Photo: Instagram & TikTok
Starly Santos is taking her quest for romance international with a years long journey of love and adventure.
By Alexandra Blogier — Written on Apr 25, 2023
Starly Santos is on a unique journey, both literally and figuratively. The Florida native spent her college years in New York and has been fully nomadic since graduating in 2018.
Santos, 27, travels full-time, with no set home base, experiencing all the wonder and adventure that life has to offer — she’s on a mission that would inspire the romantic in anyone.
Starly Santos is on a journey to go on a date in every country in the world.
Santos, who has a vibrant social media presence that’s full of both her dating and travel experiences, has already been on 12 dates in 12 different countries so her journey is well underway though she still has many miles to go. She spoke exclusively to YourTango to let us know how things are going so far.
She funds her travel by investing and trading in cryptocurrency, "which has been very lucrative for me and I can work from my phone or laptop anywhere in the world."
Her goal is to go to at least 160 more countries in the next 2 years while documenting her experience dating across different cultures.
"I spun up this idea to put myself out there, as far and wide as I could possibly imagine," Santos says in an Instagram post. "Visit every single country and meet multitudes of people from all walks of life, in the hopes that I find one single multitude to match mine."
Santos finds her dates in a variety of different ways. Some of the dates are with past acquaintances or men she’s met through mutual friends; other dates she arranges once arriving in the country.
She’s found some dates through apps, noting that Bumble is her go-to dating app, and some men reach out to her— she’s received “a lot of DMs on social media from men in different countries all around the world offering to be my date when I come to their country.”
While she tries to arrange her dates before arrival, it doesn’t always work out that way. Santos’ date in Thailand was a man she met at the hotel where she was staying. She says, “He struck up [a] conversation with me in the lobby and we hit it off so he offered to be my date!”
“All of the dates have been really fun and insightful! I let the men plan what we do, but I usually suggest that they be culturally immersive so I can learn about the culture with someone firsthand!” Santos says.
Santos reports that one of her favorite dates so far "was probably Mr. Colombia." She tells us, "We did a coffee tasting, since Colombia is known for cultivating coffee, and learned a ton about different types of coffee and their history. We also went to a mud volcano the next day which was super fun.”
Santos explains that she has “meaningful and transparent conversations” with different men about her dating journey. “They overall support what I am doing and want me to see it through!”
Her date with “Mr. Bombay” had “the strongest connection and chemistry. We are planning to meet again in another country next month!”
For that first date, Santos joined Mr. Bombay for his birthday celebration with friends on a yacht.
“I took a moment with my new friends to pause and express gratitude for the moment and the incredible life I’ve been given. I’m on a yacht across the world with people I’d never met, who welcomed me with open arms,” Santos stated in an Instagram post about that date.
Traveling "lights my soul on fire," Santos tells YourTango. She appreciates the cross-cultural dialogues created by going outside of her comfort zone. She notes that the idea for her dating journey was borne from a desire for personal growth and a wish to see the world.
“I love traveling and meeting new people from all walks of life, so this is a way to push myself to do even more of that, and also be able to share it with others who don't have the opportunity to travel as much as I do,” Santos says.
When asked what she hopes to accomplish on her journey, Santos says, “I hope to encourage and inspire others to put themselves out there [and] be open to meeting new and different kinds of people.”
She also hopes to break stigmas around female solo travel. She recommends various safety measures for other female travelers, including being alert and aware wherever she may be. Santos explains that she doesn’t really drink alcohol, something that helps keep her aware of her surroundings, although she recognizes that “this is uncommon,” and recommends “drinking responsibly and making sure you have a plan to get back home safe after a night out.”
She also notes that she permanently shares her location with her family members to create a level of accountability. “Honestly, I have been to over 60 countries already, many considered 'dangerous' and have never felt unsafe yet!” Santos says.
Santos’ deep appreciation for her journey comes, in part, out of her struggle with depression. As she says, “In moments when I feel grateful to be alive, it’s important for me to pause and appreciate deeply. Since starting this journey, I’ve had many more moments like this one and I hope to experience countless more. This is what fuels my fire.”
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers celebrity gossip, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.