10 great summer holidays for solo travellers (with no single supplements in sight)
The summer holidays I have found the most edifying are ones where I’ve set out on my own: a lazy beach getaway in Rio de Janeiro where I actually had the chance – cross-legged on a striped towel on Ipanema – to read books I had been longing to finish, and time to wander aimlessly through the streets of Jardim Botanico; or a city break in Copenhagen, cycling unhurriedly along the lakes from Osterbro to Vesterbro, past swans, chestnut trees and half-timbered houses; or a last-minute trip to Seoul, where I developed an obsession with bibimbap (a Korean rice dish topped with vegetables, beef and egg, served in a hot stone bowl) and gojuchang sauce (red chilli paste), and a life-affirming realisation that it’s OK to have dinner on one’s own.
If you want to strike out on a great summer adventure alone, it doesn’t matter if you’re young or old or somewhere in between – there’s a solo holiday for you. Maybe you fancy some sun, sea and sand in the Med, or a cycling weekend in the Cotswolds, but feel anxious about the prospect of eating meals alone or have safety concerns as a woman travelling solo.
Don’t worry. Below are 10 ways to meet other solo travellers on either exclusive singles holidays or on breaks that, while open to everyone, have been put together with the solo traveller in mind. A number of the trips include convivial dinners in the evenings so you’re not left feeling like a gooseberry dining alone in a restaurant. And all have dedicated group leaders who will be on hand throughout the trip. The holidays below are run by tour operators that specifically do not charge single supplements and offer solo travellers their own room, at no extra cost. Depending on availability, this will be a single, double or twin bed.
1. House party in Greece
If it’s a fly-and-flop break you’re after, Solos Holidays has a new eight-day Greek getaway based in a hotel set right on the beach in Tragaki, on the north coast of Zakynthos. Surrounded by olive trees and vineyards, the resort is quieter than most other spots on the island. The hotel is exclusive to Solos’s guests, and here your time is your own. Choose how much to socialise and how much time to relax or explore the area independently. Take a dip in the sea – the part-shingle, part-sand beach is a short walk away – or amble to lively Tsilivi, a nearby resort lined with tavernas, bars and local markets.
Departures between May and October, from £695, including accommodation, some meals, flights and a Solos tour leader. Solos Holidays (0844 815 0005; solosholidays.co.uk).
2. Scintillating Sicily
The setting for much of Homer’s Odyssey, this alluring island is dotted with Byzantine mosaics, Greek temples and ancient theatres, set against a backdrop of olive-strewn landscapes and endless stretches of beach. Highlights on a seven-day Sicily Explorer tour from Cox & Kings include the Valley of the Temples, one of the world’s most important archaeological sites; the Palatina Chapel, the royal chapel of the Norman kings of Sicily; and Ortygia, a small island that is the historical heart of Syracuse. Stays are at a glamorous hotel in Palermo, where the composer Richard Wagner finished his opera Parsifal, and at a five-star coastal resort in Giardini Naxos.
Departures May 14, June 4, September 17 and October 8. From £1,895, including accommodation, some meals and flights. Cox & Kings (020 3642 0861; coxandkings.co.uk).
3. Fitness break in St Lucia
A holiday in the sun in St Lucia coupled with cycling, tennis, hiking and watersports plus pampering treatments? What’s not to like about that? A seven-night LeSport fitness break offered by Health and Fitness Travel is based at the BodyHoliday, a spa resort situated along Cariblue beach surrounded by rainforests and waterfalls. Activities on site are plentiful, ranging from archery and fencing to sailing and windsurfing. There are daily spa treatments and a coterie of group classes from combat fitness to spin.
However, there is time to relax, too – this is a holiday, after all. A hosted singles table every evening and a cocktail party on the Wednesday guarantee you won’t feel like a holiday extra.
Departs any time, from £2,375 all-inclusive (activities, daily spa treatment, accommodation, all meals and flights). Health and Fitness Travel (020 3397 8891; healthandfitnesstravel.com).
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4. Cycling in the Cotswolds
Starting in Bledington, a three-day cycling tour of the Cotswolds meanders along leafy bridleways and quiet country lanes through honey-hued villages and over rivers and streams. There is the occasional slope (after all, “wolds” means hilly tract of open country), but the route mostly avoids steep gradients. Local highlights include gardens, stately homes such as Blenheim Palace and Rodmarton Manor, organic food shops and Michelin-starred restaurants. Short and long routes are available.
Departs any time, from £335, including bike hire, two nights’ accommodation and breakfast, a welcome briefing and an adventure handbook, packed with information and tips. The Carter Company (01296 631671; the-carter-company.com).
5. Sri Lanka’s temples and tea
An exhilarating one-week journey through Sri Lanka, which manages to combine stops at rambling temple ruins and tea plantations with a Jeep safari and a scenic train ride. The rail journey trundles past waterfalls, suspension bridges and tea pickers up to Nuwara Eliya, or “Little England”, a hill resort that produces a significant share of the world’s best tea. Highlights on an eight-day Colombo, Caves and Kandy tour include the fortress of Sigiriya, the Dambulla cave temple and the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy.
