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Table for one

Solo dining is having a moment, 72% of UK consumers plan to dine solo in the next year—and travel isn’t far behind*. Make the most of your adventures with KAYAK and OpenTable’s guide to travelling and dining by yourself.

Get started

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Table for one

Solo dining is having a moment, 72% of UK consumers plan to dine solo this year—and travel isn’t far behind*. Make the most of your adventures with KAYAK and OpenTable’s guide to travelling and dining by yourself.

Get started

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The trends

Table for one, please: The solo dining trend

On OpenTable, solo dining in the UK in the past 12 months increased by 14%** compared to the previous year. Solo diners per person spend 32% more than any other diner, averaging £55***. Additionally, new consumer research from OpenTable and KAYAK found that*:

79% la-taco  

of Gen Zs and 78% of Millennials in the UK say they plan to dine solo this year.

28% bos-clam-chowder  

state “me time” as the number one reason to dine solo, followed by the freedom to dine where they want (25%).

50% must-book-restaurants 

state one of the biggest barriers to solo dining is finding a table for one.

Expert tips

Expert advice for dining and travelling alone

From the ideal seats to book to using local knowledge to fuel your trip, here are international veteran traveller Nicola Easterby aka @polkadotpassport’s tips for getting the most out of your solo adventures.

@polkadotpassport - Nicola Easterby, Travel & Food Content Creator in London

  1. Eat at the bar or chef’s counter: If you want to feel a little less awkward when dining solo, ask to be seated at the bar or chef’s counter. This provides a more interactive and social dining experience, especially if there are friendly bartenders or chefs to chat with!
  2. Make reservations in advance: When you’re travelling as a party of one, the last thing you want to do is wait in line by yourself for restaurants or attractions. If you want to save yourself the stress, make sure you plan ahead by pre-booking activities and making your restaurant reservations in advance on OpenTable.
  3. Get outside of your comfort zone: Solo travel is a perfect time to stretch yourself by trying new activities and experiences. Whether this is jumping out of a plane, dining solo at a fancy restaurant or going on a bar crawl with a group of strangers, try to do at least one thing that scares you on every solo trip you take.
  4. Find local events to attend: When planning a solo trip, take time to research local festivals, holidays, and events happening during your travel dates. Attending these events is not only a great way to immerse yourself in the local culture, it’s also a great opportunity to meet locals and other travellers.
  5. Ask locals for recommendations: If you want to uncover the best-kept secrets and hidden gems of a destination, a web search isn’t going to cut it. You’ve got to ask locals instead. Get in the habit of asking taxi drivers, tour guides or shopkeepers their favourite spots to shop, visit, eat, drink and hang out.
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@polkadotpassport - Nicola Easterby, Travel & Food Content Creator in London
  1. Eat at the bar or chef’s counter: If you want to feel a little less awkward when dining solo, ask to be seated at the bar or chef’s counter. This provides a more interactive and social dining experience, especially if there are friendly bartenders or chefs to chat with!
  2. Make reservations in advance: When you’re travelling as a party of one, the last thing you want to do is wait in line by yourself for restaurants or attractions. If you want to save yourself the stress, make sure you plan ahead by pre-booking activities and making your restaurant reservations in advance on OpenTable.
  3. Get outside of your comfort zone: Solo travel is a perfect time to stretch yourself by trying new activities and experiences. Whether this is jumping out of a plane, dining solo at a fancy restaurant or going on a bar crawl with a group of strangers, try to do at least one thing that scares you on every solo trip you take.
  4. Find local events to attend: When planning a solo trip, take time to research local festivals, holidays, and events happening during your travel dates. Attending these events is not only a great way to immerse yourself in the local culture, it’s also a great opportunity to meet locals and other travellers.
  5. Ask locals for recommendations: If you want to uncover the best-kept secrets and hidden gems of a destination, a web search isn’t going to cut it. You’ve got to ask locals instead. Get in the habit of asking taxi drivers, tour guides or shopkeepers their favourite spots to shop, visit, eat, drink and hang out.
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Top UK restaurants

 

The Top 50 Restaurants for Solo Dining in the UK

Looking for the perfect spot to dine solo? We’ve highlighted restaurants favoured by solo diners on OpenTable – compiled from verified diner reviews and dining metrics including diner ratings, percentage of bookings made in advance, five-star reviews and percentage of solo diners.

 

 

London

 

 

Aberdeen

 

Cornwall

 

Edinburgh

 

Glasgow

 

Manchester

 

Bath/Somerset

 

Newcastle and Northumberland

 

Warwickshire

 

Birmingham/West Midlands

 

West Yorkshire

 

London

Aberdeen

 

Cornwall

 

Edinburgh

 

Glasgow

 

Manchester

 

Bath/Somerset

 

Newcastle and Northumberland

 

Warwickshire

 

Birmingham/West Midlands

 

West Yorkshire

 

Top International destinations

OpenTable and KAYAK teamed up to present:

The top 5 international cities to visit + dine solo

Grab your passport and book your next trip to one of these cities that are perfect for solo travellers to explore.

In each destination, we’re also highlighting restaurants favoured by solo diners on OpenTable—culled from verified diner reviews and dining metrics including diner ratings, percentage of reservations made in advance, five-star reviews and percentage of solo diners.

We got in on the action too by highlighting five favourite spots by OpenTable’s team of on-the-ground experts. Start planning your trip on KAYAK now.

berlin

1.  Berlin

Diner picks

 

OpenTable picks

paris-v2

2.  Paris

Diner picks

 

OpenTable picks

dublin-3

3.  Dublin

Diner picks

 

OpenTable picks

dubai

4.  Dubai

Diner picks

 

OpenTable picks

sydney2-1

5.  Sydney

Diner picks

 

OpenTable picks

Your solo adventure is waiting.

Plan your next trip on KAYAK and discover new places to eat on OpenTable now.

OpenTable x KAYAK Consumer Research

  • *An online survey was conducted by PureSpectrum among 1000 UK consumers with an interest in solo travel. Within this sample, major cities have been weighed for direct comparison. The research fieldwork took place between 2 – 6 August, 2024.

 

OpenTable x KAYAK Consumer Research

  • **OpenTable looked at online seated diners for parties of 1 from 1 August, 2023 to 31 July 2024, and compared it to the corresponding period in 2023.
  • ***OpenTable looked at the average spend per guest for parties of one and overall party sizes from 1 August, 2023 to 31 July, 2024.

 

Top List Methodology

  • OpenTable’s Top Restaurants for Solo Dining is generated from OpenTable diner reviews and dining metrics from August 1, 2023 – July 31, 2024. Restaurants with a minimum threshold of diner reviews were considered and evaluated using a compilation of unique data points, including diner ratings, the percentage of five star reviews, the number of alerts set, the percentage of reservations made in advance and direct searches. Metrics were weighted to comprise an overall score. The qualified restaurants were then ranked by the percentage of solo dining.

 

For more information on how the top  international cities were selected, visit www.kayak.co.uk/c/solo/

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