Prizes

First place: $1,000

Second place: $500

Third place: $250

Dates to know

November 27: Submissions open

December 3, 11:59 PM EST: Submissions closed

December 8: Winners announced

About this Challenge

There's nothing like the thrill of packing your bags, scanning your passport, and flying through the skies in the comfort of a window seat. That feeling of stepping off a plane and into a new city all on your own has no comparison. Traveling alone is great for getting to know yourself without interruption and making once in a lifetime memories. While we can't wait for the first chance to travel safely again, many of us with a severe case of wanderlust are already planning our next solo journey.

We could use your help with planning this future trip. We'd like for you to create and share an ideal itinerary for the solo trip of your dreams, or a trip you're already planning to take next year when it's safer!

Enter the Solo Trip Challenge and let us know where you're visiting and why you've chosen this destination. What sights will you see, memories will you make, what food will you enjoy, and where will you stay? In addition to your itinerary, think about how this trip will impact you: what adventures will you endure by yourself, and how will you benefit from this vacation and time alone? Pack your virtual bags, and please include photos and share links to where you're going!

Requirements

For your story to be eligible, it must be between 600 and 5,000 words and adhere to our Community Guidelines. Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until December 3, 2020, at 11:59 PM EST will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here. You can learn how to embed rich media into your story here.

The Solo Trip Challenge is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+ visit https://vocal.media/vocal-plus.

To be eligible to win the grand prize, second place, or third place prizes, you must be over the age of 13 and residing in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need to have a Stripe account created and connected in order to receive the prizes. For this reason, entrants located outside of any of these 39 countries will not be eligible to win.