 Home | About Smarter Cruising | Contact Us | Newsletter | Testimonials Smarter Cruising Newsletter============================================== "Smarter Cruising" Newsletter ============================================== "Double occupancy:" Two words that strike fear in the
hearts of every solo cruiser. Almost every advertised cruise fare is figured on the basis of at least two people sharing a cabin. Then comes the fine print: "Singles supplement add 50 percent..." or even worse: "Singles supplement add 100 percent..." Occasionally, you may find a singles supplement that adds "only" 25 percent to the double occupancy fare. There's no question about it --if you go on a cruise by yourself, you're probably going to be penalized for it. Most cruise lines charge a singles supplement to passengers going solo on the seas. -------------------------------------------------------------- To
calculate the supplement, cruise lines typically start with
the fare for each passenger in double occupancy, and then add a percentage to it -- anywhere from 10 to 100 percent. So a single passenger occupying a standard room can easily end up paying as much as two passengers who are sharing a room. If the
double occupancy fare is, say, $1,000 per passenger,
then a single passenger might end up paying $2,000 rather than $1,000. Cruise lines justify these supplements because they typically charge by the cabin, not by the number of passengers. They're essentially selling space on the ship. If a couple were occupying the same room, they figure, they would collect $2,000, so why should they take less for the cabin from a single passenger? A single passenger might respond: Yes, but I only eat for one... And the cruise line might then answer back: Yes, but you only buy drinks for one, buy shore excursions for one, and generally provide only half the revenue that two passengers might. Whether or not this is "fair" -- and you could argue it either way -- the cruise lines call the shots, and single passengers generally have to live with it. -------------------------------------------------------------- The good
news is that not all cruise lines are so draconian.
Cruise West -- which offers some wonderful itineraries in the Pacific region (especially Alaska) -- charges no singles supplement at all for inside cabins on two of its ships, The Spirit of Alaska and The Spirit of Columbia. And on most
of its ships, Cruise West offers a "Single Share
Program" which will match you with another single passenger so you can avoid paying the supplement. If the line can't find you an appropriate roommate, you can have the room by yourself with no markup. Other cruise lines that typically charge less onerous singles supplements include Crystal, Ocean Adventures (Galapagos), Regent Seven Seas, Seabourn, and Silversea. Regent, for
instance, has a current special (expiring January
31, 2008) pricing single supplements at $499 for some cabin categories on three 10- and 11-day Caribbean sailings aboard the Seven Seas Mariner this March and April. That's about a 12 percent markup from the regular double occupancy fare. All the above are pricey lines, though, so you'll end up paying more for your basic fares to begin with -- but at least you won't be paying twice as much as most of your fellow passengers for the same accommodations. Besides checking the websites for the individual cruise lines mentioned above, take a look at VacationsToGo.com, a discount Internet site that often lists the best deals and lowest supplements for single travelers in its weekly online newsletter. Another thing to watch for: cruise lines may waive their singles supplements if they're having trouble filling cabins for certain cruises. Your best chance for finding a deal like this is on an offseason cruise -- often at short notice. Ask your travel agent about the possibilities or check with Singles Travel International, which keeps track of such deals. -------------------------------------------------------------- Of course,
one way to beat the singles supplements is to room
with someone else. If you don't have a friend or relative you can share a cabin with, several cruise lines or organizations might be able to help. Some cruise lines (in addition to Cruise West, mentioned above) -- including Carnival, Celebrity, Cunard, Holland America, and Princess -- will try to match singles with roommates (same sex and smoking preference) and will waive the singles supplement if they fail. However, it's a bit of a gamble: you can't reject a roommate for reasons other than gender or smoking preference. Organizations that will try to find you a match include Travel Chums, an online site in which you can search through other members'
profiles to find a compatible traveling companion.
