Faith77

My big problem is that I work in a university library and am somewhat tied to an academic calendar. The best times for me to cruise are May/June and the Christmas/New Year holidays.

This year I wanted to cruise Alaska from Vancouver roundtrip but couldn't find a trip with decent pricing. I ended up doing a pacific coastal because I got the 7 night cruise for right around $1,000 for an ov. I pay no attention to ss. I figure what is most important to me pricewise is the price of the cruise.

If you can be flexible about dates, cruise line and cruise ships, and itinerary I figure there are decent deals out there. I am amazed at some of the good deals I see listed on some of the solo cruiser threads. I'm hoping that someday when I retire I can take advantage of these deals. Faith

I've cruised solo during the holidays on either Princess or HAL 5 or 6 times over the years. Some years I'm very social and am involved with the Christmas activities. Other years I just enjoy the sea air, read books on my Kindle, and hang by myself. The thing about cruising is a cruise can be whatever you want it to be.

My only suggestion would be to take a longer (10+ days) cruise. On my one 7 day cruise it was harder to get away from the Christmas activities and the extended families. As the years have gone by, I have noticed more and more single/solo folks travelling over the holidays because they want to get away from it all. Faith

I've mostly cruised HAL and Princess over the last few years. I'd give the nod to Princess for more activity during the day and the evening. I liked that I could pop into a lounge most evenings and enjoy some music, a comedy show, etc. on Princess. On HAL I really enjoyed the piano bar/lounge and most nights spent a few hours there.

In the last few years I've done anytime dining on all my cruises and have had better luck with HAL. On my last Princess cruise there were huge lines at the entrance to the anytime dining rooms the first 3 nights around 7:30-8pm. This was not a huge deal for me--I just went to the lido or snacked at the IC. I like the fact that the lido is open longer hours on Princess.

I'd like to cruise on NCL because of the studio cabins/lounge and the good things I hear about the night time shows. Faith

In March and April of this year I was looking for an Alaska cruise for $1,000/under for an inside or OV on any cruise line sailing in May or June. No luck.

I did find a Pacific Coastal cruise in early May for right around $1,000 (including port charges and taxes) for an OV. This was about $600 less then any Alaska cruise I was able to find. So I got my cruise fix. The solo deals thread on this board has had some great cruise deals.

Faith

Ten years ago I took my first and only river cruise to and through Russia. I think that this was a wonderful way for a solo to travel to Russia.

This trip started with 4 nights in St. Petersburg with 4 nights on the boat. Then we spent a week on the river travelling through small towns. The last part of the trip was 4 nights in a 1950s style Moscow hotel. I thought this cruise was more like an upscale land tour then a cruise--lots of land touring and lectures every day. The only negative I can think of is that there is limited night time entertainment--this was not a problem for me since the days were so busy.

I thought this trip was both busy and relaxed. This was probably my most expensive trip. I am thinking I'd love to do another river cruise and spend some time in the port city before the river cruise. Faith

Lots of factors help me go from looking at different cruises to booking a specific cruise. I usually travel around Christmas/New Years and consider both land trips and cruises. Two years ago I cruised to Hawaii roundtrip from my home port in SF. This year I have a deposit on a cruise to Mexico from SF. I love not having to fly during the holiday

My magic number is $1,000 for a 7 night cruise in an ov cabin from a west coast port. I also prefer my cruises start and end on a Saturday or Sunday so that I'll be able to use fewer vacation days. In March/April I was looking at Alaska cruises (round trip from Seattle and Vancouver) and couldn't find anything I was interested in for May or June. I also checked out a repo cruise from LA to Vancouver that I was able to book for right around $1,000 for an obstructed ov room. Faith

I loved this trip. I wanted to do Russia and I felt that a river cruise was the best way to do it. I went with Grand Circle and I felt they did a great job. Because they have a somewhat reasonable ss I think they do a good job of attracting solo cruisers.

This was an expensive trip even with a somewhat reasonable ss. I've done lots of land trips with Grand Circle and I think they do a good job with us solos. Faith

This is really exciting. You will have a lot of time to plan. Maybe you could get quotes from both HAL and online TAs. I've developed a relationship of sorts with my online TA. I like the fact that he has knowledge about different cruise line and ships. Two years ago I booked the Grand Princess over the Christmas/New Years holiday to Hawaii and bounced around 3 guarantee cabins until I ended up with my first balcony. I liked having my own TA during this process.

