Solo female tourists are a growing and highly attractive market; in fact, 14% of female travellers do so without the company of family, friends or a partner, which translates into habits, needs and expectations of specific tourist services and products. Mabrian and The Data Appeal Company-Almawave Group have analysed the demand for female solo travellers worldwide* to identify five key factors that outline the profile of this segment.
As Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing and Communication at Mabrian, explains, “women travelling alone reflect a cultural change that began to emerge before the pandemic and that has gained strength with the rise of experiential travel, in which active well-being is at the centre of preferences.” In addition, the data shows that, although most female travellers choose summer for their solo plans, the months of June and September are their favourites, “which reflects the potential of this segment during the mid-season,” says the Mabrian spokesperson.
This analysis offers a global overview of this segment, in the short and long term. To understand the pillars that build demand, Mabrian analyses consolidated data for the year 2023 for the 10 main global source markets for the female solo traveller segment. The Data Appeal Company provides current trends linked to summer demand for the main European cities, based on air reservations for flights between June and September of this year.
“The segment of solo female travellers is booming,” underlines Mirko Lalli, CEO & Founder of The Data Appeal Company. Using GDS bookings, Lalli gives as an example destinations such as Italy, which “since June 2023, has received 1.1% more solo female travellers, and this segment is expected to represent 21.7% of all tourist arrivals in Italy in the next six months.” The trend is also observed in other European capitals such as “Paris, Amsterdam or London, which also expect, in the next six months, that 30% of their visitors will be solo female travellers.”
Trend #1: Where are solo female travellers from? Europeans top the list of female solo travellers. Solo female travellers come mainly from Germany, the UK, France, the US and Italy. The top 10 markets of origin are completed by Spanish, Australian, Brazilian, Polish and Japanese women. An interesting note: more than 30% of Germans and British travellers who booked flights for a trip this summer are women travelling alone, according to The Data Appeal Company.
Trend #2: What are your favourite destinations? Three out of four female travellers choose domestic destinations. The favourite countries of solo female travellers are Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, France, the United States, Japan, Poland, Brazil and Australia. This ranking reflects the weight of domestic travel in the choices of these female travellers: in fact, 75% of female travellers from the top 10 source markets for solo female travellers choose domestic destinations, although there are notable differences depending on the country of origin.
When analysing the online reputation and perception of their favourite destinations, based on The Data Appeal Company's Sentiment Score, it can be seen that this segment tends to rate them with high scores, although slightly below the average of travellers. For example, Germany's Sentiment Score is 85 points (out of 100 possible) for the average traveller, but women travelling alone rate this destination with 81, as do Italy (87 vs. 84), Spain (85 vs. 82), the United Kingdom (85 vs. 79), and France (84 vs. 79).
As Lalli points out, “these lower scores respond to the aspects that women who travel alone prioritize when choosing a destination, because demand depends on aspects such as social perception, cultural aspects, or even the range of attractions, accommodations or experiences available that meet their needs and expectations.”
Trend #3: Safety, a relevant factor for solo female tourists. “For this segment of female travelers, cities are a very complete alternative, because they offer a varied and diverse tourist offer, with different price levels, in a cosmopolitan and open environment that they perceive as safe and recognizable,” emphasizes Carlos Cendra, from Mabrian.
In fact, as shown by the Mabrian Safety Perception Index (PSI) of the 10 favourite cities for this segment of female travellers, safety is one of the key aspects when choosing a destination. All of these capitals are perceived as safe destinations, as reflected by their particularly high PSIs, which range from 85 to 98 points out of a possible 100.
Trend #4: Who are the most adventurous? Spanish, Italian and Japanese women. Almost half of Spanish women travelling alone (48%) choose international destinations, as do 36% of Italian women and 34% of Japanese women; a trend consistent with the behaviour of bookings for the summer season to travel to Europe analysed by The Data Appeal Company: in fact, around 30% of Spanish travellers who will fly to British destinations this summer are women travelling alone, very similar to the case of Japanese women, who represent 25% of the total bookings to Italy or the United Kingdom.
In contrast, seven out of ten French and Polish women prefer destinations within their borders when travelling alone; as do 77% of British women and 85% of German, American and Australian women. Only 8% of Brazilian women travelling alone choose international destinations. “Choosing nearby destinations, both domestic and short-haul, is a way of breaking the ice for choosing other more distant or exotic places for their next trips,” says Cendra.
Trend #5: Urban destinations are the favourites among female solo travellers. Urban tourism is especially relevant among this segment of travellers. As the data shows, of the ten cities most visited by female solo travellers, nine are European cities and only Spain has two cities in this ranking: London, Paris, Tokyo, Madrid, Rome, Berlin, Warsaw, Barcelona, Lisbon and Milan.
Among the five countries most visited by solo female travellers (Germany, Italy, Spain, United Kingdom, France), the favourite destinations are well-connected cities, which are on the wish list of travellers from all over the world, and which offer a rich mix of tourist experiences, with a significant weight for cultural motivations.
* Source: Mabrian.
Mabrian, via social listening and analysis of 100 million Booking.com reviews. D/AI Destinations – The Data Appeal Company-Almawave Group, Sentiment Score (based on the digital footprint of more than 130 online sources) and flight bookings via GDS.