SOLO TRAVELING MEANS PAYING THROUGH THE NOSE. OR NOT?

In today’s travel trade it is quite natural that you pay more as a solo traveler than as a couple. However, some companies virtually exploit single travelers. For instance it is a usual practice that a solo guest pays the same price for a twin room as a couple does.

There are the single supplements that sometimes make it even more expensive for an individual to stay in a room than for a couple. Cases have been recorded when a guest had to pay additional money when their partner cancelled their participation on the trip. Solo travelers may be even sometimes treated as “second class” customers. They may receive small one bed room with bad or non functioning equipment even though they pay the same money as a couple for a twin room. There is also the thing with breakfast included in price for a hotel room. If a solo traveler pays the same rate as a couple it also means that he or she pays for two breakfasts even though they receive only one.

This policy, however, seems to be unwise as the number of solo travelers rises. For example more than 40 per cent of Americans are single and nearly 35 million of them have taken a vacation by themselves in the past three years. Some responsible tour operators are reflecting this development by offering special services to solo travelers. Some hotels have special prices for solo travelers and some may have discounts for them. Naturally a wise hotelier prefers to have even a single person in a twin room than to have it empty. Some tour operators offer service called “Share Twin Programs”. The company matches one solo traveler to another of the same sex. If the operator does not find a “room mate” their customer gets a room for the same rate as if they had the “room sharer”.