It’s nearly April and that means the start of cruise season. Providers are in fierce competition to fill their rooms, with deals across megaships, boutique liners, expedition vessels and river ships.
Some prices are being cut by up to 50 per cent and there are plenty of all-inclusive offers featuring complimentary drinks and chauffeur service. Mini-cruises from UK ports start from £164 per person to tempt new-to-cruise passengers aboard.
And the wave of deals is good news for families too. Third and fourth guests can pay as little as £129 each per week.
The storied Cunard line also has a right royal deal with its new ship the Queen Anne, with prices per person for its maiden cruise starting at £83 a night.
And thanks to the removal of single supplement offerings – which meant solo travellers often paid the same as two, if not more – there’s more incentive than ever to take some time to yourself on board.
Royal Caribbean is offering guests Eurovision-themed excursions on some of their liners. The deal includes themed menus as well as a viewing party for the song contest
Royal Caribbean is offering sailings themed around the Eurovision Song Contest in May on Anthem of the Seas, Explorer of the Seas, Odyssey of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. The cruises feature themed menus, drinks and ‘the ultimate Eurovision viewing parties’. Anthem of the Seas’ weekend getaway offers guests the chance to visit Paris or stay on board to make the most of the ship’s facilites. Activities on-board include indoor skydiving, a surfing simulator and a glass observation capsule that offers views from 300ft above the ocean.
Book it: Two-night Southampton round-trip to Le Havre, France, on May 10 from £329 per person (royalcaribbean.co.uk, 0344 493 4005).
Free chauffeur service
Make the most of a car service to and from your departure port or opt for an on-board spending credit of £135 when sailing on Fred Olsen cruises including the Balmoral’s Iceland excursion which includes crossing the Arctic Circle by Grimsey Island, which is famed for its puffin population, at sunset.
Book it: Nine-night ‘Natural Wonders of Iceland’ cruise departs from Port of Tyne on April 17 from £1,099 per person (fredolsencruises.com, 0800 0355 242).
Share and save sailings
Third and fourth guests sharing a cabin pay as little as £129 each during Celebrity Cruises’ spring sale which runs to April 8. The cruise line is also offering £1 flight packages on selected dates this year for trips booked by June 3.
Book it: The Celebrity Ascent’s seven-night ‘Spain, France and Italy’ cruise from Barcelona on August 17 calls in to Valencia, Nice (Villefranche), Portofino, Florence/Pisa (La Spezia) and Rome (Civitavecchia) from £1,281 per person with third and fourth guests in same cabin paying £129 (celebritycruises.co.uk, 0800 240 4286).
Save over 30 per cent
Swan Hellenic’s ship SH Vega offers passengers to spend a night in Casablanca, pictured, before departing for locations in Spain and Portugal
Spend a night in Morocco’s largest city Casablanca before Swan Hellenic’s five-star expedition ship SH Vega whisks you to the southern Spanish city of Seville, Lagos in Portugal’s Algarve and finally the capital Lisbon.
Book it: Four-night ‘Moorish Splendours & Iberian Charms’ cruise on the 158-guest ship includes a pre-cruise hotel stay in Casablanca on May 9 before May 10 departure with prices from £999 per person for Daily Mail readers while the website price is £1,252 per person, reduced from £1,947 (swanhellenic.com, 0207 846 0271).
Join Gary Barlow from £1,160
Take That star Gary Barlow will be performing on P&O’s ship Iona during two 14-night sailings from Southampton in September and October
Take That! Gary Barlow, pop legend and P&O Cruises’ music director, will be performing on their ship Iona during two 14-night no-fly sailings from Southampton in September and October. But fans wanting to secure a spot in the ship’s auditorium may have to have a little patience. Tickets for the limited-capacity shows will be sold via a raffle system, with entries costing £10 and proceeds going to the Teenage Cancer Trust and Child Bereavement UK.
Book it: ‘Canary Islands’ sailing on September 21 from £1,160 per person (was £1,229) and October 5 ‘Spain & Portugal’ sailing from £898 per person (iglucruise.com, 0203 3733 5305).
£1,000 Odyssey
Explore seven bars and eight restaurants, an outdoor cinema and show lounge to rival the West End on all-inclusive Marella Discovery’s round trip from Marmaris, Turkey. The liner will call at Istanbul, Bozcaada and Bodrum before whisking passengers to the Greek islands of Crete and Rhodes.
Book it: Seven-night sailing on Marella Discovery on May 20 from £996 per person includes London Gatwick return flights, drinks and tips (tui.co.uk, 0800 975 4477).
£82.70 a night
Cunard will hold a naming ceremony for its new liner, the Queen Anne, on June 4 which is to be hosted by TV presenter Emma Willis and her husband, Busted musician Matt Willis
Cunard’s transatlantic service was launched in Liverpool in 1840 and the Port of Liverpool will host the naming ceremony of its new ship, the Queen Anne, on June 4. The event will be hosted by TV presenter Emma Willis and her husband, Busted musician Matt Willis.
Book it: 14-night ‘British Isles Festival Voyage’ departs Southampton on May 24 from £1,159 pp. Price includes all meals, lectures and shows (cunard.com, 0344 3388 641).
Svalbard saver
Cruise under cliffs teeming with birds and kayak around icebergs beneath the midnight sun during Seabourn Venture’s ultra-luxury sailing to the island of Svalbard, in the Arctic, to see polar bears, whales and seals. Last remaining suites have been reduced by up to 30 per cent when payment is made in full.
