Making friends and meeting people abroad: what is it, why would you do it, and where is the best place to go?

What is making friends and meeting people abroad like?

• Making friends abroad can be one of the most valuable experiences of your life. It is all about forming new social connections while you are in a different environment. It can be exciting, challenging and frustrating, but it will always lead to personal growth. 
• Sometimes connections are fun, fleeting, or profound temporary companions; sometimes they are long-term companions who stay with you for years. All the connections are valuable in their own way, and form and finish in different ways. 
• This kind of familiarity can arise spontaneously, for example in hostels, during activities, or through work, but also consciously, by opening yourself up and taking initiative.
• Relationships while traveling and abroad often develop more quickly and intensely, and revolve around sharing special experiences.
• People coming and going, including yourself, is a big part of it.
• Communication often proceeds differently than at home. Everyone has different ways of communicating, and certainly in new situations, this can be a challenge.

For example, you notice that:

• conversations become personal more quickly.
• you make connections easier.
• a farewell is a substitute part of the experience.
• friendships feel different.
• you get to know yourself again.
• your boundaries and interests become clearer.
• some bonds remain, others disappear.
• meeting new people abroad can set you up for a life of travel, friendships and more understanding of other cultures and people. 

What are the reasons for making friends and meeting people abroad?

• To connect and feel less alone: ​​contact with others provides support and energy.
• To develop your communication skills in a new context: you learn to communicate more clearly and consciously, and to better understand a different type of communication.
• To expand your network with international contacts: people you meet can remain valuable later on.
• To get to know yourself better in relation to others: you discover what is important to you in contact and friendship. (Being authentic: learning and staying that way)
• To become more flexible in social situations: you learn to deal with different people, expectations, and dynamics.

What skills and motivations do you need to make friends and meet people abroad?

• Communicating: you actively make contact, ask questions, and hold conversations, even if that is in another language or sometimes feels a bit awkward. You learn to be clearer, listen better, and pick up on signals that are not always spoken literally. 
• Self-confidence: you dare to approach people, introduce yourself, and take initiative, even if you do not know exactly how things will turn out. You learn to handle the rejection of discomfort and develop confidence in your own social skills.
• Empathy: you try to understand others' backgrounds, cultures, and situations. You are open to differences in behavior, communication, and expectations, and adapt accordingly.
• Flexibility: you handle changing plans, shifting groups, and unexpected situations. People come and go, appointments change, and you learn to adapt without disrupting the balance.
• Collaboration: you undertake activities together, make plans, and share experiences with others. You take different wishes and energies into account and learn how to create something fun or valuable together.

What are the best countries and locations to make friends and meet people abroad?

• In any country you can meet people and discover friends! But for specific connections:
• Backpacker hotspots: Thailand, Australia, Indonesia, Mexico.
• Cities with international communities: The Netherlands, Portugal, Germany, Canada.
• Volunteer work/projects: Nepal, South Africa, Peru, India.

What are the risks of making friends and meeting people abroad, and are you insured against those risks? 

What are the risks of making friends and meeting people abroad, and what happens with some regularity:

• that you feel lonely if you fail to make contact or if this collective connection remains, especially at the beginning of your journey.
• that you become dependent on new people in an unfamiliar environment, which can influence your choices and sense of safety.
• that boundaries become unreliable because you quickly build close bonds in a temporary context, which can lead to influence or emotional impact.
• that you end up in unsafe situations because you do not know people well yet, but trust them quickly.
• that saying goodbye and the temporary nature of collectives can be difficult, certainly with intense connections.
• During activities and trips abroad, the coverage of your own health insurance in your home country may be insufficient, or even lapse. See the pages on insuring activities abroad.