Travelling alone often means paying for a room built for two, and that single supplement can quietly add hundreds to a holiday. New data from TravelSupermarket has now put numbers on the problem, ranking 57 popular destinations by their 'solo tax' — the premium one person pays compared with the per-person cost for a couple — and the results contain a few surprises.
Khao Lak on Thailand's Andaman coast came out cheapest of all. A seven-night holiday there averages £1,400 for a solo traveller against £1,155 per person for two sharing, a gap of just 21 per cent. Phuket isn't far behind at 23 per cent, and Pattaya and Bangkok also crack the top ten, giving Thailand four of the world's most solo-friendly spots. Bangkok and beach breaks generally suit independent travellers anyway — plenty of affordable rooms, street food, and easy transport.
Long-haul destinations dominate the good-value end of the list for a practical reason: everyone needs their own plane seat, so once a long flight is paid for, accommodation makes up a smaller slice of the total. Dubai carries a solo tax of 31 per cent, Barbados 33 per cent, Las Vegas 37 per cent and Mauritius 39 per cent. In Europe, Bulgaria's Bourgas area (31 per cent, from £777 for a week) and Athens (33 per cent, around £1,274) are the friendliest options for going solo.
The bad news? The Mediterranean's party and honeymoon islands are the worst places to travel alone. Barcelona tops the penalties chart with a brutal 84 per cent solo premium — £1,834 for a week versus £1,001 per person for a couple. Corfu (81 per cent), Ibiza (80 per cent), Zante, Kos, Malta and Rhodes all follow. Santorini is the starkest example: a solo week averages £2,037, a full £826 more than each half of a couple would pay. Hotels there are geared to twin occupancies, and solo rooms are scarce and pricey.
The figures are averages for seven-night trips departing September to November 2026, so they're a planning tool rather than a fixed price list — but the pattern is clear. If you're travelling solo this autumn, you'll stretch your money further in Southeast Asia or a long-haul city break than on a Greek island. And where resorts price strictly per room for two, look for hostels with private rooms, apartment stays, or small guesthouses, which tend to charge by the room rather than by the head. Booking flights and accommodation separately, rather than as a packaged holiday built for sharers, can also sidestep the supplement entirely.
Solo travel doesn't have to mean paying double. The trick is picking destinations — and accommodation styles — that don't assume you've brought company.
