Holiday alone ?

LegacyUser

Hi,
31 male. single, never been on holidays by myself - always with family. I dont drink or have much interest in the crazy party, sun beach "lad" type holidays. Budget say <1000, time 5-11 days, will not do hostels.

I have some money and feeling depressed at work - any idea for a decent trip to take my mind off things ( just the mudane work/home life ) ?

D'Agger

Check out AirBnB for a place to stay wherever you do decide - you'll find some lovely places for cheap.

If you use AirBnB then you could realistically just get a cheap Ryanair flight to someplace sunny and relax for the week. Malaga, Faro, South of France etc. - don't think you'd find a huge amount of boozy groups in those areas either so would make for a peaceful week.

wrmwit

I did a trip a few years ago on my own. I flew into Prague, made my to Bratislava and I flew out of Budapest. I stayed in a couple of small random towns in between. Had a fantastic trip. I stayed in hostels though. That's where the craic is and you'll meet like minded solo travellers of all ages.

If the idea of sleeping in a dorm puts you off hostels, you can sleep in single rooms and they're just as comfortable as in hotels, and much cheaper.

I wouldn't get bored if I kept moving from place to place after a two or three days.

I went solo travelling to Australia, New Zealand and The States around 15 years ago and I was rarely on my own. Had a blast.

Happy traveling.

lizzyman

wrmwit wrote: »

I did a trip a few years ago on my own. I flew into Prague, made my to Bratislava and I flew out of Budapest. I stayed in a couple of small random towns in between. Had a fantastic trip. I stayed in hostels though. That's where the craic is and you'll meet like minded solo travellers of all ages.

If the idea of sleeping in a dorm puts you off hostels, you can sleep in single rooms and they're just as comfortable as in hotels, and much cheaper.

I wouldn't get bored if I kept moving from place to place after a two or three days.

I went solo travelling to Australia, New Zealand and The States around 15 years ago and I was rarely on my own. Had a blast.

Happy traveling.

In my experience, hostels tend to charge about €40 a night per person for a single room. As they usually have double beds it will work out at about €80 a night, more or less the same as a budget hotel. I don't know why they insist on charging double.

ongarboy

I just went on my first holiday alone 2 weeks ago to Toronto, Canada! I was slightly apprehensive at first but after a couple of days I loved it. The days were never a problem as the sight seeing and excursions were grand to do solo. The first couple of nights, I felt a little "billy no mates" asking for a "table for one" in restaurants but then I went out to a few bars and got chatting with the bar staff and locals. Being from a different country tends to be ice breaker over there and North Americans are generally quite extroverted with strangers so they had no problems striking up conversations with me. I got lots of great advice on things to do off the beaten track and on my second last day, a few guys who were heading off to an island the next day went so far as to invite me to accompany them by ferry which I happily accepted once I was assured I wasn't being an imposition (and of course assured that they weren't nutters! :P). I had a great day out and it really topped off my trip and overall the holiday made me more confident to do it again. I also came home with a really positive buzz!

I still love going on hols with my partner or friends etc but as I have more of a wanderlust then them, I'm not now going to let it stop me exploring new places next year and going forward. Go for it OP!

H3llR4iser

Do it while you can. Holidays alone are an experience you won't regret - essentially, you get to do whatever you want and go wherever you feel like.

Especially if you have specific interests, which may involve places that are not necessarily on the "torism map", it's a great opportunity.

For example, in the future I plan to take a drive to Reims, France, to have a look at this:


It's what is left of the racetrack down there, formerly on the F1 World Championship calendar. The buildings now sit on a public road. Needless to say, it's not something most people would be into.

For your first trip, I would plan on just 5 days - both for a soft start, and to allow you better value for your cash. As you are not into beach/sunny resort, I would pick an EU city - Madrid, Barcelona, Berlin, London, Paris, your choice. If you go to Italy, I would recommend Florence.

You might get a good value in places in Eastern Europe - Riga, Budapest, Warsav - they are actually stunning cities. Just check for prices/deals online.

Once you're there, enjoy the sights and the architecture; Visit the museums, but also try to do the things the locals love to do: try the food, the coffee shops, the public transportation - It'll give you a better "feel" of the city than organized tours

justaskingforme123

justaskingforme123 wrote: »

Hi,
31 male. single, never been on holidays by myself - always with family. I dont drink or have much interest in the crazy party, sun beach "lad" type holidays. Budget say <1000, time 5-11 days, will not do hostels.

I have some money and feeling depressed at work - any idea for a decent trip to take my mind off things ( just the mudane work/home life ) ?

Too many to mention really - and alas your OP tells us the things you are NOT into rather than the things you ARE which does not assist in filtering down the ideas. It would be like someone - for example - saying "I do not like apples - can you suggest to me a nice restaurant?". Not a lot to go on

I would certainly suggest jumping around on LastMinute or Skyscanner. You can simply look at whats in your budget and time range and get ideas from this. Me and the girls have had some good holidays by simply going on Skyscanner - putting in a Month Date Range - origon from Dublin and destination anywhere - and then sorted the results by cost and went down the list and jumped on the first one that sounded good.

There is a few Travel Books written by authors who travelled alone and on a low to medium budget. The first book that jumps to mind was called "How low can you go" and it was - if memory serves - a guy who basically travelled every route Ryanair had to offer. Maybe reading that book will give you some muse.

Another good source or travel I have used in the past was to latch onto a band or singer that I like who were currently touring - and then follow them around on the tour. This gives SOME structure to your holiday - as you know generally what city and countries you need to be in each night of the week or two away - but a lot of flexibility too as you are not that committed to anything other than 2 hours each night at the gig. The rest of the time is yours to explore and be impulsive and spontaneous.

Other than that - as I say - you might need to be a little more specific about what you do like - rather than what you do not - to get some more specific suggestions from us.