TRANSATLANTIC CROSSING FOR SOLO TRAVELERS

[Conan-The-Librarian]

I am a 65 year old unmarried man heading towards a premature retirement and have never cruised before.

 

My bucket list trip would be a trans-Atlantic trip on the Queen Mary 2. I know there are 15 or so solo cabins on the QM2, but I cannot find any information on them -- for example, prices. I suspect solo cabins sell out early, but when does Cunard lists its sailings? How does one get into the line to sign up for a solo cabin?

 

Failing to get a solo cabin, I would like to know if Cunard ever reduces its single supplement penalty? 

 

Thanking everyone in advance for their help and patience

[BklynBoy8]

13 minutes ago, Conan-The-Librarian said:

I am a 65 year old unmarried man heading towards a premature retirement and have never cruised before.

 

My bucket list trip would be a trans-Atlantic trip on the Queen Mary 2. I know there are 15 or so solo cabins on the QM2, but I cannot find any information on them -- for example, prices. I suspect solo cabins sell out early, but when does Cunard lists its sailings? How does one get into the line to sign up for a solo cabin?

 

Failing to get a solo cabin, I would like to know if Cunard ever reduces its single supplement penalty? 

 

Thanking everyone in advance for their help and patience

 

Welcome to Cruise Critics and to the Cunard Line Board......

[Winifred 22]

Hi they very rarely reduce the single supplements. I don’t think they would do it for a transatlantic as they have no problem selling the berths.  The single cabins are only a fractionally cheaper anyway and sell out very quickly. It’s usually better value to pay the supplement on a standard cabin and enjoy the extra space. That’s what I do. 

[COMBOY]

Queen Mary 2 offers solo type cabins on decks 2 and 3 - The more popular Category KC on deck 3 offers 6 cabins that are located on the left side or port and are somewhat unique as they run sideways along the ship with 2 large windows as opposed to Category KB with a 9 standard layout cabins with one window on deck 2. I was fortunate enough and snagged Category KC for my Norwegian Fjord cruise in August.  If you want one of these solo cabins you will need to book early as the go fast. If you don't see either of these categories available, then they are probably sold out.  Pricing wise - I don't think you going to find any great deals on either of these solo cabins as they are pretty popular. I booked my cabin directly with Cunard.com. Look for KB or KC outside single cabins during the booking process.  You can also call Cunard reservations or book with a travel agent. 

[Pushpit]

The way I would reply to this is that there multiple market forces at work here, but they don't necessarily disadvantage a single traveller (but can do so). Broadly Cunard on their search engine lists all available cruises currently on sale:

 

https://www.cunard.com/en-gb/find-a-cruise

 

(USA, Germany etc have their own search engines)

 

It will headline a "per person rate", based on 2 sharing. If only one person is travelling, the rate becomes about 75% of the 2 person rate. So headline figure = £700, 2 people in that stateroom = £1400, 1 person only is £1000, round numbers. This is a much, much better arrangement than many other cruise lines.  Single cabins, though are obviously only available to single travellers, and they have their own price, sometimes lower, sometimes higher, than the 75% figure

 

The biggest factor though is market forces:

 

- firstly and most significantly, Cunard is very price sensitive and will cut fares drastically to fill a less than full vessel. Why? Because they know they'll get more money from alcohol sales (etc) than leaving a cabin empty. For Inside cabins, a single travellers are probably a loss leader, until they start drinking! So if you look at the link above and search by the cheapest fare you will see huge differences for this factor alone, so for example the 23 July Queen Victoria sailing is £149 as the headline figure (it was only £99 a few days ago) and the third cheapest cruse is nearly identical, different time, but £219. In other words this is far, far more significant than the single person supplement issue, which doesn't really exist anyway. You can easily halve your costs if you are date flexible. Moreover various other deals come along, so get on the emailing list for the bargains. (Cunard are a bit lethargic in this space compared to say Fred. Olsen).

 

- secondly the single cabins have their own mini market, some of the QM2 ones are so popular (the first picture above) that on Crossings they are swiped within hours of being put on sale. They are nicely laid out, in a particular area of the ship, quite spacious, good views, no balcony. So they have their own prices independent of my first point. Market forces.

 

- thirdly you don't have to book direct with Cunard - though I choose to do so. Some travel agents specialise in this market and some specialise in Cunard. They can't always shift the dial on single traveller fares, but they can sure shift the dial on things like On Board Credit. If you need a bit of hand holding for the first booking you make, they are a valid option.

 

Personally I think a Cunard Crossing, 7 or 8 days, is great for single travellers, and so if this ticks your boxes in terms of how you want to spend your pre-retirement then it's definitely worth some homework to see if it is right for you. This forum is a good place to do that research.

