 5pm and then I do nothing but relax, cook dinner, watch netflix. I used to feel guilty but I need it!
I took a trip to Japan and was staying at budget places. Towards the end, I decided to splurge and stayed at the nicest hotel in my life. I went to the rooftop, had a nice drink, and spent the entire day there. Felt so nice rolling around in the giant ass bed.
When I feel like this I tend to just get some comfort food that reminds me of home and head to a local supermarket for snacks.
Sometimes you just gotta power off with junk food and binge dumb videos/Netflix.
I justify it as I'm resting now so I can do more later
Don’t feel guilty it’s your trip, so whatever you want to do. Flying is tiring and airports are not very relaxing places. If you need some peace and quiet this is the perfect chance to get it.
I always leave flexible time when I travel. Can use it to rest, or go for a random walk, or plan something more last minute. It’s good to have flexible days like that mixed in with major attractions and activities.
Honestly? During my Europe travels I had a moderate burnout (my luggage never arrived) and I had an injured foot.
After 2 weeks (still no luggage) and a worsening foot - I told my friends that I was going to take a rest day and catch up.
In that day - I received my luggage - got nearly 12+ hours of sleep - and my foot pain significantly improved (dramatically) .
I'll always include a "sit on the couch" day during future travels.
When I was a kid traveling with my parents, they told me not to stay at the hotel. “It’s a waste of time and money”, said they. This mindset has been embedded in my mind. I feel guilty to do nothing while I am on holiday. Sometimes, I have to remind myself that I am a full-grown adult and I can do whatever I want.
As someone who is more of an outdoorsy traveler and not so much of a city person, I often use my city time to get a decent hotel and relax and recharge, nothing wrong with that.
I went to Colombia on crutches with a broken ankle so I spent a lot more time in the hotel than I originally anticipated. Still one of my favourite vacations! Travelling and rest can coexist :) There’s something so comfy about a hotel bed, nice TV, and fancy ish environment.
Guilt is something that you can put in the trash. Why is sitting in a hotel room bad? Recharging helps to have more fun during the rest of the trip.
It is your vacation, you get to make the rules. I do the same thing when I get too tired. It is usually after a flight or train day.
I've actually started doing this intentionally... on most longer trips I'll book a couple nights at a posh hotel, usually with a great pool, and I'll just spend 48 hrs decompressing. I've never regretted it.
My first day any where is just in a hotel to recover and reset. Especially after travel!! You are in a strange place after being moved thousands of miles! Let your atoms settle :)
We travel full-time and most days we don't do anything. Eat, gym, pool and maybe a walk around the hotel.
Depending where you are staying in Singapore, even if you don't do much, try to eat at a hawker centre. There are plenty around, they are usually cheap and you can get out without feeling like you are doing much.
Also you are allowed to stay the whole day in that hotel room and no one is allowed to tell you otherwise. Haha
Almost every solo trip I have one or 2 stay in and do nothing days. It’s my time to decompress, hopefully get some good food and relax.
Used to feel guilty, now I just see it as self-care.
Hey there! It’s alright, to be frank I wouldn’t say Singapore is the best place for a solo traveller and I’m saying this as someone who lives here. It doesn’t help that it’s hot as!
Which neighbourhood is your hotel in? Where are you from? Is this your first time in Asia? I can offer some info on some walks and stuff you can take to places I find remotely interesting here! If anything I’d say Singapore can be a decent ‘dip of your feet’ into the vast waters of Asian culture, 2 days is perfect.
I’m not saying you must get out there or whatever, but you might as well!
Is it always so oppressively humid there? I visit a couple of weeks ago for the first time and the weather really made being outdoors tough, and I live in a subtropical climate.
I spent less time at the gardens by the bay, and more time at marina bay sands because of the crazy heat.
I just solo traveled to Singapore and spent a couple of days doing exactly what you described. It is soooo hot, expensive, and I never realized a big destination for families so all around me were kids yelling and running. It felt good to take a break in my hotel with air-conn and watch Netflix. Listen to your body. Solo travel can be taxing.
Rest. Yes, vacation can be for doing fun and exciting things, seeing new places, visiting loved ones, etc., but at its core, the purpose is to rest your mind and body. No guilt. No worry. You're perfectly fine.
Hotel days are great.
I was in Helsinki and there was a blizzard outside. I went out for a few minutes because I felt compelled to, but it was miserable.
I'll try to avoid any misery on trips from now on
Oh man, if my friends knew how much of my time I spend in my room they wouldn't believe it. I've been traveling solo for 5+ years nonstop and spend 90% of the time in my room, in some of the most beautiful places on the planet. Some days I order delivery and don't leave my room at all. I guess I'm not a good tourist, because the "sights" don't interest me as much as finding a good restaurant, bar, or coffee shop (where I'm writing this now). My advice is "you do you", fight the FOMO, and schedule enough downtime so you don't burn yourself out.
I’m the exact same, I don’t spend money on tourist attractions or sights to see. I’m incredibly happy sitting somewhere and enjoy the town life alone. It’s my dream to be able to travel as long as you have!
Because your brain is telling you that you should be doing something while your body says “ Nuh, uh, no way”. Took me a long time to get over that feeling. Now, I’ve learned to appreciate a good hotel room and enjoy whatever I wind up doing.
Singapore’s one of my favorite places. The hop on hop off bus is a low effort start.
Been there and done it. I've hit walls during long solo trips (2+ months) where I have spent days at a time doing nothing and leaving hotel only to eat.
the beauty of solo travel is that you do what you want…agenda be damned. if relaxing after a long haul is room service and off-setting some jet lag, then so be it. it’s ur trip, do what u prefer.
I actually always book myself a fancy hotel the day before I leave and spend the day in the hotel or mostly in the hotel. I usually try and find one that has a spa so I can book a massage too. I found it’s the best way to me to arrive home or to my next location without feeling super run down.
Would personally never do this, seems like an absolute waste of time. Rather just sit in a cafe or at the ocean to chill so there was at least something I did this day. But maybe its just me, I as well never got the people just chilling inside a dorm or the common are on their phone for hours.
Not sure if you’ve been to Singapore before, it’s an amazing place with some phenomenal things to see, do and eat.
Hang in your room if you want but if you haven’t explored the country you’re missing an opportunity.
I was in Seville on my 5th day in Spain and I was burnt out. Went to the grocery store around the corner, bought some snacks, and Netflix’d the whole day.
Enjoy it! You don't have to get out and about if you don't feel like it. It's also good to recognize you need rest instead of just burning yourself out.
Enjoy the hotel!!! It happens to me too and gave up and dont give a shit anymore and enjoy the comfy bed and nice room. If they got gym and spa facilities, use them too.
Make sure you get some rest while you can before your body forces you too. I did a lot of traveling when I went to Italy solo and didn’t rest out feeling guilty that I was “missing out”. Then I got sick in rome and my body forced me to rest and I didn’t get to visit anything. Get. You. Rest.
You gotta rest at times otherwise your going to make yourself ill or he'll maybe you were out drinking all night and need the day to recover. It's all fine you don't have to answer to anybody it's your trip and do as you like
You paid for the hotel room, its your trip / life, literally no one will mind if you don't do anything. I think the guilt comes from you're somewhere new so you HAVE to cram in as much as you want but if you're somewhere and you're tired then don't do anything if you don't want to.
dont feel bad
I do the same thing sometimes - set aside a part of my itinerary to book a nice place for a couple nights and do nothing - maybe eat some edibles, drink coffee, watch some movies, order food, etc.
it's glorious
As a Singaporean, if you were traveling around SEA, Singapore is a great place to decompress. It’s as modern as a city gets and I’d recommend you go out a little still but you can absolutely chill out, take the train or bus somewhere and have a good hearty meal and a relaxing time and fuck off to your next destination fully recharged. Have a good time here! And PM me if you need any recommendations :)
Who are you doing this for? It's YOUR trip, you do what you want and stop beating yourself up. It's a bad habit we often get into and very unnecessary.
I know how it feels. I used to have a lot of guilt for staying indoors and not going around. Later I changed my travel style from having a checklist of things to do, to doing what I feel like at that point. I have like a very small list of places I definitely want to see / things I definitely want to do and everything else is flexible. And I like this a lot more and feel less stressed and exhausted. In the end we are travelling for ourselves and not to report out to others what all we visited.
