P&O discriminate against single passengers

Single travellers have never been favoured in the world of cruise and they are often charged high single supplements when occupying a room that could sleep two or more guests.
However for 2013 P&O have gone one step further in actively discouraging single guests by offering on board credit to past passengers on all sailings of 7 nights or more and all cabin grades, unless you're a single passenger. As a single passenger there is no on board credit unless you book a suite. This to me seems like the worst marketing plan ever unless you no longer want any single passengers or their families on your ships.

Now I understand that cruise lines are not keen on having just one person in the room when they could sell it to 2. 2 passengers generate more revenue from the bars, casinos and shops on board, but they are charging 145 - 180% of the 2 share price which must help them a bit and let's face it not many ships are selling out quickly at the moment. The on board credit that is being offered ranges from £25pp to £100pp (inside - balcony) on a 14 night sailing and only up to £50pp for 7 nights so the amount that they would have to give a single passenger is minimal in the grand scheme of things.

When we spoke to P&O about the new campaign they advised that they cannot give single passengers on board credit as the single supplements are so low. Surely they must have known that by not giving it they would push passengers away and I can only assume that this is what they want - otherwise why not just charge a little bit more and include the on board credit?

 Interestingly they are not even giving on board credit to those sailing in the single cabins on Azura or Ventura and these are still priced at 45% more than the cheapest 2 share cabins.

I have quoted a few 3 generation families for next year who have all sailed with P&O cruises in the past. All of them have been outraged by this decision. By denying  Grandma or Grandad the on board credit P&O have alienated several single passengers, their families and friends. I really hope they know what they are doing with this campaign.

Do you fancy dinner with Marco Pierre White?

If so then book one of P&O's special food and drink cruises for 2013.

They have announced today the cruises on which their Celebrity Chefs are cruising.
Marco Pierre White and Atul Kocher will be giving cookery demonstrations and master classes and hosting dinners in their restaurants on board. And wine connoisseur Olly Smith will be hosting wine tastings and wine dinners.

You can also enjoy interviews and book signings as well as a range of culinary themed excursions to vineyards, breweries, restaurants and markets depending upon your itineraries.

These cruises will be popular so I would suggest that you book early - plus there are some great early booking offers for the sailings including free car parking for all and on board credit for past passengers

The celebrities will be on the following sailings

Marco Pierre White

Arcadia - Baltics - 08 May

Arcadia - Central Med - 04 Sept

Oriana - Baltics - 09 Jun

Oriana - Atlantic Isles - 07 Oct

Ventura - Cruise Break - 07 Apr

Ventura - Western Med - 11 Oct

Adonia - Caribbean UK UK - 22 Nov

Atul Kochhar

Azura - Western Med 27 Apr (with Olly)

Azura - Central Med - 09 Jul

Azura - Atlantic Isles - 20 Oct

Azura - Caribbean Transatlantic - 01 Nov

Olly Smith

Azura - Western Med 27 Apr (With Atul)

Azura - Black Sea - 07 Sept

Azura - Eastern Caribbean - 07 Feb 2014

You can pre-register for these cruises by calling or e-mailing me, I can give you the full itineraries and prices and then get everything booked for you on the day that they go on sale

Northern Lights on Sale for 2013

As I'm sure you know the Northern Lights for 2012 and 2013 are set to be at their best for decades and those that have been on a Northern Lights sailing this year have seen some spectacular sights.

This winter's cruise holidays all booked up really early and when we advertised a special Cruise.co.uk group for January this year we were inundated with enquiries.

Hurtigruten are the leaders in the Northern Lights sailings and they have announced that the January to March 2013 programme is going on sale on the 10th April. Whilst we don't know the full details as yet they will be offfering a choice of short 5 and 6 day trips or the full 12 day round trip. They are expecting the demand to be so high that they have significantly increased the number of flights that they are offering to the UK market.

It is best to book early for these as Hurtigruten have a fleet of ships which travel up and down the coast of Norway and some of the ships are newer than others. If you book when they go on sale you will get the better choice of ships available.

If you don't know much about Hurtigruten they are working ships that service the small towns and villages and also take tourists on board to see the amazing scenery of the Arctic Circle. As well as the Aurora Borealis that are free they offer a whole range of excursions from snowmobiling to husky rides to midnight choir concerts.


My parents did this trip earlier this year and would definitely recommend it.


If you would like to register for information on these sailings just get in touch with me.

Regent to increase their prices on the 1st April

Regent Seven Seas cruises have today announced that they will be increasing their fares on the 1st April so if you are considering cruising with them, then now is the time to book.

It really is a guessing game with many cruiselines as to whether prices go up or down but in my experience both Regent and Silversea do tend to get more expensive as the ships fill up.

