Small ship cruises for single travellers
Hefty single supplements suck. It’s why we wrote a no single supplement travel guide for explorers fed up with feeling like they’re facing a fine every time they choose to travel independently. After all, the number of people travelling solo is rising dramatically – and they’re not all teenage backpackers on their first adventure. Far from it.
There are loads of reasons why you might go on a small ship cruise on your own. Perhaps your friends or family aren’t free…or you want to be a few thousand miles away from your nearest and dearest for a week. Perhaps you’re a savvy traveller who knows well the value of solo travel. In fact, who needs a reason? Imagine standing on deck, breathing in the frost-thick Arctic air, and watching whales dive as you blow the steam off your coffee. Solo cruises are like a meditation – especially if you travel with an expert tour operator.
There are loads of reasons why you might go on a small ship cruise on your own. Perhaps your friends or family aren’t free…or you want to be a few thousand miles away from your nearest and dearest for a week. Perhaps you’re a savvy traveller who knows well the value of solo travel. In fact, who needs a reason? Imagine standing on deck, breathing in the frost-thick Arctic air, and watching whales dive as you blow the steam off your coffee. Solo cruises are like a meditation – especially if you travel with an expert tour operator.
Organised cruises take the stress out of solo travel. Your travel arrangements are sorted for you by people who know where you should sail, when you should go and which boats you should travel on to avoid a single supplement. Plus, small ship cruises are sociable by nature. You’ve got a readymade group of shipmates and crew that you can join (or escape) whenever you fancy. Plus, the guides will have time to chat with you one-on-one. Keep reading to discover your options as a solo traveller on a small ship cruise.
Our Small ship cruising Holidays
Southern Croatia cruise in comfort
Cruise Croatia's beautiful islands on a small cruise ship
From
£669 to £979
8 days
ex flights
Split to Dubrovnik Luxury cruise, Croatia
Cruise Split to Dubrovnik in luxury via Croatia's islands
From
£1199 to £1899
8 days
ex flights
Wildlife Cruise of New Zealand Subantarctic Islands
New Zealand's wildlife rich & remote Subantarctic wilderness
From
US $5475
7 days
ex flights
Skye and the Small Isles sailing holiday
Sail Scotland's Small Isles and visit spectacular Skye
From
£1520 to £2480
9 days
ex flights
Galapagos cruises
Cruise the Galapagos Islands on sailing boats and yachts
From
£2797
8 days
ex flights
Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines small ship cruise
Cruising the islands of Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines
From
US $9475
15 days
ex flights
Single cabin
Like your privacy? Single cabins are in the minority on small ships, as creative design maximises the limited space below decks. However, some larger Arctic and Antarctic expedition ships have a smattering of single cabins, while luxury yachts don’t always feel the need to fill up every cabin. We can put you in contact with a specialist small ship cruise operator that can tell you exactly which ships in their fleet have cabins for solo travellers.
Shared cabin
Most small ship cruises give you the option of booking a shared cabin. It’s just like a shared room on any small group holiday. You’ll be matched up with someone of the same sex – and if you’re really jammy, you might luck out and get no cabin mate at all. Cabins on small boats tend to be on the petite side, so make sure you’re content with sharing your personal space. You’ll get all the elbow room you need up on deck – along with head-turning views.No single supplement
The small ship cruise industry seems to be slowly cottoning on that solo travel is on the up – and the trend isn’t going anywhere. Some trips have totally scrapped single supplements. Others do away with them at certain times of the year. Single supplements are sometimes dropped off-peak (for instance, May and October in the Mediterranean) to encourage passengers on board during their quiet shoulder seasons.Lara Paxton at our partners The Small Cruise Ship Collection says:
“We are still developing single traveller issues because we feel that it is really unfair that single travellers have to pay a huge supplement to visit places, just because they are travelling on their own.”
“We are still developing single traveller issues because we feel that it is really unfair that single travellers have to pay a huge supplement to visit places, just because they are travelling on their own.”
Single supplement
This is our least favourite option, as we don’t think independent adventurers should be penalised for deciding to travel alone. So consider all the above workarounds first. The option of paying a single supplement is always there if you have the budget for it.Our top Small ship cruising Holiday
Southern Croatia cruise in comfort
Cruise Croatia's beautiful islands on a small cruise ship
From
£669 to £979
8 days
ex flights
Small group travel:
2023: 6 May, 13 May, 20 May, 27 May, 3 Jun, 10 Jun, 17 Jun, 24 Jun, 1 Jul, 8 Jul, 15 Jul, 22 Jul, 29 Jul, 5 Aug, 12 Aug, 19 Aug, 26 Aug, 2 Sep, 9 Sep, 16 Sep, 23 Sep, 30 Sep, 7 Oct, 14 Oct
2023: 6 May, 13 May, 20 May, 27 May, 3 Jun, 10 Jun, 17 Jun, 24 Jun, 1 Jul, 8 Jul, 15 Jul, 22 Jul, 29 Jul, 5 Aug, 12 Aug, 19 Aug, 26 Aug, 2 Sep, 9 Sep, 16 Sep, 23 Sep, 30 Sep, 7 Oct, 14 Oct
Travel Team
If you'd like to chat about Small ship cruising or need help finding a holiday to suit you we're very happy to help.

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