Solo cruise line ranking

[calliopecruiser]

I'm a long time Cruise Critic and solo traveler. When I began solo cruising, I switched from RCCL to NCL because of the studio cabins. I'm currently searching for a cruise out of FLL to the Caribbean, and though I utilize the search engine of the online TA we all (solos) use, I'm frustrated finding lower single supplements. I've read CC folks advise mock bookings, but that takes forever. So, I'm thinking if I asked experienced solo cruisers to rank cruise lines by availability of lower single supplements, that might help. Thanks in advance.

 

There's no way to rank cruise lines like that, because there are sales and specials on various cruises.

 

You might say that Crystal has the lowest single supplement across the board, on every cruise (30% on a window cabin, 35% on a balcony), but there are many cruise lines with lower supplements (as low as 0%) on certain cruises and certain cabin categories on those cruises.

 

Don't be fooled by the NCL "no supplement" single studios.....it's a marketing ploy. They don't add a supplement because they price them higher in the first place (sometimes higher than cruising in a standard (larger) interior cabin with the 100% supplement).

[mrobstad]

After I posted this inquiry, I found an article by Cruise Critic where they had, actually, ranked the cruise lines as I had asked, so it can be done. I'll see if I can find it and post the link.

[mrobstad]

10 Best Cruise Lines for Solo Travelers is the name of the article from 2008. I can't figure out how to copy the link.

[calliopecruiser]

10 Best Cruise Lines for Solo Travelers is the name of the article from 2008. I can't figure out how to copy the link.

 

That's not a ranking lines by their solo supplements - which is what you originally asked for. It includes a lot of other subjective factors which may or may not be important to you. For instance, Cunard is on the list with 100% supplement, and they include occasional sales which may lower the supplement for some voyages but shouldn't be considered standard for that cruise line. And they include that suckers' line about studio cabins having zero supplement, forgetting to add that they're priced higher to begin with.

[mrobstad]

Yes, you are correct, calli.....

[runner2013]

Either one (if you use a TA they need to call). But I have found that the guarantees are not always available for solos to book, which is likely why people are seeing more than 200%. But I've done this on Royal three times with success.

 

Thanks for the tip, i'll have to give it a try...:D

[Timsierramist]

Cruiseplum lets you search on many criteria, including single passenger. Then you can sort by price per night or total price.

It isn't a TA, so it's ok to discuss here.

 

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

 

Sweeet! What a great website! Thanks for sharing!

[Ashercat1]

Hi,

i'm going on Oceania cruise southern Caribbean March 2016. Has anyone ever gone solo on an Oceania cruise? If so what was your experience?

Thanks for the info

[Lois R]

Hi,

i'm going on Oceania cruise southern Caribbean March 2016. Has anyone ever gone solo on an Oceania cruise? If so what was your experience?

Thanks for the info

 

Hi, I have never cruised Oceania but would love to hear about other's

experiences too. Did you post this on the Oceania forum as well?

[Ashercat1]

N. , I haven't posted the city where I'm kind of new to this cruise critic boards. Where is the Oceania board is it part of the rollcall? Also not real sure of how to post on a roll call to see who else might be going on that same cruise. I'll certainly let you know how it goes after I return.

Thanks for your help

Linda

[Lois R]

N. , I haven't posted the city where I'm kind of new to this cruise critic boards. Where is the Oceania board is it part of the rollcall? Also not real sure of how to post on a roll call to see who else might be going on that same cruise. I'll certainly let you know how it goes after I return.

Thanks for your help

Linda

 

Hi Linda, every cruiseline in the industry has their own forum.

Example....Carnival has a forum, Royal Caribbean has a forum,

Celebrity has a forum, NCL has a forum....I would go to the

Cruise Critic Homepage and peruse all the links on there and it should

help you out on how to use the whole website.

 

ROLL CALLS are different forums than the Cruiseline forums.

 

Here is a link to the Oceania forum.....

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=51

 

What ship are you sailing?

Edited January 16, 2016 by Lois R

[Lois R]

Hi Linda...you sailing The Riveria? March 20? Looks like you already

found it:) You posted on there yesterday.:)

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I'm late to chime in on this, but just wanted to add that I'm another one that ignores the supplement and just looks at the total price. I'm sailing on the Epic in March in a studio. I got a great price on it and the it was well within my budget. Like others have said, I figure out about how much I'm willing to spend for the cruise fare and taxes, and then I just stay within that budget. So far, I've cruised solo only on NCL, but would be happy to try other lines if the price were right.

 

This is the second time I've seen cruiseplum.com mentioned in a thread about solo travel--I'll have to check it out.

[denatravels]

 

 

 

This is the second time I've seen cruiseplum.com mentioned in a thread about solo travel--I'll have to check it out.

 

 

I'm obsessed with it now!! I just booked a cruise I found on the search feature.

[nanwel]

Just now reading all this - I too look at the bottom line price, not the single supp. Found if I use a good travel agent - from a larger firm, I sometimes gets some freebes - but far less now than there used to be.

First I determine where and when I want to travel then I look at several sites, and get a price in my head, then go to the travel agent and see what they can do, if they get no better a price I do not go with them. Find better prices early - am not a last minute person anyway - like to book early - get better hotel prices at the pier and better flight prices as well.

I have been on many different lines - some are cheaper before you board, but I end up paying more on board for things like drinks, tipping out trips etc - that can all ad up quickly and makes a huge difference in the value.

Cannot do inside, so need a window or a balc - had never heard of the studio on RC before -funny even when on board and you try to book your next cruise, they have not told me about them - will look!

[mrobstad]

I'm obsessed with it now!! I just booked a cruise I found on the search feature.

 

 

me too!

plus, tap on column heading to change sort order, like cheapest price per day to most expensive! its better than that on line TA sort we all use!

[mfe66]

I'm interested in taking a solo cruise but hesitant on booking it since I've only taken a handful of cruises with big groups. Glad I came across this.

[crusinpsychRN]

I only know of NCL, they often have no single supplement fee on many sailings and I am not talking about the ships with studio lounges. Regular ships.

 

Carnival used to have sailing with no single supplement, but I have not seen any since last year. Now they have very limited sailings with 150% but only for sailings within one or two months.

 

Are you familiar with cruiseplum?

 

Cruiseplum lets you search on many criteria, including single passenger. Then you can sort by price per night or total price.

It isn't a TA, so it's ok to discuss here.

 

Sent from my SM-G900T using Tapatalk

 

All this time cruising and I never heard of Cruiseplum! Learn something new everyday on CC. Thanks!

 

You can get a mini suite on Norwegian Star solo just over $1200 for 7 days if you can go in the next week or so! I usually pay $1700 for a 7 day in a balcony cabin.

[JoePatNYCT]

Just returned from a cruise on the NCL Epic which has a solo lounge.

 

Hands down the best setup for solos who are concerned about cruising alone.

 

While I did not stay in a solo cabin (I prefer balcony rooms), I attended a number of the solo meet ups in the solo lounge and it clearly offers anyone an easy way to find dinner mates or merely a relaxed environment to meet other solos.