Advice on Solo Travel

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

I just came back from my 4th solo cruise, a little 5 night canal cruise. Luckily on this 45 passenger ship there was 1 single room so no supplement. My gosh it sure was

tiny, only 50 sq ft! Sailing next May in an Epic studio cabin will feel really roomy after that!

I had a really nice time as the passengers & crew were quite friendly, the meals were great & the scenery & weather beautiful.

 

Looking forward to sailing solo again in Nov. on the Freedom of the Seas, a super ship.:D

Sailing solo is fun, you can do what you want to do!

~Jo~ :)

[Atlanta_Cruiser]

Hi all!

I just came back from my 4th solo cruise, a little 5 night canal cruise. Luckily on this 45 passenger ship there was 1 single room so no supplement. My gosh it sure was

tiny, only 50 sq ft! ~Jo~ :)

 

50 sq. ft. WOW! Are you sure you didn't mistake your room for the broom closet?? LOL. I am sure the Epic will seem like a family suite! Thanks for your feedback. - Cory

[retiring soon]

Hi all!

Cory ~ maybe it was a broom closet !:eek: It was tucked in beside the stairs with a public washroom & elevator nearby. Anyhow I got used to it & really enjoyed the cruise.

~Jo~ :)

[cutecat]

Hey there everyone,I'm new on here. Am going SOLO on a Med cruise later this month , not nervous at all. I travel alone all the time, and I totally understand what people mean when they say that reactions are mixed. many people applaud you for being brave and independent, others give you pitiful looks!

 

At the end of the day - its about how comfortable you are in your own company , and how sociable you are. The great thing as many of you have pointed out is that you can choose what you want to do when you want to do it. For those of you out there who are single and possibly open to romance, travelling alone is great as you end up noticing and talking to people that you never would have seen had you been busy with your own family and friends.

 

I met a fantastic man once purely by chance cos I asked him if he could take a picture of me with my camera, had I had a friend with me I'd have never met him! We had a great relationship for a while.

 

Also , for those who may be looking for romance - if you do meet someone nice you wont be put on a ' guilt trip' for leaving your travelling companion by themeselves ;-)

 

I've never cruised solo before, but in a way it's probably better than a normal holiday for a female cos you never have to worry about getting back to the hotel late at night alone.

 

;-)

[MrFunInTheSun]

I am traveling solo for the first time in August on the RCCI Enchantment of the seas. I was wondering if anyone had traveled solo on any of the RCCI ships and if so was it an enjoyable time. Traveling solo to just relax and not looking for romance just a good relaxing time.

 

Mike

 

Our original poster Mike must be on or should be back from his cruise by now? Time for a full report on how much fun you had??? :-)

[UNC FAN 80]

Our original poster Mike must be on or should be back from his cruise by now? Time for a full report on how much fun you had??? :-)

 

I am leaving on the Enchantment of the seas in a few days and when I return I will give a full report on my first solo cruise.

 

Mike

[kek123]

As many posts here have said, a cruise is what you make of it. You have the option of doing as much or little when you want without being tied to another persons timeline whims and wants. Yes, it's selfish but who cares.

My first solo on the Caribbean Princes was beyond awful, BUT my second on the Celebrity Summit was absolutely wonderful. I am leaning strongly towards taking another Celebrity cruise to the Med next year. Can't wait for my next one!

[MrFunInTheSun]

I am leaving on the Enchantment of the seas in a few days and when I return I will give a full report on my first solo cruise.

 

Mike

 

You'll love Enhancement of the Seas! Nice ship, had a great time on her a few years ago.

[Atlanta_Cruiser]

As many posts here have said, a cruise is what you make of it. You have the option of doing as much or little when you want without being tied to another persons timeline whims and wants. Yes, it's selfish but who cares.

My first solo on the Caribbean Princes was beyond awful, BUT my second on the Celebrity Summit was absolutely wonderful. I am leaning strongly towards taking another Celebrity cruise to the Med next year. Can't wait for my next one!