 

[WantedOnVoyage]

What a different world this all is... I remember happily sharing a cabin, as single traveller, on QE2, LEONARDO DA VINCI, STEFAN BATORY, UGANDA and other ships... you just paid the per person price and shared with a complete stranger. No one thought anything of it and most times it worked out fine.  It was part of liner and cruise travel.  P&O did stretch the appeal a bit much by calling it "Friendly Fours" though! 

 

I do remember not being the most popular arrival when I joined CANBERRA in New York in June 1979 midway through a cruise to America and was just taking her back to the Southampton... I had one of those four berth cabins way down on G Deck which had been happily occupied by three gents only until I showed up.  Set sittings and public loos made sharing actually easier. 

 

I am not even sure when Cunard ended the facility of sharing cabins.  

 

We are all more delicate, sensitive souls now I guess and... pay for the privilege, too.  

 

But I'd much rather pay a supplement and get a bigger cabin plus far more avail. than fight for the designated single cabins. 

[Jack E Dawson]

10 hours ago, Conan-The-Librarian said:

I know there are 15 or so solo cabins on the QM2, but I cannot find any information on them -- for example, prices. I suspect solo cabins sell out early, but when does Cunard lists its sailings? How does one get into the line to sign up for a solo cabin?

Conan,

Have you or your TA contacted Cunard directly?

A crossing on the QM2 is an amazing experience, you will NOT be disappointed. I would suggest a west-bound crossing in the May through September time period. 

Jack

 

Jack

[neeuqdrazil]

I've done 3 solo TAs, all in 'regular' cabins (1 obstructed balcony, 1 sheltered balcony, 1 oceanview), and all three have been delightful. 

 

I've never managed to book a solo cabin - your best bet seems to be to book as soon as the dates are released (which generally means booking between 12-18 months in advance). I do occasionally see them available on random crossings when I'm daydream-booking (but usually the Deck 2 'standard' KB layout instead of the Deck 3 long KC layout), so if you're flexible with your dates, you may be able to book one for a crossing sooner than otherwise. 

 

However, do check the prices for the solo cabins vs. the price with supplement for non-solo cabins. I have not infrequently seen 'regular' oceanview cabins for less $ than the solo cabins. 

[IB2]

14 hours ago, Conan-The-Librarian said:

I am a 65 year old unmarried man heading towards a premature retirement and have never cruised before.

 

My bucket list trip would be a trans-Atlantic trip on the Queen Mary 2. I know there are 15 or so solo cabins on the QM2, but I cannot find any information on them -- for example, prices. I suspect solo cabins sell out early, but when does Cunard lists its sailings? How does one get into the line to sign up for a solo cabin?

 

Failing to get a solo cabin, I would like to know if Cunard ever reduces its single supplement penalty? 

 

Thanking everyone in advance for their help and patience

They sell out exceptionally quickly, because they’re good cabins - light and bright with large windows and modern walk in showers.  I nabbed two for 2024 and despite phoning at the very minute that the booking line opens, more than half of them had gone by the time I got through.  Because, I suspect, online bookings go through quickly whereas I had to wait on the phone because I needed to book for my dog as well.

 

If you stay close to forums like this, the release dates for each season’s crossings are always discussed well in advance.  
 

You won’t save money booking one of the singles, compared to single occupancy of a double, but you do get more for the same money.

 

I think a TA would be a great first cruise for a newly retired person - with the option of adding a Norwegian or Canadian cruise onto it, if you want to experience a more ‘regular’ cruise experience during the same trip.  There’s tons to do on the ship, and the fact that you’re on your own won’t be a big deal at all.

 

The ship gets a more mixed crowd, in terms of age, on a TA (although very few children, which many would regard as an additional plus), and I’d certainly recommend doing a TA in preference to a segment of the world cruise, where a significant proportion of the ship is likely to be on their last ever voyage.

Edited June 1, 2023 by IB2

[teabear]

On 6/1/2023 at 3:33 PM, neeuqdrazil said:

I've done 3 solo TAs, all in 'regular' cabins (1 obstructed balcony, 1 sheltered balcony, 1 oceanview), and all three have been delightful. 

 

I've never managed to book a solo cabin - your best bet seems to be to book as soon as the dates are released (which generally means booking between 12-18 months in advance). I do occasionally see them available on random crossings when I'm daydream-booking (but usually the Deck 2 'standard' KB layout instead of the Deck 3 long KC layout), so if you're flexible with your dates, you may be able to book one for a crossing sooner than otherwise. 

 

However, do check the prices for the solo cabins vs. the price with supplement for non-solo cabins. I have not infrequently seen 'regular' oceanview cabins for less $ than the solo cabins. 

Thats been my experience as well on my now 18 Cunard cruises - never actually booked a solo as most of the time booking a regular cabin at the single price is either cheaper or the difference so slight it makes having the full size cabin worth it