Key Points
- According to multiple studies, married women are more likely than ever to choose to travel alone.
- Younger women are also becoming interested in solo travel.
- The best of all? Many couples say it has been beneficial to their marriage.
The world of travel is witnessing a shift: More married women than ever are booking solo vacations.
According to 2024 research by online travel agency Booking.comOver 54 percent of women who responded to the survey said that they would like to travel alone. According to past studies, like one conducted by a Boston-based travel operator in 2023 Road ScholarIn a report from the same year, another Australian travel agency found that 60 percent were married women who traveled alone. In that same year, another report from Australian travel agency Flight Centre Find out women going it alone The company’s most frequent type of traveler was a business traveler.
Don’t get it wrong. Although some people choose to quiet beach vacations The following are some examples of how to use leisurely wine tastings. More and more, women are choosing bold, immersive adventures—think of destinations such as MoroccoColombia, Egypt, Cuba. These are places that could transform and challenge them.
Stacey Ray of the female-founded company, Stacey Ray Travel, said: “I think that there are several reasons. Among them, women are tired at being defined as wives, mothers, grandmothers, or career women. And they are facing the ‘if now, then when’ question.” Sisterhood Travels, says.
Many women of older generations (such a baby boomers or those from Generation X) may have felt that travel was something you did with your husband. More and more women book a flight for one.
Rays states that “40% of our clients are single women who have married partners.”[That’s] About 15 percent in the past couple of years. I believe that this demographic is going to continue to grow as other married woman share the great experiences they are having.”
Stacey Ray/Sisterhood Travels
Kelly Lewis is the founder of the boutique Travel Company DameslyMany of her customers travel because their partners can’t, or don’t wish to.
Lewis says, “Most guests who travel solo have a partner or are married but choose to do so because their partners either can’t get time off or don’t care about traveling.”
Writers and bloggers: Megan PadillaShe and her husband travel in different ways. Plus, she enjoys the freedom.
It’s amazing to me travel exactly on your terms —to choose what matters most and how you want to spend your time and money without having to bend, cave, or compromise,” Padilla says. “For example, I love lingering over a spritz at a tiny café in Rome. If I was with my husband, who doesn’t drink or eat, I would miss those moments that make a trip truly mine.
Carrie Bell from L.A. found that traveling alone during a difficult time was necessary. It was exactly what she needed.
“After my dad died, I took a solo road trip to the high desert—Joshua Tree, and Palm Springs—for work. “My husband could not travel with me, as he had no time off. I was forced to go alone,” said she. It was a very special experience. My dad used to take me camping in the desert as a youngster, so being at Joshua Tree felt like reconnecting. I spent the days walking, wailing, soaking in warm springs, watching sunrises and trying to figure how to go forward without him. The trip turned out to be a pivotal moment. “Now, I often return to the desert to escape alone. It’s where i go to reflect, remember, and recenter.”
Spending time apart is actually good—for everyone.
Women who travel alone can reconnect with themselves away from the daily demands. The goal is not to leave their spouse behind but rather to lean into independence and rest.
Bell believes that traveling by herself is part of the formula she uses to maintain a successful marriage. Bell’s husband and she benefit from time apart.
She explains, “It’s very important for me to be able to experience these things on my own to help form my identity and make me feel complete.”
Nancy Arehart, a retired photographer from the Raleigh–Durham metropolitan area of North Carolina, says that solo travel has only strengthened her marriage and was born out of necessity, as well as a love for the camera.
Stacey Ray/Sisterhood Travels
She says that at the time she and her husband were caring for my parents. It was necessary for one of them to stay home and care for them. “I decided, at the encouragement of my husband, to do a photography-focused trip with a friend. “I quickly realized that I love traveling.”
Since then, solo traveling has become a passion shared by her and her husband. Arehart and her husband have visited more than 15 countries, including Antarctica and the Galapagos Islands, Botswana and India, Africa and Brazil, Svalbard and Peru.
“We don’t need to always be next to each to keep our marriage thriving,” says she. “Even though both my parents have passed away, we still travel solo, but we also schedule a few vacations we can take together every year.”
Although older women lead the way (in the Flight Centre study the average age for a woman to travel alone was 52), younger females are also more interested in solo traveling. According to Travel Public Relations Company ASA Luxury’s Travel Trends Report 202558 percent expressed interest in travelling abroad alone. 83 percent cited social media influencers as their inspiration.
For some, however, it’s as simple as considering the experiences of the women closest to them—and wanting more for themselves.
Bell states that “My husband’s grandmother did all the right things for her generation.”[She] raised a family, kept a home, but never traveled because her husband didn’t want to. She realized after his death that she had never been anywhere other than her hometown. That conversation made me realize: I’d rather dine alone and wonder if the maître d’ pities me than miss out just because my husband can’t come.”
