I was hoping that this forum would be a good place to exchange travel tips.

It is but get out of this "Travel Tips" branch and out into the Destination Forums for more activity and to meet a wider range of posters. Only a few die-hards keep an eye on this one.

gardendiva: >>Recently I have been thinking about taking a tour to the UK.<<

Unless it is an exceptionally good tour (and most are not). I wouldn't do a group tour to the UK. They tend to be very fast paced, cater to the lowest common denominator, and are just not very good.

Places like London or Edinburgh or or York or Bath or Oxford (and a hundred other destinations) could not be easier solo. What would work though is going to the UK on your own and then hooking up with a short in-country, small group tour for a few days or even day trips. Something like these. https://www.rabbies.com/en

Hi ,,, My friend loves to travel.. and her husband does not, however she wont go alone.. so she has found a perfect group travel for her !

Its called "Niche Womens Tours" , they apparently go many interesting places.. smallish groups, and most of the women are in fact on their own .. She loves it.. would drive me batty ( I love to travel with my hubby ,kids , friends and ALONE too... !! ) but she swears by this tour company.. anyways google it up and see if it interests you.

Hi, Justine! I hadn’t encountered that company before, and I might pass it on to a few friends who are nervous about solo travel. I think it would drive me crazy too, but I like the idea, at least for some destinations. There’s an Intrepid tour (more of an experiment, I think) for an all female trip to Iran that I think would be fascinating for cultural reasons.

Independent. The idea of being herded around doesn't appeal to me.

On your second point smaller groups are always going to have a higher chance of not fitting in. A larger group you will have a higher mathematical chance of finding a match.

I realized' that I didnt address this comment -- sorry!

I am reclusive by nature, and that's different that being reticent, but FWIW, I've had some wonderful interactions with people from just about every location I've ever visited. And because many of our conversations begin with something like, "Are you here alone?" I think the fact that I am on my own could well be part of the reason! I've found that people really appreciate that I've made the journey to their country on my own. I always learn at least enough of the local language to be civil, but that's rarely been a critical factor -- the vast majority of people I've met anywhere in the world either speak enough English for us to have a bit of a conversation. And it always surprises me just how much a few words and nonverbal gestures / expressions can convey!

But again, I don't mind being alone, and even treasure the opportunity to direct every bit of my attention in the way I choose.

BTW, if you haven't seen it, you might find some useful insights in this trip report compendium:
Goin' solo...nothing like it! (A trip report collection)

I always learn Please, Thank You, Where's the bathroom, May I have my key and a few other phrases in the native language of the country I'm visiting. It's very much appreciated even if, as I often do, mangle the language.

Now with Google Translate just a phone away it very easy to communicate with speakers' of other language.

You may have hear this joke but it bears repeating:
What do you call someone who speaks several languages? Multi-lingual
What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Bi-lingual
What do you call someone who speak one language? An American.

It's true and always makes me chuckle.

So you're American then?

I'm single so traveling solo is no different than living the rest of my life.