Book it: 11-day ‘Svalbard Summer Expedition’ departs Edinburgh for Tromso, Norway, on June 19 from £4,759 per person (reduced from £6,799) and includes Edinburgh to Longyearbyen charter flight (seabourn.com, 0344 338 8615).
£429 per person Irish spring
Sail away from Bristol on an ‘Ireland Discovery’ aboard the Ambition, which calls into Falmouth, Bantry, Cork and Belfast.
Book it: Seven nights departing April 25 from £429 per person (was £799) includes parking at the port or coach travel from Birmingham or London, plus onboard credit of £50 each (ambassadorcruiseline.com, 0808 1028701).
10 per cent deposit
Luxury 922-guest Explora I’s cruise across the Atlantic from Barcelona to Miami – which stops in Antigua, Barbados, Guadeloupe and Puerto Rico – has been reduced by 40 per cent (was £7,300 per person) and includes all drinks, access to the spa thermal area, fitness programmes, tips and wifi.
Book it: 17-night ‘A Grand Journey of Bewitching Islands’ departs on November 29 from £4,380 per person and can be secured with a 10 per cent deposit when booked by April 30 (explorajourneys.com, 0800 031 8935)
£164 mini-cruise
MSC Virtuosa’s taster cruise from Southampton to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge is a great way to try a cruise and a spend a day in beautiful Bruges.
Book it: Two-night May 9 sailing reduced from £199 per person to £164, includes meals, theatre shows, gym, children’s clubs and tips (seascanner.co.uk).
Free drinks & WiFi
Book early for a Caribbean cruise in winter 2025 with Holland America Line to Ocho Rios in Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Cozumel in Mexico and the private island of Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas.
Book it: Seven-night Fort Lauderdale round-trip on Nieuw Statendam departs November 29, 2025 and includes a free premium drinks package and wifi. Cruise-only fares start at £1,119 per person (hollandamerica.com, 0344 338 8608).
Greenland price drop
Australian-owned AE Expeditions ‘Greenland Odyssey’ cruise sailing on the Sylvia Earle expedition ship has been reduced by £3,319 per person plus £1,100 each in air credit. Departing Reykjavik, Iceland, for Greenland, the ship stops at Kangertitivatsiaq Fjord, Tasiilaq, Skoldungen Island, Prince Christian Sound, Hvalsey, Nuuk, Eternity Fjord, Ilulissat, Qeqertarsuq, Sisimut and Kangerlussuaq.
Book it: 17-day sailing departs July 6 from £13,276, reduced from 16,595 per person (aexpeditions.com, 0808189 2005).
Free bar under the stars
Relax on-deck under Sea Cloud Spirit’s traditional three-mast full-rigged sails and enjoy the free bar. Or for those after some rest and relaxation, focus your mind, body and soul with wellbeing coaches on board who focus pay attention to physical and mental strength.
Book it: Nine-night sailing from £5,221 pp departs Las Palmas for Malaga on April 12 (seacloud.com)
And on the rivers…Free drinks package
Riviera Travel has been marking its 40th anniversary with a party on the Seine this week and there’s plenty for passengers to celebrate with free drinks packages on all 2024 and 2025 river cruises as well as several new sailings exclusively for solo travellers.
Book it: The eight-day Moselle & Rhine single travellers’ sailing on MS Geoffrey Chaucer departs Cologne on October 31 from £2,349 (rivieratravel.co.uk, 01283 523431).
47 per cent Danube saving
Learn to waltz at a Viennese dance school during Viking Ingvi’s Budapest to Passau cruise. The price includes return flights from the UK, on board meals with beer and soft drinks at lunch and dinner, six included excursions, tips and WiFi.
Book it: Seven-night ‘Danube Waltz’ cruise £1,495 pp (was £2,795 per person) (viking.com, 0800 319 66 60).
Half-price Rhone
Snap up a 50 per cent saving on a round-trip from France’s capital of gastronomy, Lyon, on April 7. The one-week cruise to Arles and Avignon includes a Jeep ride through the Camargue to see wild white horses, black bulls and pink flamingos.
Book it: Eight-day cruise-only fare includes drinks but not excursions from £759 per person – a saving of £760 each. Depart April 14 (croisieurope.co.uk, 01756 691 269).
No solo supplement
Tauck offers all-inclusive luxury cruising, and on the new ‘Montreux to Brussels’ sailing solo travellers who book entry-level cabins pay no supplement. Complimentary tours include an exclusive dinner at Slot Loevestein on a private island and a Freddie Mercury themed music tour of Montreux.
Book it: Ten-night ‘Rhine Connoisseur’ sailing on MS Esprit, MS Treasures, MS Grace or MS Inspire from £5,430 with a choice of departures in April and June to October (tauck.co.uk, 0800 810 8020).
Hotel stay included
American Cruise Lines is offering £2,000 off ‘Complete Mississippi’ cruises which sail through ten US states between New Orleans, Louisiana, and St Paul, Minnesota. On board, beer and wine is served with lunch and dinner, there are daily cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, plus after-dinner entertainment and enrichment talks.
Book it: 23-night Mississippi cruise on May 31, June 18 or August 30 reduced from £14,499 to £12,499 per person which includes flights and pre-cruise hotel stay (americancruiselines.com, 800-988 3369 or visit Fredholidays.co.uk)
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