You can also post notices on their message boards that you are looking for a companion on a specific cruise or for a certain time period. Cruisers seeking roommates can also try the free message boards at Cruise Mates. --------------------------------------------------------------
If you're going solo, here are some resources to check out:
** Connecting: Solo Travel Network helps single travelers connect
with compatible travel partners via a newsletter and
offers tips
on avoiding singles supplements as well as offering
singles
tour listings and directories.
** Singles Travel International guarantees you a roommate on its
singles-only trips or it will pay the singles supplement.
It also
offers cruise specials for low or no singles supplements
contains
feature articles and other useful
information.
-------------------------------------------------------------- Do you have a question for Smarter Cruising? -------------------------------------------------------------- If you have a topic you'd like to see covered in an upcoming newsletter, or just a cruising question you'd like answered, drop me a line at clark@smartercruising.com. I look forward to hearing from you!
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Note that
any of these deals could disappear at any time:
** Norwegian Cruise Line has a number of week-long
Alaska
cruises
this summer on sale for prices starting at $689 per
passenger
double occupancy, $849 oceanview. Third to eighth
passengers
in the same stateroom are $199-$299 per person in
all
categories (if you can imagine being the eighth
person in a stateroom...). Departures are from early May to mid-September and are roundtrip from seattle via the Norwegian Pearl and Norwegian Star or from Vancouver on the Norwegian Sun. Fares do not include $3-$7 per day per person fuel supplements. Book by January 20 for $100 onboard credits. ** Vacations to Go has several
late-breaking specials on
upcoming
Carnival cruises, with prices from two-thirds to
three-fourths off brochure fares:
A three-night Bahamas cruise from Miami on February 1 is going for as low as $229 per person (Fast deal #16563); a five-day Mexico cruise from New Orleans February 9 is priced as low as $299 per person (Fast deal #23964); a four-day cruise to Mexico from Miami February 11 is priced from $239 (Fast deal #16194); a five-day Mexico cruise from Mobile, Alabama, on February 25 starts at $299 (Fast Deal #13411); and a four-day cruise from Long Beach to Mexico and back on February 25 starts at $209 per person (Fast deal #18010). Call 800/338-4962; if you act fast, you may receive a free upgrade (you'll need to act fast in any event). ** Cruises-N-More has a deal for a 12-night Celebrity cruise from
Amsterdam to the British Isles for just $1,999 per person --
including
roundtrip airfare from the U.S. The Internet discount
site is
also offering onboard credits of from $50-$200 and a
discount
coupon book for onboard savings. Port stops include
Edinburgh,
Belfast, Dublin, Guernsey, and Le Havre. Airfare is
included
from a dozen U.S. east coast and midwestern cities.
Call
800/733-2048.
** Best Price Cruises is putting its Holland America cruises on sale from January 17 to 24, complete with $50-$260 shipboard credits, $340 onboard coupon books, and reduced deposits. One deal is a 14-day Holland America Panama Canal cruise out of Ft. Lauderdale April 27 that visits Colombia, Bonaire, and Acapulco before ending in Los Angeles, for prices starting at $1,588 per person. Call 800/672-7485 or 800/344-0401 for help booking online (online booking is a bit cheaper). --------------------------------------------------------------
For insider tips on HOW TO BOOK THE BEST CRUISE DEAL -------------------------------------------------------------- Our guide, "How to Book the Best Cruise Deal" is loaded with insider tips and techniques -- all geared toward saving you lots of money when you book your next cruise. And for a short time you can get it for a very special price! That's right -- an incredible deal on information that could easily save you hundreds, or even thousands, of dollars on your next cruise. Here's what one of our satisfied customers had to say: "Smarter Cruising's new eBook 'How to Book the Best Cruise Deal' is packed with useful information. "Cruise line pricing has always been mysterious to me. This book helped me understand not only the 'whats' of booking early vs. booking late, but also the 'whys.' "Very helpful! I recommend this book to anyone planning a cruise, whether it will be their first or their twentieth." -- Mary Sullivan, Oakland, California I know that many of you are planning to book a cruise for 2008 in the next few weeks or months. Don't go into "battle" negotiating your fare without being armed with all the money-saving secrets contained in "How to Book the Best Cruise Deal!" To learn more about "How to Book the Best Cruise Deal," check out: http://www.smartercruising.com And if you order right away, we'll add FREE bonus books on saving on airfare, and even on how you can avoid airfare altogether! Don't miss out! Visit: http://www.smartercruising.com
