With the significant rise in the number of women travelling alone, we’ve collated some of the best options for your solo holidays this year
Single person supplements are no fun so whether you are in a relationship or not, if you want to travel solo this year, here are some organisations with ways to make that a reality. (Looking to travel as a family? Visit christianholidayguide.co.uk)
Altitude Mission
If you love skiing and you love Jesus, then Altitude Mission is the place for you. It’s about serving God in the mountains in Méribel and having a lot of fun in his playground. The company says: “A week at Altitude Mission in Méribel offers solo female travellers an accessible way to deepen their faith, connect with fellow Christians, and enjoy the camaraderie of our ‘ski and server’ community—creating lasting friendships on and off the slopes, all while exploring one of the largest ski areas in the world.
“If you’re here on Short Term Mission and staying with us at Chalet Altitude, you’ll be a Ski & Server. And, as the name suggests, that means you’re here to ski and to serve. What does serving look like? This depends on you and your gifts. It could be joining our worship team, helping wash up after dinner, or maybe lead a Bible study. Perhaps you’re a BBQ wizard and would help flip 200 burgers for our legendary Beer & Burgers evening. There are so many ways to serve, and we’ll contact you before your trip to find out where you’d like to help.”
altitudemission.com/skiandserve
Journeying
This company was founded in 1988 as Pilgrim Adventure, which led small groups of people on pilgrimage to the more remote parts of Britain and Ireland following in the footsteps of the early Celtic saints. Journeying now aims to provide inspiring holidays that enable us to venture out, leave the everyday and connect with God in creation, in each other and in ourselves. While not specific to solo guests, the company says: “Most guests are independent female travellers. There’s a sense of community and everyone’s accepted, just as they are.”
Upcoming trips include visits to Scotland, Ireland, Wales and England.
Oak Hall
Oak Hall groups travel all over the world and although again not strictly for solo travellers, the company says: “We encourage solo travellers to share with others on our holidays in general. We allocate rooms on a single-sex basis and try to room people of a similar age together. Most people find that sharing a room helps them make friends quickly on a group holiday and the vast majority of people really enjoy the experience!”
Trips include Slovenia, Iceland, Sicily, Austria, France and Israel.
Richmond Christian Holidays
Richmond offers holidays for all Christians but also allocates specific weeks with additional programmes popular with those travelling alone. While these holidays are not exclusively for solo travellers, they are a great way to meet like-minded holiday companions while enjoying a shared hobby or learning a new skill.
Trips include sailing and other activities in Samos, Greece and skiing in the French Alps.
Note from the editor: I did my ski season with Richmond and can confirm that their holidays are a great way to meet people without it feeling forced or awkward!
richmond-holidays.com/for-solo-travellers/
Gutsy Girls
Describes itself as “perfect for those travelling alone”, with group experiences that offer camaraderie and friendships that last far beyond the trip. Adventure holidays include hiking, horse riding, snowshoeing, paddleboarding and much more.
facebook.com/gutsygirlstravel/
Solo Female Travelers Club
Solo Female Travelers is a 300,000+ strong community of women with a shared passion for travel. They acknowledge that while travelling solo has its perks, sometimes it’s safer, cheaper, and far more fun, to travel with like-minded women, together.
Solo Female Travelers organises small group, women-only tours to destinations that are considered more challenging for women to travel to on their own. They focus on immersive, off-the-beaten-path experiences, from luxury expeditions to Antarctica, to fire and ice in Iceland, Gorilla trekking in Rwanda and Uganda, and immersive food experiences from a private villa in the heart of Tuscany.
tours.solofemaletravelers.club
instagram.com/solofemaletravelersclub
Join 400k other women in the private Facebook groupfacebook.com/groups/solofemaletravelers
Travelher
Founder Ashley started her travel company with the aim of connecting women who live, travel and work with purpose. She says: “The Travelher Community is a sisterhood of women connected by a love for Jesus and travel. We walk through life with a sense of wonder, adventure, and vision. We’re not boxed in by church walls or ‘mission trips’. We live the gospel and bring kingdom, whether that’s at home in the day-to-day or on an adventure halfway across the world. We lean in, listen to the Holy Spirit, and follow his direction. We travel with intention, learn, grow, sharpen, and do life together.”
Upcoming trips include Greece and Costa Rica.
Host A Sister
Host A Sister started as a Facebook Group in 2019 by Rashvinda Kaur to offer women a safe place to travel and connect with each other around the world and now it’s a community with more than 615k members.
Members are able to offer their home, ask to be hosted when they travel, find a buddy to travel with or do a house swap.
A keen traveller, founder Rashvinda loved the idea of people receiving visitors in their homes. She says: “Host A Sister is more than a group offering accommodation, it’s a safe space for women travelers to connect and inspire each other, learn about different cultures and create life-long friendships.”
facebook.com/groups/hostasister
Stay in a monastery
87 per cent of Brits believe Christmas has become over-commercialised and stressful. Why not start the new year with a change of pace by staying in a monastery or guesthouse run by a religious order? They say: “Solo women travellers outnumber solo male travellers by 67% to 37%, despite the fact 88% feel somewhat threatened travelling alone. Small wonder many are discovering the security of staying in monasteries and convents. Often, the only major restriction might be a curfew, typically between 10pm and midnight. For many the safety this offers may actually prove an attraction.” There is a wide range of monasteries offering a place to stay all over the world (including Australia, Cuba, Italy, Lithuania, Switzerland). You can follow in the footsteps of famous saints such as St Francis of Assisi. While you can simply stay in a monastery, many offer retreats and some courses such as Bible studies, calligraphy, painting and meditation.
For a full list of monasteries visit monasteries.com
Wilderness Scotland
In 2019, Wilderness Scotland introduced fully-guided, women-only trips to create a space to enjoy the great outdoors. Recognised as one of the UK’s best workplaces for women, Wilderness Scotland’s new trips have been devised specifically for women who want to adventure in the wilderness and partake in outdoor activities such as cycling, walking and kayaking.
The company says: “Whether you want to reduce competitiveness, feel confident in trying a new activity, take pride in your own abilities, avoid feeling self-conscious or simply become a part of the wilderness women’s community, these women-only trips will open up the wilderness to more women to travel the wilds of Scotland with the kind of solidarity, ease and atmosphere that you perhaps wouldn’t get in a mixed group.”
wildernessscotland.com/women-in-adventure
instagram.com/wilderness_scotland/
facebook.com/wildernessscotland
Travel hacks for solo travellers
Advice on staying safe, making friends and having the adventure of a lifetime:
projects-abroad.co.uk/blog/solo-travel-for-women/
Already booked your trip and looking for some companions along the way? Check out the solo travel forum on TripAdvisor:
tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowForum-g1-i12357-Solo_Travel.html
Fitfortravel is a free public access website providing up-to-date health information for the UK public on avoiding illness and staying healthy when travelling abroad
Official site for entry requirements and visas for all destinations including up-to-date safety and security information
Solo In Style: Women Over 50 Travelling Solo & Loving It!
Solo travel tips from fellow female travellers
absolutelylucy.com/category/solo-female-travel
emilyluxton.co.uk/solo-female-travel-tips
adventurouskate.com/solo-female-travel
Did you know?
Phocuswright, a US market research firm, reports that there was a 46% increase last year in people over 55 travelling without their significant other – and most were women. In the UK, the Association of Travel Agents reports solo travel is up from 6% of trips in 2011 to 16% in 2023. [theguardian.com/travel/2024/mar/05/solo-holidays-and-breaks-brilliant-older-women]
Please note, listing of these holidays does not indicate endorsement and we advise you to do your own checks before any potential booking
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