What Do You Do at Night When Traveling Alone? 13 Great Options

It’s easy to fill your days on a solo trip–in fact, the challenge can be how to fit in everything you want to see and do–but it can be more difficult to figure out what to do at night when traveling alone.

During the day, being alone is not unusual. But at night, it seems that everyone, travelers and locals, is going out with friends and having a good time.

When you’re in an unfamiliar destination, it can sometimes feel less comfortable after dark.

Fortunately, solo travelers do not have to be left out of nighttime fun. There are many options and Tracey and I have both spent many great evenings out alone in numerous destinations.

13 Things You Can Do at Night when Traveling Alone

1. The right accommodation provides night entertainment for solo travelers.

I often stay at hostels or small hotels. I look for accommodation that is social and this usually doesn’t mean large hotels. The social nature of B&Bs, hostels, and boutique hotels often presents opportunities for entertaining evenings.

• In Paris, I stayed at St. Christopher’s Inn Canal. This hostel, like many others, makes sure that they have an entertaining evening a few times each week. Whether it’s music, trivia, or simply sitting in the hostel’s cafe/bar amongst other travelers, a hostel is a natural place for a great evening.
• In India, I rarely went out at night. I usually had dinner and then went back to my small hotel. But many hotels have rooftop restaurants that are quite good. These restaurants often present great opportunities for meeting people and enjoying each others’ travel tales.
• On my trip to Chile, I traveled to Patagonia via the Navimag ferry. I speak very little Spanish–just a few phrases, really. On the ferry there were about 100 people from all over the world and we were together for three nights. I never knew what the evening would offer but conversation and fun always arose in several languages, including English.
• If your accommodation is on a river cruise, you will have multiple options as well. In addition to nightly entertainment on the ship, if you are docked in a city at night, you can go ashore and take advantage of many of the suggestions in this list, with the added bonus that you will be in a different place each day. The ships often have a concierge who can help you choose an activity, arrange tickets, and organize transportation, if needed.

My point is that great evenings often materialize based on your accommodation. Choose a social environment and you likely won’t be bored.

2. Travel alone and join new friends for a dinner out.

One of the things about traveling to a country where you don’t know the language is that you are likely to meet other travelers who share your language, especially if you speak English. Whether they are solo travelers or not, they may be interesting people to share an evening meal with. As you do, please keep in mind our safety advice, including The Fundamentals of Solo Travel Safety.

• In Kauai, I met people at the hostel. On a couple of occasions we walked down to the food trucks, which were about 500 meters away, then sat and ate our meals on the beach.
• In Takayama, Japan I met a couple at the ryokan where I was staying. We went out for dinner and spent half the night chatting.
• In Bologna, I met a couple at Cineteca di Bologna where English movies are sometimes shown. I was then invited to join them for dinner. It was lovely.

3. Go to the opera or symphony at night when traveling alone.

There is no need to know the language when you go to the opera or symphony. But, for me, the music is secondary to the venue and the scene. Concert halls tend to be spectacular and the people in attendance are often a spectacle unto themselves. Enjoy mingling with locals doing what locals do. And because there’s only one of you, you have a good chance of getting a seat to a nearly-sold-out event.

4. Eat with a local. 

There are many sites on which you can connect with locals to buy a dinner at their home. Chefs and culinary enthusiasts open their homes to travelers for a taste of excellent local fare. It’s a fabulous way to spend a night when traveling alone! I did this with VoulezVousDiner which has since been bought by eatwith.com. Tracey used eatwith to book a fabulous 5-course dinner along with other travelers in the home of a local in Portugal. When he heard it was a birthday trip for her, the host arranged to meet up with her the next day for a celebratory drink at a restaurant popular with locals in Porto. If you decide to try it out, this code will give you a £12 discount: 9E4710A2.

5. Try a meetup.

Check out meetup.com for public evening events on just about any theme you can imagine. You’ll meet people with similar interests who will likely also have interesting recommendations for your visit to their city. In Bordeaux, France I went to a number of meetups for people practicing French, English, and Spanish.

6. Catch a flick.

While the film itself may be wonderful, there’s even more that is interesting about going to the cinema in a different country. It’s a fun and easy activity to do at night when traveling alone. Seeing what a movie theater looks like, what filmgoers eat and drink, and how people respond can be fascinating. Depending where you live and where you are traveling, you may get to see something that has not (or might never) become available at home. If you happen to stumble upon a film festival, even better! Tracey sometimes plans her travels around them and has attended film festivals in Toronto, New York, Montreal, Prague, and London.

7. Find a communal dining opportunity.

Look for restaurants with communal tables to have a more social evening meal. They’re becoming quite popular. Dinner theaters and dinner cruises also offer communal dining as they can’t afford to have only one person at a table. The event host makes the introductions and you enjoy the company of other travelers. To learn more, read Eating Alone Is Easy When You Know How.

8. Go clubbing solo.

Jazz, blues, rock, country, and folk are all music forms you can find in small, comfortable venues. Keep an eye out for a concert that could be right in your area. This happened to me a quite a few years back. Quite by surprise, I ended up seeing BB King in a small night club in Redondo Beach. See How to Enjoy Going to a Bar Alone When You Travel.

9. Join a tour at night when traveling alone.

Many cities have evening tours. Whether it’s a cruise along a waterway or a walking tour of a ghostly area, there are many themed night tours around the world that will get you out in the evening safely. Tracey still talks about a moonlight trolley tour of monuments she took in Washington, DC years ago. You could join a group for a pub tour or a cooking class, which would also solve the problem of where to eat dinner. Night tours really allow you to see a city in a different way, solo but not alone.

10. Go for a walk.

Some cities are great for walking at night. Of course, you have to be careful about where you walk but I have enjoyed walking in both London and Paris, seeing the city lit up and enjoying the energy of the people out and about. It’s a great way to spend an evening. Tracey once landed in Paris on the date of Nuit Blanche, the annual all-night arts festival, and just jumped right in. Events like that can be ideal because right off the bat, you have something in common with the people around you, making it easy to strike up conversations.

11. Go where the action is.

Whether it’s a night street market or a local festival, check out what’s going on in terms of public events and watch the locals in action. Front desk staff at your hotel, hostel, or B&B can probably help you with this. You might also check out local entertainment publications or websites like Time Out or the tourism board for your destination, which are likely to have calendars of events.

12. Go to museums when they are open late.

In some cities on some days museums are open later, to 8:00 pm, for example. Watch for the hours and build your museum time into your evening. It can also be a great place to strike up a conversation with a fellow art-lover. Many museums and galleries also have special events in the evening, whether it’s a musical performance, a chat with an artist, or even an art class.

13. Enjoy some quiet time at night when traveling alone.

Travel can be tiring. Take some quiet time to chill, read a book, do yoga (either on your own or join a class), or any other activity you find relaxing. In Italy and France, where it’s typical to be outdoors in the evening, I found that going out to a patio cafe or restaurant for an evening tea was a great way to end the day. Tracey likes to rent an apartment with a balcony where she can enjoy a glass of wine outdoors at the end of the day while listening to the sounds of the city.

Last updated: 11th September, 2025