Have you ever considered traveling alone? I am not just talking about the actual process of traveling, the getting from A to B part, but actually holidaying solo? I have done it before, and although I was a little nervous at the thought beforehand, it turned out to be one of the best holidays I have been on!
I thought it would be a good idea to talk about this, because I have spoken to several people who found themselves in the same boat as me, i.e. friends all coupled up, no-one to go no holiday with, so facing the thought of a summer with no beach break. This was my situation, and it was certainly one that did not sit well with me. I did not want to have to forego my week or two in the sun, so I put my thinking cap on and came up with the idea of going on holiday alone, albeit somewhere I had been before to offer a bit of a safety net.
It worked wonderfully well, thus if you are reading this, nodding your head because it fits your circumstances too, I would urge you to be brave and head off somewhere warm!
The only downside to lone travel is that you will sometimes fall foul of a single supplement charge. No, it is not fair, but unfortunately it is just the way of the world. You could search for companies that avoid these charges and there are a few out there, or you could opt to save as much as possible beforehand, making your holiday more affordable overall. I found this the best option and I decided to look at all facets of my break, to identify cost lowering ideas. The most surprising one turned out to be the biggest money saver, and that was to book parking at Stansted and drive myself, rather than pay for a train or coach. I saved money and it was a much more easy-going journey to the airport too, which put me firmly in the holiday mood. Check out Airparks.co.uk for great rates, with a service at most large UK airports.
Once you have picked your holiday, booked it, and sorted out your extras, you can look forward to your break in the sun, but you still might have a few jitters about travelling on your own. Well, I am not the most confident of people but I managed it with great success and you will probably find that you will not be alone, as there will more often than not be someone else there who is also holidaying solo. It is just a case of smiling, making eye contact, and making idle chit chat with people, and you will soon find you have a person to talk to. On the other hand however, you might be quite happy to sit on your own and read a book or people watch, and that is fine too — it is your holiday.
You could also opt for a group tour and you will find plenty of companies offering these online. This is a great opportunity to meet like-minded people, as well as helping you see more of the world with a bit of a safety back up too.
However you choose to spend your time, do not let your year go by without a holiday of some kind — sometimes a bit of ‘me’ time is the best kind of relaxation out there.
