Single travellers
Abta Magazine
Whether unattached amid coupled-up friends and family
or just into travel experiences their loved-ones
are not, there are legions of solo travellers looking
for holidays that suit their needs.
What's more, the market shows great potential.
Singles already account for 38% of the adult population
and 45% of the population are forecast to be single
by 2031.
"The number of single households is growing,
the divorce rate is increasing and life expectancy
is longer," says Huw Williams, marketing
director of Leger Holidays, which has chosen to
target the sector in recent years.
Travel agent Diane Denney, director of Ilfracombe
based Worldchoice agency Somewhere2travel2, sees
constant demand: "In a travel agency you
have customers every week that are single. You
spend a lot of time helping them, finding low single
supplements if you can," she says.
Yet according to a report published last month
by leading market research company Mintel, the
solo market is largely untapped. Almost half of
all singles didn't take a holiday in 2008
compared to less than a third of non-singles and
only six per cent of holidays are currently taken
by solo travellers.
The single supplement is still a significant deterrent.
Recognising this, Denney set up someone2travelwith.com
five years ago in order to match solo travellers
for company and room shares. It's a concept
she says agents shouldn't be shy to recommend
having experienced similar on fam trips.
She believes that while single supplements are
understandable, they're short-sighted. "Hotels
and cruise lines, to get their prices to a rate
that attracts the public, have rates based on two
people sharing but what they don't realise
is how many (single) customers aren't going
with them," she says.
She thinks the financial crisis could prove an
unexpected turning point in attitudes with some
operators benefiting from cutting single supplements,
"They're realising it's better
to sell the holiday to one person rather than no-one…
I hope they remember afterwards how solo travellers
helped them in the recession."
Key Clients
Ramblers Worldwide Holidays marketing manager
Tony Maniscalco says the 45 per cent of the operators'
clients who travel solo do so for varied reasons:
"It may be a man or woman who hasn't
managed to meet the right person or they've
recently been divorced or sadly bereaved or they
possibly have a partner who's not necessarily
interested in active holidays or walking."
Sister brand trio Trek America and OzXposure, which
boast about 70% single travellers apiece, and Footloose,
which attracts 60%, run small group adventures.
"I'd say the main reason (our clients
travel solo) is that friends or family don't
have the time, money or interest at the same time,"
says sales director Richard Hanson who's
also recently noted the solos' ranks being
swelled by travellers who've taken voluntary
redundancy.
Mintel reports solo travel has an ABC1 male bias,
although women dominate by around 60/40 in the group-based
singles specialist market, probably due to the greater
security offered. Ramblers, which has been in existence
since just after World War Two, has noted the gradual
rise in solo female travellers. Maniscalco says:
"Even ten years ago there never would have
been that many ladies going off on their own. There's
no longer that sort of social stigma, The whole world
has changed."
Contrary to popular belief, solo travellers are
good clients to capture, says Somewhere2travel2's
Denney, with the challenge they pose a blessing
in disguise. "If you give them a good service,
they are quality repeaters," she explains,
pointing out that as they're used to getting
a raw deal, solo travellers are especially inclined
to stay loyal to operators and agents who help
them.
Key Operators
"I do feel that people who travel alone
seek out small group tours," says Trek America's
Hanson. He believes advantages include cost, safety
and convenience, particularly for tackling tricky
off-beat places but says the shared experience
is the biggest prize. "There tends to be
that encouragement to push yourself a bit more
than if you're on your own, to try horseriding
or bungee jumping or white-water rafting,"
he adds.
Africa expert Acacia Adventure Holidays is another
small group travel company that commonly sees a
solo majority on tours. Like Trek America it pairs
travellers for accommodation sharing. TransIndus,
which specialises in small group tours of Asia
and the Middle East, charges single supplements
but still attracts 15-18% solos.
While some operators use room or tent sharing to
reduce solos' costs, others have negotiated
reduced single supplements. Ramblers asks, for instance,
£38 total extra from solos on a seven-night
Italian holiday and around £30 for a week in
the UK.
Leger has run a Single Traveller programme with
solos occupying double rooms at no supplement since
2006 and says the uptake has been "phenomenal".
"There's definitely been a gap in the
market," says head of retail sales Ashley Dellow.