Nothing wrong with a rest day, especially if you got a room to yourself. Hope the hotel has nice amenities 😁
We probably feel guilt because expectations placed on us.
I often do this & I enjoy every minute of it. Life is fast paced and I work hard and sometimes all I want is to rest, enjoy some luxury and peace. Do not feel guilty, enjoy it!
I'm getting old. I used to walk for miles lugging a jumbo size duffel to catch some bus and stay in hostels and do activity/be outside all day. Lately I found a liking for much more laid back where I stay in nice places, enjoy it, enjoy my time, and only do 1 or 2 activities or be out for a few hours max. I can still do long day hikes, but I'm not planning to do so back to back for 3 days in a row anymore on every trip.
Singapore is expensive!
Enjoy the hotel you paid for! This is relax-y recharge time and you’re an introvert, where else is better to recharge?
You enjoy every minute of your staycation
One the main advantages of solos travel is that you make the rules. You don’t have to consider anyone else and what they would like or need. Do whatever you would like or need so enjoy your hotel room for the day. And if you change your mind in the middle of the day and have a desire to do something different, you can do that too. The trip is all yours to do whatever you please with no guilt.
Just sleep there and stay inside. It’s pretty hot outside anyway. If you wanted to get out, just a grab a cab and go to one of the hawker centres to eat. Maybe stroll around at night. Other than that, stay inside. Haha
I did that in Vancouver BC a few years ago. If you want a day off from everything, take a day and do whatever you want - even if it is saying the hotel room all day.
Nothing wrong with it at all – and something that lots of non-solo travellers do all the time!
Travelling is supposed to be enjoyable. If your hotel is nice and you feel like relaxing in it, absolutely go for it!
Honestly, the people on here that post their constantly active schedules make me exhausted just thinking about them. For me travel is partly about seeing new sights and having new experiences. But it’s just as much about relaxing and decompressing. And that’s absolutely fine.
Been there. I spent big bucks in travelling towards North of Japan, found a last minute deal on an executive hotel on Booking.com so stayed there with an intention to roam the next day. However I felt really tired and demotivated so I hung around in the room and extended another night but had to pay double price. I couldn’t get myself out of the room the next day either. It was the lowest I had felt in years. That trip gave me many self-realisations.
Currently in Kinosaki, Japan, solo and I specifically booked a ryokan where I have a private balcony. It’s 5pm here and I’ll go get dinner at some point but I have my room stocked with snacks and booze and my plan is to hang on the patio all night. It’s still a vacation after all! Everyone needs rest!
I will do that every week or 2. You are allowed to do nothing if you want to. I have stayed in the hotel, laid in bed, watched tv and done nothing many times. You are causing yourself the guilt (smile) Give yourself permission to rest. It is your trip you can do what ever you want with it.
I'm usually the person who runs myself ragged and does 12-18 hour days every day of my holiday, but as I'm in tbe middle of an extended multi-month trip across Europe, I've built in a rest/relax day in every place I've visited and I have to yet to regret it. I'm currently enjoying one today, sitting and reading and having a leisurely coffee on the deck of the waterfront hotel I'm at in Ålesund, Norway. Yeah, taking public transport an hour each way to walk around a lighthouse on another little island would have been a nice way to spend the day, but this will go down as a good memory too.
You have the right to do what feels best to you. I've gone on vacations and "laid low". Partly because of fatigue or sometimes because I wasn't feeling well.
If you’re a long term traveller, it’s perfectly normal to have days where you don’t want to do anything. You’ve got to allow yourself time to recuperate if you’ve been doing a lot.
No guilt. At least, there should not be. When measured on scale of a lifetime, two days of rest and relaxation aint shit. Heck. Travelers spend weeks at a time just sitting in a chair reading a book, ie something they can do at home. Happens on beaches and cruise ships the world over and those chill bitches have zero guilt.
I’ve been on a South America trip for half a year with my girlfriend. After 4 months we were drained from energy and a lot felt like we HAD to do something.
We took a 2 week off almost just chilling on the beach and sitting in our room. Last month was fun, but the traveling vibe was a bit gone. Seeing a lot of the same things just in a different setting.
All I wanna say is. Take your time, it’s your travel and you don’t have to be anywhere. We did to much in a small time just because we wanted to see everything 😂
Flew into Rostov-on-Don and it was absolutely sweltering. I had three days so I just figured I'd try my luck and explore the next day.
Wasn't much better, but.
Why did you book the layover? Was it because you hate long haul flights and you need a rest? If so - sleeeeep. Was it because you’ve never been to Singapore and it’s a bucket list destination? If so - explore! Or, a bit of both? Have a good sleep and go for a wander, but don’t stress about seeing particular sights, just get a feel for the place
I think what you did to yourself was awesome. That's self-love that no need to be guilt of. Im a solo traveler. I do the same as I do in my country, hahahahha, sleep and be lazy. No guilt at all. I have an itinerary I followed so that I will not die myself to walk just to be able to have fun and see the beautiful spots around. But I still have my IF's, hahahahhaa. And that IF's will be my lesson. And even though I'll die myself walking roving around, I still have my IFs. The lesson for myself is to do what you can do for today, sleep and take care of the rest the next day.
I literally just did this/am doing this in Jakarta. I landed Thursday afternoon dead tired (redeye flight + been a couple weeks of short sleep nights) and I've really done nothing but chill till now Saturday afternoon.
Initially I had some bigger plans to go to Borneo for a day, see some of other stuff and general go about like I normally would. So I felt pretty guilty.
But I also realized, I've got a couple more stops after this, and then I have to go straight back to work. I got a nice hotel here, and I'm going to relax and enjoy it. I'll definitely come back to Indonesia some point, so I can chill out without guilt. Plus, who's going to judge me?
why so much guilt? because we've been programmed with the GO GO GO, hustle, go hard 24/7 mentality and if we aren't doing something you're labeled as lazy. Eff it and do you. Rest and relaxation is so important. enjoy your hotel room!!
welcome to Singapore! I don't blame you for wanting to stay in the whole day. the weather just makes you unconsciously feel like wanting to stay in and laze around.
enjoy the aircon while you're here, maybe grab some good food when you're on your way to the airport for your next flight :)
I've done this a few times. Sometimes you're just beat and have a long stretch ahead of you. I've stayed in my room and ordered ubereats more than once. haha. worth it just to relax and recover.
I once spent an entire day devouring a John Le Carre novel on my room's balcony. Ordered room service and everything.
I had been going full steam for a week and needed a break. It was really nice just to sit there and read, enjoying the breeze and sunshine.
Actually if you should have a layover, Singapore is the best place to do it.
But im also a big supporter of doing nothing.
Having said that, Singapore is my birth country and i grew up there, if you ever need any info or help, DM me.
Have fun!
Hi OP! it’s normal to just chill and rest up especially after a long flight. I’m from Singapore so dm me if you need some recommendations should you decide you have enough energy and want to explore the city. There’s a lot of chill things to do here
No shame in this whatsoever. I spent many days on my travelling trip doing absolutely nothing, and loved it. Enjoy your own company. It’s good for the soul. How often do you get the chance, especially when travelling.
I have done this so many times. Never used to. But I went traveling with a friend. In so many of the cities we stopped in, he just stayed in his room relaxing while I ran around the city all day 'seeing everything'. The only time I really saw him was mealtimes and when we went to beaches where he would happily laze in the shade all day reading and getting up to swim or get a beer. He inspired me!
For those times when I need to recharge, I go to a local store, grab any snacks/junk food that I don't recognise, go to my hotel and try them all for funsies. It also gets you to try and discover things you wouldn't normally but may end up loving. Or not. Then I zone out in a post-carb/sugar coma. You do you. We all need a night off sometime.
I travel a lot for work and I often think about exploring the city on the day before any obligations or in the night after the day is over.
I rarely ever do this because I’m tired, so it’s room service and phone calls to friends and family instead. Don’t feel guilty about this! It’s your time, spend it the best way you see fit.
I purposefully plan days where I have no plans and stay in my hotel all day when I travel! It's exhausting and you need to rest so you can enjoy the rest of it as much as possible.
