It’s been more than 20 years since Helen Fielding first wrote about  our favourite singleton, Bridget Jones. In that time the solo travel market has expanded markedly. Here are four of the best companies for today’s Bridgets.

Friendship Travel was voted Best Small Singles Tour operator in the British Travel Awards in 2012 and 2013 and is perfect if you fancy a sociable, house-party-style beach holiday in Europe or further afield. The company works with a number of small, friendly hotels on an exclusive basis and there is always a Friendship Travel host in situ to help break the ice. Seven nights in Paphos, Cyprus (above) from around £635.Mallorca/SolosWith more than 30 years’ experience of the solo travel market, Solos has been operating since before Bridget Jones was even a twinkle in Helen Fielding’s eye and was the winner of The British Travel Awards’ Best Medium Singles Holiday Company last year. Everything from hotel stays and scenic river cr It claims to have the widest choice of holidays for the single traveller, with groups split into three age bands (over 30s, over 40s and over 50s). It’s also the only singles operator we know of to offer dance weekends and black tie balls. A week in Mallorca (above) costs from around £699.Saga is not just cruises for crumblies. A fifth of its customers (aged 50+) are solo travellers which means its focus is very much on their needs – so much so that in 2015 Saga was voted Best Large Singles Holiday Company for the third consecutive year. Everything from hotel stays and scenic river cruises to cultural escorted tours. 11-night Highlights of Dalmatia cruise (above) from around £799 on a single-room basis.Antarctica penguins/Just YouJust You isn’t only for the unattached – it’s for anyone who wants to travel solo. Holidays are split into seven types, from Active and City to Escape and River, and every trip is hosted by an experienced tour manager, with local guides on the ground. Groups are mixed ages from 35+ and there’s plenty of opportunity to do your own thing as well as join in with everybody else. 19-day Antarctica the Final Frontier cruise (above) from around £7,999.

BY MAGGIE O’SULLIVAN