Cruise Lines with no Single supplement

[SeaSirenVoyager]

Hi Everyone, I am a solo cruiser and have been cruising with NCL mostly because of their no single supplement and daily activities for Solo cruises. You can get a Studio cabin, or sometimes even other cabins with no single supplement.

 

My question is, are there any other cruise lines that offer cabins with no single supplement and have daily activities for solo cruisers just line NCL? Appreciate your input!!

[sambamama]

If you check prices, with NCL, at times your studio cabin will cost more than a regular cabin. I had that happen, and I canceled and went to a Cruise out of FL (the NCL was out of NYC and it was winter.) There are no cruise lines I know of that have no single supplement policies. Some lines have solo rooms, like HAL. But it is never 1/2 the price. You can try booking hosted single cruises, and you can Google that. 

[paddy Anne]

27 minutes ago, SeaSirenVoyager said:

Hi Everyone, I am a solo cruiser and have been cruising with NCL mostly because of their no single supplement and daily activities for Solo cruises. You can get a Studio cabin, or sometimes even other cabins with no single supplement.

 

My question is, are there any other cruise lines that offer cabins with no single supplement and have daily activities for solo cruisers just line NCL? Appreciate your input!!

Definitely not celebrity. They don’t even charge double but instead charge MORE THAN double. It’s crazy. 

[seahorse001]

4 minutes ago, sambamama said:

If you check prices, with NCL, at times your studio cabin will cost more than a regular cabin. I had that happen, and I canceled and went to a Cruise out of FL (the NCL was out of NYC and it was winter.) There are no cruise lines I know of that have no single supplement policies. Some lines have solo rooms, like HAL. But it is never 1/2 the price. You can try booking hosted single cruises, and you can Google that. 

Hi

In my experience NCL are about the best really in terms of price & meetups etc. RC/Celebrity very expensive although occasionally you may find a  few late deals.

P & O (UK) are not too bad if you book in advance although nothing for solos except meet up in Crows Nest (not hosted). None of them have reasonable prices for solos. Total rip off.

[Chechak]

Princess has sailings with reduced single supplements.  Generally shoulder season.  You have to check with Princess or a Travel Agent.  They publish a list every full months of their trips with lower single supplements.  You can also find them on Cruise Plum.  I think I read that Virgin has no single supplements.  Not sure.  

 

[JsMom2]

Check Celebrity in July and August.  I’ve found multiple sailings over the years with 0 supplement.  

[Ellaleah]

2 minutes ago, JsMom2 said:

Check Celebrity in July and August.  I’ve found multiple sailings over the years with 0 supplement.  

How long ago?  I woukd be really surprised if that is the case now!

[BEAV]

My research over the years has shown that no cruise line appears to have no single supplement 100% of the time. I believe it’s more sailing-specific, and how any particular sailing is selling. 
 

I’ve also discovered no (or very low) single supplements can often start showing up after final payment time. Again, the theory of supply and demand driving pricing at work. 

[Chechak]

check cruiseplum.com

[new_cruiser]

Some small ship cruise lines have cruises with reduced or zero solo supplements. 

 

Star Clippers usually has at least a couple dozen with no solo supplement. From their main page go to specials and look for solo ones.

 

Windstar has a list of cruises with free or reduced solo supplement. Their regular supplement is 75%; the ones on the reduced solo supplement list have a solo supplement between 0 and 50%.

 

In both cases, the deal applies across cabin categories and it isn't just last minute sailings on the list.

 

When I did one on Star Clippers, there weren't any solo gatherings but there wasn't any need for them. There were so many solos amongst the small number of passengers, that you met them without needing a gathering. And the couples socialized fine with the solos. Windstar has started having solo meet-ups; I noticed them in the daily program on a recent cruise but wasn't solo that trip so I don't know if they were well attended. When I've been solo on the line, other passengers were sociable and I didn't feel a need for solo gatherings.

[SeaSirenVoyager]

12 minutes ago, new_cruiser said:

Some small ship cruise lines have cruises with reduced or zero solo supplements. 

 

Star Clippers usually has at least a couple dozen with no solo supplement. From their main page go to specials and look for solo ones.

 

Windstar has a list of cruises with free or reduced solo supplement. Their regular supplement is 75%; the ones on the reduced solo supplement list have a solo supplement between 0 and 50%.

 

In both cases, the deal applies across cabin categories and it isn't just last minute sailings on the list.

 

When I did one on Star Clippers, there weren't any solo gatherings but there wasn't any need for them. There were so many solos amongst the small number of passengers, that you met them without needing a gathering. And the couples socialized fine with the solos. Windstar has started having solo meet-ups; I noticed them in the daily program on a recent cruise but wasn't solo that trip so I don't know if they were well attended. When I've been solo on the line, other passengers were sociable and I didn't feel a need for solo gatherings.

This is great to know, where did you go with Star Clippers? What cruise and when was it? What was the itinerary, it definitely helps to get a better picture. I know, I am asking many questions, I am just trying to learn from you.

[gerryuk]

I know that you are in the US, so probably of no use to you, but Costa in Europe generally has low or no single supplement. I have been booking them for years, travelling solo and always find their prices reasonable. They do not however have solo meet ups.

