# Holiday Alone



## Holtend82 (30 Jun 2010)

Hey there, i hope ye can help me.
Im a single guy in my late twentys looking to go on holiday somewhere on my own. Most of my friends are in long term relationships and have different circumstances to me so cannot get away. Im not looking for a booze filled holiday or anything like that, just some where realtively inexpensive to have some fun and maybe meet people in the same situation as me. Thanks very much for any help people


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## Sunny (30 Jun 2010)

Depends what you are looking for. If I was on my own, I would probably look at city breaks rather than holiday resorts. I would stay in a hostel as they tend to be good ways to meet people.


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## johnno09 (30 Jun 2010)

*Holidaying alone*

What about inter railing or the likes of New York, where theres loads to see and do and you'd have the freedom to go about it at your own pace. Id avoid lounging around type holidays too


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## DeeFox (30 Jun 2010)

How about looking for holidays based around an activity?  Maybe doing the padi course in diving.  Or learning to sail.  Etc.


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## khairabar (30 Jun 2010)

When travelling alone, you must have an itinerary, do not stay long in any one place, keep on the move with a rough idea of where you're going by trains, bus or camel! That is how you meet fellow single travellers. Always avoid big hotels, the smaller (and cheaper) the hotel, the more people you'll meet. 
I travelled on my own for 4 weeks through Syria & Lebanon earlier this year - this is the ideal kind of trip for solo travelling - fellow travellers are yipping to share their experiences of the country, the different culture, language, politics, transport, etc. and local people are dying to talk to you on every occasion they find you alone. This rarely happens when you're with someone else, and never when you're on a package or group holiday. 
As for Syria/Lebanon, can only highly recommend it as fantastic (hugely overlooked) destination, safe, exceptionally friendly, bursting with history and colour, and very cheap - you will find it hard to spend 10 euros in a day. Not a booze filled holiday - obviously there is little demand for it being predominantly muslim, and anyway too much else to see and do - but sizeable Christian minority means you can find it if you're desperate. A peaceable country (though it is strictly policed), it's as far from the American "axis of evil" crap as you can imagine.
pn.


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## Eithneangela (30 Jun 2010)

Wow! That trip sounds great - nearly wish I was alone so that I could do it!


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## PaddyBloggit (30 Jun 2010)

May be of interest to you:

[broken link removed]

(no connection)


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## Sue Ellen (30 Jun 2010)

Some previous threads on  including a key post.


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## Holtend82 (1 Jul 2010)

Thanks very much for the advice, a brother of mine travelled through the leb a few years ago and loved it too, *Khairabar* you made it sound awesome !!!


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## BOXtheFOX (1 Jul 2010)

Holtend82 said:


> Thanks very much for the advice, a brother of mine travelled through the leb a few years ago and loved it too, *Khairabar* you made it sound awesome !!!


 
First tip. Ditch the AWESOME word!


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## Holtend82 (1 Jul 2010)

*BOXtheFOX* thanks so.............much for the advice !!


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## khairabar (1 Jul 2010)

Holtend, glad to hear your brother also enjoyed Lebanon! The Qadisha Valley is one of the most glorious and holiest places on earth, and worth visiting Lebanon for that alone. However Lebanon is a deeply traumatised and highly abnormal society, surprisingly poor outside of the corrupt wealth of Beirut, precariously balanced on a knife edge of cultural & religious tension, with racism and violence only simmering just below the surface, and the apalling predicament of the Palestinians caused by Israel a dominant factor. All of which came into sharp focus on one encounter with the Hezbollah in the Bekaa - lucky to be Irish that day! The following is some remarks I made on another thread (OP asking about Damascus) - I'll cut&paste it here for you in case interested...

... Been to Syria in May this year, arriving in Damascus and travelling throughout the country for three weeks plus 1 week in Lebanon. Damascus is a fascinating city (certainly one of the oldest in the world), but less of a culture shock than other Arab capitals. Syria is not a million miles from Europe so there is as much of th familiar as the different. By far the most important (and unforgettable) thing to see in Damascus is the Ummayad Mosque which dates back to the beginnings of Islam as Damascus had become the centre of the Islamic world within just 30 years of Muhammad's death. Architecturally it is simply stunnng, but it is much more than that. The covered souk is equally unforgettable and very easy to get lost in, and every conceivable item seems to be on sale, and in such sheer abundance that it is hard to see in what sense you could call a country like Syria "poor". Probably the third "must-see" is the Iranian mosque which again is exquisite (and take care not to get trampled by the hordes of pilgrims!), but apart from some day trips by bus (eg) to the Christian sites at Seydnayya and (especially beautiful) Malaoulla, you will have absorbed all of Damascus's charm & atmosphere by about two or three days.

