Solo female traveler maxxed out her visa visiting country where she had mind-blowing experience
A solo female traveler has revealed she risking getting kicked out of one popular travel destination because she couldn't get enough of the beautiful scenery and incredible experiences.
After a turbulent time at university as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, Jamelia Brown, 25, decided she was going to travel the world after graduating.
She began by signing up to the Camp America travel program, which sees young adults spend their summer working at a camp in the US.
Jamelia told UNILAD that she then began traveling the states on her own, which increased her confidence and made her realize she didn't need to miss out on amazing experiences just because she was traveling solo.
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The content creator went on to backpack southeast Asia alone and has even spent time in Spain teaching kids English.
While Jamelia has explored some wonderful places, the one destination that ranks at the top of her list is Vietnam.
She explained to UNILAD: "Vietnam stands out because I feel like the country strikes such a good balance between being very easy for tourists to navigate whilst also keeping its authenticity.
"Some countries, where there's quite a lot of tourists, they cater to tourists so much that they lose their authenticity."
The backpacking trip also allowed the TikToker to learn about the Vietnam war, which she didn't know much about before heading out to southeast Asia.
On top of that, Jamelia was 'amazed' by Vietnam's 'beautiful' and 'amazing' scenery, which made the Brit 'max out' the visa that allowed her to travel there as she simply didn't want to leave.
As part of her trip, Jamelia spent a week in the capital of Hanoi enjoying the hustle and bustle, as well as having a life-changing experience as she tucked into what she described as the 'best meal of my life'.
She had her food at Bun Cha Huong Lien, where chef Anthony Bourdain and then-president Barack Obama dined back in 2016.
She explained to UNILAD: "You can actually see where they sat as it’s encased in glass. I got the meal they had, called the Obama meal for under $4, which came with bun cha, a smoky pork soup, a seafood spring roll, drink and some memorabilia."
"[It's] definitely not a tourist trap as it was the best food I’ve ever eaten in my life," she added.
Hoi An was another particular favorite of Jamelia's, after she was left blown away by the 'charming city with a beautiful old town'.
"One of my highlights of the trip was going on a boat down the river at night and releasing a lantern into the water — it was so beautiful to watch the river light up with hundreds of lanterns. I felt like I was in a film!" she added.
Vietnam welcomed a staggering 21 million tourists in 2025, which set a new record for tourists visiting the country and was 20 percent higher than the number recorded in 2024.
Backpackers typically start in Hanoi and finish their journey in Ho Chi Minh City, visiting destinations such as Da Nang and Ninh Binh along the way.
And there's also the iconic Ha Giang Loop in the north of the country, a 225 mile stretch of road traversed on a motorbike allowing travelers to explore deep canyons and incredible mountain peaks.
Jamelia recommends a southeast Asia country such as Vietnam as the ideal destination for a first-time solo traveler due to them being one of the 'easiest countries to navigate'.
The content creator recommends hostels as an ideal place to make new pals as a solo traveler, as she explained to UNILAD: "Definitely speak to people in hostels, I know its super nerve-wracking going on your own but everyone on their own is as nervous as you are and wants to make friends. Be the person in the hostel to go up to someone."
That could be as simple as approaching a roommate unpacking and asking where they are from or what their travel plans are.
So there you have it, get out there and book your first solo trip!
Topics: Travel, Food and Drink
Callum Jones