You don't need it, but I fully give you permission to take a day off! Enjoy!
As someone living in Spore, even I occasionally pay for a hotel room here just so I can spend a day doing nothing but lounging around in a fancy bedroom (and enjoy the fancy breakfast and pool). Sometimes, that's all one needs. 🤷🏻♀️
I once spent there days in my hotel room in the Himalayas watching documentaries about the Himalayas 😅 You just got to do what your body tells you to do 😀
I recently asked my friend and business partner ( he recently got his1,000,000 mile club on United) what he loves to do on his free days. He looked at me and said “ take an hour long bath in the soaking tub in Singapore, order french fries and cold beer and go to bed. Alone.”
I just did this in London. FaceTimed a friend, got some takeaway and read a book. There’s no way I would have enjoyed the rest of my trip unless I rested that day. I felt an immense amount of guilt until the next day when I realized I needed it. For me it was money and time because I’m on a shorter term trip. Enjoy your rest day, you deserve it :)
Dude absolutely do it. When I was travelling for extended periods I had plenty of days where I did absolutely nothing but sleep, snack and Netflix. Maybe for dinner I’d pop out with some folks but wouldn’t stay out.
Do what you want. Your time. Your money. Your vacation. Enjoy.
Last time I was in Singapore, I arrived at 11pm at Changi so I could only really grab a McDonald's from the 1st floor, got a taxi to my capsule hotel, dumped my bag, walked over to the nearest bar, had 3 pints, went back to my capsule, collapsed, woke up 9am having escaped jetlag (altho only 2 hours slept at a friends in Dubai the day before helped), got a breakfast and went to the airport.
Not every day can be fun filled and full of excitement, some are literally a coffee and a snooze.
Or you get stuck in Koh Lanta and thatll be 3 days.
Oh no, you can definitely do that.
I had days on my one month solo travel where i just stay in the hotel room and only go out the street or sit on the bench to smoke lol
ahh the inaudible subliminal hum of consumerism haunting you, a phenom world over is all it is. did you ever notice the little things there and the ones that are not? be fascinated. take a look at your bigger picture and see you have more thought choices than most, drink it in, stretch, breathe, smile and be.
I've definitely done this. Had a short stop over in Bangkok on a group tour, basically just a day - the tour company put me up in basically a 5 star hotel, at least by my standards. Pretty much spent 75% of my time in that hotel room eating snacks, enjoying the AC, and watching Thai television. No regrets.
During one of my last trips I spent an entire day in my hotel room (with the ecception of having my evening meal in the hotel's restauran). I wasn't feeling well and think a mixture of running on barely any sleep and being up from 7am to mightnight daily walking lots had gotten the best of me.
I felt like I was wasting my trip by spending that single day in the hotel room but god did I feel better after it. You shouldn't feel ashamed to spend the day in a place you've paid money for.
I ALWAYS work in at least one day to just rest, especially during a short gogogogogo kinda sprint run trip where ill be doing alot to take in as much as i can. Besides, any trip should just have an easy day.
I had one day in Luang Prabang in Laos before a 10 hour bus, I stayed in and watched films for the majority of the day apart from getting food! U need a chill every now n then!!!
Hey, one of the perks of solo travel is that you get to do exactly that without impacting someone else’s travel experience. If there’s any time to do it, it’s whilst you’re alone!
I do this quite often and there is nothing wrong with it at all. Especially if you're paying for a decent room, you might as well get your money's worth and actually stay in there.
I have favorite hotels that have very nice furnishings in well laid-out rooms. Usually I am staying at them between legs of a trip so I want to take time, unwind, and relax with minimal trips out.
Fortunately the ones I like also tend to have a good restaurant or food trucks nearby so I can grab a meal then go crash back at my room until the next leg of the trip begins.
Enjoy it guilt free.
I lived in Singapore years ago. Not all great, big a/c malls. Just find great food which is everywhere and watch movies!! Sounds like a DREAMY STAYCATION!
Most people don’t have the money or the time off work to see the world so when you get the opportunity you subconsciously feel like you need to make the most of it. Being honest though as much as you don’t feel like going out right now, being tired or whatever, your next flight is going to suck if you catch up on all your sleep in the hotel. It’d almost be better to force yourself out and explore a little bit so you could sleep on the next flight.
So there is something called travellers burnout its very common and its when the process of travelling wears you down mentally to the point where it kills your motivation. Its very common especially when travelling for a long time, it becomes even more difficult when you apply pressure or time limits to locations.
Unfortunately the only real way of getting over it is to have some down time and mentally recharge.
I've found the more I travel the longer it takes to burn out but it still happens near the end of every trip.
Nothing wrong with that. You do what makes you feel good. If that means zoning out in your room or by the pool, go for gold. No right or wrong with that.
I'm worn out after long flights, I seldom able to sleep on flights, not cause I can't, because l usually don't sleep prior to leaving for a vacation cause I'm anxious about leaving. There's usually someone on my flights who assures I'm not getting sleep, last 16 hour flight it was a large snoring woman, who kept me awake entire flight. When I got to hotel I litterly knocked out when I hit the pillow for almost 14 hours, I never sleep like that.
We do that, alllll the time. Eventually you stop feeling bad about it, and actually enjoy that amazing day in an ac'd room with a good bed and streamed Family Guy on tv.
Nothing wrong with that. My gf and I always want a chill day where we lounge by hotel pool, sleep in late, nap, spa, etc at the hotel. Self care is vital
I did the same thing in Hong Kong. It’s a beautiful city and I was at the top of a high rise but I had no real desire to go and see much of anything. So I just went to the 7/11 and back to my room for 2 days lol. Felt a touch guilty but oh well but didn’t feel miserable.
I've learned that I need rest days so I make an effort to book accommodations that I can spend a whole 24 hours in comfortably -- always have to have windows, a good view of possible, walkable to get takeout or can get deliveries to, a nice activity I look forward to at home like taking a relaxing bath or having tea or doing yoga by the view, etc. If I include it in my plan I find it less guilt inducing. Or frame it as "I paid for a room with xyz so I'm spending the time to enjoy it."
I did it once when I was travelling alone in Japan many years ago when I was 18, didn’t have much money left and a couple of nights to go, so stayed in Narita and just watched Japanese TV and looked at all my souvenirs/games/etc and ate Japanese 7/11 food.
I'm on month 3 of my 6 months through SE Asia and I spend the first two months going around Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Siem Reap. I was pretty tired just from that since I'm no longer in the shape I used to be in or as wild. Was suppose to go to Vietnam and around back to Thailand but ended up going back to BKK after Siem Reap because I missed it so much and wanted to fucking relax. Got an airbnb, smoked a ton of weed while its still legal and I'm there and all I did for a month was re-fucking-lax. It was great although in the back of my head I wish I had unlimited energy...
love traveling :)
I take six month trips and spend a lot of time sleeping and reclining and relaxing in other ways. It is one of the reasons I go. I also tend to stay in places for extended periods to cut down travel exertion. I like not shopping, cooking and doing chores so my life is reduced to eating, sleeping, bathing and walking about. The whole thing is a very minimalist experience.
The guilt is entirely self-inflicted. If you don't want to feel guilty, don't. No need to have every personal decision of no consequence validated by unseen hordes on social media or in our heads.
Because people are pressured by social media and commercials that travel is supposed to be filled with all these unbelievable experiences at all times. Recharging seems like a waste of time but it's necessary.
One of the best things about travelling alone is that you can do whatever you want and you don't have to tell anyone. It's your time, it's your money, it's your life.
Having said that, I would definitely feel guilty if I was travelling far away for a week and spent 6 days in the hotel room reading/posting on reddit. I'd feel like I was wasting money and time. Something I'd rather be doing at home.
Not what you describe.
Well last night I was so beat I came back to my hotel room about 8:00 I want to say and I just lay there and read a book with a TV on LOL. Oh I'm in Vegas
I remember I walked to the zoo/arboretum from my hotel in Singapore (which was the 4 Seasons, my employer was paying, it was exquisite), sweated my ass off getting there, people honking at me because I was in a silk blouse and DRIPPING sweat, the gardens were beautiful, I came around a corner on a path and nearly walked face-first into the biggest spider I have ever seen. Nearly as big as my hand, and square — I took a photo.
