Many people planning to take a trip of a lifetime are being held back by reluctant partners, according to a survey into solo travel commissioned by the adventure travel expert Explore.
It points out that 42% of travellers have experienced challenges with partners when choosing where and how to holiday. The biggest relationship disagreements when planning a trip is over the activities that one wishes to pursue on holiday (16%) and, crucially, where to travel to (13%). Many admitted to being held back from taking the trip of a lifetime by a reluctant partner. But more than half (59%) of those refuse to let that stop them, and would consider travelling alone or have already taken a solo holiday.
The top experiences solo travellers would most like to tick off their bucket list include getting up close with wildlife on the Galapagos Islands (20%), spotting penguins on an Antarctic cruise (19%) and seeing the Big Five on safari in Africa (18%).
On small group tours, 64% of explorers are travelling solo, 60% of these are women. The most popular trips for solo travellers are walking and trekking holidays, while the most popular destinations are Italy, India, Spain and Morocco.
Explore is offering solo supplements and has a policy never to charge single supplements for anyone that?s happy to share a room with someone of the same sex.
The holiday operator launched its biggest ever solo travel offer where travellers can have their own room at no extra cost and save up to ?500 on single room options on more than 90 trips when booked between February 5 and March 4.
The trips currently on offer are:
Buddha?s Island: A two-week trip to Sri Lanka starting from ?2,280 per person (book a single room and save up to ?450 on the single room option).
Peru Encompassed: A 13-day trip to Peru starting from ?2,679 per person (book a single room and save up to ?500 on the single room option).
Highlights of Nubia: This scenic journey travels through the Nile Valley, from where the White and Blue Nile merge ? Al-Morgan, into the Nubian Desert. The trip is priced from ?3,470 per person (book a single room and save up to ?500 on the single room option).
All three trips include return flights, internal transfers, nine-nights accommodation, breakfast and an Explore leader.
Please visit www.explore.co.uk/gosolo to find out more.
