Loyal to a Line or Looking for the best price

Hi everyone,

I've cruised several times as a 'couple' in the past and enjoyed all of them very much.

Things have changed and now I'm beginning my journey as a 'solo' cruiser with a trip booked in Jan 2015 and my eye on another one in April. I'm noticing a pattern where they are all with the same cruise line. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing, but since I now have to account for the single supplement it tends to sting a bit more.

My question to all you seasoned solos is this:

Are you loyal to the same cruise line for all your trips, and do you feel its worth it to do so,?

Do you tend to concentrate more on whoever is least expensive?

Or, is the itinerary your main focus?

I'm not sure how I feel about all of this yet and am curious to know what others think.

Any input or advice is much appreciated.

Thanks

Itinerary is important -- I like a maximum of sea days and a minimum of port days. However, I also like a smaller ship of 1500 people or so, max, so that will limit my choices as well.

For me it's always a balancing act of getting most of the things I want at a good price.

It kills me to pay more than I have to for things! :) So I am always searching for good prices and I know when I find one so I can jump on it.

That said, I always sail in a balcony cabin. I prefer to sail on one of a few cruiselines but am open to others if I like the itinerary and price and the timing fits with my work schedule.

As I've branched out and tried different cruiselines I've yet to find one I didn't enjoy!

I usually focus more on the itinerary than the line or ship. While I do prefer the smaller ships and have stayed away from the mega-ships, if I found one with the right itinerary and right price I might give it a try. I am not loyal to any one line, as I look at the itinerary and then look at what the price is on the various lines sailing that itinerary, and go with what I feel is the best value. The price isn't always the cheapest, but some times if the value of the cruise seems better to me, then I will go with that line and ship.

And here's another cruising strategy.....I'm in education and can only currently cruise in a February and Easter for a week. I've cruised the Caribbean many times. I cruise solo because all my friends are married. So, for now, I look for a low single supplement. That usually results in me cruising NCL in a studio. I did a studio on the RCCL SOS but it just can't compare to NCL, IMHO. I think this strategy will change once I retire in 3-5 years.....

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Itinerary comes first. Then I compare prices. Some lines I will not sail on as a solo traveler so even if they have the lowest price they are off my list.

I stick with one line. I get pretty good last minute deals and sometimes a great sale. I've stuck with one line long enough that I get great perks so I'm not sure anymore its worth changing cruise companies. plus I know how things work and I'm kind of afraid of trying something new!

As a solo cruiser I did like a certain cruise line, but once they raised their solo rates I went to their competitor, and I'm glad I did. Much lower rates and still a great atmosphere, if not better. While many like "their points", I would rather know I'm getting a good deal.

Itinerary is the most important to me. I like to see and experience new places. The more ports, the better. My budget is factored in next, but I don't necessarily select the least expensive. The ship/boat and the experience I would be having on each is important to me, particularly as a solo, but I am not "loyal" to a particular cruise line. I'm in the bottom tier of cruise lines loyalty programs, except for one where I am at the second tier. I'll be adding American Cruise Lines (Queen of the Mississippi) and Princess as new ones this year.

After 25 cruises or so, many itineraries get repeated or are similar. But for the longest time, I only sailed Carnival due to its low prices. So you can say I was "conditionally" loyal due to value. When Carnival instituted its 200% solo supplement, I began to try other lines. So very happy that I sailed Disney, Celebrity and NCL in the last few years, they were great experiences.

Now I have my 19th and 20th Carnival cruises booked, but only because I snagged them for a single fare, costing me just over $500 each. When/if Carnival discontinues the true single fare, I will immediately go back to other lines. I'll be looking for cruise value and itinerary, not just pricing then.

I can't say I'm loyal to one line, but I have my favourites that I always check out first and there are some I currently don't consider as they don't sound like "my kind of ship". I have learnt to sign up for the loyalty programmes whenever I sail with someone new though.

I'd say itinerary is currently most important to me and then deciding whether its worth the price they are charging (I don't overly worry about supplements, if they make it too expensive that tends to make the decision for me).

For my next cruise I had already decided to try the Caribbean, which gave me lots of options, but chose a more expensive inside cabin on RCI than a cheaper balcony on NCL, just because so many people have told me I would enjoy RCI - so this time I'm paying for the cruise line!

Variety is the spice of life though, and its always worth trying new things in my opinion :)

I'd like to be loyal to one line but I like RCCL and CCL for different reasons. In the end, I go with the best price for the time frame that I'm searching for. I'm going on a NCL cruise in January and for some reason, I don't think I'll enjoy it but I'm going to check it out. One day, I hope to do one of the more "luxury" cruise lines and of course a Cunard TA.

I've tried four different cruiselines but keep coming back to Celebrity (all time favorite) and Royal Caribbean. Unfortunately, Celebrity only sails from Fort Lauderdale and Miami, a five hour drive from me, so now I usually end up on Royal since their two ports are only 2 hours from me. I don't really want to check out additional cruiselines at this point.

