Traveling solo: Three trips to take from Long Island
Norwegian Cruise Lines expands solo travel options, eliminating the single traveler penalty. Credit: Norwegian Cruise Lines
Millennials and Gen Z love to travel, and they’re doing it a little bit differently than past generations. According to a recent study by American Express Travel more than three-quarters of respondents reported they were planning a solo trip, with 60% of those travelers saying they were planning two or more trips alone. Another study in 2025 by United Airlines found similar results for Baby Boomers, with 57% of the generation willing to travel solo.
Rafat Ali, the founder of Skift, a news site dedicated to the global travel sector said that, post-pandemic, the number of solo travelers in the U.S. has more than doubled, according to the company’s data. “But here’s the twist: many of them aren’t really solo. They’re in relationships. They’re married. They’re part of families. They’re just traveling … alone. Because their partners don’t share the same travel rhythm, or because they simply need a break from the day-to-day,” he posted on LinkedIn.
There are good reasons for going it alone, said Nadine Paulo, CEO of Westport, Massachusetts-based The Solo Travel Collection, a company that runs female-only solo tours. “There’s an increased awareness of what’s possible in the world thanks to social media,” Paulo said.
“The reasons people travel solo tend to vary quite a bit, but many of them are going through some type of life transition -- whether that be that they're recently widowed or divorced or having a career change or their kids are finally at an age where they feel like they can depart home with confidence. Travelers are looking to rediscover themselves or discover new parts of themselves for the first time."
Solo trips take many forms. Some people opt for organized tours or destinations such as spas, camps or resorts. Others create their own itineraries and venture out visiting a location or city they’ve always been drawn to, Paulo said.
From a logistics standpoint, traveling alone isn’t much different than traveling with someone else or a group. However, there are some safety considerations to keep in mind. Mona Bhandari, a hospice nurse from New Hyde Park, who travels frequently with friends and family, has taken solo trips to Nepal, England and France. Bhandari , who is a single mom, travels alone because she likes to be on her own schedule. “I want to go when I want to go and where I want to go. And as a photographer, if I see something interesting I want to take my time and take the photos. I need to immerse myself in what I am doing and explore while I’m away. I don’t want to follow someone else’s itinerary.”
Ready to make your own solo memories? Here are options that let you ease your way in.
Camp No Counselors
3287 Hancock Hwy., Equinunk, Pennsylvania
Next session: Sept. 4-7
Summer camp is one of the first solo trips that many people make, getting on a bus and meeting hundreds of strangers. Camp No Counselors replicates the feeling and the experience throughout the year. The camp closest to New York is held in Equinunk, Pennsylvania, a small town right across the New York-Pennsylvania border.
Camp attendees are just as likely to come solo than as part of a group, Boo Fox, the camp’s director explains. Once they arrive, they are instantly dropped into a stereotypical summer camp experience complete with water sports, games and a camp Olympics. Participants range in age from 21 to those in their 70s. The sweet spot is the 30- to 40-year-old crowd, although age doesn’t seem to matter to attendees, Fox said. “We’ve worked to create a community here. Truthfully, some people want to come back to engage in the nostalgic times of being outdoors and making friends with strangers and we find that after people leave here, they do remain friends.”
Activities range from dance parties, sporting events, ropes courses, pottery classes, hiking and, since it’s an adults-only camp, mixology classes. The cost for the three night, four-day stay starts at $949 and includes all meals and activities.
MORE INFO 570-647-4242, campnocounselors.com
Charleston, South Carolina
Folly Beach Pier during sunrise in Charleston, South Carolina. Credit: Getty Images/Anna Moneymaker
Journalist Sarah Michelle Sherman recently took a solo trip – something she called a why-cation – to Charleston, South Carolina. Her trip was a respite from her life and a way to figure out what she wanted to do next. Sherman spent a lot of time alone, getting a massage, watching Netflix in her big bed and walking along King Street, the city’s thoroughfare that features shops and restaurants.
Charleston is a good option for a solo trip because it is a very walkable. Plus, the weather is usually good, although like most southern cities, it can get hot and humid in the summertime. Getting to Charleston is fast and typically inexpensive on Breeze Airlines. Leave from MacArthur Airport in Ronkonkoma for as little as $89 and arrive about two hours later in what locals call the "Holy City" thanks to the numerous church steeples that once filled the skyline.