I've cruised with both HAL and Princess. My longest cruise with HAL was a PC cruise and my longest cruise with Princess was to Hawaii both over the Christmas/New Years holiday. I've liked Princess for my longer cruises because there is more going on both day and night. But I think any cruise line you do a 30 day cruise on will be an older crowd. I love HAL's itineraries best. You could check out HAL by doing a one week cruise solo.

I'm working my way up to a longer cruise hopefully in the next couple of years. There are so many wonderful choices. Faith

I will read thru and post on the roll call this weekend. I'm starting to get excited--we just have right around a month to go. It's been over a year for me since my last cruise and I am ready to go now.

Faith

Over the last few years I've cruised mostly HAL and Princess. I'm not married to any one cruise line and I'm usually happy to try something new. Five years ago I did a Russia river cruise. I think river cruises are a good choice for solos. But they are usually a high cost choice.

I suggest you check out the solo board on cruise critic. It has a thread with solo deals and criteria solo cruisers use to get good deals. I like doing my HAL cruises during holiday time--I think there were less kids/families then on other lines. I like Princess because there is more entertainment choices day and night. When I did my roundtrip Hawaii cruise I chose Princess because there were lots of sea days. Faith

I booked this cruise last week for $1066.20 (includes port charges and taxes). I'll be in an obstructed ov--inside cabins were $100 less. I just booked my flights using Princess Air so I'm getting excited about the cruise. Next I'll take a look at my roll call.

Originally I was looking at Alaska cruises from mid May through June. Solo pricing was from $1,500-$2,500 on the few cruises I checked out sailing from Vancouver. I was very happy to find the Pacific Coastal cruise even through its earlier then I wanted to travel.

I love looking at everybody's deals. Someday I hope to do one of these TA type cruises.

Faith

I priced Alaska cruises roundtrip out of Vancouver for mid May through June. Pricing (including taxes and port charges) came in anywhere from $1,500.00 through $2,500.00 for an obstructed ov cabin for a one week cruise.

I also priced a pacific coastal cruise from LA to Vancouver which came in at $1,066.20 for a obstructed ov cabin for the 5/2 cruise on the Golden Princess. This price includes an onboard credit of $50.

So I booked this cruise two days after I received this quote. I figure pricing is all supply and demand. There is a good thread on the solo cruise board that folks post their cruise deals.

Faith

I was actually looking for an Alaska cruise but the price quotes I got for May and June out of Vancouver are crazy high.

I got an obstructed OV on this cruise for $1,066.20 with $50 obc. Pacific Coastal cruise here I come. Faith

In my early years of cruising I planned very structured cruises. I mostly act meals in the dining room, did formal nights, booked cruises with mostly port visits, and booked shore excursions with the cruise line. I think in my early cruising days I was afraid of too much alone time on a ship.

Now I love sea days and look for at least 2 on every cruise. I book any time dining on all trips and eat in the MDR half the time or less. I haven't done formal nights in years. I still mostly book shore excursions with the cruise line but, if I'm at a port that I've been to before and feel comfortable at, I go off on my own.

I love being with the sea now. I love my West Coast cool weather cruises and my favorite thing to do is find an outside spot on a ship and enjoy.

I'm not an experienced traveler. Solo travel to foreign countries on my own feels stressful. Cruising is so easy. Its the best of being alone and being social. Faith

I'm surprised how long the spring break/Easter week cruising season lasts. I work at a college and our spring break week is the last week in March.

Lois, you should be fine cruising to Alaska in May. I've cruised Alaska in May twice over the years and both times had a wonderful relaxing cruise.

I've cruised over lots of Christmas/New Years holidays and will not take a short cruise during this time--for me this means 5-7 nights. After Lois' experience I will add spring break/Easter week to my list of times not to take short cruises.

Faith

Two years ago I booked a guarantee obstructed ov cabin for a Christmas/New Years cruise to Hawaii on the Grand Princess. Over the year leading to the cruise I had 4 different cabin assignments. My final cabin assignment, right before my cruise, was a balcony. This was my first time cruising in a balcony and I was thrilled.

