Are singles singled out?

SCANNING local media I am impressed by the choice of tempting short break holidays on offer.

Up for grabs are three days in Valencia for €95 and for just €15 more for similar in Madrid. I hope we won’t hear criticisms of tour companies that offer such good value for money. 

In the UK 29 per cent of homes have only one person resident; a total of 7.6 million. Why would it be different on the Costas? I wonder if convention excludes many thousands of singles from taking advantage of these offers. Being single but not unsociable I am envious of those who, with their arm-candy, occasionally take advantage of such breaks, night outs and restaurant tête-à-tête. Try it on your own.

Of course there are many singles whose status is not necessarily by choice; widowed, divorced, plain, ugly or plain ugly; maybe known to be cantankerous on occasion. They still deserve and need company. Why can’t they be loved too?

Several years ago I missed occasional company of skirt but had no wish to change my single status. I signed up to a holidays for a singles online service. When setting out my profile I told no lies. What you see is what you get. I even used a recent photograph of myself. There are cheats (we know who you are) who are economical with the truth by using photographs taken before they put on 15 kg or 15 years earlier.

I recall one lady who, when questioned, admitted she used her daughter’s photograph; otherwise she found it difficult to get a date. With morals like that she might have made up for it in other ways; her date wasn’t interested in finding out.

The holidays for singles are a wonderful idea and gave us singles the best of both worlds. When writing out my profile I made it clear that I wanted a shared holiday, not a shared life. The dilemma was the delicate subject of sleeping arrangements. No problem for me; after a day’s touring all I want to do is sleep.

But if you book single rooms the costs soar. Anyway, the loneliness of separate rooms after a day’s togetherness seemed to go against the spirit of the venture. I couldn’t see a problem sharing a room though not necessarily the bed. Leaving hanky-panky aside it is nice to have company, someone to natter with at lights out.

We are all adults; if we can’t be trusted to stay in our own beds we can’t be trusted to share a coach seat. All I could do was run it up the flag pole and see if anyone saluted. I did and was surprised at the number of ladies who found the suggestion accommodating. One at a time I presume.

Maybe these tour operators should try a little matchmaking; it could pay dividends. It’s not a dating site we need; it is a ‘Travel Date’ solution.

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