"When I'm at roadshows this is one of
the brochures most requested by agents." Leger
also offers up to four single rooms on 30 of its
regular tours at no extra cost.
Titan HiTours last year introduced no single supplement
on selected departures and has increased this options
in its 2009/10 Paradise Journeys brochure. Destinations
covered include the UK, Cuba, Las Vegas, China,
Malaysia and Kenya. The operator expects the level
of solos it carries to rise from the current 12
per cent as it expands its single-friendly offering.
Kuoni also offers selected Single Saver offers
which in some cases see solos paying the same price
as a twin room sharer.
Key Destinations
Mintel's report says solo travellers make
up a significantly high proportion of holidaymakers
to Scandinavia, Austria, Switzerland, Australasia,
South East Asia and Africa. Notably one in eight
long-haul holidays (one million trips) are taken
alone, compared to one in 20 holidays overall.
Denney says some long-haul countries, like Thailand,
particularly appeal to solos because their low
accommodation prices help mitigate the cost of
single supplements: "In the Far East definitely
you get some excellent rates. There are plenty
of good hotels that are not going to break the
bank." She also sees demand from solos for
Australia and New Zealand which she believes is
because they're an English-speaking "comfort
zone".
In other long-haul destinations it may be the
proliferation of single-friendly adventure tours
that appeals. Mintel notes a high proportion of
solos travellers are drawn to off-the-beaten-track
locations but book independently and suggests:
"agents who are able to develop expertise
in selling unusual experience trips and high-end
packages to solos can find this a further point
of differentiation in today's challenging
retail environment."
Leger finds its longer duration short-haul tours
most popular with single travellers because, it
says, people would find it hard to put these tours
together themselves for the same value.
As the poor availability of single rooms is often
a problem, Denney finds Spain is usually the best
short-haul bet for non-touring solo clients because
of its good volume of accommodation.
Key Activities
Mintel says that health and wellness, boating,
winter sports and special interest holidays attract
a high proportion of solos. Similarly Kuoni notes
its single travellers often opt for activities
like diving or golf.
Differing passions can cause even those in a relationship
to take some hobby-led breaks separately while singles
with or without a niche interest are attracted to
activities because of the increased opportunity for
bonding with fellow travellers.
Denney often suggests her solos book an activity-led
holiday like a sightseeing break or cooking course
in Thailand. "Unless you're really
good at being on your own, a beach holiday can
be quite challenging," she points out.
Similarly Maniscalco believes the advantage of rambling
for solos is that it's a sociable activity
where you talk as you walk.
While cruise is popular with older travellers, who
include a high proportion of solos in their ranks,
ships have not traditionally offered many single
rooms though Denney says Fred Olsen and P&O have
addressed this to some extent in recent times.
Meanwhile, cruise activities have been linked with
walking by Ramblers to target couples with differing
interests who might otherwise travel solo. Its
popular Cruise and Walk programme sees some partners
spending the day pursuing their different interests
before meeting in the evenings.
Denney warns the type of holidays solos request
shouldn't always be taken at face value.
"You get people who want to go somewhere
but haven't got the confidence to. You find
older people may book on to an escorted coach tour
but really they want to do a fantastic trek in
the Himalayas or visit someone in Australia."
Contacts
| Acacia Adventure Holidays |
020 7706 4700 |
www.acacia-africa.com |
 |
| Kuoni |
01306 747002 |
www.kuoni.co.uk/singles |
|
| Leger Holidays |
01709 833805
0845 4080769 |
http://agents.legerbookings.co.uk |
|
| Mintel |
0207 606 4533 |
www.mintel.com |
|
Ramblers Worldwide Holidays
Ramblers Countrywide Holidays |
01707 331133 |
www.ramblersholidays.co.uk
www.ramblerscountrywide.co.uk |
|
Trek America
Footloose
OzXposure |
0845 330 6095 |
www.trekamerica.co.uk
www.footloose.com
www.ozxposure.co.uk |
|
| Somewhere2travel2 |
01271 862626 |
www.somewhere2travel2.com
www.someone2travelwith.com |
|
| Titan HiTours |
0800 988 5823 |
www.titanhitours.co.uk |
| |
| TransIndus |
020 8566 3739 |
www.transindus.co.uk |
Return
to top
|
Click here
to read the article on the Abta
Website (page 59 [web page 62])
|
|