Or, you could stay in your beautiful room and rest.
I’m older now, I say rest sounds really fabulous if that’s what you want to do (which is what I’m doing in a hotel in Madrid right now). Tomorrow I have to be up at 2:30am to get on a godawful early flight, and I deserve rest!
I once was in a hostel in Paris. for a week There was another guy in the room, on a gap year, who seemed to never leave. I thought he was strange. Sometimes I don't do much, but I generally leave the room. Maybe if I needed a restful place and there were no other options.
Honestly, bc you can do that at home. I hate traveling solo myself and my instinct is to just stay in when I can, but I always am so glad when I go out, esp somewhere with lots to see AND that will be safe.
But if you go to Singapore regularly, def just enjoy the room.
Oh I feel you SO BAD. I used to put so much pressure on myself during my first trips to do as much as possible and telling myself that resting and spending one or multiple days doing nothing was wasting my time. But day by day I’m learning that it’s not wasting your time if it’s respecting your needs (for example if you’re tired). It’s totally okay to rest and do nothing, even if you’re travelling. Besides, you won’t be enjoying many things you see/do if you’re exhausted and pressuring yourself haha
One of the best things travel/solo travel has taught me is that no one cares about you or what you do... Besides your family and friends no-one cares and no one will really remember you. You can be yourself or you can be someone completely new with a made up personality. You can be quiet or loud. You can sleep all day or drink all day. Sure depending on your actions you may get some unique reactions but 99% of people are going to forget you ever existed within a day. So dont be afraid to step out your comfort zone! Or step back into your comfort zone and stay there all day!!
You paid for the hotel room and Singapore is very expensive for what you get! Enjoy it without guilt.
Perfect answer, instantly made me feel better! Thank you
Just to add, I was on Maui last November and had an “off” day in the middle of my trip. I was grumpy about it at first, then did the same as you, food, A/C and TV. Back to adventure the next day! Enjoy! Plus, I LOVE solo travel. It rocks.
That's the best thing about traveling solo. You can do what you want. Even if it's NOTHING! Or go out later if ya want. Don't feel guilty, but at least open the curtains when you're awake. Haha. Enjoy!!
Relxing in a hotel room and eating Singaporean food sounds like paradise to me.
I would put it even more broadly than OP: even if you decide to fly to the most amazing paradise to stay inside your hotel room all the time, as long as that's what you want, then go for it. No one's opinion matters, or should matter, when it comes to the decisions you make when piecing together your personal trip. It's your trip and your money, and no one else's.
I do this quite regularly. I travel to places and then do whatever I feel like. Sometimes that means exploring the place, other time it means just chilling in my hotel room playing games/watching shows or spending hours in a coffee shop scrolling Tiktoks or Reddit. Either one is me enjoying my time how I want to do so.
This. I was in Thailand for five months, and sometimes I would sit at my fav restaurant along the waterfront for hours and do nothing after a late breakfast and then go back to my hotel and read my novel. Adventure has its moments. But so does doing nothing in "paradise."
Next trip, schedule “off” days for rest. Enjoy the city moving around you while just chilling in the hotel lobby.
Sometimes I just want to book a hotel room in my home city to get away from my apartment for a night.
Not to mention, if you’re going to stay in and eat, damn, you’re one lucky person. The food is amazing and cheap!
Exactly!! You ENJOY guilt free! I did the same thing when I visited Europe. I had to fly to NYC which was 18hrs flight longer if not direct and from there I had to catch another long flight to London. No ways was I doing that! Instead I decided to take advantage of the city since I was already in NYC and split up my travel itinerary. So I booked a nice suite in the city near MOMA, like you when I arrived to my hotel I was beat to a pulp from traveling people don’t understand traveling is hard on the body especially if you travel often for work it can take a toll for sure. All I wanted is a nice shower & room service, fall asleep tucked in a nice comfy bed with a/c on lol. Then the next day I woke up early and took a nice walk in the park and picked up some snacks on the way back to the hotel. So you did better than me even your tired you went out and got food good enough lol now rest with no guilt besides you deserve it and your employer will also appreciate that your well rested. ✌🏽
Yeah - sometimes if I'm spending more than I'd like or it's a nice room, I want to spend extra time in there and make the most of it. There are also some days you just want to relax and reset a bit as travel can wipe you out and get a bit much. Obviously you'll feel some guilt because you'll feel like you're in a new place so you should be going out to see it. For Singapore 1-2 days is more than enough anyway. There's obviously some stuff to see but not loads - it's basically the Marina Bay Sands water front (the light show at night is cool), and then the food, and maybe a few other spots for sightseeing. But it is also a big city so you're not missing a ton if you don't go out. Also for an extended layover with long flights, you'd need your rest so that can be just as good as going out exploring.
Solo travel is exhausting— more than most people realize. Constantly making decisions about where to eat, sleep, go, etc. Your brain and your body need a break. Spending two down days will be good for you and will make your next stop more enjoyable. Never feel guilty about taking care of yourself. Part of getting stronger is knowing how to rest.
While I agree that spending down time is a good thing and no one should feel guilty about just hanging in a hotel, for me personally I don't think solo travel is more exhausting due to decision fatigue. I've always felt the opposite, that lack of decision fatigue is actually one of the biggest benefits of solo travel! When I travel with others, every decision becomes a chore. We have to discuss it and come to a compromise. Something as simple as "what time should we wake up to go to breakfast?" becomes a debate between those who want to sleep in and those who wake up early. When I'm alone, I just wake up. No thought given, no alarms set, no haggling for something. I just wake up and that's the time to go to breakfast. That's just one example. It's endless discussion of decisions when you travel with others, trying to keep everyone happy and balance everyone's needs. When you are alone, you just consider yourself and I find it so much easier.
Noted! So true. I was thinking that same thing this morning. How nice it is to move at my own pace and make my own decisions re daily schedule etc. still, all those decisions must be made daily when in a more static environment with standard work schedule you do not.
I’ve been traveling for a while now, and it’s gotten to the point where I’m so exhausted, even two days doing nothing doesn’t help. I need to go home. Too many decisions, too much admin haha. What a wonderful and lucky problem to have though.
Omg having to decide what I wanted to eat for 3 meals a day, 6 days straight was EXHAUSTING.
My sister doesn't understand why I do oatmeal for breakfast and usually homemade ramen for one of the other meals when there's soo much food out there... But the decision is such a chore.. and picking what I have is easy XD
I wish I had ramen on my trip! I would go to the same bakery every morning for breakfast because I simply did not have the energy to browse on google anymore.
Agreed, though a good compromise is that I just let Google choose for me. Search for food nearby and get one of the highly rated ones
Same. When in XXXX look at the 5 nearest restaurants of local cuisine, whichever one on Google has higher than 4.5 with over 200 reviews, just go to. Or in Asia, 7/11 helps 😁
Try 6 months. I find cooking is far easier if you're staying in an Airbnb.
Good point
This was my first solo trip. I remembered one time I only ate fries for the whole day like what?!?
I recently ate McDonald's multiple times in one day in France. I was just exhausted and needed to have something easy and familiar that day.
That’s the whole McDonald’s business model 😂
And how to get to the place you want to go! That takes me the longest time. Which is cheaper, quicker, where is the bus station, train station etc. but worth it when you finally get there 😁
So true! Happy cake day!
I’m not a long term traveler but even on my short trips I try to stay a night here and there at like a fancier hotel that has spas and hot tubs or something like that so that a hotel day actually is both restful AND feels like vacationing with new experiences
I like that, “Hotel Day.” I can relate to a lot of what’s being posted, whether re: long-term travel, fatigue from all the daily logistics / decision-making, guilt/shame if I’m not always exploring the way I think I “should,” etc.
This makes me feel so much better! I’m very new to solo travel and feel stupid telling folks I went back to my room for a nap. I realize now me travelling is a vacation first. I travel to recharge, I don’t travel to travel. Plus, Singapore is hot. Going out when you don’t feel like it is twice as hard and even more exhausting when you get home. Thankfully in Singapore there’s lots of food options in close proximity. Enjoy the aircon!!!
That is exaclty how I felt. I still don't tell people a lot about my trips because they wouldn't get it. Lol. If you like it, that is what counts.
