After returning from his first trip abroad with his university friends in Singapore, Travel blogger Vinh Gau dreamed of having his own solo trips. Thanks to that trip to Singapore, he learned about immigration procedures, how to use public transport, how to use cards...
In 2011, Vinh Gau marked his first solo adventure in Bangkok (Thailand). With each trip, he is not only a tourist, but also a travel content creator, bringing new and attractive perspectives to the travel enthusiast community.
In his massive travel 'account', Vinh Gau said that nearly 80% of his trips were solo travel.
Freedom is self-care
With a somewhat wild and liberal personality, what makes Vinh Gau fascinated in solo trips is probably the absolute freedom throughout the journey. "Solo trips give you the ability to grasp and make decisions about everything. You don't need to listen to the opinions of many people like when traveling with a group, solo travel is where you want to go, what to do, where to stay, what to eat... everything is up to you to decide".
Synonymous with freedom, sometimes also loneliness. On solo trips, the feeling of loneliness often exists as an inevitable part. How to accept and overcome that feeling is perhaps also a lesson in 'self-care' in this 'freedom' journey. Vinh Gau said that on solo adventures, the feeling of insecurity often appears when he goes to a new, less crowded and unfamiliar place. Going alone also makes it difficult for him to enjoy all the local specialties, because "if someone goes with Gau to share the food, he will eat more". Not to mention, not having anyone to accompany him to support him immediately when encountering unexpected situations, especially when needing help with heavy luggage, is also something that makes the hearts of solo travel enthusiasts sometimes feel sad.
Freedom is also self-care, requiring those who love to travel to be strong and mature through each trip.
But the truth is that challenges are experiences that people remember more easily than easy, convenient things. Vinh Gau confided: "My most memorable solo trip was Cuba - where Internet/4G was not widely available to surf Facebook to update about the trip or contact friends and family. Coming to a place where very few people around me spoke English, I couldn't share anything even if I wanted to. The local food was also not easy to eat...".
Many difficulties in a trip are not what make the steps of solo travelers falter, but through each 'test', they become stronger and more mature. So that when they solve those problems, the next time they meet again, they will no longer have the initial confusion and bewilderment.
Make your solo travel personal
With a close, authentic, nature-loving image, Vinh Gau does not hesitate to share his personal travel tips and secrets. He wants everyone to understand that traveling is not just about posting photos on social networks but also a journey to discover yourself and the world. He said: "The image I want to show is a Vinh Gau who is a bit 'dusty' but close, sharing details about the story, experiences, and lessons throughout the journey so that those who come after can have better experiences at that destination."
Amidst the current wave of Travel Content Creators in the market, Vinh Gau still does not feel too much pressure about shaping his personal style on his journey. “If Vinh Gau can do it, you can do it too” - his slogan to encourage those who love to travel but are still hesitant, to be more confident, bold, pick up their backpacks and go. Vinh Gau said that he does not create a personal mark with each individual journey, but instead, that mark comes from a long-term process. Including the accumulation of experiences, stories and lessons throughout his time traveling.
Personal marks are often expressed through writing style and emotions in each photo, story or lesson learned along the way.
Dusty, wild, positive, so it is understandable that Vinh Gau's travel posts are always open and humorous, making it easy for readers to understand what he wants to convey. He emphasized that the visual element is also very important. In Vinh Gau's opinion, the images must be authentic and create many emotions for the viewer, not too photoshopped so that people will not be 'hurt' when seeing the real image of the destination.
“The more and more people become Travel Content Creators, the more interesting the market becomes, with more perspectives and more useful lessons for viewers. It is true to the motto 'If Vinh Gau can do it, you can do it too', so what is the pressure? Just do well what you have been doing well, don't chase after the market and lose yourself,” he expressed.
More information:
From December 8 to 24, 2023, Agoda - a digital travel booking platform - in collaboration with Travellive Media Group and Travel Content Creator Vinh Gau, organized the "Solo Travel Dream Deals Contest, Design your itinerary - Win great prizes" for solo travel enthusiasts. The prize for the winner of the contest is up to VND 60,000,000, allowing the winner to experience booking services, including round-trip flights, stays of up to 10 nights and sightseeing tickets via the Agoda app.
You can enter the contest by following the instructions atlinkfor a chance to win this amazing prize! Design your trip with Agoda and satisfy your wanderlust!
See program details and attend atThis.