 

That is good to know. I did cruise on Caribbean Princess once and I stuck my hand in the fire again on the Grand Princess. painful..still burns. LOL

What were some of the activites you enjoyed on the Summit? Can you tell me the dining choices that worked for you; did you sit at the same table or ask to be seating with with different people very night?

Thanks for your feedback in advance :)

 

-Cory

[Atlanta_Cruiser]

I am leaving on the Enchantment of the seas in a few days and when I return I will give a full report on my first solo cruise.

 

Mike

 

Hi Mike:

 

You'll have a super time. I've done the Enchantment a couple times and the staff is always a lot of fun. We'll definitely want a full report. Don't miss out on the later night game (the Adult scavenger hunt)..it's a hoot. Never laughed so hard.

 

-Cory

[MrFunInTheSun]

I am leaving on the Enchantment of the seas in a few days and when I return I will give a full report on my first solo cruise.

 

Mike

 

How'd it go Mike? I bet you had a blast.

[kcool]

have a great cruise mike, you will have a blast.

[kek123]

That is good to know. I did cruise on Caribbean Princess once and I stuck my hand in the fire again on the Grand Princess. painful..still burns. LOL

What were some of the activites you enjoyed on the Summit? Can you tell me the dining choices that worked for you; did you sit at the same table or ask to be seating with with different people very night?

Thanks for your feedback in advance :)

 

-Cory

Yes, Princess was beyond awful! Celebrity was beyond great for me. I asked for and was given a nice table by myself at the fixed late dinner seating which worked out great for me. After the daily nightmare of Princess dining I was really not up for sharing a table. I booked several excursions thru the ship (zip lining, whale watching and the Butterfly Sanctuary) yes I am somewhat of a daredevil dork! All were reasonably priced and I booked them online before the cruise sailed. Good luck with picking your cruise!

[wimsiecruise]

I traveled solo on the Celebrity Horizon in 2004 and it was the cruise from Hell, but not for the reasons one might think. Everyone was friendly, I was assigned a table with one other single and two other couples and we had a good time chatting over dinner every night...if they saw me pool-side in a lounge chair by myself they'd join me (I like to read, so company or no company, it didn't matter and I'm not unfriendly). The food was excellent, the ship must have been beautiful once, but I heard it was being sold to a Greek shipping line, it was getting old. I would have enjoyed my trip if the weather hadn't been so crazy (not the cruise line's fault). Then the old bucket of bolts of a ship lost its stabilizer and we galloped over the Western Caribbean like a wild bucking bronco and limped into Cozumel listing to port (or was it starboard)? Anyway, my cabin shook for 10 days of high wind and rough seas. Some passengers were so seasick they got off in Grand Cayman (first port-of-call). Luckily I don't get seasick but I didn't get much sleep during the cruise. Lack of sleep = cranky..One night they reversed the engines for some reason and I thought we had run aground (LOL). Being alone can be a little scary at times like these... I got up, got dressed, wrapped my passport and airline tickets in a plastic pouch and went upstair expecting to find everyone at their muster station, ready to grab a lifeboat...Surprised to see no one around, I decided since I was up, I might as well look for the 24 hour coffee and couldn't find it or anyone else either. Meanwhile, security was monitoring my every move (I found that out the next day when I asked the purser if there was a possibility I could be moved to a higher deck as my room had been shaking for days. He said "I know, we saw you and wondered if you couldn't sleep or what you were up to "). Too funny ! Anyway, I got another room, directly below the galley this time, where carts were being dragged across the floor at 4:00a.m. :p So, no sleep for me. Strangely enough, I could sleep during the day by the pool with a calypso band blaring in my ear...go figure ! So, even if that was a distressing trip, it was also very interesting ! I am going again, solo for Christmas and New year's (why not)? And I expect to enjoy it ! As someone here said..." we can go anywhere and do as we please " (sleep in, read, chow down at any time..go ashore or not ..whatever), without having to be at someone else's beck and call ! Yup... sounds good to me !