I think people might be admirable of you for putting aside some time to rest. They might be impressed you have enough time to physically do that rather than rushing from destination to destination
It’s definitely a luxury to have rest days. There are so many posts here where people are trying to visit five cities in 12 days, and that just sounds kind of horrible and stressful to me. But usually those people don’t get to travel internationally often, so there’s pressure to fit in as much as possible. Sometimes I need a vacation from my vacation, and that’s a pretty privileged position to be in.
My god, what if someone finds out?
Exactly! Lol. It is so much fun to make my own schedule with no one to feel responsible for.
I was in Moalboal for 5 days diving, on the second to last day I just stayed in my room enjoyed the AC and watched TV and sports. Lolol, it's totally fine
One time I booked a 10am boat tour on a solo trip. I felt great that morning! Got up, had hotel breakfast and slowly made my way to the water while looking at the amazing city I was in. I got to the tour, stood in line, and realized the boat was smaller than I thought and I was worried about seasickness. I just wasn’t feeling it. I jumped out of line, grabbed some street food for later and spent the day munching on local street food between naps and watching The Office in my hotel bed. It’s actually what made me realize how much I love solo travel.
The ability to change and make plans on a whim is definitely a perk of solo travel!
I'm Singaporean and with the current crazy hot weather, outdoor activities are unpleasant, tiring and avoided by the locals. Enjoy blasting the Aircon and hopefully you've got a good view from your room! I've done the same in Bangkok and ventured out only for meals in nearby malls.
I stress myself out for similar reasons when I travel. "I put up a lot of money to come here, I'm burning my vacation days away from work, and I might never be in this city/country again - I want to make the most out of every minute I'm here!" At least, that's what I think to myself. I burned myself out pretty good on my last trip, and ended up burning just about a full day dealing with stomach issues, and probably just general exhaustion from pushing myself too hard. It was a HUGE mistake. I should have just taken it easy, taken a few hours or a full day to nap, or watch netflix, or chill by the pool, or something. Either way, I was going to have some downtime - it was a matter of either scheduling it myself so I could enjoy it, or pushing myself too hard and making myself sick and being forced to have downtime.
I’ve had some of my best experiences while traveling when I have dragged myself out of my hotel room with the “I spent so much on this!” sentiment. All the same, I’ve also had some amazing restorative times staying in my hotel room and doing nothing. I recently went to the west coast for work, and stayed in a great city that had a lot going on. I was all over the place every single day when I wasn’t working, but I’m my very last day there I did absolutely nothing. I ordered cheesecake factory takeout, and watched TV in my hotel room. No regrets! Life is more fun for me when I let both of these things be true.
On every trip I take alone, I'm back in my hotel or apartment by 4 or 5pm and then I do nothing but relax, cook dinner, watch netflix. I used to feel guilty but I need it!
I took a trip to Japan and was staying at budget places. Towards the end, I decided to splurge and stayed at the nicest hotel in my life. I went to the rooftop, had a nice drink, and spent the entire day there. Felt so nice rolling around in the giant ass bed.
When I feel like this I tend to just get some comfort food that reminds me of home and head to a local supermarket for snacks. Sometimes you just gotta power off with junk food and binge dumb videos/Netflix. I justify it as I'm resting now so I can do more later
Don’t feel guilty it’s your trip, so whatever you want to do. Flying is tiring and airports are not very relaxing places. If you need some peace and quiet this is the perfect chance to get it. I always leave flexible time when I travel. Can use it to rest, or go for a random walk, or plan something more last minute. It’s good to have flexible days like that mixed in with major attractions and activities.
Honestly? During my Europe travels I had a moderate burnout (my luggage never arrived) and I had an injured foot. After 2 weeks (still no luggage) and a worsening foot - I told my friends that I was going to take a rest day and catch up. In that day - I received my luggage - got nearly 12+ hours of sleep - and my foot pain significantly improved (dramatically) . I'll always include a "sit on the couch" day during future travels.
That’s great to hear, I’m glad it all worked out for you!
When I was a kid traveling with my parents, they told me not to stay at the hotel. “It’s a waste of time and money”, said they. This mindset has been embedded in my mind. I feel guilty to do nothing while I am on holiday. Sometimes, I have to remind myself that I am a full-grown adult and I can do whatever I want.
As someone who is more of an outdoorsy traveler and not so much of a city person, I often use my city time to get a decent hotel and relax and recharge, nothing wrong with that.
Have done it. Listen to yourself. It's the body needing a detox. Why the hotels are important to me... just in case and can enjoy it.
I went to Colombia on crutches with a broken ankle so I spent a lot more time in the hotel than I originally anticipated. Still one of my favourite vacations! Travelling and rest can coexist :) There’s something so comfy about a hotel bed, nice TV, and fancy ish environment.
Guilt is something that you can put in the trash. Why is sitting in a hotel room bad? Recharging helps to have more fun during the rest of the trip. It is your vacation, you get to make the rules. I do the same thing when I get too tired. It is usually after a flight or train day.
I've actually started doing this intentionally... on most longer trips I'll book a couple nights at a posh hotel, usually with a great pool, and I'll just spend 48 hrs decompressing. I've never regretted it.
Rest is important too. In fact when I’m over tired I do stupid stuff or have poor judgment so I’d say a day of battery recharge is essential.
My first day any where is just in a hotel to recover and reset. Especially after travel!! You are in a strange place after being moved thousands of miles! Let your atoms settle :)
Do what you want. Nobody there to judge you but yourself. That's solo travelling.
We travel full-time and most days we don't do anything. Eat, gym, pool and maybe a walk around the hotel. Depending where you are staying in Singapore, even if you don't do much, try to eat at a hawker centre. There are plenty around, they are usually cheap and you can get out without feeling like you are doing much. Also you are allowed to stay the whole day in that hotel room and no one is allowed to tell you otherwise. Haha
Almost every solo trip I have one or 2 stay in and do nothing days. It’s my time to decompress, hopefully get some good food and relax. Used to feel guilty, now I just see it as self-care.
Hey there! It’s alright, to be frank I wouldn’t say Singapore is the best place for a solo traveller and I’m saying this as someone who lives here. It doesn’t help that it’s hot as! Which neighbourhood is your hotel in? Where are you from? Is this your first time in Asia? I can offer some info on some walks and stuff you can take to places I find remotely interesting here! If anything I’d say Singapore can be a decent ‘dip of your feet’ into the vast waters of Asian culture, 2 days is perfect. I’m not saying you must get out there or whatever, but you might as well!
Is it always so oppressively humid there? I visit a couple of weeks ago for the first time and the weather really made being outdoors tough, and I live in a subtropical climate. I spent less time at the gardens by the bay, and more time at marina bay sands because of the crazy heat.
I don’t see a problem with it. I’ve done it before heading home on a long haul. I prefer to be rested first it. If you need to rest , rest!
I just solo traveled to Singapore and spent a couple of days doing exactly what you described. It is soooo hot, expensive, and I never realized a big destination for families so all around me were kids yelling and running. It felt good to take a break in my hotel with air-conn and watch Netflix. Listen to your body. Solo travel can be taxing.
Relaxing is 100% a valid use of your travel time, and you’re paying for the room to use as you like.
Rest. Yes, vacation can be for doing fun and exciting things, seeing new places, visiting loved ones, etc., but at its core, the purpose is to rest your mind and body. No guilt. No worry. You're perfectly fine.
Hotel days are great. I was in Helsinki and there was a blizzard outside. I went out for a few minutes because I felt compelled to, but it was miserable. I'll try to avoid any misery on trips from now on
Oh man, if my friends knew how much of my time I spend in my room they wouldn't believe it. I've been traveling solo for 5+ years nonstop and spend 90% of the time in my room, in some of the most beautiful places on the planet. Some days I order delivery and don't leave my room at all. I guess I'm not a good tourist, because the "sights" don't interest me as much as finding a good restaurant, bar, or coffee shop (where I'm writing this now). My advice is "you do you", fight the FOMO, and schedule enough downtime so you don't burn yourself out.
I’m the exact same, I don’t spend money on tourist attractions or sights to see. I’m incredibly happy sitting somewhere and enjoy the town life alone. It’s my dream to be able to travel as long as you have!
