Singles and Cunard in 2009

[Lanky Lad]

I have emailed Cunard to ask them if they have any plans to reduce the single supplements in 2009. I will let you all know what answer I get.

[KarenR_UK]

I have emailed Cunard to ask them if they have any plans to reduce the single supplements in 2009. I will let you all know what answer I get.

 

Please do keep us informed, I for one will be very interested. I have already told 'them' via the QE2 comment card that I won't be back unless this is addressed.. (well, why would I when i can go on P+O from 25%..... as long as I want to go to the Canary Islands in November of course ..:D, but at least the option is there)

 

Karen

[Lanky Lad]

Maybe if enough of us complain, they will do something about it.

 

If the choice is Cannaries in November on P & O, or no cruise, I know which I would choose. Even if I had the money, I would pay 200% to cruise on QM2 or any other ship.

[Sirwinston]

Even though I rarely travel single, I feel your pain. I would try to find a cabinmate if it is a big deal. I did pay 150% for a QM2 cruise in 2004.

I thought I would enjoy all the space to myself but I found the room to quiet and lonely.

This could be another example of Cunard not being worth the extra money.

Why pay more when you could get a better cabin for less on another line?

I can get a suite on the company that owns Cunard for less than an inside on QM2 or QE2.

But I am really looking forward to my Caronia cabin on QE2 in about two months. I will be sharing it with two cabinmates. This makes Cunard affordable to me. When I take the family Carnival makes more sense. But then again I have an 11 year old.

[pb82]

I wonder if Cunard would consider selling some of the B5 obstructed view cabins on QM2 deck eight as Princess Grill singles. They could charge the per person P2 fare (which is about double the B5 per person fare) and offer Princess Grill dining. I'm sure that one or two more tables could be added to the PG without crowding. Just a thought.

Paul

[carlmm]

I wonder if Cunard would consider selling some of the B5 obstructed view cabins on QM2 deck eight as Princess Grill singles. They could charge the per person P2 fare (which is about double the B5 per person fare) and offer Princess Grill dining. I'm sure that one or two more tables could be added to the PG without crowding. Just a thought.

Paul

 

Great suggestion. At least for everybody who cares more about the dinning experience than the cabin this could be a reasonable way.

BTW Even for double occupancy I do need such a spacious cabin. The size of the Princess Grill cabins on the QE2 is absolutely sufficient. Too bad on the QM2 and the QV you get only into the Grills with huge cabins and huge money.

[Kindlychap]

I wonder if Cunard would consider selling some of the B5 obstructed view cabins on QM2 deck eight as Princess Grill singles. They could charge the per person P2 fare (which is about double the B5 per person fare) and offer Princess Grill dining. I'm sure that one or two more tables could be added to the PG without crowding. Just a thought.

Paul

 

Seriously consider Britannia Club. It's a bargain.

 

Matthew

[pb82]

Seriously consider Britannia Club. It's a bargain.

 

Matthew

Perhaps for one, but didn't you say in your recent review that the AA cabin would be too small for you and your wife?

Paul

[Kindlychap]

Seriously consider Britannia Club. It's a bargain.

 

Matthew

 

Perhaps for one, but didn't you say in your recent review that the AA cabin would be too small for you and your wife?

Paul

 

I was thinking of one, as an alternative to the idea about a deck 8 obstructed as a Princess Single.

 

I have a suspicion that if my wife and I had more reasonable expectations then the cabin would be fine.

 

After all, Peter, Imelda and the shoes managed!

 

Matthew

[Lanky Lad]

I would pay 200% to cruise on QM2 or any other ship.

 

This should have read I would NOT pay 200% to cruise on QM2 or any other ship.

