Eating on your own is the part of travelling alone that people worry about most, and the first thing I’d say about it is that you don’t actually have to do it, at least not in the way people usually mean, with a table for one and a brave face.

It’s your trip, literally only yours. If tonight you feel like sitting in a restaurant and watching the room, do that, and if you’d rather eat in your pyjamas with something delivered, do that instead. This guide goes through every option honestly, which one I’d pick on which kind of night, and the small things that make each one easier.

You don’t have to go out

The first few times I travelled on my own, I hardly went out to eat at all. I’d rent an apartment, go to the supermarket and cook something easy, or get takeout delivered through the usual apps, and to be honest that was the right call for me back then.

The worst advice people give about this is “push yourself out of your comfort zone”, because if you keep pushing yourself, you end up not wanting to go again. You want to stay in, you stay in, and you want to go out, you go out.

So if it’s a first trip and you’re not feeling very confident yet, set yourself up for nights in before you leave:

• An apartment with a small kitchen, or a hotel with room service
• A supermarket within five minutes of the door
• The local delivery app installed and working before you fly
• One local dish picked out to order on the first night
• Something good to watch or read, downloaded

What to order, and what to cook

When I order in, I look online for what’s recommended nearby and get something local, so Portuguese food in Portugal and Italian food in Italy. I’d definitely not order Chinese in Portugal, because you still want to try the local food, and ordering online gives you that without having to sit in a restaurant for it.

If I’m cooking, I just pick up a few basics, like pasta, some fish, or whatever I’d normally eat. Everybody has their own diet and their own preferences, so cook whatever you like. Eating the same things you eat at home is surprisingly comforting, because even though you’re somewhere new, dinner feels normal, and that helps you settle in.

Making a night in the hotel feel lovely

Eating at the hotel counts too. The hotel restaurant is one of the places where nobody thinks twice about a woman eating on her own, because half the room is doing exactly the same thing.

Room service is even better, and it’s anything but sad if you do it properly. Have a long relaxing bath, stay in the robe or your comfiest clothes, put a film on and have your dinner while you watch it. Honestly, it’s one of the best evenings of a trip.