Holidays for single retired people: travel in term time, with a host and a group

The best holidays for single retired people are the ones that use the thing you finally have, which is time, and give you company to share it with. Spice Escapes runs small hosted group holidays where most people book on their own, so you can go in the quiet weeks of term time, away from the school-holiday crowds, without first finding a friend who is free on a Tuesday.

That is the snag nobody warns you about. The diary is suddenly empty, but the people you would travel with are still working, busy with grandchildren, or not the travelling sort. So the trips you planned for retirement sit on a list, waiting for someone else to say yes.

Retired, free midweek, and nobody to go with

Spice Escapes is a UK tour operator that puts together mixed hosted groups of people travelling on their own. Groups are around fifteen people, and some reach twenty. A host travels with every group, gets everyone talking on the first evening and makes sure there is always a table to sit at. You are not joining a couple's holiday as the spare one, because nearly everyone around you arrived on their own too.

Being retired changes what makes a good holiday. Here is what tends to matter at this stage:

• Going when it is quiet. Several of the holidays below leave in the autumn or in late spring, when the families are back at school and the queues have shrunk.
• Something to get your teeth into. A painting course, a week of Greek history, a river most people never see. Retirement is a good moment to learn something for the pleasure of it.
• Company without obligation. Dinner with the group most nights, and an afternoon on your own whenever you want one.
• Knowing the cost of a room to yourself. Every holiday has a supplement or a sole-occupancy price, and our single supplement page sets out how it works, so the figure you see is the figure you pay.

If you have never been on a group trip before, our page for first-time solo travellers covers booking, the flight and that first evening, and what makes a Spice Escape different explains how the host works.

A slow week in Crete, out of season

Crete Discovery is 7 nights in two bases only: three nights in Aghios Nikolaos, then four in Rethymno. Half board runs throughout, both hotels have two pools and a spa, and the touring days take in the Palace of Knossos, the Venetian harbours and a home-cooked lunch at a family taverna up on the Lasithi Plateau. It goes in the autumn, when the summer heat has eased.

The holiday is run on the ground by Living Crete, with Spice Escapes acting as agent, and a local tour manager meets you on arrival. Your Spice host is Lauren Fawkes. Dates: 5 Oct 2027 – 12 Oct 2027. From £1,499. Places: 12 places left. More Greek holidays sit under Greece.

Lake Como, at your own pace

Lake Como Discovery gives you several nights in Como itself, ten minutes' walk from the historic centre. Ferries run to Bellagio, Varenna and Menaggio whenever you fancy a day out, and the funicular climbs to Brunate for the view over the water. The hotel has a rooftop pool terrace.

Your host, one of our hosts, gathers everyone over breakfast to plan the day, and the group meets again in the hotel bar before dinner to swap stories. Dates: dates to be confirmed. From price on request. Places: ask us. Our Italy page has the rest of the Italian programme.

The long trip you never had the leave for

Working life rarely allowed this much time away. India: Kolkata and the Lower Ganges River Cruise is several nights, two of them moored in Kolkata and seven cruising the Hooghly on the RV Kalaw Pandaw, a boutique river boat with just 18 staterooms. It is a Spice Escapes charter with WingsItaly, with an all-inclusive drinks package on board.

Days bring a rickshaw ride at Kalna to a Shiva temple ringed by 108 shrines, and a private visit to Raj Bhavan arranged for Spice Escapes guests only. Your host is one of our hosts. Dates: dates to be confirmed. From price on request. Places: ask us. See all our cruises.

Pick up a brush in northern Spain

Plenty of people promise to paint once they stop working. The Spanish Drawing and Painting Break with Tuition is 7 nights with Dale Scott, an experienced teacher who works with every level, including complete beginners. Sketch pads and a canvas are provided, and the days move between seascapes at Comillas, the bridge at Barcena Mayor and still life at home.

Home is Agara, a twelve-bedroom house rather than a hotel, with local wine, beer and spirits to help yourself to and a very friendly resident dog. Be aware that only three rooms have their own bathroom, and those carry a supplement. Dates: 25 Apr 2027 – 2 May 2027. From £929. Places: 9 places left. For more on the area, read the charms of Green Spain and Cantabria, or browse culture and discovery holidays.

Ypres by train, for a family story

Many people reach retirement with a grandfather's name on a memorial and a wish to stand where he stood. World War I: A Journey of Memory and Meaning is 3 nights in Ypres, and you travel by Eurostar from St Pancras, so there is no airport and no flight. A local guide takes the group to Tyne Cot and the trenches at Sanctuary Wood, and the Last Post sounds at the Menin Gate each evening, minutes from the family-run hotel.

Going with a small group means there is someone to talk to afterwards. Your host is Claire Dymond. Dates: 8 Apr 2027 – 11 Apr 2027. From £1,019. Places: 14 places left. Shorter trips like this one are listed under short breaks.

What the group gives you that a coach tour does not

With around fifteen people and a host whose job is to bring everyone together, names stick by the second day, and friendships often carry on into the next booking. You can read more about why sociable travel appeals at this stage in five reasons social travel is growing, and see the wider programme on our over 50s solo holidays page.

Questions people ask

Can I go away during term time to avoid families and higher prices?

Yes, and many of our holidays already fall outside the school holidays, particularly in the autumn and late spring. Tell us which weeks you are free and the team will point you to the departures that fit.

Will I be the only person in the group who is retired?

Our groups are mixed, and we do not sort them by age or by whether people still work. The host makes sure conversation starts on the first night.

Do I have to pay extra because I am travelling alone?

A room to yourself carries a single supplement or a sole-occupancy price, and we always show it before you book. Our single supplement page explains how the cost is worked out on each holiday.

How much walking is involved?

It varies, and each holiday page describes the days. If you have a knee, a hip or a pace to think about, call us first and we will say honestly which trips suit you.

Is the host a guide who stays with us all day?

The host travels with the group, arranges meet-ups and makes introductions, but you are free to wander off on your own. On some holidays a local guide or tour manager leads the sightseeing days as well.

Put the first date in the empty diary

Retirement gives you the weeks. The hardest step is choosing one without waiting for anyone else. Tell us roughly when you are free and what you enjoy, and we will suggest the group that suits.

Get in touch through our contact page and ask for Rob Thompson, who owns Spice Escapes and hosts holidays himself. He will tell you plainly what a week with the group is like, so you go knowing at least one name.