diff --git a/packages/socket.io-adapter/lib/in-memory-adapter.ts b/packages/socket.io-adapter/lib/in-memory-adapter.ts
index cf178170e0..07aee0de26 100644
--- a/packages/socket.io-adapter/lib/in-memory-adapter.ts
+++ b/packages/socket.io-adapter/lib/in-memory-adapter.ts
@@ -387,11 +387,11 @@ export class Adapter extends EventEmitter {
   /**
    * Restore the session and find the packets that were missed by the client.
    * @param pid
-   * @param offset
+   * @param offset - the offset of the last packet received by the client, if any
    */
   public restoreSession(
     pid: PrivateSessionId,
-    offset: string,
+    offset?: string,
   ): Promise<Session> {
     return null;
   }
@@ -444,7 +444,7 @@ export class SessionAwareAdapter extends Adapter {
 
   override restoreSession(
     pid: PrivateSessionId,
-    offset: string,
+    offset?: string,
   ): Promise<Session> {
     const session = this.sessions.get(pid);
     if (!session) {
@@ -458,16 +458,18 @@ export class SessionAwareAdapter extends Adapter {
       this.sessions.delete(pid);
       return null;
     }
-    const index = this.packets.findIndex((packet) => packet.id === offset);
-    if (index === -1) {
-      // the offset may be too old
-      return null;
-    }
     const missedPackets = [];
-    for (let i = index + 1; i < this.packets.length; i++) {
-      const packet = this.packets[i];
-      if (shouldIncludePacket(session.rooms, packet.opts)) {
-        missedPackets.push(packet.data);
+    if (offset !== undefined) {
+      const index = this.packets.findIndex((packet) => packet.id === offset);
+      if (index === -1) {
+        // the offset may be too old
+        return null;
+      }
+      for (let i = index + 1; i < this.packets.length; i++) {
+        const packet = this.packets[i];
+        if (shouldIncludePacket(session.rooms, packet.opts)) {
+          missedPackets.push(packet.data);
+        }
       }
     }
     return Promise.resolve({
diff --git a/packages/socket.io-adapter/test/index.ts b/packages/socket.io-adapter/test/index.ts
index 285ae66f02..96ff3881ad 100644
--- a/packages/socket.io-adapter/test/index.ts
+++ b/packages/socket.io-adapter/test/index.ts
@@ -551,5 +551,48 @@ describe("socket.io-adapter", () => {
 
       expect(session).to.be(null);
     });
+
+    it("should restore a known session without offset", async () => {
+      const adapter = new SessionAwareAdapter({
+        server: {
+          encoder: {
+            encode(packet) {
+              return packet;
+            },
+          },
+          opts: {
+            connectionStateRecovery: {
+              maxDisconnectionDuration: 5000,
+            },
+          },
+        },
+      });
+
+      adapter.persistSession({
+        sid: "abc",
+        pid: "def",
+        data: "ghi",
+        rooms: ["r1", "r2"],
+      });
+
+      adapter.broadcast(
+        {
+          nsp: "/",
+          type: 2,
+          data: ["hello"],
+        },
+        {
+          rooms: new Set(),
+          except: new Set(),
+        },
+      );
+
+      const session = await adapter.restoreSession("def");
+
+      expect(session).to.not.be(null);
+      expect(session.sid).to.eql("abc");
+      expect(session.pid).to.eql("def");
+      expect(session.missedPackets).to.eql([]);
+    });
   });
 });
diff --git a/packages/socket.io-client/test/connection-state-recovery.ts b/packages/socket.io-client/test/connection-state-recovery.ts
index 42c826b0ea..04dcc69f6f 100644
--- a/packages/socket.io-client/test/connection-state-recovery.ts
+++ b/packages/socket.io-client/test/connection-state-recovery.ts
@@ -27,4 +27,30 @@ describe("connection state recovery", () => {
       });
     });
   });
+
+  it("should restore session even if no event was received", () => {
+    return wrap((done) => {
+      const socket = io(BASE_URL, {
+        forceNew: true,
+        reconnectionDelay: 10,
+      });
+
+      expect(socket.recovered).to.eql(false);
+
+      let id: string;
+
+      socket.on("connect", () => {
+        if (!id) {
+          // first connection: no event has been exchanged yet
+          id = socket.id;
+
+          socket.io.engine.close();
+        } else {
+          expect(socket.id).to.eql(id); // means that the reconnection was successful
+          expect(socket.recovered).to.eql(true); // means that the reconnection was successful
+          done();
+        }
+      });
+    });
+  });
 });
diff --git a/packages/socket.io/lib/namespace.ts b/packages/socket.io/lib/namespace.ts
index 72df7301e3..f38dbc8178 100644
--- a/packages/socket.io/lib/namespace.ts
+++ b/packages/socket.io/lib/namespace.ts
@@ -384,12 +384,12 @@ export class Namespace<
     auth: Record<string, unknown>,
   ) {
     const sessionId = auth.pid;
-    const offset = auth.offset;
+    // note: the offset may be undefined, if the client has not yet received any event
+    const offset = typeof auth.offset === "string" ? auth.offset : undefined;
     if (
       // @ts-ignore
       this.server.opts.connectionStateRecovery &&
-      typeof sessionId === "string" &&
-      typeof offset === "string"
+      typeof sessionId === "string"
     ) {
       let session;
       try {
diff --git a/packages/socket.io/test/connection-state-recovery.ts b/packages/socket.io/test/connection-state-recovery.ts
index c0dcbf0703..a3528425a2 100644
--- a/packages/socket.io/test/connection-state-recovery.ts
+++ b/packages/socket.io/test/connection-state-recovery.ts
@@ -113,6 +113,93 @@ describe("connection state recovery", () => {
     io.close();
   });
 
