SOLO TOURS SURGE Solo
Solo touring is on the rise, so how can you tap into this sector? Katie McGonagle reports
W
ould any business want to ignore a sizeable segment
of its potential customer base? If the answer is no, then it’s time to tap into the solo touring market because this lucrative demographic makes up a significant proportion of sales – sometimes more than half of customers, according to some of the most popular touring brands – so it’s worth getting on top of the needs of solo travellers and the opportunities this segment presents. Solo travellers make up more than a quarter of Cox & Kings’ group tour clients, particularly on specialist-led tours where a shared interest and the guide’s expertise draw travellers together. Newmarket Holidays has seen a 40% rise in solo travel over the past year, having introduced no single
Best-selling destinations
The top sellers for solo
travellers from a cross-section of brands include:
- Canada - Central Asia - Costa Rica - Croatia - India - Ireland - Italy - Japan - Kenya
- Peru - Portugal - Scandinavia - Spain - Sri Lanka - Turkey - UK - US - Vietnam
travelweekly.co.uk
supplements on more than 40 of its tours and added an Exclusively Solos range in May 2023. Likewise, Jules Verne has seen sustained growth in its solo travel business, accounting for 42% of all bookings in 2024 – up from 36% in 2019 – with three-quarters of these travellers over 60 years old. A third of the solo travellers booking with Jules Verne since February 2025 have also been new customers – highlighting the opportunity to grow your touring business by bringing in new clients.
Why go solo? There are plenty of benefits of travelling solo while being part of a group. Guests get the advice and expertise of a local guide, the camaraderie of fellow travellers to share funny or meaningful moments with and the safety net of being part of a group – often a concern for female travellers, first-time solos or
Visiting the Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, Japan
experienced adventurers heading to a more remote destination. It can be cheaper too – solo
travellers can benefit from the buying power of a bigger group and cut the cost of single supplements by choosing to room with another guest or getting access to sole-occupancy rooms at a discounted rate.
Who travels solo? Women make up the majority of solo travellers. Insight Vacations says 80% of its solo travellers are female, compared with 55% across its wider portfolio, with an average age of 66. That’s a fairly typical picture for classic touring brands. They have a high repeat rate, too, with many solos latching on to a style of travel and group size that suits them, then coming back time and again. Colum McLornan, director of solo-
only brand Friendship Travel, says: “We’ve seen a significant rise in the
solo travel segment in recent years, with 64% of our solo travellers being women. This demographic spans a wide range of ages, but a growing portion of our customers are women aged 50-plus. Many of them are not single but seeking new experiences independent of their usual family or partner trips. Over 60% of our solo travellers are repeat customers, and we’ve noticed a 15% year-on-year increase in first-time solo travellers, many drawn by the combination of adventure, safety and community.” Solo tours range from remote
adventures where travellers want the reassurance of a guide, through to quieter thrills closer to home. Grand UK Holidays’ sales and marketing manager Kirsty Laifa says: “Solo travel continues to gain momentum. [They] make up a substantial portion of Grand UK Holidays’ customer base, with around 40%-45% of guests throughout the year.”
Solo touring in numbers 24% 81%of travellers on
of Incredible Journeys bookings are for solo tours, a 23% year-on-year increase
35%
of Insight Vacations’ solo travellers visit the US, with Canada and India in second and third place
Newmarket Holidays’ Exclusively Solo tours are women
13%
of The Aurora Zone bookings from
Sep 2024-Mar 2025 were solo travellers, up from 6%
50% of Intrepid Travel
the previous year More than
customers go solo 3 APRIL 2025 31
Tours bring travellers together
PICTURES: Shutterstock/Xavier Lorenzo; Intrepid Travel/Ryan Bolton
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