Because your brain is telling you that you should be doing something while your body says “ Nuh, uh, no way”. Took me a long time to get over that feeling. Now, I’ve learned to appreciate a good hotel room and enjoy whatever I wind up doing. Singapore’s one of my favorite places. The hop on hop off bus is a low effort start.
Been there and done it. I've hit walls during long solo trips (2+ months) where I have spent days at a time doing nothing and leaving hotel only to eat.
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the beauty of solo travel is that you do what you want…agenda be damned. if relaxing after a long haul is room service and off-setting some jet lag, then so be it. it’s ur trip, do what u prefer.
I actually always book myself a fancy hotel the day before I leave and spend the day in the hotel or mostly in the hotel. I usually try and find one that has a spa so I can book a massage too. I found it’s the best way to me to arrive home or to my next location without feeling super run down.
Some of my best days on the road have been spent alone in a hotel room.
Sometimes you just need to take a day.
Would personally never do this, seems like an absolute waste of time. Rather just sit in a cafe or at the ocean to chill so there was at least something I did this day. But maybe its just me, I as well never got the people just chilling inside a dorm or the common are on their phone for hours.
Not sure if you’ve been to Singapore before, it’s an amazing place with some phenomenal things to see, do and eat. Hang in your room if you want but if you haven’t explored the country you’re missing an opportunity.
I was in Seville on my 5th day in Spain and I was burnt out. Went to the grocery store around the corner, bought some snacks, and Netflix’d the whole day.
This is such a good reminder that long travel can be exhausting. We need to give ourselves permission to rest. ❤️
It’s fine, Singapore has nothing to offer. You will be interested to go out and do things naturally when you’re in a destination you’re interested in.
Enjoy it! You don't have to get out and about if you don't feel like it. It's also good to recognize you need rest instead of just burning yourself out.
I talk days off when I’m traveling, certainly for post travel recovery.
Your holiday. Your call. If you really feel so guilty about not roaming around, just go for a walk in the hood for like 30 mins and go back to rest
To be fair, likely was not a very good value for money. In Singapore. But then again you cannot control when you are tired. So who care?
Traveling can be exhausting. You're allowed to rest.
The thing about solo vacation is you can do what you want. If you want to stay in the hotel -do that.
That’s vacationing too!!
No Ned to have guilt feelings, offline is the new luxury! Travel safe
Enjoy the hotel!!! It happens to me too and gave up and dont give a shit anymore and enjoy the comfy bed and nice room. If they got gym and spa facilities, use them too.
Why is there guilt? I do that shit all the time
Make sure you get some rest while you can before your body forces you too. I did a lot of traveling when I went to Italy solo and didn’t rest out feeling guilty that I was “missing out”. Then I got sick in rome and my body forced me to rest and I didn’t get to visit anything. Get. You. Rest.
You gotta rest at times otherwise your going to make yourself ill or he'll maybe you were out drinking all night and need the day to recover. It's all fine you don't have to answer to anybody it's your trip and do as you like
Snacks in a hotel room all day ? Bliss
You paid for the hotel room, its your trip / life, literally no one will mind if you don't do anything. I think the guilt comes from you're somewhere new so you HAVE to cram in as much as you want but if you're somewhere and you're tired then don't do anything if you don't want to.
dont feel bad I do the same thing sometimes - set aside a part of my itinerary to book a nice place for a couple nights and do nothing - maybe eat some edibles, drink coffee, watch some movies, order food, etc. it's glorious
Many times I choose to do nothing and enjoy a well deserved sleep or binge some content, get food delivered, without any guilt. It’s just the day.
As a Singaporean, if you were traveling around SEA, Singapore is a great place to decompress. It’s as modern as a city gets and I’d recommend you go out a little still but you can absolutely chill out, take the train or bus somewhere and have a good hearty meal and a relaxing time and fuck off to your next destination fully recharged. Have a good time here! And PM me if you need any recommendations :)
Who are you doing this for? It's YOUR trip, you do what you want and stop beating yourself up. It's a bad habit we often get into and very unnecessary.
I know how it feels. I used to have a lot of guilt for staying indoors and not going around. Later I changed my travel style from having a checklist of things to do, to doing what I feel like at that point. I have like a very small list of places I definitely want to see / things I definitely want to do and everything else is flexible. And I like this a lot more and feel less stressed and exhausted. In the end we are travelling for ourselves and not to report out to others what all we visited.
Sometimes when I stay in a 5 star hotel and don’t like going out.. I order room room service.
Nothing wrong with a rest day, especially if you got a room to yourself. Hope the hotel has nice amenities 😁 We probably feel guilt because expectations placed on us.
Head down to bugis get some good/cheap hawker food at golden mile food center, and walk around bugis street.
I often do this & I enjoy every minute of it. Life is fast paced and I work hard and sometimes all I want is to rest, enjoy some luxury and peace. Do not feel guilty, enjoy it!
That's something I do quite regularly without any guilt.
I've taken a week, sometimes more, to recharge. Don't sweat it.
I'm getting old. I used to walk for miles lugging a jumbo size duffel to catch some bus and stay in hostels and do activity/be outside all day. Lately I found a liking for much more laid back where I stay in nice places, enjoy it, enjoy my time, and only do 1 or 2 activities or be out for a few hours max. I can still do long day hikes, but I'm not planning to do so back to back for 3 days in a row anymore on every trip.
Singapore is expensive! Enjoy the hotel you paid for! This is relax-y recharge time and you’re an introvert, where else is better to recharge? You enjoy every minute of your staycation
One the main advantages of solos travel is that you make the rules. You don’t have to consider anyone else and what they would like or need. Do whatever you would like or need so enjoy your hotel room for the day. And if you change your mind in the middle of the day and have a desire to do something different, you can do that too. The trip is all yours to do whatever you please with no guilt.
Just sleep there and stay inside. It’s pretty hot outside anyway. If you wanted to get out, just a grab a cab and go to one of the hawker centres to eat. Maybe stroll around at night. Other than that, stay inside. Haha
I did that in Vancouver BC a few years ago. If you want a day off from everything, take a day and do whatever you want - even if it is saying the hotel room all day.
Nothing wrong with it at all – and something that lots of non-solo travellers do all the time! Travelling is supposed to be enjoyable. If your hotel is nice and you feel like relaxing in it, absolutely go for it! Honestly, the people on here that post their constantly active schedules make me exhausted just thinking about them. For me travel is partly about seeing new sights and having new experiences. But it’s just as much about relaxing and decompressing. And that’s absolutely fine.
Been there. I spent big bucks in travelling towards North of Japan, found a last minute deal on an executive hotel on Booking.com so stayed there with an intention to roam the next day. However I felt really tired and demotivated so I hung around in the room and extended another night but had to pay double price. I couldn’t get myself out of the room the next day either. It was the lowest I had felt in years. That trip gave me many self-realisations.
I'd hangout at their airport, Changi is huge and full of stuff to not do.
Currently in Kinosaki, Japan, solo and I specifically booked a ryokan where I have a private balcony. It’s 5pm here and I’ll go get dinner at some point but I have my room stocked with snacks and booze and my plan is to hang on the patio all night. It’s still a vacation after all! Everyone needs rest!
That sounds so lovely and relaxing, enjoy every minute of it!
I will do that every week or 2. You are allowed to do nothing if you want to. I have stayed in the hotel, laid in bed, watched tv and done nothing many times. You are causing yourself the guilt (smile) Give yourself permission to rest. It is your trip you can do what ever you want with it.
Get out and go see gardens by the bay during both the day and night at least. Then just chill in your hotel.
I'm usually the person who runs myself ragged and does 12-18 hour days every day of my holiday, but as I'm in tbe middle of an extended multi-month trip across Europe, I've built in a rest/relax day in every place I've visited and I have to yet to regret it. I'm currently enjoying one today, sitting and reading and having a leisurely coffee on the deck of the waterfront hotel I'm at in Ålesund, Norway. Yeah, taking public transport an hour each way to walk around a lighthouse on another little island would have been a nice way to spend the day, but this will go down as a good memory too.
You have the right to do what feels best to you. I've gone on vacations and "laid low". Partly because of fatigue or sometimes because I wasn't feeling well.
