Friendship holidays: hosted groups where new friends last beyond the trip

Friendship holidays, for most people searching, mean a trip where you go away on your own and come home with people you will still be ringing next year. That is what Spice Escapes sets out to do: small hosted groups of people travelling on their own, with a host who makes the introductions and days built around shared tables, so that friendships have time to form and a reason to carry on.

Perhaps the house has gone quiet. The children have their own lives, a marriage has ended, or the friends you used to holiday with now go away as couples or not at all. You are not looking for a crowd, just a few people who are glad to see you at breakfast and might want to do it all again. A holiday is one of the easiest places to find them, because everyone arrives wanting the same thing.

Why friends made on holiday tend to last

At home, making a new friend takes months of ten-minute chats after a weekly class. On a week away you share breakfasts, coach journeys, long lunches and the last drink of the evening. That is more time together than many friendships get in a season.

Our groups are around fifteen people, and some reach twenty. It is big enough that you will find two or three people you properly click with, and small enough that nobody gets lost at the far end of the table. Most people book on their own, so you are not the one person without a companion. Everyone is starting from the same place.

The host is the other half of it. Each holiday has a host who travels with the group, learns names on the first evening, suggests who might sit together and quietly draws in anyone hanging back. They make sure the easy conversations happen early, which is where friendships start. If this would be your first time going away alone, our page for first-time solo travellers explains how the first day runs, and what makes a Spice Escape different describes the host's role in more detail.

Crete, a week of evenings at the same table

If you want friendships rather than acquaintances, a full week helps, and Crete Discovery gives you 7 nights with half board throughout. That means dinner together every evening, which is where the group stops being a list of names. There are only two bases, Aghios Nikolaos and Rethymno, so you are not packing a case every morning.

One day takes the group up to the Lasithi Plateau for a home-cooked lunch at a family taverna. Both hotels have two pools and a spa, so there is quiet time too. Your host is Lauren Fawkes, departures are 5 Oct 2027 – 12 Oct 2027, prices start £1,499, and places today: 12 places left. See more of the island on our Greece holidays page.

Malta, for people who would rather talk than rush

Maltese Chillout is several nights in St Julian's, staying at Number 11, an adults-only hotel with a rooftop pool terrace. Four evening meals are included, so most nights are already arranged and you will not be wondering who to eat with. There is a ferry day over to Gozo, a day for Valletta and the Grand Harbour, and one day set aside to do nothing at all.

Your host is one of our hosts, the next departure is dates to be confirmed, from price on request, and availability is ask us. Other relaxed weeks sit under our chillout and relaxation holidays, and the island has its own page at holidays in Malta.

Norway by sea, with no airport to get through

Summertime Fjordland Cruise sails from London Tilbury and back, so there are no flights at all, and the group travels together from the first evening. It runs for 8 nights, calling at Eidfjord, Austefjorden for Bergen, Måløy and Geiranger. Full board, the spa, the pool and the hot tubs are all included in the fare.

Days at sea leave nowhere to rush to, so conversations carry on from breakfast into the evening. Your host is Pam Harte, sailing 21 Aug 2027 – 29 Aug 2027, from £1,129, with 4 places left places. Our other hosted cruises work the same way.

New Year in Puglia, so the year starts with friends

New Year can be the hardest night of all when you live alone. New Year in Puglia with WingsItaly gives you 5 nights in Salento with a group around you. It opens with a welcome aperitivo and dinner on the first evening, includes a trip into Lecce, and on New Year's Eve there is a private five-course gala with a bottle of wine each. A local celebration runs next door, and guests drift between the two.

Claire Dymond hosts, departing 28 Dec 2026 – 2 Jan 2027, from £1,139, places: 15 places left.

Prague at Christmas, a short first step

If a week feels like too much for a first try, Prague Christmas Magic is 3 nights in a central hotel, minutes from the Old Town Square market. A Spice Escapes host is with the group for all three nights and mulled wine at a market stall is an easy way to get talking. Sally Wiltshire hosts, 4 Dec 2026 – 7 Dec 2026, from £675, places: 5 places left.

After you come home: keeping the friendships going

The last evening of a good holiday usually ends with phone numbers swapped and a group chat set up before the coffee arrives. What happens next is up to you, but it helps that the next trip is easy to arrange together. Nothing stops two or three of you booking the same departure next time, and the team will happily tell you which dates suit you all.

There is a wider point too. Our article on why social travel suits people over 50 looks at why company on holiday matters more as life changes, and the over-50s solo holidays page gathers the whole programme in one place.

What going on your own costs

Every holiday carries a single supplement or a cost for having a room to yourself, and we are open about it from the start. Your room is your own to retreat to when you have had enough company for one day. Our single supplement page explains how room costs work on each kind of trip.

Questions people ask

Do people from the same trip ever travel together again?

Yes, and it is one of the nicest things that can come out of a holiday. Friends made on one trip are free to book the next one together, and the team can help you find a departure that suits everyone's diary.

What if I do not get on with anyone in the group?

With around fifteen people there is usually someone you click with, and the host makes sure you are drawn into plans. You also have your own room and free time, so you are never stuck in company you do not enjoy.

I feel lonely at home. Will a holiday really help?

A holiday will not fix everything, but a week of shared meals and easy conversation can remind you how good company feels. Many people find it gives them the confidence to say yes to more things once they are home.

Will I be the only one who came alone?

Very unlikely. Most people book on their own, so arriving without a companion is the normal way to join a Spice Escapes group.

Find the group you will want to see again

If you are ready to meet some new people, choose the holiday that fits your season and your energy, or tell us what you have in mind and we will suggest a group. Ask for Rob Thompson, who owns Spice Escapes and still hosts holidays himself. He can tell you what the first evening on each trip looks like. Contact the team by phone or email, and we will help you take the first step.