A lone female traveller who says she loves exploring the world solo has revealed the one place that she felt ‘genuinely unsafe and uncomfortable’.
Posting on Reddit, the woman in her thirties said she had followed a recommendation to visit the Caribbean island from her pilates teacher, who had told her the destination was safe for women exploring on their own.
She says she also did her own research on safety issues in Jamaica for females travelling solo and was reassured by the lack of negative reports.
Her initial experiences were good too, she revealed, after she checked into a family-run guest house.
However, her time on the popular holiday island started to go downhill when she hired a private driver to take her to tourist spots Martha Brae and Blue Hole.
She tells Reddit, the driver appeared fixated with her sex life and whether she would have children.
She wrote: ‘He was really gross and kept asking me about my sex life and kept insisting that I needed to have children ASAP.’
Her interactions with locals only got worse, the woman shared, saying that when she arrived at the Blue Hole, a deep cave located in the country’s mountainous inland, she ‘couldn’t walk one foot without some perv telling me I’m hot or whatever.’
A solo traveller in her early 30s says she’s travelled to more than 30 different countries but felt unsafe as a lone female in Jamaica (Pictured: the Martha Brae River)
Her guide, she claims, also made ‘specific comments about my body’.
And while visiting Jamaica’s famous beach, Montego Bay, she said she was followed at one point and suffered numerous cat calls, saying: ‘It was so scary to know he was watching and following me. I really don’t recommend Jamaica solo.’
The woman also says she witness homophobic language during her trip.
Many agreed in the reaction to the post this month that the island is beautiful to visit but not always a safe environment for women.
One wrote: ‘Honestly Jamaica is not female friendly. I would never go back unless escorted by a man, but even then it’s not worth the trouble.’
A male contributor shared his own experiences on the forum, saying: ‘My wife and I had a personal driver hired by the boutique hotel we stayed at.
‘He was a local and knew everyone and basically kept every weirdo away from us, I tipped him extremely well. I would not recommend a single woman travel in that country.’
Another added: ‘I went as a group twice. There will not be a third visit. It is sad because it’s a beautiful place with killer food. I don’t scare easily and I have taken more risks than I should’ve in my life. But it did not feel safe.’
Many other solo travellers – and male travellers – agreed that parts of Jamaica might not feel safe to women exploring on their own
One woman, a huge fan of the country, said: ‘I love Jamaica and have been there 8 to 9 times (resorts, backpacking, the whole 9)… with my husband and I don’t think I would ever go alone unless it was an airport shuttle to a resort and back.’
Current FCO advice to the country warns of incidents of sexual assault and rape against tourists and visitors, issuing the warning: Take care when using dating apps in Jamaica, especially those used by the LGBT+ community.
‘Criminals have used apps to lure victims to meet in a public place but later assault and rob them.’
The country remains the largest English-speaking island in the Caribbean and attracts more than 4 million visitors annually thanks to its beautiful beaches, rum production and iconic figures, including Bob Marley, Usain Bolt and James Bond writer Ian Fleming.
Last month, a solo travel content creator shared her honest views on where she feels unsafe as a woman – and one of her picks is a hugely popular European destination.
Savanna Crowell, who runs the @solowithsav Tiktok account, describes herself as ‘your go-to solo travel girlie’.
In a recent video that has been viewed almost 500,000 times, the New York-based traveller revealed three places where she didn’t feel safe.
Her first red-flagged destination is France – the world’s most visited country, with 102 million international tourists arriving in 2024.
A solo travel content creator on TikTok named Savanna revealed the places in Europe she didn’t feel safe in a recent post
She told her 54,000 followers she’d ‘had a few uncomfortable situations in the country’, facing problems in a number of locations.
‘On my first solo trip to Paris, I almost got scammed by the ‘petition scammers’ at the Louvre,’ she said.
Petition scammers often pose as charity workers or petitioners who might speak to tourists about worthy causes – before putting pressure on them to hand over money.
‘When I tried to get out of it they became very aggressive… thankfully I was able to get out of it because there were a lot of other people around me.
Savanna also had issues in Nice, a beautiful city on the French Riviera.
While she was walking along a street by herself, a man ‘popped out of the bush with a pointy stick in his hand’.
Savanna goes on to say he ‘started chasing me down the road, ended up throwing the stick at me and laughing’.
Despite the popularity of France, a number of other holidaymakers in the comments section voiced their unhappy experiences in the country.
‘Facts! A man followed me into the girls’ restroom in Paris and there is a section of Nice super unsafe for women,’ wrote Alexandra Priscilla.
