Why we keep a hand-checked list
Most booking sites let you filter by price, location and amenities. What they cannot tell you is how a place feels when you arrive on your own: whether you will be the only guest in an empty bar, whether there is a corner to read in, or whether a table for one is normal at dinner. Those are the things that make or break a solo trip, so they are what we look for.
Rather than show you hundreds of options, we keep one list of independent, characterful stays across England and Wales, and use it for both our guides and our quiz. Smaller and better checked, rather than bigger and vaguer.
The four things we score
Every stay on our list is looked at in the same four ways. Together they describe how a place will feel when you are there on your own.
Anonymity
Can you come and go without fuss? Some people want to slip in and out unnoticed; others love being greeted by name. We look at how a place handles guests on their own: whether there are lounges and corners to sit in, whether you can arrive and leave without a fuss, and how big and busy it feels. The quiz uses this to match you with somewhere that fits how much attention you want.
Polish
Is the room worth staying in? This is not about luxury. A simple hut can score well if it is warm, clean and cared for, and a grand hotel can score badly if the rooms are tired. We look at comfort, care and character, and whether the room is somewhere you would happily spend an evening.
Remoteness
How far from everyday life does it feel? From a hotel in the middle of a city to a cabin at the end of a track, remoteness changes the whole trip. We note how far a stay is from towns, shops and stations, how easy it is to reach, and how quiet it feels.
Eating alone
Is a table for one normal here? Meals can make or break a solo trip. We look at whether there is a restaurant or bar where one feels welcome, whether there is room service, and whether there are good places to eat within a short walk. This is one of the things that is hard to judge from a website, so it is one of the parts a person checks.
What our badges mean
Each stay in our guides carries one of three badges, so you can see how far our checks have got. We never show Reviewed on a stay a person has not checked.
- Hand-Picked: A stay we have personally vetted, or spoken to directly.
- Reviewed: A stay a person on our team has checked against all four criteria and approved.
- On our list: A stay we have researched and scored, still waiting to be checked by a person.
How stays are checked by hand
Every stay goes through the same steps before a person signs it off. Some parts, such as how welcoming a place is to someone eating alone, are hard to judge from a website, so those are the parts a person always looks at.
- ResearchWe read the stay’s own website, look at its photos and read what solo guests say in reviews.
- ScoreWe score it on the four criteria and note anything we could not confirm.
- A question for the reviewerEach stay gets one specific question, so the check focuses on what matters.
- Checked by a personBeth or Arek review the stay and agree, change or reject the scores.
- DatedEach checked stay records when it was last checked, so details do not go stale.
How we make money
SoloSloth is free to use. Some links on our site earn us a small commission from the booking site or the stay when you book. It never changes which stays we pick or what you pay.
Some links earn us a small commission. It never changes which stays we pick or what you pay.
Questions people ask
Which places do you cover?
Our guides and stays currently cover England and Wales.
Do stays pay to be included?
Commission never changes which stays we pick. A stay is on our list because it suits people travelling alone.
Can I suggest a stay?
Yes. Email hello@solosloth.com with the name and why you liked it, and we will look at it the same way as every other stay.
Why do guide pages show price bands, not prices?
Prices change with the date, the room and the season. A band gives you a fair idea of cost, and live prices are shown on our booking pages where we have them.
How often are stays checked?
Each checked stay records the date it was last checked, so details do not quietly go out of date. If you notice something has changed, please tell us.
What does On our list mean?
We have researched and scored the stay, but a person has not checked it yet. It may still be a great fit, and the badge tells you how far our checks have got.