No single supplement departures available on October 14 2017 and February 17 2018. From £919, including accommodation (with a private room at no extra cost on the specified listed dates), some meals, a train ride, a Jeep safari and airport transfers. Excludes flights. On the Go Tours (020 7371 1113; onthegotours.com).
6. Summer in the Swiss Alps
Switzerland is just as enchanting in summer as it is in winter. Think meadows in bloom, mountain slopes rendered in green (not white), crisp air and sunshine aplenty. A six-day Swiss Mountain Adventure visits the country at its most vibrant. Starting at the mountain village of Wengen, the trip meanders to Ballenberg via a Postbus – an iconic yellow Swiss bus – for a visit to the Ballenberg Open Air Museum, which showcases more than a hundred centuries-old buildings. There’s even a chance to take part in the Ballenberg Championships for a spot of steinstossen (throwing a heavy stone) and platzgen (disc throwing), followed by a cruise on Lake Brienz.
The tour then moves on to Schilthorn or the “007 mountain” for lunch at Piz Gloria, a revolving restaurant perched on the summit that served as the location for Blofeld’s HQ in the 1969 James Bond film On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. Finally, there’s a cogwheel train ride to the top of Mount Pilatus to learn about alpenhorn playing. Other highlights include lakeside Lucerne, the Trummelbach Falls, a series of 10 waterfalls inside a mountain, and a culinary tour and fondue-making session in Wengen.
July 17 and August 21, from £1,799, including activities, accommodation, most meals and flights. Just You (0800 1123311; justyou.co.uk).
7. Big cats in Namibia
For lovers of wildlife and wild places, combine a safari in Namibia with a chance to learn more about conservation efforts in Africa. On this 15-day trip, you will track desert lions, leopards, cheetahs, rhinos and elephants under the guidance of Namibia’s leading conservationists. Travelling through varied landscapes and meeting people protecting the country’s wildlife will make for an inspiring journey. Meet researchers from AfriCat, Save the Rhino Trust and Elephant-Human Relations Aid, and experience a day in the life of an AfriCat researcher in a concession in Etosha National Park. Accommodation is in lodges and camps, including Okonjima Camp and Desert Rhino Camp.
There are two no-single-supplement places left on May 27. From £4,695, including park fees, accommodation and all meals. Excludes flights. Steppes Travel (01285 601 050; steppestravel.co.uk).
8. Voyage through Portugal and Spain
Porto’s signature tipple might be a tempting draw but there are plenty of other reasons to visit the Portuguese city, including gilded baroque churches, bell towers and beaux-art buildings which vie for attention on the city’s riverbank hills. A seven-day Iberian River Journey starts and ends in Porto and then wends it way through northern Portugal and Spain. The tour takes in the 18th-century Mateus Manor House, a small palace which still belongs to the Counts of Vila Real; Salamanca’s medieval old city including the house of shells and the 16th-century Gothic new cathedral; and the town of Lamego, where the star attraction is the blue-and-white tiled staircase that leads to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Remedies. The trip ends with port wine tasting at Quintado Seixo.
No single supplement, departures available on July 22, July 29, August 5, August 12 and August 19, from £1,495 including full-board cruise, drinks at dinner, excursions and flights. Jules Verne (020 3733 4833; vjv.com).
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9. Town and country in Vietnam
Vietnam draws you in with its mix of captivating cities and mesmerising countryside. There’s elegant capital Hanoi, ebullient Ho Chi Minh City, historic Hoi An and spiritual Hue. Along the way, city gives way to country and terraced paddy fields, floating boats, limestone sculptures and mangrove forests steal the show. A 12-day Vietnam at a Glance itinerary takes in these sights and more. Other highlights include a cruise along Halong Bay on a traditional junk, a journey along the Mekong Delta on a wooden boat, a visit to the Cu Chi tunnels and a stop at a local community farming project outside Hoi An.
No single supplement, departures available on May 2, May 16, June 6, July 11, August 8 and September 12. From £2,190 full-board accommodation and flights. Wendy Wu (020 7953 7470; wendywutours.co.uk).
10. Marrakesh Express
Escape to a land where the sunset is a fiery orange, buildings are an earthy red and snow-capped mountains loom in the background. A 10-day Highlights of Morocco tour starts in Marrakesh before moving on to Casablanca, Rabat, Meknes and Fez, then to the Atlas Mountains and Erfoud, part of the oasis of Tafilalt on the edge of the Sahara Desert, finishing at Ouarzazate. Highlights include a road trip through the Todra Gorges into Tinerhir Oasis, with its green valley of palms and small villages, before heading to the Dodes Valley.
No single supplement, departures between April and August. From £853, including half-board accommodation and flights. Cosmos Tours (0800 668 1365; cosmostoursandcruises.co.uk).
