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Travel on your own…it’s easier with Solos Vacations

By Danielle Aihini

Tour Scandinavian cities on one of the many tours or cruises Solos has to offer. Newly single and frustrated in his efforts to find a company to cater to his needs as a lone-traveler, Malcolm Green, the founder of Solos Holidays and Solos Vacations, created a way to provide solo travelers with a wide variety of vacations to enjoy with a tour leader and others who are also making the journey alone. Ask anyone who has had to fork over the dreaded ‘single supplement’ on a tour, and they will tell you it’s tough being single and expensive too. It doesn’t have to be!

Traveling alone can be an intimidating experience — Solos Holidays is the perfect solution and an easy way to meet others in similar situations. The company added Solos Vacations earlier this year to its portfolio of vacations ranging from tours in Norway to cruises along the Panama Canal.

“We currently offer around 250 different tours with over a thousand departures overall,” said Managing Director Andrew Williams. “Quite simply, anybody traveling with Solos may be alone but will never be lonely. By traveling in one of our groups, you will begin the tour as strangers and end the tour as friends.”

According to a 2015 Visa Global Travel Intentions Survey, 24% of people traveled alone on their most recent overseas trip, up 9% since 2013. Solos Holidays is working to continue the growing trend, with new trips available for this year and next.

Plenty of Options

Tour Norway and experience the breathtaking landscapes and the rich culture for eight days this October.

If you love the medieval touch of beauty on the Tuscan countryside, join other solo travelers on an eight-day tour and visit its historic castles and villages.

Or maybe 12 days traveling through Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands past volcanoes and islands rich in native wildlife is just what you’re looking for.

A 15-day tour through Japan was recently added to the list, two weeks full of compelling and charming journeys witnessing Geisha, tea ceremonies, anime and much more. Engulf yourself in the culture of any or all of these tours and meet people you may have never met otherwise.

Solos Holidays also offers a handful of new cruises including ‘Around the World in 120 Days’ from the Caribbean, along the Panama Canal, to New Zealand and Australia and off through the Indian Ocean. Witness Egypt, Greece and the Mediterranean firsthand and open your eyes to a world you may have been blind to before.
Tour the Tuscan Trails with the Solos community.
The 7-day ‘Autumn Gardens and the Channel Islands’ cruise starting and ending in London through Amsterdam, France and Giverny, and the ‘Scandinavian Cities & Fairytales’ cruise through the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Denmark are being offered this month and next.

The company, based in Edgware, London, has offered single traveler vacations for over 30 years throughout Europe and more recently in North America. The website lists the prices and all that each trip includes from hotel accommodations to train tickets.

Prices and Services

Depending on the length of the trip and guided tours, the vacations could vary from just over $1,000 across the Tuscan Trails to $21,805 around the world in 120 days. Packages booked through Solos Holidays for travel out of the UK will include flights. Those booked through Solos Vacations out of the US do not include flights unless featured on the itinerary.

Tour guides are hand-picked and have previous experience either with Solos or personal traveling endeavors.

Solos Tour Leader Annie Apgar encourages potential travelers to take advantage of everything the company has to offer and believes there is something for everyone— even the relationships you create that will last a lifetime.

“Although you will enjoy the companionship of others in a similar position to yourself, all traveling alone, you are free to go off and do your own thing whenever you choose, bringing you the best of all worlds,” said Williams.

Williams says he likes to travel on one of the Holidays tours at least once a year. One of his favorites was the tour of Malaysia where he met wonderful people and made unforgettable memories.

Cath Cole was growing increasingly frustrated when none of her friends were available for the holiday trip she had been working to book. She knew the name Solos and decided to take a look.

Next thing she knew, Cole was in the Dominican Republic. Since then, she has been on several other Solos trips including Bletchley Park, Christmas in Northampton, Turkey and The Rewind Festival.

“Looking back, the one thing I wish I’d known was not to be so nervous the first time – and that everyone is in the same boat. It’s silly, really, because I think Solos attracts a certain kind of person, so you’re always likely to meet at least a few people who you get on with, and I’ve been lucky to meet lots of them,” said Cole.

“The best part is definitely the people you meet – even the ones you don’t stay in touch with – because they are what make the holiday.”