Friday evening, a country hotel bar, a welcome drink in your hand and a tour leader going round the room making introductions. By Saturday’s dinner dance you’ve got a table of new friends, and by Sunday breakfast you’re swapping numbers and planning the next one. That’s a singles break in a nutshell.
This is our guide to singles weekend breaks UK-wide: what they’re like, who runs them now, what they cost and how to choose one. A short break is also the easiest way for a first time solo traveller to find out whether group travel suits you before you commit to a fortnight abroad.
What happened to Discovery Weekends?
When this page was first written, it covered the Discovery Weekends run by Just You. They were two-day taster events for people thinking about their first solo holiday, held at hotels such as the Peterborough Marriott and the Thistle in St Albans. A Just You host introduced everyone on arrival. Dinner meant swapping tables between courses so you met more people. There was an excursion, a disco and a talk about the holidays, with free time in between to use the leisure club. For a lot of first timers, it was the push they needed.
They’ve gone.
When we checked its site in October 2026, there were no Discovery Weekends and no two or three-night UK breaks at all. Its shortest UK trip was New Year in York at four days from £1,399, and its UK Christmas breaks run for five days. It’s still a good choice for a first escorted tour, and our Just You review covers it in detail, but for a proper two-day break you’ll need to look elsewhere.
Christmas and New Year with company
Just You’s festive tours run in the UK and abroad. You get a room of your own and a group of fellow solo travellers to share the celebrations with.
The good news: Solos, Friendship Travel and GoSingles all still run one and two-night UK breaks for solo travellers, with sole use of a double or twin and no extra charge for travelling alone.
Singles weekend breaks UK companies run in 2026 and 2027
These are the short UK breaks we found on sale in October 2026, and prices are the “from” figures shown at the time, so check the live page before booking.
Solos: party nights, balls and city weekends
Solos has been organising trips for single travellers since 1982, and its UK Balls and Events range is built for exactly this. Every trip comes with a Solos tour leader, a twin or double room for sole use and no single supplement.
- New Year’s Eve Black Tie Ball, Northamptonshire: 31 December 2026, an overnight stay from £389 at Delta Hotels by Marriott Northampton, with a three-course gala dinner, half a bottle of wine, a disco and a midnight toast. The whole venue is exclusive to Solos guests.
- Valentine’s Dinner Dance, Warwickshire: 13 to 14 February 2027, an overnight stay from £215 at the 4-star Chesford Grange near Kenilworth, half board with a welcome drink and an evening disco.
- York city break: 5 to 8 February 2027, from £749 at Middletons, half board with a three-hour guided walking tour of the city.
There’s more on the list, from an Autumn Party Night in Leeds to a Comedy Classics Getaway in Gloucester. Read our Solos review or browse the Solos UK balls and events.
Friendship Travel: walking weekends and dinner dances
Fancy fresh air rather than a dance floor? Friendship Travel’s New Forest Walking weekend is based at the Beaulieu Inn, right next to Beaulieu Road station, about two hours by direct train from London Waterloo. You’ll get a talk from a local guide on Friday evening, a guided walk of about 10 miles on Saturday with a pub lunch stop, and a shorter walk on Sunday morning.
- Dates: Fridays 13 November 2026, 16 April, 14 May and 10 September 2027
- From: £430 for two nights, with breakfast, dinner with wine on Friday and Saturday and a local host
- Fitness: a reasonable level, and sturdy walking shoes
- Dogs: welcome for a small extra charge
It also runs a one-night November Dinner Dance in Cheltenham, from £245 half board on 7 November 2026. More in our Friendship Travel review.
GoSingles: themed weekends
GoSingles guarantees you space of your own and splits some breaks by age. Its UK weekends start from £299, and when we looked it listed a two-night Halloween Ball weekend at Thorpe Park Hotel and Spa in Leeds from 30 October, and a Twixmas weekend at the Derby Mickleover Hotel for over 50s from £269. See the latest on the GoSingles website.