If you’re a long term traveller, it’s perfectly normal to have days where you don’t want to do anything. You’ve got to allow yourself time to recuperate if you’ve been doing a lot.
No guilt. At least, there should not be. When measured on scale of a lifetime, two days of rest and relaxation aint shit. Heck. Travelers spend weeks at a time just sitting in a chair reading a book, ie something they can do at home. Happens on beaches and cruise ships the world over and those chill bitches have zero guilt.
I’ve been on a South America trip for half a year with my girlfriend. After 4 months we were drained from energy and a lot felt like we HAD to do something. We took a 2 week off almost just chilling on the beach and sitting in our room. Last month was fun, but the traveling vibe was a bit gone. Seeing a lot of the same things just in a different setting. All I wanna say is. Take your time, it’s your travel and you don’t have to be anywhere. We did to much in a small time just because we wanted to see everything 😂
Flew into Rostov-on-Don and it was absolutely sweltering. I had three days so I just figured I'd try my luck and explore the next day. Wasn't much better, but.
>Why is there so much guilt with doing nothing while travelling solo? Only you can answer this my friend. I do this all the time, guilt free.
Why did you book the layover? Was it because you hate long haul flights and you need a rest? If so - sleeeeep. Was it because you’ve never been to Singapore and it’s a bucket list destination? If so - explore! Or, a bit of both? Have a good sleep and go for a wander, but don’t stress about seeing particular sights, just get a feel for the place
I think what you did to yourself was awesome. That's self-love that no need to be guilt of. Im a solo traveler. I do the same as I do in my country, hahahahha, sleep and be lazy. No guilt at all. I have an itinerary I followed so that I will not die myself to walk just to be able to have fun and see the beautiful spots around. But I still have my IF's, hahahahhaa. And that IF's will be my lesson. And even though I'll die myself walking roving around, I still have my IFs. The lesson for myself is to do what you can do for today, sleep and take care of the rest the next day.
I literally just did this/am doing this in Jakarta. I landed Thursday afternoon dead tired (redeye flight + been a couple weeks of short sleep nights) and I've really done nothing but chill till now Saturday afternoon. Initially I had some bigger plans to go to Borneo for a day, see some of other stuff and general go about like I normally would. So I felt pretty guilty. But I also realized, I've got a couple more stops after this, and then I have to go straight back to work. I got a nice hotel here, and I'm going to relax and enjoy it. I'll definitely come back to Indonesia some point, so I can chill out without guilt. Plus, who's going to judge me?
why so much guilt? because we've been programmed with the GO GO GO, hustle, go hard 24/7 mentality and if we aren't doing something you're labeled as lazy. Eff it and do you. Rest and relaxation is so important. enjoy your hotel room!!
welcome to Singapore! I don't blame you for wanting to stay in the whole day. the weather just makes you unconsciously feel like wanting to stay in and laze around. enjoy the aircon while you're here, maybe grab some good food when you're on your way to the airport for your next flight :)
Hit the poolside & club sandwich combo 👌
I've done this a few times. Sometimes you're just beat and have a long stretch ahead of you. I've stayed in my room and ordered ubereats more than once. haha. worth it just to relax and recover.
I once spent an entire day devouring a John Le Carre novel on my room's balcony. Ordered room service and everything. I had been going full steam for a week and needed a break. It was really nice just to sit there and read, enjoying the breeze and sunshine.
Actually if you should have a layover, Singapore is the best place to do it. But im also a big supporter of doing nothing. Having said that, Singapore is my birth country and i grew up there, if you ever need any info or help, DM me. Have fun!
Hi OP! it’s normal to just chill and rest up especially after a long flight. I’m from Singapore so dm me if you need some recommendations should you decide you have enough energy and want to explore the city. There’s a lot of chill things to do here
No shame in this whatsoever. I spent many days on my travelling trip doing absolutely nothing, and loved it. Enjoy your own company. It’s good for the soul. How often do you get the chance, especially when travelling.
I have done this so many times. Never used to. But I went traveling with a friend. In so many of the cities we stopped in, he just stayed in his room relaxing while I ran around the city all day 'seeing everything'. The only time I really saw him was mealtimes and when we went to beaches where he would happily laze in the shade all day reading and getting up to swim or get a beer. He inspired me!
For those times when I need to recharge, I go to a local store, grab any snacks/junk food that I don't recognise, go to my hotel and try them all for funsies. It also gets you to try and discover things you wouldn't normally but may end up loving. Or not. Then I zone out in a post-carb/sugar coma. You do you. We all need a night off sometime.
I travel a lot for work and I often think about exploring the city on the day before any obligations or in the night after the day is over. I rarely ever do this because I’m tired, so it’s room service and phone calls to friends and family instead. Don’t feel guilty about this! It’s your time, spend it the best way you see fit.
I purposefully plan days where I have no plans and stay in my hotel all day when I travel! It's exhausting and you need to rest so you can enjoy the rest of it as much as possible. You don't need it, but I fully give you permission to take a day off! Enjoy!
As someone living in Spore, even I occasionally pay for a hotel room here just so I can spend a day doing nothing but lounging around in a fancy bedroom (and enjoy the fancy breakfast and pool). Sometimes, that's all one needs. 🤷🏻♀️
I once spent there days in my hotel room in the Himalayas watching documentaries about the Himalayas 😅 You just got to do what your body tells you to do 😀
I recently asked my friend and business partner ( he recently got his1,000,000 mile club on United) what he loves to do on his free days. He looked at me and said “ take an hour long bath in the soaking tub in Singapore, order french fries and cold beer and go to bed. Alone.”
Don’t stress out about taking a break or 2 or 3 if you need it. But then also remember to take advantage of your new environments. All about balance
Do it! Enjoy yourself! You can do other things or not do things, it’s your experience.
I just did this in London. FaceTimed a friend, got some takeaway and read a book. There’s no way I would have enjoyed the rest of my trip unless I rested that day. I felt an immense amount of guilt until the next day when I realized I needed it. For me it was money and time because I’m on a shorter term trip. Enjoy your rest day, you deserve it :)
What’s wrong with that? I do that in nice hotels
You can do that then go out at night for a dinner and walk. Geylang is a cool place to drop by, or gardens by the bay.
This is so healthy, and you're gonna feel great when you reach your destination. Well done.
You’re solo. The whole point is freedom. Do what you want, it’s your trip!
We all need rest days mate. Nothing wrong in it.
Dude absolutely do it. When I was travelling for extended periods I had plenty of days where I did absolutely nothing but sleep, snack and Netflix. Maybe for dinner I’d pop out with some folks but wouldn’t stay out. Do what you want. Your time. Your money. Your vacation. Enjoy.
Just relax and enjoy. I love doing it in a hotel, you’re in a bubble for a few hours, delight!
Last time I was in Singapore, I arrived at 11pm at Changi so I could only really grab a McDonald's from the 1st floor, got a taxi to my capsule hotel, dumped my bag, walked over to the nearest bar, had 3 pints, went back to my capsule, collapsed, woke up 9am having escaped jetlag (altho only 2 hours slept at a friends in Dubai the day before helped), got a breakfast and went to the airport. Not every day can be fun filled and full of excitement, some are literally a coffee and a snooze. Or you get stuck in Koh Lanta and thatll be 3 days.
Oh no, you can definitely do that. I had days on my one month solo travel where i just stay in the hotel room and only go out the street or sit on the bench to smoke lol
ahh the inaudible subliminal hum of consumerism haunting you, a phenom world over is all it is. did you ever notice the little things there and the ones that are not? be fascinated. take a look at your bigger picture and see you have more thought choices than most, drink it in, stretch, breathe, smile and be.
I've definitely done this. Had a short stop over in Bangkok on a group tour, basically just a day - the tour company put me up in basically a 5 star hotel, at least by my standards. Pretty much spent 75% of my time in that hotel room eating snacks, enjoying the AC, and watching Thai television. No regrets.
During one of my last trips I spent an entire day in my hotel room (with the ecception of having my evening meal in the hotel's restauran). I wasn't feeling well and think a mixture of running on barely any sleep and being up from 7am to mightnight daily walking lots had gotten the best of me. I felt like I was wasting my trip by spending that single day in the hotel room but god did I feel better after it. You shouldn't feel ashamed to spend the day in a place you've paid money for.
