Ashley Lucas has been to 34 countries on 5 continents, and somewhere along the way she started asking a different question than most travelers do: what is this actually doing to my brain? In this episode, she and Megan trace Ashley’s first solo trip…three months through Europe, inspired by a passage in Matthew McConaughey’s Greenlights, through the neuroscience of novelty and nervous system regulation, the eldest-daughter healing solo travel can unlock, and why coming home never quite feels the same twice.
In This Episode
02:31 – What inspired Ashley to start solo traveling: burnout, a passage from Matthew McConaughey’s Greenlights, and her first solo trip — three months through Europe that felt like “jumping off a 100-foot diving board”
07:54 – The universal rite of passage: wrong buses, sprinting for trains, and why figuring it out on your own builds real self-trust
11:25 – The neuroscience of solo travel — Ashley’s four-part framework: neuroplasticity, dopamine and novelty, nervous system regulation, and mindset expansion
19:07 – Coming home changed: why old tolerances shrink after a trip, and how travel interrupts chronic stress loops
20:09 – Safety as the number one priority for women traveling alone, plus Megan’s own ground rules for getting home after dark
21:34 – Advice for first-time solo travelers: getting intentional about your goals, budget, and fears before you ever book a flight
24:03 – “Eldest daughter healing”: why solo travel permits women to want what they want
26:50 – Journaling, photo books, and the postcard tradition Megan carries on from her grandmother
32:30 – Inside Ashley’s book, The Soulful Tourist Method — a 7-step system for planning, booking, and preparing for a life-changing trip
35:37 – Ashley’s next dream destinations: Peru and Bolivia (three bucket-list items down), and the trip she can’t stop thinking about — riding a horse outside the pyramids in Egypt
Meet Ashley Lucas
Ashley Lucas is a traveler, creative entrepreneur, and speaker who has turned solo travel into a personal development strategy. After her first solo trip — three months backpacking through Europe following a period of career burnout — she became fascinated by the intersection of travel, neuroscience, and healing, and now teaches how immersing yourself in new environments rewires the brain, builds self-trust, and breaks old patterns. She’s the author of The Soulful Tourist Method, a 7-step guide to planning, booking, and preparing for transformative travel.
Memorable Quotes
“It felt like I was jumping off a 100-foot diving board — terrified, but also excited.” — Ashley, on her first solo trip through Europe
“You’re gonna make tons of mistakes... but that’s what’s building your backbone and inner strength.” — Ashley
“It’s eldest daughter healing — taking care of herself, being present with herself, giving herself what she wants and desires.” — Ashley
Resources & Links
Ashley’s book
The Soulful Tourist Method — Ashley’s 7-step guide to planning, booking, and preparing for your next life-changing trip, plus travel tools & support: stan.store/ashevolves
Connect with Ashley
Instagram, TikTok & YouTube: @ash.evolves
Follow Megan / Belong to Where You Are
Solo Travel Sisterhood (free community)
Substack: belongtowhereyouare.com
TikTok: @belongtowhereyouare
Instagram: @belongtowhereyouare_