Accommodations range from big chain hotels like Wingate by Wyndham Charleston Coliseum (4701 Saul White Blvd., 843-554-7154, wyndhamhotels.com) to the quaint 20 South Battery (20 S. Battery St., 843-727-3100, 20southbattery.com) bed and breakfast to independent offerings like 86 Cannon (86 Cannon St., 843-779-7700, 86cannon.com). The big draw for Charleston is the historic architecture such as antebellum homes and plantations. For instance, there are fun photo ops on Rainbow Row (79-107 E. Bay St., rainbowrowcharlestonsc.com), a street featuring 14 colorful historic row houses.
A tour group with the Old South Carriage Company rides past a church. Credit: Getty Images/Anna Moneymaker
If you want someone to do the planning for you, consider buying a Tour Pass (tourpass.com), which is as little as $57.40 a day, depending on how long you’ll be in the city. Each pass gives you access to up to 40 tours including plantation tours, the Charleston Harbor Tour and Haunted Carriage Tours.
The 20 South Battery hotel in Charleston, South Carolina. Credit: 20 South Battery
Shopping at City Market is another popular option. Located in the city’s French Quarter, City Market is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. (188 Meeting St., 843-937-0920, thecharlestoncitymarket.com). There, you’ll find things to eat (try the Peninsula Grill’s 12-layer Ultimate Coconut Cake), places to shop and things to do. If you stick around for dinner you can take in acoustic music at the Charleston City Night Market (open Fridays and Saturdays from 6:30 to 10:30 p.m.). It features local artists and craftspeople.
MORE INFO charleston-sc.gov
Solo cruises on Norwegian Cruise Lines
7-day Bermuda round-trip from Manhattan Cruise Terminal; 711 12th Ave.
Cruising is a popular all-inclusive vacation offering. You get on a ship and everything -- accommodations, food and entertainment – is there for the taking. It’s one of the reasons social media is filled with images of group and family cruising.
The Norwegian Aqua from Norwegian Cruise Lines, in Miami. Credit: Norwegian Cruise Lines
Historically, stateroom pricing is based on double occupancy. If you wanted to cruise alone you had to pay double in some cases, making it expensive. Norwegian Cruise Lines is out to change that. The company started offering solo travel in 2010, but amped up its offerings in 2023. Now, the option is gaining in popularity, the company has doubled down on the trend and removed what some people called the single traveler penalty, according to a company spokesperson.
The cruise line is also making it more comfortable to travel solo by opening opportunities to connect with other solo travelers. For example, Studio lounges, which are open 24/7, give solo passengers a place where they can meet and engage with each other, as well as enjoy complementary light refreshments. Norwegian offers onboard programming opportunities for solo guests to get to know one another through coordinated activities as well.
Boats and yachts sit in the water as houses dot the hillside along Hamilton Harbour in Hamilton, Bermuda. Credit: Getty Images/Drew Angerer
The Norwegian Aqua sails monthly from New York to Bermuda with prices starting at $1,379, depending on the stateroom you choose. There are also solo offerings on ships leaving out of Miami, Seattle, Orlando andVenice, Italy. Aside from the Studio lounges, independent travelers can participate in all the fun experiences on the ships including dance parties, casinos, spa services and interactive events such as game shows and entertainment. There are budget offerings including four-day Miami to Bahamas trip. Fly Southwest out of MacArthur directly to Miami for around $335 round trip. The cruise itself starts at $399 including all taxes and fees.
MORE INFO ncl.com
Safety tips and planning ahead
Safety is important whether you’re traveling with someone or alone. Always leave an itinerary with friends or family that includes locations and phone numbers of where you’re staying and where you’ll be visiting. Sharing your location via Apple’s Find My Friends or Life360 is a great option since it lets people keep track of you without the need to have to check in often. Make sure that you have emergency contact information and things like ID, medical insurance cards and extra credit cards on you at all times. “I don’t carry my passport or cash anywhere that’s visible,” said Bhandari. “It’s usually in a bag covered by a t-shirt or jacket.”
Most importantly, Paulo said, is doing enough trip planning before you go. While going on a trip without a destination in mind might sound like a good idea, it can turn negative quickly, she said. “Travelers feel like they can just wing it, and in some cases they can, but in the most successful solo stories out there, the research is done before you go,” she said. She suggests looking for hotels, destinations, and events that are experienced and well-known so that you know it will provide quality, value, and safety.
As Skift’s Ali said, “What we’re seeing is the foundation of a new era of travel: deeply personal, emotionally resonant and stripped of the old expectations.”
