How do I progress towards international solo travel?

Hi Reddit, I (19M) have always dreamed of solo travelling across the world. However, I am limited in my ability to have a "conventional" travel experience in many places because of extensive food allergies. My plan for a first trip was to travel from my hometown of Melbourne to Singapore, stay for a few days, and then spend around ten days travelling through Malaysia before flying back home from KL. I chose this route because south east asia is most interesting to me, as well as for the fact that Singapore might be a slightly easier introduction to the region since I have uni friends that live there, and from researching I heard english is more widely known. However, I would be open to a different destination if it is more appropriate to ease me into solo travel. Last month, I took a solo trip to Sydney and had a blast staying in a hostel for just a few days. I would be open to further domestic travel, but I also feel that seeing the best of Australia requires a car, which I don't have access to since I cannot drive yet. My parents are supportive of me travelling in general, but mum strongly prefers for me to travel domestically and is worried about my ability to manage my allergies on my own in a foreign country, while dad is largely uninvolved. I understand her concerns and genuinely understand how scary it must be for my parents, but ultimately I am an adult, plan on making sensible choices, and have managed my own health before on a regular basis. It's not that they won't let me travel, but they want me to be safe. I have said that I could take a friend, but they said it's not about the street smarts, it's about the allergy situation. Besides that, I don't know how to progress with my dream at all, and I'm feeling stuck. I guess what I'm asking for is if anybody has another way that I could argue the case to them. I'm happy to take any suggestions at all, including further domestic travel first, or changing destinations to be more friendly to allergies. --- **Post Details:** - **Subreddit:** r/solotravel - **Author:** u/Either_Craft4334 - **Score:** 6 upvotes - **Upvote Ratio:** 61.0% - **Comments:** 25 - **Posted:** 7/14/2025 - **URL:** https://reddit.com/r/solotravel/comments/1lzlqio/how_do_i_progress_towards_international_solo/