Meet our wonderful Tour Leader, Monica. Soon to be giving our next guests a tour around the beauty of South Africa, here’s what she had to say about the most satisfying aspect of solo travel on a recent trip to Corfu.
“The most common refrain I hear from our solos travellers while we’re away, is, ‘Why haven’t I done this before?’
I’ve spent most of this summer leading Solos holidays in Corfu where our popular host Kiki and her family run the Aronda House, just a few minutes from Dassia beach. Solos has established a great relationship with many of its hosts, who listen, make suggestions and learn guests’ likes and dislikes. Kiki is very good at accommodating individual needs and is more than happy to organise a special pillow or consider a gluten-free diet for example.
The first couple of days of our trip are important as this is when newcomers feel the most nervous. Even if the group doesn’t see me, I’m there. I treat everyone as an individual and do as much as I can with the group, including a lot of unpaid socialising! Week in, week out, I see the transformation and it’s so satisfying to watch people relaxing, letting their hair down and having fun.
Our Club Solos trips are special as it’s just the host family and our guests in the hotel. This exclusivity goes a long way when it comes to guest satisfaction. If there are 18 rooms there will be 18 sun beds and the atmosphere is more like a group of friends who are holidaying together than a typical hotelier-and-guest situation. I took a visually impaired lady on one of our Crete holidays and it gave her extra reassurance because she knew that whoever was around the pool, at the restaurant, or in the hotel lobby was part of our Solos group. Knowing that Kiki and I would be looking out for her gave her an added sense of security.
Tour Leaders on a Solos holiday must be many things but being calm and welcoming are the most important attributes. I’ve been in the job long enough to have experienced people across all age groups, too, which stands me in good stead.
Last year I took a couple of Solos groups to Costa Rica, taking in beaches on the Atlantic and Caribbean coast, some amazing wildlife and national parks and some interesting historical towns and cities. It was a busy itinerary with lots of early starts but some people in my group wanted to book all of the extras, including zip lining. I find that people of all ages are pretty adventurous!”
See where Monica is travelling to next…
ClubSolos Crete – 13 September 2022
