Reply

Which are the best cruises for single females in their 40s. I am looking for cruises that have a lot of other singles in their 40s including a decent ratio of males to females and which preferably either do single shares or do not charge single supplements. <BR> Low cost, interesting ports, good food, good entertainment, and a swimming pool on board are also desired.

Cassie

Carnival will have more singles close to our age group routinely than any other line, altho Carnival is not my favorite line. It probably will have more single men too. Carnival will book shares - you pay the per person rate and they will find you a same sex roommate who also pays per person rate. No guarantees on age matching. Ports are less important to Carnival than their "Fun Days at Sea". <BR> <BR>Another cruise option for singles is Windjammer. They do 5-6 strictly "singles cruises" every year. General age range in 35-55 and they strictly balance bookings to have equal M:F ratio. I did this trip at Thanksgiving. It is important to remember though, that WJ is not your typical cruise experience. It is very casual, no onboard galas, no formal nights, no ship's photographer, no public rooms, no gourmet meals, no swimming pool, etc. The cabins are tiny but serviceable. On a singles trip though, you will be guaranteed to meet other singles, many of whom adore the WJ experience. They will automatically assign you a roommate so you only pay the per person rate. WJ emphasizes the stops, since there isn't much to do on the ships. <BR> <BR>I personally like RCCL and NCL better - they do a guaranteed single deal like no other. For a set price [usually $300-$400 above base per person price] they will guarantee a room to yourself - the only catch is that you don't know what room or where it is until you sail. Nevertheless, to me, this is a much better deal that 150-200% payment of cruise rate for single room, no roommate. I prefer a room to myself. They also seem to be better at making announcements, managing lines, etc than Carnival in my experience. <BR> <BR>In general, the more expensive the cruise, the more luxurious, but the older the crowd. Most cruises have more single women than men, altho Carnival and WJ seems to be the exception. Carnival doesn't handle people as well as other lines in my opinion [I just got back from a week on the Imagination] - but it certainly was acceptable. Windjammer does very little hand-holding at the airports - you are on your own a lot which can be intimidating for a not-so-experienced foreign traveler. Nobody will guarantee a room alone without some sort of supplement, altho the roommate experience has never been terrible for me. <BR>

Reply

I found the people on the Carnival Cruises very young, mostly in their 20s there seemed to be a lot of College kids. <BR> <BR>As to Windjammer. How is their food. Good food is important though different people have different ideas of gourmet. <BR> <BR>Do the Windjammer cruises have good entertainment at night. <BR> <BR>I dont care too much about how nice the room as long as its decent but Im a bit concerned about no pool on a cruise. <BR> <BR>Ive looked at Norwegian and Royal Carriben Im thinking of trying them. When ever Ive called a travek agent who is advertising one of their trips however they want to charge me double and tell me they dont do shares. Booking directly with the cruise line is usually more expensive than booking with a travel agent. <BR> <BR>Ive heard that there is a problem with cruises being mostly woman. This I can not figure out. Carnival had a good ratio but then they were very young. Ive heard that several cruise lines let old men who were professionals before they retired go on their cruises for free as "dancing partners" thats lucky for the men but who wants to dance with someone thats being paid to dance with you.

Cassie

Windjammer does not do "evening entertainment." You are in port virtually every day till late evening, so you get your entertainment in town. The food is plain, limited choices, but remember, the galley is about as big as a walk-in closet. The food is generally tasty, served at proper temp, but simple. Many meals on WJ are buffet-style, because they carry limited staff. I will not be doing WJ again, precisely because I want the amenities that a "regular" cruise line provides. <BR> <BR>RCCL and NCL will do shares, but obviously the commission is greater if you book the room alone and pick it out. Don't let anyone force you into this unless that is what you really want - get lots of brochures and read the fine print carefully. Most cruiselines won't let you call them directly - they want you to use a travel agent. A single isn't going to be able to take advantage of "advertised specials" because the specials are designed to benefit 2 people in a room, so you need to get the best regular rate you can. Unfortunately, cruises do not do price specials for the single traveler. <BR> <BR>The paid dance partners are generally age 55+ on the more expensive lines [Princess, Holland American} to dance with the widows. The reason more women travel than men, is that alot of older widows with money to spend will cruise. <BR> <BR>Cruises are not "the Love Boat" for single women - I've done 9 now, and must admit that for the money, all-inclusive land resorts are a better deal for singles. The big advantage to cruises is the ability to go several places on one trip, rather than staying in one place. Vacation romances are a wonderful thing, [I've done that too] but I've never found one on a cruise, and truthfully never expect too.

Cassie

Windjammer does not do "evening entertainment." You are in port virtually every day till late evening, so you get your entertainment in town. The food is plain, limited choices, but remember, the galley is about as big as a walk-in closet. The food is generally tasty, served at proper temp, but simple. Many meals on WJ are buffet-style, because they carry limited staff. I will not be doing WJ again, precisely because I want the amenities that a "regular" cruise line provides. <BR> <BR>RCCL and NCL will do shares, but obviously the commission is greater if you book the room alone and pick it out. Don't let anyone force you into this unless that is what you really want - get lots of brochures and read the fine print carefully. Most cruiselines won't let you call them directly - they want you to use a travel agent. A single isn't going to be able to take advantage of "advertised specials" because the specials are designed to benefit 2 people in a room, so you need to get the best regular rate you can. Unfortunately, cruises do not do price specials for the single traveler. <BR> <BR>The paid dance partners are generally age 55+ on the more expensive lines [Princess, Holland American} to dance with the widows. The reason more women travel than men, is that alot of older widows with money to spend will cruise. <BR> <BR>Cruises are not "the Love Boat" for single women - I've done 9 now, and must admit that for the money, all-inclusive land resorts are a better deal for singles. The big advantage to cruises is the ability to go several places on one trip, rather than staying in one place. Vacation romances are a wonderful thing, [I've done that too] but I've never found one on a cruise, and truthfully never expect to.

Jack

I've heard some good things about Holland America but am not sure if it is a good cruise for people it their 40s, Im under the impression that most of the people on their cruises are older, Has anyone out there been on a Holland American Cruise? How old are the people on the ship, what percent are single