 

[new_cruiser]

On 3/6/2024 at 1:54 PM, SeaSirenVoyager said:

This is great to know, where did you go with Star Clippers? What cruise and when was it? What was the itinerary, it definitely helps to get a better picture. I know, I am asking many questions, I am just trying to learn from you.

My cruise was a round trip from Phuket, Thailand, 1998 IIRC. Most stops were beaches of National Park islands 🏝. So a very beachy laid back cruise. They don't currently have any Asian itineraries on their schedule. They have cruises in the Mediterranean, Caribbean, and Central America with some of each on the zero solo supplement list.

Edited March 8 by new_cruiser

[JsMom2]

On 3/5/2024 at 10:10 AM, Ellaleah said:

How long ago?  I woukd be really surprised if that is the case now!

Last time was 2022.  I know prices are much higher now all over.  But these were last minute (within 30 days) deals.  So might not be as cheap as I got (14 days total split between Equinox and Infinity.  I paid a little under $2k all in for aqua class on both ships. Single occupancy!). But this seems to be the best time to look for 0 single supplement. 

Edited March 14 by JsMom2

[Fan4Fathom]

I just saw that Uniworld River Cruises has no single supplement for several of their 2024 river cruises. Some of the prices are very reasonable (imo). Itineraries are varied too.

[Roz]

On 3/15/2024 at 11:40 AM, Fan4Fathom said:

I just saw that Uniworld River Cruises has no single supplement for several of their 2024 river cruises. Some of the prices are very reasonable (imo). Itineraries are varied too.

 

I've taken 3 Uniworld river cruises with no or low single supplements.  Very good cruise line.  Tauck has no single supplement if you book an "aquarium" cabin that's below the water line.  I've also sailed with them 3 times on river cruises. Both Uniworld and Tauck are all inclusive.  

[Denarius]

On 3/18/2024 at 8:30 PM, Roz said:

 

I've taken 3 Uniworld river cruises with no or low single supplements.  Very good cruise line.  Tauck has no single supplement if you book an "aquarium" cabin that's below the water line.  I've also sailed with them 3 times on river cruises. Both Uniworld and Tauck are all inclusive.  

Riviera river cruises also charge no single supplements for cabins on the lower deck; the single supplement for cabins on higher decks is 50%.

[Roz]

Thanks for that information, @Denarius. I think AMA Waterways also offers reduced supplements in certain cabin categories. 

 

Maybe because the base fare is  more expensive to start with, but I've found river cruise lines to be more accommodating to solos. 

[seahorse001]

4 hours ago, Denarius said:

Riviera river cruises also charge no single supplements for cabins on the lower deck; the single supplement for cabins on higher decks is 50%.

I have been reading these posts with interest. Guessing some of the responses are from cruisers living in USA? in UK you will rarely find any good deals although they do exist sometimes if booking ahead 

[Denarius]

20 hours ago, seahorse001 said:

I have been reading these posts with interest. Guessing some of the responses are from cruisers living in USA? in UK you will rarely find any good deals although they do exist sometimes if booking ahead 

I am from the UK, and Riviera are a UK company. https://www.rivieratravel.co.uk/ I have taken river cruises with them, Saga and Emerald and all are of a similar standard. Although Emerald are not particularly solo friendly - they have a couple of single cabins on the lower deck, otherwise a 100% supplement applies - Saga have dedicated single cabins on all decks of their ships.

[Nebr.cruiser]

On 3/5/2024 at 8:17 AM, Chechak said:

Princess has sailings with reduced single supplements.  Generally shoulder season.  You have to check with Princess or a Travel Agent.  They publish a list every full months of their trips with lower single supplements.  You can also find them on Cruise Plum.  I think I read that Virgin has no single supplements.  Not sure.  

 

True.  My sisters were able to do a 19 day cruise to South America last Dec. with only a 10% single supplement.  My husband and I were supposed to go too (sadly had to cancel) and joked that for that price we should have each booked our own cabin!  More room, storage, two bathrooms---! And we may have even gotten more on board credit.

Edited March 25 by Nebr.cruiser

[SeaSirenVoyager]

Great information, thanks for posting.

[muttley]

I look for the best price and usually that is not a no single supplement cruise. I'll take a cruise that is $400 and a $200 supplement over a $1000 no supplement similar cruise. MSC is far and away the best cruise line for lowest prices for solos in the usa imho. They are coming to Galveston  nov 2025 with a new terminal.

MSC has daily meet ups for solo passengers and solo cabins but not a dedicated solos lounge like some NCL ships have. The first one is almost always hosted by a crew member and if they feel good you might get free cheap booze if you don't already have a booze package. They usually have that first meeting a chocolate cake or finger foods and sandwiches that are very very good.  But honestly the solo cabins on MSC aren't as comfortable as NCL. Many solos take other cabins and sometimes insides can be less and even outside rarely cheaper when still available and solo is filled up and what the solos were going for. The biggest complaints of the cabins are the beds are too low and the matress is lousy but there are others like the layout is bad for moving around and using draws etc... Insides are so much better.

 

 

[SeaSirenVoyager]

Thanks so much, great comments😀

[gloobella]

I was wondering if anyone finds that booking for two people is cheaper than one.  And then just go yourself as if they didn't show up?