UK singles weekends compared
Sort by price or length, or filter by whether a host travels with you.
| Break | Company | Where | Date | Nights | From (£) | Host or tour leader |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valentine’s Dinner Dance | Solos | Kenilworth, Warwickshire | 13 Feb 2027 | 1 | 215 | Yes |
| November Dinner Dance | Friendship Travel | Cheltenham | 7 Nov 2026 | 1 | 245 | Yes |
| Twixmas weekend (50+) | GoSingles | Derby | December 2026 | 2 | 269 | Yes |
| Halloween Ball | GoSingles | Leeds | 30 Oct 2026 | 2 | 299 | Yes |
| New Year’s Eve Ball | Solos | Northampton | 31 Dec 2026 | 1 | 389 | Yes |
| New Forest Walking | Friendship Travel | Beaulieu, Hampshire | Nov 2026 to Sep 2027 | 2 | 430 | Yes |
| York city break | Solos | York | 5 Feb 2027 | 3 | 749 | Yes |
Longer UK breaks and doing it yourself
Want more than a couple of days? Solos’ UK Breaks run a little longer and cover more ground, with a tour leader and a sociable group of solo travellers. Its current list takes in Bristol and Bath, Agatha Christie’s Devon, Bournemouth and Beaulieu, Belfast and the Classic Cotswolds, plus a walking trip in the Quantock Hills on the Somerset coast. It’s an easy way to see the scenery, the history and the food of a region with like-minded company. Better still, there’s no flight to catch.
Just You’s UK range is mostly festive this season, with Christmas in Bath, Chester, Harrogate and Oxford, and its no-fly holidays include a Paris weekend that pairs Monet’s Garden at Giverny with an optional visit to Versailles.
Happy to plan your own? Pick a compact city where the museums, the castle or cathedral and a few good restaurants are all within a short stroll of your hotel, so you’re never stuck for something to do. York, Bath and Brighton work well by train from London, and a coastal town in Cornwall or Devon gives you a beach, a stretch of coast path, some local history and a pub supper, with open countryside a short drive away. Eat at the bar rather than a table for one, and you’ll often meet someone to chat to.
Why start with a weekend?
A short break is the gentle way in for any solo traveller, and it builds confidence fast. You’re never more than a couple of hours from home, you only need a Friday off at most, and if group travel turns out not to be your thing you’ve lost a weekend rather than a week’s holiday. Most guests find the opposite, though, and book a bigger solo holiday on the way home!
It’s cheaper, too.
Most of the breaks above cost less than £450 including accommodation, dinners and entertainment, and you’ll usually make your own way there by car or train, so there are no flights to pay for. Our guide to singles holidays is the next step once you’re ready for solo travel abroad, from beach weeks to escorted tours.
Ready for a short break abroad?
Just You’s short breaks go further afield, from New York to Iceland. Each one comes with a Holiday Director, and you always get a room of your own.
How to choose the right weekend
Think about what kind of break you’d enjoy, and what each one has on offer. A black tie ball suits someone who loves dressing up and dancing, a walking weekend suits someone who’d rather chat on a forest trail, and a city break gives you a guided tour with a group dinner at the end of the day. Age matters as well, so ask for the usual age range on your date before you book.
- Something smart for the dinner dance (black tie for a ball)
- Comfortable shoes for dancing or a city walk
- Walking boots and waterproofs for a walking weekend
- Swimwear if the hotel has a pool or spa
- Train tickets or parking details
- A few questions to break the ice: where have you travelled, where next?
- The organiser’s contact number and the tour leader’s name
- Cash or a card for the bar (some hotels are card only)
Singles weekends: your questions answered
Are singles weekends for dating?
Not really. The solo travel companies describe them as sociable breaks for making friends, and most guests come to meet people and enjoy good company.
Will I have to share?
No. Every break in this guide includes a double or twin for sole use, with no single supplement.
How do I get there?
Most UK weekends are make your own way. The Beaulieu Inn is next to Beaulieu Road station, and Solos gives rail and parking details on its trip pages.
What’s the cheapest singles weekend?
Of those we checked, Solos’ Valentine’s Dinner Dance in Warwickshire started from £215 half board, in February 2027.
Does Just You still run Discovery Weekends?
Not that we could find. In October 2026 its shortest UK trip was four days, with none listed.
What if I’m nervous about going alone?
That’s normal. Everyone at the welcome drink is in the same position, and the tour leader’s job is to introduce people, so you won’t be left on your own.
Book your first weekend
A singles weekend is the easiest way to try travelling solo, and with balls, walks and city breaks running from November 2026 into 2027, there’s plenty to choose from. Spaces are limited and some sell out, so pick a date and book. If the Christmas season’s on your mind, our guide to Christmas holidays for singles has festive breaks too, and Holiday Alone has ideas for travelling on your own all year round.
