Norwegian Cruise Line will market the 100-square-foot studio accommodations on its upcoming newbuild, the 4,200-passenger Norwegian Epic, to solo travelers.
The Epic's 128 studio cabins will be designated and priced for single travelers, eliminating the so-called "single supplement" common for cruisers traveling alone, a rate that is typically equal to the price of the second berth in the cabin.
Prices for the studios start at $799.
"Solo travelers have typically been ignored by the cruise industry," Maria Miller, senior vice president of marketing for NCL, said during a webcast last week.
"We've taken the opportunity to reposition the studios and go after this market."
The studios, slightly smaller than standard inside cabins, have windows looking onto corridors. All passengers in the studios share exclusive use of the Living Room, a common space with a lounge, private bar and two large-screen TVs.
Miller pointed to data suggesting that there are 100 million single adults in the U.S., and that 35 million adults take solo vacations every year. However, less than 5% of those travelers take cruises.
Miller added that the single supplement has always been the "key barrier" to getting solo cruisers.
"Our goal is to break down that barrier and make it more comfortable for single travelers," she said.
"Solo travel is well suited to a cruise," she said. "Cruising is ideal for people who want to travel alone but don't want to be alone."
NCL is the first North American cruise line to market so many cabins to solo travelers and to do so aggressively. Over the last year cruise lines such as Cruise West and Oceania Cruises have 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.