[Cathalain]

There were many times that someone would ask me who I was with and when I'd tell them I was travelling solo they'd look at me like I had some sort of virus. Other times, people would respond that it sounded wonderful to be travelling alone. I did often feel that I was the ONLY solo on the cruise.

 

Just finished my first solo cruise on the Monarch. I often got that reaction when people asked me about who I was traveling with, as well - they'd stare at me as if I were a space alien.

 

I just think they're jealous because they have to share their cabin with other people, while I can take up all of the bed - so luxurious! :D

 

It did feel a little strange sometimes to be alone, but it was really nice not having to worry about what others wanted to do all of the time - I could eat when I wanted, sleep when I wanted, do exactly what I liked to do without hassle or an argument.

 

I'm definitely going solo again - and soon!

[solocruiserfrwa]

I agree with everyone about traveling solo and the benefits----not having to agree on where to go, what to do, when to eat, etc. Last year I went solo from PA into NE/Canada. I had a cab ride from the airport to the cruise terminal, and when we arrived, the cab driver asked me if I was going on a singles cruise. I wasn't too concerned about how much to tip him at that point!! Anyhow, it was scary for me, but oddly enough, just as a previous poster said, people think you're brave (high school facebook friends who have families and don't get to travel on a whim as I do) or they think you're a pariah (the cab driver)! And you do make it what you want. I was also trying to coordinate with a friend for a cruise this fall; we'd never travelled together, let alone in a small room on a cruise ship (although knowing this particular friend, we'd likely have a suite of some sort), but it turned out we couldn't coordinate time off. So I decided after looking at the myriad of Caribbean choices that the Mediterranean sounded better. I'm off to Venice next month, and I can't wait, but I'm scared just the same. We're getting a meet and greet together so that will be good. Happy cruising, everyone!

[kitty9]

I traveled solo on the Celebrity Horizon in 2004 and it was the cruise from Hell, but not for the reasons one might think. Everyone was friendly, I was assigned a table with one other single and two other couples and we had a good time chatting over dinner every night...if they saw me pool-side in a lounge chair by myself they'd join me (I like to read, so company or no company, it didn't matter and I'm not unfriendly). The food was excellent, the ship must have been beautiful once, but I heard it was being sold to a Greek shipping line, it was getting old. I would have enjoyed my trip if the weather hadn't been so crazy (not the cruise line's fault). Then the old bucket of bolts of a ship lost its stabilizer and we galloped over the Western Caribbean like a wild bucking bronco and limped into Cozumel listing to port (or was it starboard)? Anyway, my cabin shook for 10 days of high wind and rough seas. Some passengers were so seasick they got off in Grand Cayman (first port-of-call). Luckily I don't get seasick but I didn't get much sleep during the cruise. Lack of sleep = cranky..One night they reversed the engines for some reason and I thought we had run aground (LOL). Being alone can be a little scary at times like these... I got up, got dressed, wrapped my passport and airline tickets in a plastic pouch and went upstair expecting to find everyone at their muster station, ready to grab a lifeboat...Surprised to see no one around, I decided since I was up, I might as well look for the 24 hour coffee and couldn't find it or anyone else either. Meanwhile, security was monitoring my every move (I found that out the next day when I asked the purser if there was a possibility I could be moved to a higher deck as my room had been shaking for days. He said "I know, we saw you and wondered if you couldn't sleep or what you were up to "). Too funny ! Anyway, I got another room, directly below the galley this time, where carts were being dragged across the floor at 4:00a.m. :p So, no sleep for me. Strangely enough, I could sleep during the day by the pool with a calypso band blaring in my ear...go figure ! So, even if that was a distressing trip, it was also very interesting ! I am going again, solo for Christmas and New year's (why not)? And I expect to enjoy it ! As someone here said..." we can go anywhere and do as we please " (sleep in, read, chow down at any time..go ashore or not ..whatever), without having to be at someone else's beck and call ! Yup... sounds good to me !

 

OMG, I was on another ship and saw you guys coming into Cozumel listing very badly. We were on our balcony and saw this ship coming from far away and my mom said "Look at that ship. It looks like it's sinking." That must have been awful.