There is something quietly powerful about talking to a stranger.

Sometimes, a stranger can listen more freely than someone who knows us well. They arrive without a history of who we have been, without expectations of who we should be, and without the preconceived notions that can shape how even the people closest to us hear our stories. With a stranger, there is nothing to prove and no version of ourselves to maintain. We can simply speak and be heard as we are in that moment.

This is part of what makes solo travel so transformative. Away from the people, routines, and identities that usually surround us, we become more open to new perspectives, new experiences, and new connections. Yet that openness can also make moments of disconnection feel more pronounced.

Soul22 was created around the belief that connection with a stranger can be deeply restorative. Through member created gatherings, shared experiences, and spontaneous moments of companionship, Soul22 creates space for travelers to connect with people they may never have otherwise met. A shared meal, a walk through an unfamiliar city, or an unplanned conversation can become something much more meaningful: a moment of being seen, understood, and reminded that we are not alone.

The Neuroscience Behind This:

The human brain is fundamentally social. When we experience a positive interaction with another person, regions including the prefrontal cortex, amygdala, hippocampus, and anterior cingulate cortex can participate in processing social information, emotional safety, memory, and regulation. Positive social experiences can also engage the brain's reward circuitry, including areas such as the ventral striatum, while social connection is associated with physiological processes that help regulate the body's response to stress.

The prefrontal cortex helps us interpret social situations and regulate our emotional responses. The amygdala plays an important role in detecting emotional significance and potential threat, while positive and familiar social cues can help reduce the sense of social threat. The anterior cingulate cortex is involved in social and emotional processing, including the experience of connection and social pain. Meanwhile, the hippocampus helps place experiences into context and memory.

Meeting someone new can also engage systems involved in curiosity, attention, perspective taking, and cognitive flexibility. In this way, the same unfamiliarity that makes travel stimulating can make human connection stimulating too. Our brains are continually taking in new social information, interpreting another person's expressions and perspective, and updating our understanding of the world around us.

Included in membership fee.

Soul22 is intentionally selective.

Every prospective member then undergoes a comprehensive screening process before being welcomed into the community.

Our screening includes national and county-level criminal background checks, evaluated against Soul22’s internal safety and membership standards. We look carefully at conduct that may be incompatible with the kind of community we are building, including violence, threats, exploitation, fraud, and other serious offenses. Where appropriate, circumstances are considered within their broader context, including recency, repetition, and resolution.

We consider the integrity of the community as a whole, such as how members represent themselves, how they communicate, how they treat others, and whether they contribute to an environment grounded in respect, emotional maturity, curiosity, and personal responsibility.

Membership may therefore involve identity and information verification, application review, behavioral and trust-based considerations, and ongoing monitoring. Soul22 reserves the right to decline, suspend, or remove membership when conduct is inconsistent with our Community Standards or the integrity of the community.

Criminal background processes will vary by region. For USA Citizens, criminal background checks are screened at the national & local levels. Monthly monitoring follows.

For all other regions, stay tuned as we continue to expand. 

Once accepted, members enter a carefully curated network centered on meaningful connection, presence, curiosity, and inner peace.

The Neuroscience of Selective Membership:

The neuroscience behind this approach is simple yet profound: the nervous system can relax when it perceives safety. Research into the autonomic nervous system demonstrates that environments characterized by predictability, trust, and psychological safety are more likely to activate the neural pathways associated with calm, connection, and emotional regulation. By thoughtfully tending to the quality of its community, Soul22 creates conditions that allow members to engage more openly, connect more authentically, and experience the deeper restorative benefits of travel.

Included in membership fee. A good-faith deposit is required for background screening and is applied toward membership purchase. If background screening fails, deposit is forfeited.

Background screening does not guarantee an individual’s future conduct, identity, intentions, or safety. Soul22’s screening process is one layer of a broader approach to community safety and does not replace personal judgment or reasonable precautions.

Every journey begins long before a plane departs. Often, travel emerges from a deeper longing: a desire for healing, clarity, transition, renewal, or self-discovery. The Soul22 Letter Exchange offers members a space to articulate the deeper intentions behind their travels through a personal letter shared with the Soul22 team. Each submission is received with care and met with a thoughtful human response, creating an opportunity for reflection, understanding, and connection before the journey even begins.

