Almost everything written about solo travel is aimed at someone in their twenties with a backpack, a hostel bunk and unlimited time.
That’s a small slice of the people actually doing it. The fastest growing group of solo travellers is over 40, and a lot of them are doing it after a divorce, after the children left, after a bereavement, or simply because they got tired of waiting for somebody else to be free.
Here’s what genuinely changes at this stage, and what doesn’t change at all.
What Changes: You Have Money and Less Time
The twenty-year-old has six weeks and no money. You probably have ten days and a functioning bank account. That inverts almost every piece of standard advice.
It means paying to skip things. Take the taxi from the airport rather than three buses. Book the flight that arrives at a civilised hour. Stay somewhere central even though it costs more, because your time is the scarce resource, not your cash.
It also means fewer, longer stops. Four cities in ten days is a young person’s itinerary. Two cities is better and you’ll actually remember them.
Pay for the good tour, not the cheap one. Small group over coach.
What Changes: Accommodation Actually Matters
At 22 you sleep anywhere. At 45 a bad mattress ruins the next day and you notice the noise from the street.
The genuinely useful discovery for a lot of people this age: hostels with private rooms. You get your own room and bathroom, plus a bar and communal kitchen downstairs where people talk to each other. Many now market themselves at all ages and are nothing like the 1990s version.
Small guesthouses and family-run B&Bs are the other sweet spot. The owner talks to you, which solves a surprising amount of the loneliness problem.
Hotels are the loneliest option at any age. Book them for convenience, not company.
▶ Watch This Before You Go
What Changes: Your Body Has Opinions
Nobody writes about this and everybody over 40 knows it.
Twelve hour travel days hurt more. Jet lag takes longer to shake. Walking 25,000 steps on cobbles has consequences the following morning that it didn’t have at 25.
What helps: build in a genuinely empty day every three or four. Book the aisle seat. Take the medication you need in your hand luggage with a copy of the prescription. Choose ground floors or lifts.
Travel insurance matters more now and gets more expensive. Declare pre-existing conditions honestly, because an undeclared one voids the whole policy at the worst possible moment.
None of this is a limitation. It’s just planning around a body you know well.
What Changes: You Know What You Like
This is the genuine advantage and it’s underrated.
At 22 you go to the famous nightclub because it’s what people do. At 45 you know you’d rather have a long lunch, a museum and be in bed by eleven, and you no longer feel you have to justify that to anyone.
Solo travel rewards knowing your own preferences more than any other kind of travel, because there’s nobody to compromise with. You’re the entire negotiating committee.
Skip the thing that everyone says is unmissable if it doesn’t appeal. That’s allowed. It was always allowed, you just believe it now.
What Changes: Meeting People Takes More Deliberate Effort
Honest bit. The social infrastructure of budget travel, hostel dorms, group tours of twenty-somethings, is built around a younger crowd, and you may not want it anyway.
What works instead: activities with a shared purpose. Cooking classes, walking tours, wine tastings, day hikes, language exchanges. You’re doing a thing together, which is much easier than making conversation for its own sake.
Bars at hotels and guesthouses in the early evening. Communal tables at food halls and markets.
And other solo travellers over 40 are absolutely everywhere. You will spot them within a day, and they’re usually as glad to talk as you are.
What Doesn’t Change: The First Evening Is Still Hard
Age gives you no immunity to this. The first night alone somewhere unfamiliar is uncomfortable for almost everyone, at 25 and at 55.
The fix is the same too. Arrive in daylight. Walk the neighbourhood for an hour. Eat something at a proper table rather than in your room.
By the second evening it’s normal. By the third you’re enjoying it. That progression is remarkably consistent.
What Doesn’t Change: The Confidence Payoff
The reason people do this at any age is the same. There’s a moment, usually around day three, where you realise you’ve handled everything yourself and it’s been fine.
For someone who has spent twenty years travelling as half of a couple or as a parent, that feeling can be genuinely significant. A lot of people describe their first solo trip after a divorce or a bereavement as the point things turned.
Nobody needs a profound reason to go on holiday alone. But if you have one, it works.
Where to Go for a First Trip at This Age
Somewhere with good infrastructure and low friction. Portugal, Spain, Italy, Japan, Scotland, New Zealand, Canada, and city breaks generally.
A small group tour of eight to twelve people is a very reasonable first move if you want a soft landing, and these skew older than you’d expect.
River cruises and rail journeys work well too, since the accommodation moves with you and there’s a built-in social structure at dinner.
Avoid, for a first trip: anywhere requiring a lot of long-distance driving alone, or anywhere with genuinely difficult logistics. Save those for trip three 🙂
Practical Things Worth Doing
Share your itinerary and location with one person at home. Not because it’s dangerous, but because it costs nothing and someone would notice.
Carry a card and some cash separately from the rest, and photograph your documents into cloud storage.
Look up single supplements before booking. Some operators waive them, some charge 60 percent, and it’s the single biggest cost difference between travelling alone and travelling as a pair.
And book the first two nights only. Beyond that, leave room to change your mind, which is the entire point of going by yourself.
Common Questions
Is it safe to travel alone over 40? Yes, and in some respects safer than at 20, because you’re less likely to be out drinking at 3am and more likely to trust your instincts.
Will I be the oldest person there? Almost never. Over-40 solo travel is one of the fastest growing segments in the industry, and it shows on the ground.
Are hostels appropriate at this age? Private rooms in hostels, absolutely. You get your own space plus somewhere to meet people, usually cheaper than a hotel.
How do I avoid the single supplement? Look for operators who waive it, ask about room-sharing options, or travel independently where it doesn’t apply at all.
Where should I go first? Somewhere easy, walkable and well connected, for five to seven days. Portugal, Italy and Japan all come up repeatedly for good reason.