However, the rest of the country has much to offer, with Palymyra about a 2-3 hour bus journey and the famous Roman ruins well worth a couple of days, while I found Homs an excellen base for a few days from which to visit Hama (with the most amazing water wheels ever made) and of course Krak des Chevaliers the famous Crusaders castle, possibly the best castle in the world, and then there is Aleppo which, a bit like Cork, is probably regarded as the real capital of the country, dating back to the days of the Silk Route and Marco Polo, and according to my taxi man containing 7000 mosques! It is much more lively and colorful than Damascus (and noisy too), and again it has an exquisite Ummayad Mosque (from which my shoes were stolen - beware this is apparently common), and a famous Citadel which is in effect an ancient walled city within the city itself. There is also the Mediterranean coast, Lattakia and Tartus where there is a real sense of wealth in the air - in sharp contrast with the poverty you see accross the border in Lebanon, and the Palestinian camps wretchedly strung out along the road into shell-shocked Tripoli.

In practical terms, Damascus and Syria in general is (a) totally safe, no risk of violence or attack, but watch out for rip off on busses, taxis, and of course your shoes, (b) exceptionally friendly, with locals both muslim & Christian eager to meet you especially on the minibuses or shared taxis, and exuberantly welcoming chldren at every turn, (c) architecturally, historically & culturally probably unequalled as hardly any country has as much history as Syria, (d) sometimes slightly difficult to find a good place to eat, as tourists are few and locals eat at home, but when you do it is great - old fashioned service (sometimes like Basil Fawlty clicking for Manuel...) and great selection of tastes and flavors, (e) mostly alcohol-free, though it can be found in the Christian areas if desperate, (f) traffic bordering on chaotic, though well policed, (g) not always easy to find anyone with English or French, so some basic words of arabic would be essential, and (h) although military presence is evident, and secret police keep people in line, a million miles from the "axis of evil" stuff the yanks go on about...


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## tiger (1 Jul 2010)

Maybe not most peoples idea of a holiday, but you could consider the camino de santiago?
http://www.caminodesantiago.me.uk/
Lots do it on their own, so you get ad hoc groups forming & meet lots of people.
Definitely fits the budget category, especially if you stay in the hostels.


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## khairabar (1 Jul 2010)

The Camino is an excellent suggestion. The great thing is you can start anywhere you like and do as much or as little as you can. 

Last year I did a small part of the trail in the region of Poitiers and Chatellerault (France) which were major stopovers for pilgrims in medieval times on their way towards the Pyrenees and the crossing into Spain. These earlier stages of the Camino are quite beautiful, but rather solitary as they are less frequented, but I think that changes the closer to Santiago you get as more and more walkers join the trail towards the end.
kb


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## janet123 (2 Jul 2010)

hey, i'm single


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## eirefinq (3 Jul 2010)

keep the ideas coming people, i am in a similar situation to Holtend and need some ideas...


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## Holtend82 (5 Jul 2010)

janet123 said:


> hey, i'm single


 
Ha Ha thanks for letting me know Janet


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## StaroftheSea (6 Jul 2010)

+1 for the camino de santiago. I did it the last two years, and if you want to have an active holiday (up to 8 hours a day walking) where you will meet loads of people 

(from every corner of the world, you will become acquainted with walkers travelling at the same pace as you, and recognise them in the albergues in the evenings.....eventually your camino 'family' may cook together, chat in the evenings ,walk together etc... the place is as sociable as you want it to be, alternatively you can walk by yourself and meet different people every day...)

then the camino is the place....

Mind you it always took me a week before i started to relax and enjoy the experience....physically and mentally it's a shock to my system at the beginning...I don't think you can experience it properly if you only go for a few days....

This year is a 'holy year' so the route will be up to 4 times as busy especially as you approach Santiago, so Maybe start further back. John Briersleys 'A pilgrim's Guide to the Camino de Santiago' is a good place to start.

Beautiful countryside, steeped in history and old churches and interesting places/stories....


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## Lambchops (6 Jul 2010)

You know what I am a single girl and that holiday in the Leb would be my idea of a nightmare...5 star hotels, beach hols and cocktails all the way for me...tee hee

that said, I have a single male friend (late 30's) and he always goes to mad places on trips alone and has amazing times...he was to Leb and Syria too and RAVED about it so might be worth a visit? He is off to Belarus and Iran this year....lol...don't think hes actually ever done a package holiday!!

He goes on those hols where the tours etc are all organised for you...he's made lots of great friends from these hols too.

Hope this helps


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