As I near retirement in 3-5 years, I'm leaning towards itinerary and price. I usually always sailed in balcony cabins but the next two cruises I'm trying new cruise lines. September I'll be on NCL Pride of American in an inside and RCCL in October in an OV.

I've sailed Celebrity enough to become elite and I like the cruise line primarily because of their smoking policy. I have also sailed Carnival and Princess. I'm sure when I retire and can travel last minute I'll try a few more cruise lines.

I'm trying to decide now about stick with the cruise line I know so well or if maybe branch out.

I recently lost my DH after married 44 years. We cruised HAL 85+ cruises and have lots of friends and acquaintances on the ships.

Local friends have invited me to cruise with them...... one set of friends are cruising HAL and the other NCL, where I have never cruised.

I'm not sure if the comfort factor of HAL is the best for me or a whole new experience for my first solo cruise without DH. I fear I would see him everywhere on HAL as we sailed 14 of HAL's 15 ships, most of them multiple times.

I'm trying to decide now about stick with the cruise line I know so well or if maybe branch out.

 

I recently lost my DH after married 44 years. We cruised HAL 85+ cruises and have lots of friends and acquaintances on the ships.

 

Local friends have invited me to cruise with them...... one set of friends are cruising HAL and the other NCL, where I have never cruised.

 

I'm not sure if the comfort factor of HAL is the best for me or a whole new experience for my first solo cruise without DH. I fear I would see him everywhere on HAL as we sailed 14 of HAL's 15 ships, most of them multiple times.

Hi, sending you my condolences. I know you are HAL cruiser and my

suggestion is to do what makes you most happy:).....I am not in

your circumstance but I always sail with Celebrity. Folks have

said to me over the years..."branch out".....I say "why"? I love the

product they provide me. After 85 cruises I am sure you love the

product Hal provides you as well. As for NCL? I have no desire to

try them.

Good luck in whatever decision you make.

Hi, sending you my condolences. I know you are HAL cruiser and my

suggestion is to do what makes you most happy:).....I am not in

your circumstance but I always sail with Celebrity. Folks have

said to me over the years..."branch out".....I say "why"? I love the

product they provide me. After 85 cruises I am sure you love the

product Hal provides you as well. As for NCL? I have no desire to

try them.

Good luck in whatever decision you make.

I have to chime in here and say how sorry I am for your loss. Like Lois, I sail Celebrity and once on HAL and loved both of them. I too, have no desire to try NCL or any other lines. I can't put myself in your place but I've found, for myself, that sailing Celebrity brings me so many happy memories and I feel so much closer to the one I lost. You may find a lot of beautiful memories with HAL. But only you know what you are comfortable with and it's a very personal decision.

Good luck and happy sailing in whatever decision you make. :)

Sue

Loyalty from the cruise line perspective (the perks) mean very little to me. However, different cruise lines appeal to different demographics, and that's very important.

For me, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean offer the best combination of what I am looking for. I tried one NCL, not really my cup of tea. One HAL which I liked in a lot of ways better than Celebrity, but really disliked in a few ways that makes them not my top. Haven't tried Princess, although from what I hear, that might work as well. I'll give them a shot one of these days. I personally have no interest in Carnival, based on what I've seen. Can't afford the Azumara/Oceania types.

So I think it's important to know what you want out of a cruise and find the line/lines that deliver that.

In my case, its more of what's sailing nearby and how much it'll cost to get there. I live in the borough of the Bronx and don't drive, so I mostly get around by public transportation. The only affordable cruises that are reachable by subway are Carnival and NCL, & only NCL travels year around while Carnival only sails in the summer and part of fall. RCL is out question for since it sails from NJ and person still needs a taxi to get to port even if you use public buses to get there. So, its basically do I pay $140-$200 round trip plus tolls to get to RCL or pay $2.50 one way and walk 15 minutes to the port and then have a choice of the subway or pay $20-50 taxi on the way back home if I choose Carnival / NCL? Its no brainer in my case....

I'm trying to decide now about stick with the cruise line I know so well or if maybe branch out.

 

I recently lost my DH after married 44 years. We cruised HAL 85+ cruises and have lots of friends and acquaintances on the ships.

 

Local friends have invited me to cruise with them...... one set of friends are cruising HAL and the other NCL, where I have never cruised.

 

I'm not sure if the comfort factor of HAL is the best for me or a whole new experience for my first solo cruise without DH. I fear I would see him everywhere on HAL as we sailed 14 of HAL's 15 ships, most of them multiple times.

So sorry for your loss. My husband passed away last year after 34 years of marriage. We went to Italy a lot and this year I went with some friends and like you said, it was difficult because I saw him everywhere. Now this is just MY opinion, but if you like HAL and want to branch out, I'm not sure NCL is the line you want. I think Celebrity is like HAL with more things to do.

And although time does NOT heal all wounds, I promise it will get better.