There are several great reasons to book a Regent Seven Seas Cruise, and as the most inclusive, ultra-luxury cruise line in the world, Regent’sfares embody considerable value. They include

FREE flights and transfers

FREE Business Class flights on ALL Mediterranean and Baltic cruises

FREE 1-night hotel package on selected 2012 and all 2013 sailings

FREE and UNLIMITED shore excursions

ALL fine and speciality dining

ALL beverages

ALL gratuities, no service charges

and so much more.

They offer 3 great ships with no more than 700 passengers on board and their service is exemplary.

To see their itineraries and latest prices just click here

Adventure of the Seas is also coming to Southampton

Following in on from my last post Royal Caribbean have announced that they are going to position Adventure of the Seas in Southampton next year too.

Adventure of the Seas is a Voyager Class ship and is packed full of facilities. She is currently based in the Med and as a slightly older ship she has some really attractive prices. This is really exciting for the UK market and she'll offer strong competition for both P&O's Ventura and MSC's Opera that currently offer similar itineraries. Adventure's reviews are great too a quick glance at the reviews on www.cruise.co.uk show the majority of passengers scoring her with 5*. She will be great for both new to cruise and previously cruised passengers.

Adventure of the Seas will offer a mix of 7 night France and Spain cruises, 12 night Baltics and 14-16 night Med cruises with a choice of Western Med, Italian Med and Central Med. She is also doing 7-13 night Norway and Iceland cruises.

The prices are fantastic, 8 nights France and Spain starts at £549pp in October and 7 nights France and Spain is £599pp in May. Whilst a 16 night Central Mediterranean cruise starts at just £1099pp

If you don't know the ship  her facilities include

• 15 decks of entertainment and accommodations
• Ice skating rink
• Rock Climbing
• The Royal Promenade with a range of eating and shopping choices
• Kids clubs for all ages with disco and video arcade
• Nightclub
• Casino
• Library

These cruises go on sale on the 20th March 2012 and they are launching with free car parking too. I have details of the itineraries and prices so if you would like further information just get in touch

New ships sailing from the UK next year

Celebrity Cruises have announced that they will be locating a second ship in the UK next  year whilst Carnival will be positioning their first ship in the UK since they pulled out in 2008.

Celebrity have seen great success with Celebrity Eclipse which has sailed from Southampton for 3 years now (I don't think I've ever read a bad review) and now they are adding Celebrity Infinity also sailing from Southampton.

Celebrity Infinity is a mid sized ship at 90,228 gross tons and she has just been 'Solisticized' - a make over which gives her the same facilities as Eclipse, Equinox and Solstice. She will offer a range of 10, 11 and 12-night itineraries to include Norwegian Fjords, British Isles and European wine cruises and  she will be the only 5* ship to sail from Harwich. The only other ships that sail from here being Royal Caribbean's Jewel of the Seas, Voyages of Discovery's MV Discovery and Thomson Spirit. Harwich just out of interest is the only port with a dedicated station at the terminal and it is served by a dedicated train from London's Liverpool Street Station, which makes it really accessible.

Meanwhile Carnival Legend is going to based in Dover and like Celebrity will be offering the Norwegian Fjords and British Isles cruises and but also the Baltics and the Mediterranean. Carnival hasn't had a great presence in Europe in recent years but is very popular in the States and the Caribbean with the American market. They do have Carnival Breeze offering sailings from Barcelona this summer which are selling to the British really well so I'm looking forward to being able to offer Carnival to people wanting to sail from the UK again.


Princess are also bringing another ship to the UK, although just for 3 sailings. The new Royal Princess which launches in June 2013 is offering 2 3 night cruises from Southampton on the 10th and 13th June. She then starts her maiden cruise from Southampton on the 16th June, heading out to Iberia.

I think it's fantastic that there are going to be more ships sailing from the UK. It's such a great way to holiday, there is no major rush to get there, ships sail late afternoon and lunch is served on board so you can leisurely check in and relax. There's no problems with luggage either, you can pack as much as you'd like and there's no hanging around airports and rarely are there delays.

Now whilst 2013 itineraries and slowly being announced prices are out yet but are due at the end of next month. If you would like any information on 2013 cruises just get in touch with me and I can contact you just as soon as the brochures / prices arrive.

Don't watch this if you're scared of flying.

Whilst I am a Cruise Specialist I am actually interested in all forms of travel and came across this short clip showing  where the worlds airlines fly from and to across a 24 hour period.
I think it is really interesting as it shows just how accessible our planet is but also just how busy the skies are.

As you watch it you'll see the flow of traffic change as time goes from day to night across the globe.

I would love to see something similar for the cruise lines acoss the seasons, to show the concentration of ships in Europe during the Summer months but out in the Caribbean and Australasia for the Winter.
I hope you enjoy watching this.