Beyond travel, the Letter Exchange serves as an invitation into a wider community of meaningful conversation. Members may connect with one another to share stories, experiences, and perspectives, fostering relationships that extend across cities, countries, and life stages. Whether at home or abroad, Soul22 creates opportunities for members to support one another through shared humanity.

The Neuroscience Behind This:

This offering is rooted in neuroscience research on intentional solitude, emotional processing, self reflection, and human connection. Through writing, we bring thoughts and emotions into conscious awareness, helping the brain process experiences and create new associations. Over time, reflection can support neuroplasticity, strengthening new neural pathways and creating space to move beyond familiar patterns of thought and response.

The exchange of letters adds the regulating power of human connection. Being heard, understood, and offered a new perspective can engage neural systems involved in emotional regulation, reward, safety, and belonging. Together, reflection and connection create an environment where the brain can process, reframe, and build new pathways, supporting greater emotional flexibility and nervous system regulation.

Included in membership fee.

Soul22 collaborates with a carefully selected circle of local healing spaces, designed to support wellbeing and grounding throughout the journey. Many of these partners have been personally experienced and deeply trusted by Soul22's founder, ensuring alignment with the organization's values of authenticity, presence, and care. From restorative bodywork and mindfulness practices to spaces that invite reflection and renewal, these partnerships offer members opportunities to reconnect with themselves while exploring the world, all at a discounted rate.

The Neuroscience Behind This:

These partnerships are closely aligned with Soul22's neuroscience research on nervous system regulation. Chronic stress often limits the body's ability to move fluidly between states of activation and rest. Practices that encourage presence, relaxation, and embodied awareness can support parasympathetic activation, the branch of the nervous system associated with restoration, healing, and recovery. By connecting members with trusted wellness experiences, Soul22 extends the restorative potential of travel, helping transform a trip into an opportunity for genuine recalibration.

Access to Soul22 partner network & selective partner discounts included in membership fee. Fees for partner services are separate.

One of the greatest luxuries of travel is the opportunity to be fully present. Soul22's thoughtfully designed itineraries allow members to arrive with confidence, knowing the details have been carefully considered. For each destination, members may choose between two distinct pathways: one designed to introduce first-time visitors to the essence of a place, and another created for returning travelers seeking a deeper and more nuanced experience. Every itinerary is curated to encourage meaningful engagement with the destination while preserving space for spontaneity, reflection, and discovery. Both itineraries are available to members at any point in their journeys.

For those desiring additional support, personalized itinerary customization and full-service travel concierge assistance (booking flights, booking accommodations, and travel logistics) are available through Soul22's trusted partners.

The Neuroscience Behind This:

This offering draws directly from neuroscience research on novelty, autonomy, and psychological wellbeing. Novel environments stimulate learning, curiosity, and cognitive flexibility, while autonomy strengthens neural pathways associated with agency and internal safety. Thoughtful travel design allows members to experience the benefits of exploration without the cognitive burden of excessive planning, creating an optimal balance between structure and freedom. The result is a travel experience that supports both personal growth and nervous system restoration.

Two core itineraries are included with every membership. For travelers seeking additional support, preferred rates on personalized concierge services are available through Soul22's trusted partner network, including custom itinerary curation, flight and hotel bookings, dining reservations, and more.

Global Rescue provides clients with unparalleled travel risk and crisis response services, including medical evacuations, security extractions, travel intelligence and other critical services worldwide.

Their mission is to deliver these services 24/7/365 when and where they’re needed to leisure, business and adventure travelers.

**Contact our trusted safety partner, Global Rescue.

The Neuroscience Behind This:

Safety creates space for exploration. The brain is constantly assessing uncertainty and potential threat. When we know that meaningful support is available if something goes wrong, we can reduce some of the mental resources devoted to anticipating risk. This sense of safety can support a calmer physiological state, allowing more attention to shift toward curiosity, connection, and the experience itself.

Not included in membership fee. Purchase directly from Global Rescue.