A couple of weeks ago, I decided that I didn't care where I was going or who I was with. I just needed to get out of London as quickly as physically possible. So in typical poor-college-student-abroad fashion, I went on Skyscanner, booked a ticket to the cheapest city I could find, and went off on a two-week excursion on my own the next day.

And you know what? It was the best choice I've made abroad to date.

Traveling alone sounds daunting and lonely in theory, but in reality, it's one of the most freeing experiences one can have when visiting a new place. Here's why.

1. You get to prioritize what you want to see.

Since you're the master of your own schedule, you don't have to compromise on what you do and don't want to explore in a city. I, for one, love to go to modern-art museums, which is something some of my friends don't particularly enjoy. So traveling alone allows me to not pass up on these museums and gives me the intimate joy of experiencing the art without being rushed by something who thinks a Monet is a just splotches of messy pastel.

On the flip side, if you want to spend a day hanging in your hostel doing nothing at all, that's cool too. I spent an afternoon in Prague watching "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt" Season 2, and it didn't affect anyone's plans. Autonomy, people -- it's the best.

2. You meet people from all over the world.

Traveling alone is not for the introvert. If you want to not spend two weeks all by your lonesome, you have to put yourself out there to make friends. On day one of my trip, I was alone in Munich and had never felt more alone in my whole life. Meeting people is difficult but knowing where to meet people on trips like this is vital. In Munich, it was a tour of the beer gardens. I met people from Canada and Australia, even some girls from California, all of whom knew friends of mine from school.

In a big city, the key is to know how to make the city smaller and social, whether it's staying at the Hostel One Home in Prague (best hostel ever, stay there) or doing a tour of Neuschwanstein Castle with a bunch of other solo travellers. Meeting these new people makes your experience more than just a camera roll full of awkward selfies by yourself.

3. It's easier to deal with mishaps.

I hate to admit it, but I missed a train while I was traveling. Now, I'm usually the kind to panic in these situations, mainly because that means I'll be late meeting someone at my destination or I've made someone else miss that train too. But with no attachments, I felt surprisingly calm and dealt with the mishap so that it actually ended up not being a big deal.

For me, that missed train was a good experience. Learning to deal with something going wrong without freaking out was kind of big, which shows that trips like this can help you grow as a person.

4. You get to sleep in.

Not having to be out the door by 8:30 in fear of disappointing your travel buddy is low-key the best. I hate waking up at the crack of dawn, which I know sounds like I'm wasting my days abroad, but sometimes a girl's gotta sleep in.

5. Your experience is less about nightlife and more about culture.

Because you have to be more self-reliant in social situations, a lot of the time your experiences don't necessarily include partying. Though the occasional bar crawl is fun for meeting new people, most activities while traveling alone are more in the realm of learning about the city's history or finding a cool market to grab lunch. The Naschmarkt in Vienna for example? You can get enough free samples to supply a hearty lunch just by walking through all the stalls.

6. You get an experience that's all your own.

In those weeks of solo travel, you get to be unapologetically yourself, doing what you want to do, when you want to do it. You decide how each day is lived, and for that, you learn a lot about what you're passionate about and how to make the most of a foreign city. I would highly recommend taking a trip alone at least once in your life; if you do it right, you'll be so happy you did.