+  it("should restore session even if the client did not receive any event", async () => {
+    const httpServer = createServer().listen(0);
+    const io = new Server(httpServer, {
+      connectionStateRecovery: {},
+    });
+
+    io.once("connection", (socket) => {
+      expect(socket.recovered).to.eql(false);
+
+      socket.join("room1");
+      socket.data.foo = "bar";
+    });
+
+    // Engine.IO handshake
+    const eioSid = await eioHandshake(httpServer);
+
+    // Socket.IO handshake (without any prior event, hence without any offset)
+    await eioPush(httpServer, eioSid, "40");
+    const handshakeBody = await eioPoll(httpServer, eioSid);
+
+    expect(handshakeBody.startsWith("40")).to.be(true);
+
+    const handshake = JSON.parse(handshakeBody.substring(2));
+
+    expect(handshake.sid).to.not.be(undefined);
+    expect(handshake.pid).to.not.be(undefined);
+
+    await eioPush(httpServer, eioSid, "1"); // close
+
+    const newSid = await eioHandshake(httpServer);
+
+    const [socket] = await Promise.all([
+      waitFor<Socket>(io, "connection"),
+      eioPush(httpServer, newSid, `40{"pid":"${handshake.pid}"}`),
+    ]);
+
+    expect(socket.id).to.eql(handshake.sid);
+    expect(socket.recovered).to.eql(true);
+
+    expect(socket.rooms.has(socket.id)).to.eql(true);
+    expect(socket.rooms.has("room1")).to.eql(true);
+
+    expect(socket.data.foo).to.eql("bar");
+
+    const payload = await eioPoll(httpServer, newSid);
+    expect(payload).to.eql(
+      `40{"sid":"${handshake.sid}","pid":"${handshake.pid}"}`,
+    );
+
+    io.close();
+  });
+
+  it("should restore session even if the provided offset is not a string", async () => {
+    const httpServer = createServer().listen(0);
+    const io = new Server(httpServer, {
+      connectionStateRecovery: {},
+    });
+
+    io.once("connection", (socket) => {
+      socket.join("room1");
+    });
+
+    // Engine.IO handshake
+    const eioSid = await eioHandshake(httpServer);
+
+    // Socket.IO handshake
+    await eioPush(httpServer, eioSid, "40");
+    const handshakeBody = await eioPoll(httpServer, eioSid);
+    const handshake = JSON.parse(handshakeBody.substring(2));
+
+    await eioPush(httpServer, eioSid, "1"); // close
+
+    const newSid = await eioHandshake(httpServer);
+
+    const [socket] = await Promise.all([
+      waitFor<Socket>(io, "connection"),
+      eioPush(httpServer, newSid, `40{"pid":"${handshake.pid}","offset":123}`),
+    ]);
+
+    expect(socket.id).to.eql(handshake.sid);
+    expect(socket.recovered).to.eql(true);
+    expect(socket.rooms.has("room1")).to.eql(true);
+
+    await eioPoll(httpServer, newSid); // drain buffer
+    io.close();
+  });
+
   it("should not run middlewares upon recovery by default", async () => {
     const httpServer = createServer().listen(0);
     const io = new Server(httpServer, {