What are Solo Dates?

Health Line

23-05-2025

Solo dates are when you engage in activities by yourself. This can be an activity that you enjoy that your friends or partner do not, but you do not necessarily have to be in a relationship to go on a solo date.
Solo dates or self-dates involve just doing something by yourself, even if you have a partner. It can be doing an activity you enjoy that your friends or partner do not, or just spending some time by yourself.
If you are new to solo dates and want to learn more about them, keep reading for the benefits of alone time and our team's recommendations.
The benefits of alone time
While alone time is often framed as being a bad thing, it is not always detrimental—in fact, it can even be good for you.
A 2023 study found that the negative effects of being alone were either greatly reduced or completely nullified when the individual was spending time alone intentionally. Participants who spent more time alone reported decreased feelings of stress and pressure.
Additionally, the amount of time spent alone did not necessarily detract from these effects, as those who spent more time alone were mostly not found to be lonelier.
A 2020 study found that those who reframed time spent alone as solitude experienced less detriment to their mood.
Examples of solo dates
If you've never been on a solo date before and want to, or if you're looking for your next solo date idea, here are our team's recommendations.
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Editor Christina Snyder has taken herself on solo dates before. She finds that they reduce stress and allow her to connect with herself.
'I haven't really thought of it as a 'date' so much as just 'relaxing alone time,' but I like the concept,' she said.
She likes to sit on her roof deck or go to a quiet bar with a book, sometimes with a glass of wine.
Managing Editor Kenny Thapoung likes to go to a cocktail bar and read a magazine or on his Kindle once a month, usually on a Friday.
'It's much easier to get a spot or table when you're alone,' he says.
Editor Naomi Farr likes to go on trips to the bookstore, especially for author events. She also likes to read indoors in her library and reading nook.
Watch movies or shows
Marketing manager Victoria Torrez is a huge horror fan, but her husband is not.
'I tend to drag him to see a horror movie anyways, but there are certain movies where I know he has zero interest in seeing,' she says. 'So that's when I decide to spare him and take myself out on a solo afternoon outing.'
She will take herself out for lunch with a book and see a horror movie after.
But you don't necessarily have to go out to make it happen. Associate Arushi Garg says she tends to hole up in her apartment when she has time to herself. She likes to watch shows that her partner does not like when she is alone.
Take a walk or go window shopping
Editor Sarah Matysiak will go window shopping or walk around an outdoor mall, especially if the weather is nice.
Farr will go to a garden center or coffee shop, or go on nature walks.
You can also take walks along greenways, in botanical gardens, or in a park.
Editor Morgan Mandriota likes to go to coffee shops to get a drink before exploring different thrift stores in her area. She also likes to get breakfast at a diner and go to local farmer's markets on Sundays.