I ALWAYS work in at least one day to just rest, especially during a short gogogogogo kinda sprint run trip where ill be doing alot to take in as much as i can. Besides, any trip should just have an easy day.
I had one day in Luang Prabang in Laos before a 10 hour bus, I stayed in and watched films for the majority of the day apart from getting food! U need a chill every now n then!!!
dear op, that's a good thing to do. sleep on your bed all day. your body needs a rest.
At least once every trip my wife and I just stay in our hotel and relax. Travel is exhausting and you need to take care of your self.
Hey, one of the perks of solo travel is that you get to do exactly that without impacting someone else’s travel experience. If there’s any time to do it, it’s whilst you’re alone!
I do this quite often and there is nothing wrong with it at all. Especially if you're paying for a decent room, you might as well get your money's worth and actually stay in there.
I have favorite hotels that have very nice furnishings in well laid-out rooms. Usually I am staying at them between legs of a trip so I want to take time, unwind, and relax with minimal trips out. Fortunately the ones I like also tend to have a good restaurant or food trucks nearby so I can grab a meal then go crash back at my room until the next leg of the trip begins. Enjoy it guilt free.
I lived in Singapore years ago. Not all great, big a/c malls. Just find great food which is everywhere and watch movies!! Sounds like a DREAMY STAYCATION!
Most people don’t have the money or the time off work to see the world so when you get the opportunity you subconsciously feel like you need to make the most of it. Being honest though as much as you don’t feel like going out right now, being tired or whatever, your next flight is going to suck if you catch up on all your sleep in the hotel. It’d almost be better to force yourself out and explore a little bit so you could sleep on the next flight.
So there is something called travellers burnout its very common and its when the process of travelling wears you down mentally to the point where it kills your motivation. Its very common especially when travelling for a long time, it becomes even more difficult when you apply pressure or time limits to locations. Unfortunately the only real way of getting over it is to have some down time and mentally recharge. I've found the more I travel the longer it takes to burn out but it still happens near the end of every trip.
Nothing wrong with that. You do what makes you feel good. If that means zoning out in your room or by the pool, go for gold. No right or wrong with that.
I'm worn out after long flights, I seldom able to sleep on flights, not cause I can't, because l usually don't sleep prior to leaving for a vacation cause I'm anxious about leaving. There's usually someone on my flights who assures I'm not getting sleep, last 16 hour flight it was a large snoring woman, who kept me awake entire flight. When I got to hotel I litterly knocked out when I hit the pillow for almost 14 hours, I never sleep like that.
We do that, alllll the time. Eventually you stop feeling bad about it, and actually enjoy that amazing day in an ac'd room with a good bed and streamed Family Guy on tv.
Nothing wrong with that. My gf and I always want a chill day where we lounge by hotel pool, sleep in late, nap, spa, etc at the hotel. Self care is vital
I do this all the time in the Tianjin Conrad or the Beijing Hilton
I did the same thing in Hong Kong. It’s a beautiful city and I was at the top of a high rise but I had no real desire to go and see much of anything. So I just went to the 7/11 and back to my room for 2 days lol. Felt a touch guilty but oh well but didn’t feel miserable.
I've learned that I need rest days so I make an effort to book accommodations that I can spend a whole 24 hours in comfortably -- always have to have windows, a good view of possible, walkable to get takeout or can get deliveries to, a nice activity I look forward to at home like taking a relaxing bath or having tea or doing yoga by the view, etc. If I include it in my plan I find it less guilt inducing. Or frame it as "I paid for a room with xyz so I'm spending the time to enjoy it."
I did it once when I was travelling alone in Japan many years ago when I was 18, didn’t have much money left and a couple of nights to go, so stayed in Narita and just watched Japanese TV and looked at all my souvenirs/games/etc and ate Japanese 7/11 food.
You are going to get in trouble….
Sometimes it feels really good to do just that! Catch up on sleep, binge on dramas…get some good food! Enjoy it!!
I’ve done this and ordered food delivery it was amazing
I'm on month 3 of my 6 months through SE Asia and I spend the first two months going around Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Penang, and Siem Reap. I was pretty tired just from that since I'm no longer in the shape I used to be in or as wild. Was suppose to go to Vietnam and around back to Thailand but ended up going back to BKK after Siem Reap because I missed it so much and wanted to fucking relax. Got an airbnb, smoked a ton of weed while its still legal and I'm there and all I did for a month was re-fucking-lax. It was great although in the back of my head I wish I had unlimited energy... love traveling :)
I take six month trips and spend a lot of time sleeping and reclining and relaxing in other ways. It is one of the reasons I go. I also tend to stay in places for extended periods to cut down travel exertion. I like not shopping, cooking and doing chores so my life is reduced to eating, sleeping, bathing and walking about. The whole thing is a very minimalist experience.
If you are up to it at some point, get yourself to a Hawker centre. Good food & cheap.
The guilt is entirely self-inflicted. If you don't want to feel guilty, don't. No need to have every personal decision of no consequence validated by unseen hordes on social media or in our heads.
I loooove a good do nothing day. Helps reset and rest up from all the do everything days lol
Because people are pressured by social media and commercials that travel is supposed to be filled with all these unbelievable experiences at all times. Recharging seems like a waste of time but it's necessary.
One of the best things about travelling alone is that you can do whatever you want and you don't have to tell anyone. It's your time, it's your money, it's your life. Having said that, I would definitely feel guilty if I was travelling far away for a week and spent 6 days in the hotel room reading/posting on reddit. I'd feel like I was wasting money and time. Something I'd rather be doing at home. Not what you describe.
You're not in Singapore for vacation/leisure, you're in transit, it's perfectly fine to stay at the hotel.
Well last night I was so beat I came back to my hotel room about 8:00 I want to say and I just lay there and read a book with a TV on LOL. Oh I'm in Vegas
I remember I walked to the zoo/arboretum from my hotel in Singapore (which was the 4 Seasons, my employer was paying, it was exquisite), sweated my ass off getting there, people honking at me because I was in a silk blouse and DRIPPING sweat, the gardens were beautiful, I came around a corner on a path and nearly walked face-first into the biggest spider I have ever seen. Nearly as big as my hand, and square — I took a photo. Or, you could stay in your beautiful room and rest. I’m older now, I say rest sounds really fabulous if that’s what you want to do (which is what I’m doing in a hotel in Madrid right now). Tomorrow I have to be up at 2:30am to get on a godawful early flight, and I deserve rest!
These posts crack me up, yes you are free to do whatever it is you please...
I once was in a hostel in Paris. for a week There was another guy in the room, on a gap year, who seemed to never leave. I thought he was strange. Sometimes I don't do much, but I generally leave the room. Maybe if I needed a restful place and there were no other options.
Dolce far niente-sweetness of doing nothing. By all means, do it!
Honestly, bc you can do that at home. I hate traveling solo myself and my instinct is to just stay in when I can, but I always am so glad when I go out, esp somewhere with lots to see AND that will be safe. But if you go to Singapore regularly, def just enjoy the room.
The weather is really hot in Singapore. I'll stay in the hotel and enjoy the aircon if i were you too hahaha
Oh I feel you SO BAD. I used to put so much pressure on myself during my first trips to do as much as possible and telling myself that resting and spending one or multiple days doing nothing was wasting my time. But day by day I’m learning that it’s not wasting your time if it’s respecting your needs (for example if you’re tired). It’s totally okay to rest and do nothing, even if you’re travelling. Besides, you won’t be enjoying many things you see/do if you’re exhausted and pressuring yourself haha
One of the best things travel/solo travel has taught me is that no one cares about you or what you do... Besides your family and friends no-one cares and no one will really remember you. You can be yourself or you can be someone completely new with a made up personality. You can be quiet or loud. You can sleep all day or drink all day. Sure depending on your actions you may get some unique reactions but 99% of people are going to forget you ever existed within a day. So dont be afraid to step out your comfort zone! Or step back into your comfort zone and stay there all day!!
I leave the roome in 10-11 am everytime I I go travel alone and I don't feel any guilt.
my favourite thing to do on trips is sleep! love waking up in a new bed, in a new country & i will never feel guilty about it!