Johanna Jainchill
Norwegian Cruise Line recently became the first major cruise line to market a large category of cabins to single travelers.
The line will target the solo crowd with the 100-square-foot studio cabins set to debut on the line's 4,200-passenger Norwegian Epic. The cabins will be designated and priced for single travelers by eliminating the so-called "single supplement" rate, common for cruisers traveling alone.
"Solo travelers have typically been ignored by the cruise industry," said Maria Miller, senior vice president of marketing for NCL, when the line revealed its marketing strategy last month. "We've taken the opportunity to reposition the studios and go after this market."
NCL's decision was the largest step in an industry trend to go after single travelers. Last year, cruise lines such like Hurtigruten, Cruise West and Oceania Cruises waived the single supplement to try to drive cruise sales. U.K.-based P&O Cruises' upcoming newbuild, the Azura, will have P&O's first block of single-occupancy cabins, 18 in all.
Miller pointed to data that suggests there are 100 million single adults in the U.S, and that 35 million of them take solo vacations every year.
However, less than 5% of those travelers take cruises, in part, Miller said, because of the single supplement, a rate that is typically equal to the price of the second berth in the cabin.
While many groups bring single people together to share cabins to avoid the supplement, not everyone is willing to share a cabin with someone they don't know well.
The demographics of single travelers also play to the cruise industry's target. AAA cited data showing that among single travelers, most were young: travelers between the ages of 18 to 35 accounted for 35% of solo travelers.
The cruise industry has long said it wants to attract new cruisers. And since people who cruise once tend to cruise again, getting them to try it as young as possible is also desired.
There's more. Cruise line executives often say that when it comes to choosing a cruise, women typically make the vacation decisions. And, according to the U.S. census bureau, 54% of the single adults in the United States are female.