Fold this topic
 

This topic doesn't get enuogh traffic for people to have a good chance of getting their questions answered.

There are many more solo travler questions asked in the regional areas and they get a lot more responses.

Fodor's go ahead and colse

Accidently hit the post button too soon.

Some people come to Fodor's for the first time, post a question here, then leave because there is little or no response.

I think it would be better to not have this area.

Keith

I agree. If this branch wasn't here people would post their solo questions by destination, like all other questions, and have a much better chance of having them answered.

This topic probably gets more views than responses. Thorn Tree has quite a few posts for those interested in finding travel companions.

Solo Traveler mean people who plan to travel alone because they want to. And in theory would exchange tips here about any special needs for traveling by yourself.

What Aqua is referring to is a match service such as Seeking A Travel Companion.

<i>Solo Traveler mean [sic] people who plan to travel alone because they want to.</i>

That's your definition, Suze. It's a perfectly valid definition but it's not the whole world of &quot;solo travel.&quot; It could, for example, refer to people who plan to travel alone because they <i>have</i> to, in the absence of an available travel companion. Or it could mean people who travel alone with the expectation of meeting travel companions and making connections (&quot;romantic&quot; or otherwise) along the way, which is the main attraction of solo travel for some people.

Maybe it would be better to rename this forum &quot;Solo and Single Travel,&quot; to perhaps accommodate a wider variety of participants. We can-- and certainly should-- complain about the way the tour and cruise industry penalizes the single/solo traveler. But changing the sanctified &quot;economics&quot; of travel will take a lot of time and hard work, and in the meantime someone who can't afford the penalty might indeed want to find a travel companion (instead of taking pot luck with the travel operator's &quot;share plan&quot;).

We all seem to have our own preconceived ideas of what &quot;solo travel&quot; actually means. Sharing them can be a good idea, and this could be a good place for it.

I believe there are far more solo travelers in the area specific topics than in this one, and that people with solo specfic questions would also have a better chance of getting a response in the other areas.

Keith

If, for example, the following question had been posted in this topic, there might have been a handful of replies: http://fodors.com/forums/threadselec...p;tid=34756843

Keith

JBH- I don't think it matters what my definition is or whether it is the correct one. Fact remains hardly anyone uses this branch on Fodor's. Scroll down and take a look at the dates and number of replies to any given post here.

While a post titled &quot;solo trip to Venice&quot; on the Europe board received 30 replies in less than 48 hours.

I was in on the creation of this topic last year in conjunction with Fodor's publication of my book of the same name.
Fodor's wanted to keep the dialogue going after the book was launched.
We are a special group of independent travelers, whether we choose to solo all or some of the time. And if we encourage even a few people to do it, and to recognize us as a rapidly growing group of travelers, the topic of solo traveler is worth it.
Even though it gets slow traffic, the good news is that threads remain on site longer here, and that isn't a bad thing. (Most of the European threads come and go too quickly to easily check.)
I know on my single lifestyle community site, www.sololady.com, I get a similar rate of messages and blogs. Maybe soloists are a bit reluctant to write. But they are reading. I can tell from my site's stats (which include many Fodorites). I imagine the number of readers of this topic on Fodor's is greater than you imagine, and steady, and that readers really appreciate the advice and experiences you offer.

The solos come to Fodors, choose this forum since it appears to be for them, get little or no help, and leave Fodors.

They would be better off going to the forums where the people with the the answers to their questions are.

Keith

&lt;Most of the European threads come and go too quickly to easily check.&gt; Lea_Lane, I would think you of all people should know how to use the search feature or find older threads you have posted to or read.

I agree with Keith, it does Fodor's a disservice to continue a branch that has so little activity.

I certainly believe Lea when she says she was in on the creation, because it was to help sell her book. But the most basic tally of number of posts and replies here quickly proves Solo Traveler of little use to anyone.

Post on the branch of your destination and you will receive tons of great information in a very short period of time.

For your info, Suze, Solo Traveler won an award as &quot;Best Travel Book of the Year&quot; from the North American Travel Writers Association. What's with your sourness toward me and my book -- and this site? It's encouraged thousands of solo travelers.
This forum was decided on by Fodors, not by me, in conjunction with the publication of the book in 2005. (I was paid up front, so it doesn't benefit me whether any copies are sold.)
For those of you who enjoy an upbeat solo lifestyle website, do check out sololady.com It has won awards too!

As a new poster, I love the idea of this topic. As a solo traveler, I don't always want to read and talk about kids activities, etc. When I first came, I was put off a bit by the lack of posts, so I started a new thread. To keep it going, I have tried to respond to posters in the thread. I also think it depends on the subject of the thread. If you're asking where to go for good food in London, you are better off posting in the Europe topic. But, if you want to know how to enjoy eating a meal alone, then this is a better place to get a quality answer.

I welcome a new poster here, toedtoes, and your trying to breath some life into this branch... but alas it's a losing proposition.

A similar post on the European board likely gets 50 replies to 1-2 you'll get here. See you around!

&lt;&lt;But, if you want to know how to enjoy eating a meal alone, then this is a better place to get a quality answer.&gt;&gt;

As you will soon find, that's simply not true. You won't get many quality answers because there are only a couple people total who read &amp; post this branch. You will get WAY more input by posting on the destination branch with a title like &quot;solo traveler in Paris, tips for eating alone&quot; or similar.

Lea_Lane... my &quot;sourness&quot; is not towards Fodors, which I love. As for using this forum to promote your book, it seemed odd is all. No one else is selling anything here.

The point to which Keith began this thread, and I agree, this branch does a disservice because people post expecting to get replies. And hardly anyone reads this branch.

And as you can notice even your own reply to mine was made THREE MONTHS after my comment! That kind of says it all imo.

Glance down the topics list on Solo Traveler and note how many have *zero* replies. That rarely happens on the destination branches.

Suze, it is going to be tough, but I do think it's a difference in types of posts. The thread I started &quot;Travel Tips Request&quot; is getting lots of good feedback and advice. A lot of that is because it's not limited to a very tight specific subject (such as &quot;solo dining in Timbuktu&quot;). Not having gone to Timbuktu, I can't answer that question, so I don't reply. But, for a question about &quot;solo traveler has an overnight layover at a airport, what should I do?&quot;, almost anyone here will have a relevant response.

Rather than drop the topic, I'd like to try and breath a bit of air into it and see if it can be saved. I do think there's a chance.

I do agree that it's a useful forum. There's no reason people can't post on more than one forum. And a thread with many many posts doesn't always equate to a worthwhile thread. Some of the other forums deteriorate way too fast. I have Fodors friends who just dread posting because of the bullies and know-it-alls. There are many invisible Fodorites. This is a &quot;safe&quot; forum.

Let's keep it that way!