Good luck to you.

Faith

I usually book a guarantee obstructed ov cabin and am hopeful about upsells and upgrades.

On my last Christmas holiday cruise I lucked out with an upgrade to a balcony. This was my first balcony and I was thrilled.

In recent years I skip formal nights and do anytime dining or the lido most evenings. My favorite dining experience was anytime dining on HAL. Half my meals I ate with others in the dining room and half the time I just went to the lido. Faith

I've been checking out different possibilities for a Pacific Coastal cruise in either May or September. This is what I've found so far:

7 night cruise on Crystal on May 11 ($3,665)

7 night cruise on Coral Princess on Sept 16 ($839)

8 night cruise on Jewell of the Seas on Sept 18 ($888)

I'm sure the Crystal cruise price is for an obstructed ocean view cabin and the Princess and RCCL are for insides. I just can't see myself spending $4,000+ for a week vacation with airfare.

At some point I'd like to try Crystal. I've heard good things about them from many solo cruisers.

Faith

I cruised roundtrip to Hawaii from SF over the Christmas/New Years holidays in 2013. I loved cruising from a home port. This was the first time I did not have to fly over the holidays in years.

One of the things I liked best about Princess was the activity level. Lots going on day and night. There was lots of live music and Hawaii themed activities. Also, I lucked out with an upgrade from an OV to a balconey. This was my first balconey and I got spoiled. One thing to think about--this was definitely a cool weather cruise. Not too much hanging out swimming in the outdoor pools.

This was my longest cruise with the most sea days in a row. I was a bit concerned about so many sea days one after the next but I was fine. I do like Princess a bit more then HAL because of the activity level. Faith

Thanks so much for posting this review. I've always wondered how this type of cruise would be for a solo. You've answered my questions in your review. I'm definitely going to consider something like this going forward.

Faith

I've cruised over the holidays about five/six times in recent years--a few times to Mexico, one PC, one Hawaii, and one out of Florida. I love it-this way I have my own holiday plans. I work at a university and we are closed over the holidays so it's a great time for me to travel.

I'd suggest solos book a cruise over 7 nights during Christmas. Definitely less families/school age kids during my 10+ night cruises. Also, cool weather cruises--Mexico and Hawaii--were great for me. The pool areas were quiet pretty much the whole cruise.

I also do a meal schedule something like this--9am breakfast, 2pm lunch, and dinner after 8pm. This way I don't get overwhelmed by the families. I also felt that the activities/entertainment was more adult during my longer cruises.

Faith

I know I lucked out big time--I booked an obstructed OV gty for my SF-Hawaii-SF Christmas/New Years cruise on the Grand Princess and ended up with an upgrade to a balcony. I think the reason I got this upgrade was that they cruise wasn't selling all that well early/mid year. My cruise routine did change--this was the first cruise that I never ate breakfast in the dining room. I just loved spending early mornings and late evenings on the balcony in my own private space.

That said the cost of the balcony on this 15 night cruise would have been $1,800. I know I will need to go back to insides and ocean view cabins if I want to take longer cruises and continue to travel during the holidays. I always check the different prices on different levels of cabins and if there is a reasonable difference in cost I will do a balcony again. Faith

I didn't buy my Kindle until Amazon allowed libraries to loan out ebooks and the Kindles cost under $100. I thought I'd use my ereader mostly for travel but I pretty much use my reader all the time. I find I experiment more with authors and genre then I ever did with paper books.

So now I'm tempted to buy a Kindle Fire but for now I'm holding off. Faith

I booked an obstructed ov cabin and the 4th cabin assignment was a Baja deck balcony. I feel I just got lucky because the cruise wasn't selling all that well.

Faith

Last year I booked a gty on the Grand from SF-Hawaii-SF solo for the Christmas/New Years holiday in April. Over the next few months I got 4 cabin assignments ending up with a balcony.

This was my first big upgrade and I was thrilled. People on my roll call commented that our cruise wasn't selling well and that there were lots of available balconies a few months before the cruise. I know I got lucky. The only negative about all this is that on my next cruise I go back to an inside or outside cabin. Faith