[Lanky Lad]

Still no reply from Cunard, but I can't find anything in the 2009 Wolrd Cruise brochure about single supplements. :mad: I hate to say it, but looks like Cunard no longer want single people on their ships :mad: :mad: :mad:

[flag fan]

In terms of a reduced single supplement, I suspect that 200% is likely to be the going rate for most sailings. With the retirement of the QE2 the supply of the classic Cunard ships will be reduced; with lower supply and a (presumably) steady demand Cunard should be more able to fill its ships, which means no real incentive to give a discount to singles. Singles do not generate as much income as couples, even if paying the full cabin charge; even a free-spending single is not likely to spend as much as a couple on spa treatments, extra charge restaurants, casino gambling, shop sales, and shore excursions. I am a solo cruiser so I am sorry to see the trend by all the cruise lines to rely more on these extras for revenue because it means singles are much less likely to get good deals. Hopefully, I am wrong, but I would not be surprised if the charge for a solo traveler goes up once QE2 leaves the fleet.

[Lanky Lad]

Thanks for your comments Flag Fan, I am sorry to say you are right. :mad:

 

Here is the reply I received from Cunard. Looks like I will not be cruising with Cunard in 2009. :( :mad:

 

 

Thank you for your email.

 

I can understand your disappointment at the news that QE2 has been

sold.

 

As it stands there are no plans to reduce the sole occupancy supplement

however, there may be promotions from time to time and I respectfully

suggest that you keep in touch with our website for any special offers.

 

I can confirm that feedback from our valued guests, is very important

to us

and we take comments into consideration when deciding on future

promotions.

 

 

I hope this information has helped to answer your enquiry and look

forward

to welcoming you on board soon.

[guernseyguy]

I was checking to see what P&O charge on the Arcadia (similar ship to QV) - ranges between 35% and 100% - with 85% being quite common - so who knows if the move to run Cunard as part of Carnival UK may lead to similar pricing?

 

Peter

[YankeeClippr]

As a relatively "recently singled" cruiser, I'd like to pass on the following information.

 

First, I have made several "solo" trips on both the QE2 and QM2, and never been charged the full 200% single supplement. I have worked through a TA for these trips (an online one), and they have always come up with a deal that varied somewhat between about 140% and 160%.

 

I should say that in my "double" days, I had the fortune to become a World Club Platinum member, and this may have helped.

 

HOWEVER: in all cases, I received a significant upgrade (e.g., on the QE2 from a double M1 cabin on deck 4 to a double C1 cabin on deck 1, plus Caronia Dining Room) ... and on the QM2, from an inside to a full balcony double (B5) ... not that useful on a TA, but fun nonetheless and assuaged any feelings of "persecution" for being "solo".

 

On the other hand, I had the same pricing experience on HAL last Christmas, through the same TA, I think I paid something like 130% of the per person rate for a very nice double inside cabin (my choice). Though there I didn't receive an upgrade, I was very well satisfied with what I saw as a favorable rate on a fully-booked Holiday cruise.

 

SO ... find a good TA who knows Cunard (or your cruiseline of choice) and does considerable business with them, and I think you'll find some "deals". I wouldn't expect Cunard itself to do anything but hew to its stated 200% policy.

 

Second: I offer a bit of philosophical advice. Cruise lines exist to make money for their stockholders. It's what makes the world go round. Though for advertising purposes all the cruise lines give their pricing on a "PP" basis ("per person based on double occupancy"), they do, in fact, price on a "PC" ("per cabin") basis. Once one accepts this, things begin to look a little better: then, one realizes that one is getting a significant discount whenever one is able to book for less than the "PPx2" rate.

 

Furthermore, it is also a fact of life that each passenger not only pays "passage," but also spends money in the bars, the shops, shore excursions, etc. etc. and so one can understand why the lines would rather have 2 than 1. (This, of course, is why the single cabins on QE2, for example, cost more than 1/2 the cost of a correlative double.)

 

I do agree that it would be nice if the lines offered more truly "single" cabins, but again ... they only have a certain amount of "acreage" to rent and they want to maximize their ability to do so ... they can (if they choose) put one person in a double, but they could not put two persons in a single if they happened to need doubles and not have filled the singles.

 

Again, FIND A GOOD TA and play "let's make a deal." For me, the hunt is one of the pleasures of the experience ... oh ... one other thing ... don't book TOO EARLY ... it is said that there is a re-pricing just after the 90-day "final payments due" date, and that has been true in my experience as all the above-mentioned trips were booked less than 90 days before the departure.

