solo female travel – Page 3 – Deborah Ives, Solo In Style

First stop the nudist beach

August 3, 2018soloinstyle

As a solo female traveller of a certain age, you don’t want to feel invisible on holiday but on the other hand, there’s some kind of attention that you’d really rather avoid.

Some years ago I took a last minute solo trip to Croatia, Hvar to be precise, and booked myself into a very nice hotel, Hotel Podstine, for a week of sun, sea and fabulous food. It was here that I met Charlie, a sprightly octogenarian with very few teeth, a full repertoire of Frank Sinatra songs and a penchant for taking his clothes off.

That tricky second solo trip – Argentina

July 17, 2018soloinstyle

Be careful whose advice you take when selecting your solo destination

Feeling emboldened by the success of my first incredible solo trip to Borneo (you can read all about that here) I was ready to take on the world and plan my second escape. Nowhere was out of bounds or off limits – the world was my oyster! I recalled a conversation with a lovely couple that I’d met on that first trip, where I’d asked them about their favourite place in the world and they’d replied Argentina. So, Argentina it was. And reflecting on this now, I can’t actually ever recall thinking to myself that I absolutely had to see Argentina. I chose it specifically on the back of their recommendation combined, perhaps, with the fact that I was working in the wine industry at the time so thought it might be good to visit some vineyards in Mendoza. What was I thinking? Read more →

A day trip to Marathi Beach

July 3, 2018soloinstyle

Seeing more of Crete

After a few days exploring Chania, I decided that I needed to go further afield if I was to experience a little more of the authentic Crete that I was craving. I had my mind set on Marathi Beach – around 30 minutes by car from Chania and back over towards the airport. I’d heard that it was delightful and also had a great place for lunch. I was sold.

I asked one of the two young guys who manned the hotel rection desk how I could get there, not having a rental car. After much deliberation, we decided that I’d be best taking a taxi there as it might be a bit tricky to get there via public transport but I could most definitely get a bus back. I asked him to order a car to pick me up at 10.00am. This, he said, was far too early and I shouldn’t get there before noon at the earliest as it would be freezing on that side of the island first thing. I ignored his advice and arrived at Marathi Beach at 10.30am. It was a chilly 29 degrees C!

I shouldn’t get there before noon at the earliest as it would be freezing on that side of the island. I ignored his advice and arrived at 10.30am. It was a chilly 29 degrees C!

First time solo in Greece and it hit the spot

June 29, 2018soloinstyle

What did my first solo trip to Greece and Shirley Valentine have in common? Not much as it turns out!

Why is it that as soon as I mentioned I was travelling solo to Greece for a week the comments about Shirley Valentine started? For any of you who don’t know the story, (which was a film and play in the late 1980s) a fictional, mid-life Shirley heads off to Greece for a holiday and falls for the local tavern owner ending up in an, ‘unexpected discovery of herself, and the rekindling of her childhood dreams and youthful love of life‘. Actually, Shirley is 42, not 50-something, married and travels to Greece with a mate – so not many similarities to me really, except perhaps the thought that was present in the back of my mind that maybe a holiday romance wouldn’t be the worst thing to happen whilst I was there. Let me nip that in the bud right now and tell you that unfortunately, didn’t materialise, however, it didn’t stop me from having a very enjoyable week in Crete! Read more →