One of the biggest attractions of traveling solo is that you will get to meet so many different people, and many people will find that they start off traveling solo but spend time traveling with others too. If you are heading in the same direction as someone you meet in a hostel, then it is natural to join forces so that you have friends for the journey. After spending time with someone, it is often good to stay in touch, so that if you do find your travels coincide again in the future, then you can share further fun and experiences with them, or so that you can both benefit from your travel experiences in different countries.
Travel Blogging
A common way to stay in touch that increasing numbers of people are using to remain in contact with friends they meet on their travels is through a travel blog, and this is useful for staying in touch with friends at home as well as new friends met as you travel. A memorable name for your blog's web address will often be more memorable for your new friends than a cell phone number or email address too. In order to ensure you can interact with friends on the blog, make sure that the comments feature is activated, and it is also best to include an RSS feed or subscription list that will allow people to stay up to date with your travels.
Text Messages
Cell phones are ideal for staying in touch as you travel, and staying in touch by text message is usually a fairly inexpensive way of staying in contact with friends as you travel. For free international text messaging, use Whatsapp.
Travel Forums
There are many popular online travel forums that allow travelers to interact, and one of the best things about these forums is that they can be used to add friends so you can easily catch up without having to remember a set of contact details.
These can also be used to discuss trips beforehand, and to meet new friends before you visit destinations, with some of the most popular forums including those hosted by Travbuddy, Lonely Planet's Thorn Tree Forum and the Trip Advisor Forums. If you do lose contact with travel buddies, several of these forums also have boards dedicated to helping you find friends that you have lost contact with.
Social Networking
Sites such as Facebook and Twitter play such a large role in the everyday lives of most people, staying in touch with new friends through these methods is as natural as staying in touch with all your other friends. The ability to include a location on statuses will help you and your friends to stay in touch with where you are, and the inbuilt messaging service is also very good if you need to arrange to meet up at another point along your journey. There are also a range of social networks that are specifically aimed at travelers, from the interactive features of the Couchsurfing website through to TravellersPoint and Where Are You Now? (WAYN)
If you prefer to exchange longer messages and have really developed a connection with someone, then using email to stay in touch can be an easy and straightforward way of exchanging messages. While many people will use the internet cafes that they can find in different cities for this purpose, many people now travel with devices that allow them to check emails on a moment's notice, such as tablet computers and cell phones.