 

By the way: I had a wonderful time on all these trips, found it very easy to make conversational friends at table and everywhere around the ships, and greatly enjoyed the time I had to myself when I wanted it! Far from "discriminating against me" because I was travelling solo, most everybody who was "paired" said ... "Wow! We admire you for doing this." And several of them said (when their "other" was not around tee hee) "we envy you!"

 

 

Hope this helps ...

[Lanky Lad]

Thanks YankeeClippr, might be worth trying, but I like to plan my cruises in advance. I am sure Cunard would not go bankrupt if they offered a few cabins for single occupancy at a reasonable rate on each cruise.

[Cinnamon Seahorse]

Crystal's single supplements range from 25% to 100%, depending on a variety of factors. If you book one of their less expensive staterooms, it's generally 25%. As you move up in terms of category and price, the supplement increases, with the total fare doubling as you get into the high-end suites.

 

Happy Sailing, Carla

[3rdGenCunarder]

I can understand your disappointment at the news that QE2 has been

sold.

 

As it stands there are no plans to reduce the sole occupancy supplement

however, there may be promotions from time to time and I respectfully

suggest that you keep in touch with our website for any special offers.

 

So what you asked for is not going to happen...

 

I can confirm that feedback from our valued guests, is very important

to us

and we take comments into consideration when deciding on future

promotions.

 

even though it is important that you asked.:(

 

I hate that "your input is valuable" sort of comment when you've been told "no." I find it insulting somehow.:mad:

 

Carla, is Crystal a good line to try once QE2 is gone? My agent thinks I'd like it for size, formality, and level of service. QM2 is larger than I like, and I don't have high hopes for QV.

[durangoscots]

This is one reason why I will do little cruising. I am not comfortable rooming with someone I don't know, particularly on a longer trip and it is difficult to find someone you do know that wants to do a cruise when you want to. Fortunately for me my next door neighbor was up for the January World cruise on the QE2 (or part of it) but probably future cruises of any kind will be out for me in the future. Just another penalty of being a single.

 

Susan

[Jayayeff]

Carla, is Crystal a good line to try once QE2 is gone? My agent thinks I'd like it for size, formality, and level of service. QM2 is larger than I like, and I don't have high hopes for QV.

 

I'm not Carla but I am another Crystal cruiser, and a single one. I'm sure you would love Crystal just as those of us who have already been 'crystalized' do. Although I have not sailed on the QE2 I recently did a crossing on the QM2 and was disappointed with several aspects of the Cunard experience...IMHO Crystal is a far superior product and you don't have to pay Grill class to experience the best food/service, etc. on the ship as what is on offer is available to all......

[Vic The Parrot]

Try Holland America .... the supplement is 150%

 

 

If you want a balcony cabin, it's 190 .... 200% for suite categories.

Some food for thought. Enjoy your weekend! :)

[cunardqueen]

[quoteSo what you asked for is not going to happen...

 

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lanky Lad

I can confirm that feedback from our valued guests, is very important

to us

and we take comments into consideration when deciding on future

promotions.

 

even though it is important that you asked.

 

I hate that "your input is valuable" sort of comment when you've been told "no." I find it insulting somehow.

]

 

Or the other answer they give is "Im sorry that this isnt the answer you were looking for" is one lm fed up hearing !!

Perhaps if that Marlow woman is onboard one of the fare well cruises, we might be able to ask her directly Do Cunard want singles on their ships or not. and await her answer with bated breath.

She did respond to one of my letters and it was so full of spin l land in a heap on the floor everytime l try to read it.

So after 2008 l might move across to the other side with my custom and the lower supplements.......

cheers

Myles

[Lanky Lad]

Not really much of a threat saying we will move to P&O or HAL since they and Cunard are all owned by Carnival. But NCL and RCCL dont appeal and Celebrity charge 200% single supplement. Hopefully I will be able to ask the Marlow woman the question in September. Of course we already know the answer, but she knows she can't just say no. :mad: :mad: