ex Carnival cruiser now looking to sail solo on NCL

[farmersfight]

Hi NCL cruisers. I have previously sailed with Carnival when I was with someone else (girlfriend, fiance or wife). We usually got a balcony stateroom, but we have also sailed with an inside. Now I am divorced and have been looking at NCL because of the solo studio staterooms and solo cruiser discount program. I like the studio staterooms on the larger, newer ships (with the studio lounge for solo cruisers) but I would prefer to have a balcony using the solo cruiser discount (more room and has a balcony). I am curious as to whether there are any other solo cruisers out there and what their thoughts/opinions are regarding NCL's solo studio staterooms vs the solo cruiser discount program. I am "steered" toward NCL because of these and I refuse to pay double fare (solo supplement) on NCL or any other cruise line. Any thoughts/opinions from solo cruisers out there would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

Marty

[Zippeedee]

I cruise solo and always book a balcony. Sometimes I do pay double, other times the supplement is reduced or eliminated. You can check cruiseplum.com for lists of cruises with reduced or zero supplements. I prefer NCL because they are used to solo cruisers and service is generally excellent. Personal preference but just the thought of an inside or studio cabin makes me feel like I can't breathe. Everyone has different needs.

[farmersfight]

18 minutes ago, Zippeedee said:

I cruise solo and always book a balcony. Sometimes I do pay double, other times the supplement is reduced or eliminated. You can check cruiseplum.com for lists of cruises with reduced or zero supplements. I prefer NCL because they are used to solo cruisers and service is generally excellent. Personal preference but just the thought of an inside or studio cabin makes me feel like I can't breathe. Everyone has different needs.

Thanks for your feedback. Thanks for the tip about cruiseplum.com - I have their website saved on my computer. Glad to hear about the service on NCL. Also, I like NCL's marketing to solo cruisers. I totally agree with you about an inside or studio cabin. Although the studio cabins are a great idea by NCL for solo cruisers (with the studio lounge as well), they are really small and I would prefer more room and a balcony. I read somewhere that RCI has solo balcony cabins on a few of their ships but that they are almost impossible to book due to the high demand. Thanks again for your thoughts.

[luv2kroooz]

Book a sailaway inside, not a studio, when the single supplement is waived. Enter an upgrade advantage bid for a balcony. For a seven day cruise, it will typically be $50 pp and you'll have to pay for 2, so $100. I've had success with this method about 50% of the time. This only works if you are ok with a guarantee stateroom assignment. If you want a specific location or if you will be upset if you don't get the bid accepted, I wouldn't do this method.

[farmersfight]

2 minutes ago, blcruising said:

Book a sailaway inside, not a studio, when the single supplement is waived. Enter an upgrade advantage bid for a balcony. For a seven day cruise, it will typically be $50 pp and you'll have to pay for 2, so $100. I've had success with this method about 50% of the time. This only works if you are ok with a guarantee stateroom assignment. If you want a specific location or if you will be upset if you don't get the bid accepted, I wouldn't do this method.

Thanks for the advice. Sounds like a good method. How do you find out when the single supplement is waived?

[luv2kroooz]

2 minutes ago, farmersfight said:

Thanks for the advice. Sounds like a good method. How do you find out when the single supplement is waived?

I usually go to NCLs website and sort by price. There is also a solo cruiser forum here on cc. Often times, I learn of them there.

[farmersfight]

3 minutes ago, blcruising said:

I usually go to NCLs website and sort by price. There is also a solo cruiser forum here on cc. Often times, I learn of them there.

Thanks! I'll have to look for the solo cruiser forum here on cc.

[Mike_DeA]

20 hours ago, blcruising said:

Book a sailaway inside, not a studio, when the single supplement is waived. Enter an upgrade advantage bid for a balcony. For a seven day cruise, it will typically be $50 pp and you'll have to pay for 2, so $100. I've had success with this method about 50% of the time. This only works if you are ok with a guarantee stateroom assignment. If you want a specific location or if you will be upset if you don't get the bid accepted, I wouldn't do this method.

 

Have you had success with a $50 bid?  While the bidding starts at that level, I have not bid just $50, but instead go a bit higher. 

 

For my 3/31/19 Escape NYC sailing I had a casino comped cruise and scored a balcony with my $130 bid ($260 total plus the increased NCL insurance cost of about $30).  Other times my lower bids ($60 to $100 x2) were not successful. 

[luv2kroooz]

16 minutes ago, Mike_DeA said:

 

Have you had success with a $50 bid?  While the bidding starts at that level, I have not bid just $50, but instead go a bit higher. 

 

For my 3/31/19 Escape NYC sailing I had a casino comped cruise and scored a balcony with my $130 bid ($260 total plus the increased NCL insurance cost of about $30).  Other times my lower bids ($60 to $100 x2) were not successful. 

I've had success with this method about 50% of the time.