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Every year, cruise lines and travel agents gear up for the
biggest cruise-selling season of the year -- January, February, and March. It's much like the pre-Christmas season is for retail stores, except rather than Black Friday and Super Saturday and whatever other names they come up with, the big cruise-selling months are known as Wave Season. This is the time of year when you can expect to see cruise deals flooding the market, because cruise lines want to sell as many cabins as they can for the coming year and beyond. Look for discounts for the summer season in Alaska and Europe, as well as last-minute winter and spring deals in the Caribbean and beyond. This is a great time to negotiate a great deal through travel agents, many of whom are eligible for special bonuses from the cruise lines if they meet or exceed Wave Season quotas. Both brick-and-mortar and online travel agencies are handing out perks by the barrelful. For example, for bookings through February, CruisesOnly.com is tossing in free airline companion tickets (NOT good for your cruise booking, however) as well as dining gift cards, possible free upgrades, and onboard spending credits. Check out the late-breaking deals listed in Section 2, which all include extra perks. In short, don't wait! One good way to keep abreast of the action is by frequently logging onto my Smarter Cruising blog (www.smartercruising.blogspot.com) for late-breaking deals. --------------------------------------------------------------
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As of January 31, 2008, citizens of the U.S. and Canada
ages 19 and up will need to show a government-issued photo ID (such as a driver's license) as well as proof of citizenship (such as a passport, birth certificate or naturalization certificate) to enter or depart the U.S. by land or sea. Children 18 or younger will need to show proof of citizenship. Besides traveling to and from Canada, these requirements will apply to Americans sailing (or driving) to and from Mexico, as well as to those traveling by sea to Bermuda and the Caribbean (except Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands). While most cruise lines have been enforcing these rules for some time, they will now be law. To emphasize, the Cruise Lines International Association (representing most of the big lines) has just put out a warning that "Cruise passengers on international voyages who do not have proper citizenship and identification documentation will not be allowed to board their cruise after January 31, 2008." If you're a U.S. citizen and don't yet have a passport -- and about two-thirds still do not -- you can wait as long as the summer of 2009 to get one to travel to and from the above areas, as long as you have the photo ID and alternate proof of citizenship. However, I strongly recommend applying for a passport as soon as possible to avoid situations like last summer, when the U.S. State Department passport division became horribly backlogged and many applicants had to wait months and months, with some missing their trips altogether. Normal processing times are about four to six weeks, or less than a week if you pay expediting fees. The U.S. State Department may soon offer a less expensive alternative in the form of a "passport card" good only for land and sea crossings to Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, The Bahamas, and the Caribbean, but the exact date of availability is uncertain. And if you want to venture beyond the North America-Caribbean region, you'll need a regular passport anyway. Remember, as of 2007, you do need a passport if you're planning to fly into the U.S. from Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean (except Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands). For more information, go to http://travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2223.html
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If you haven't had a chance yet to check out my
Smarter Cruising Blog, you
can find it at
http://SmarterCruising.blogspot.com. It's loaded with deals on big mainstream cruise lines, adventurous small ships, and scenic river cruisers, ranging from the Caribbean to the Mediterranean, the Black Sea to the Amazon. This month,
during the week of January 19-26, I'll be
blogging from my cruise on the Carnival Freedom as it sails the western Caribbean. Please come for a visit! And keep checking back often -- I often post items that have a short window of opportunity, such as special sales and discounts that cruise lines offer for a short time only -- sometimes just one day! --------------------------------------------------------------
Happy cruising,
Clark Norton The Smarter Cruiser
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