When it comes to wanderlust, women seem more keen to grab their passports and follow it.

Women travel more often than their male peers, making up 56% of leisure travelers, according to travel media brand AFAR . And increasingly, those trips are solo trips , with nary a spouse, friend or family member in sight.

But traveling alone, especially as a woman, can be intimidating. Seventy percent of women worry about their personal safety while traveling alone, according to a recent poll from the popular travel site Solo Female Travelers .

Those concerns are heightened for women who are minorities. If youre a queer woman, for instance, you might wonder how likely you are to get weird stares or harassed, especially if youre with your partner.

When you visit a location that makes you feel safe, you want to share it, not gatekeep it. With that in mind, we asked travel writers to share the international travel destinations that made them feel extra safe as women solo travelers. See what they had to say below. (And, of course, still make sure you do your own research about the safety of places you want to travel to whether theyre mentioned here or not.)

Ecuador

As an older woman, one country I loved traveling on my own to is Ecuador. I stayed in small towns in both of these places for several months and found the people welcoming, and after a while, I just became a part of the community. I dont think its the place that makes you feel secure I think its the way you approach and view the world. When you trust yourself and have faith in others, safety becomes less destination-specific and more about being aware of where you are and the potential risks. When you treat others as you would want to be treated, the world is a welcoming place. Carolyn Ray, CEO and editor at JourneyWoman

I have spent a lot of time in Latin America, and while some of the countries left me feeling on edge, Ecuador specifically Quito, Ecuador was the complete opposite. This is one of the warmest countries I have been to, and its so easy to make friends and build a community. For me, after a long time traveling through the Amazon , I was finally able to feel secure again in Quito. Amy Aed, a travel writer from Swansea, Wales, who runs the blog Wandering Everywhere