Are cruise lines fair when charging single cruisers?

Every year I hear the same complaints from the single traveller.

They feel they are being unfairly treated, discriminated against, paying for food for two people and more.

So, are single travellers getting a bad deal…      and that means cruises specifically?

Now I have been in this industry for a long time and over the past 31 years that I have specifically been involved in the cruise business, I have successfully handled the arrangements of probably more single travellers than any other agent that I know.

One question that almost always crops up is the issue of the single supplement.

Many years ago, quite a number of cruise ships had cabins that were dedicated sole occupancy cabins. Nowadays, these are few and far between so it’s left up to people like me to find the single traveller a deal that represents value for money. Single travellers time and again complain to me that their cruise prices are over the top because many cruise lines charge a single supplement that can often be as much as double the price. By this, I mean that a cabin for two people charged at say £3,000 would, for a single person be almost the same cost.

I agree with my clients that this often isn’t fair but it’s the cruise lines that set this policy.

My clients say to me they don’t drink as much as a couple occupying that same cabin. They say they eat less than half of what the couple eat. They say they are not costing the cruise line double costs…       and I agree with all this. The golden rule is for single travellers to opt for the really big ships like those of Royal Caribbean because single supplements are likely to be lower.

The reality is that single travellers will, almost always, be penalised on cost. We cannot do anything about that.

There are some cruise lines that do go out of their way to help by either significantly reducing their single supplements or, at best, waiving them completely. This does not happen that often and single travellers need to be ready to commit as soon as any opportunity arises.

P&O Cruises do have specific prices for single cabins, if you are lucky enough to find one. If I offer one, I expect my clients to take it without much deliberation, because they are few and far between.

A message to all those single travellers out there…    I’m on your side and will help make trips as affordable as possible but please understand there are limitations.