 Single parents should seriously consider going on a cruise. They can sometimes seem a little expensive and the single supplement generally takes full effect, but you might save money in the long run given that meals, incidentals, activities and kids’ clubs are all included in the upfront price. A cruise ship has many advantages for the single parent: no long drives, no moving from place to place lugging suitcases, a safe environment, and other adults for company. Many also offer evening baby-sitting (usually at extra cost) and major cruise lines such as Holland America and Royal Caribbean even offer in-cabin baby-sitting that won’t disrupt your children’s sleep. The Australian ships of the P&O line (Pacific Sun, Pacific Sky and Pacific Star) offer prams, infant food and a free valet laundry service for children’s clothes.
Best of all, many cruise ships these days offer superb kids’ clubs that will keep the children occupied with activities and games all day if they so desire. Star Cruises (www.starcruises.com) even has a kids’ cinema, video arcade and wet ‘n’ wild water feature. The thought that goes into some of these facilities will give any parent peace of mind; P&O ships (www.pocruises.com.au) give parents a free pager so they can be contacted at any time, while Disney Cruises (www.disneycruise.com) provide children with wristbands identifying their name, parents and even allergies.
We’ve listed cruise-related information here of specific interest to single parents (and we’ll be adding more on a regular basis), but please note that we do also regularly review family-friendly cruise ships on the main part of our website.
Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival ships are beginning to find ways to encourage single parent families and are also one of the leading cruise lines for children’s entertainment. You do pay a single supplement for many regular cruises, but look for the Carnival Kids Program which has dates and destinations for which this supplement doesn’t apply, or is reduced. These usually are only available at short notice and through the USA, as no such promotion has ever been run through Carnival in Australia.
Carnival has an excellent club called Camp Carnival for children. Activities include arts-and-crafts classes, talent shows, scavenger hunts and deck games with specially trained youth counsellors. The activities are age-specific; teens also get shore activities and a night time dance club. (However, there are no arrangements for kids under three years old.) You can also hire strollers, Game Boys and baby-sitters for the evening at an extra cost. The cruise line also has kids’ menus.
Parents without Partners Cruises
A US-based tour agency that arranges cruises around the Caribbean out of Tampa, Florida. See www.parentswithoutpartners.com for more or write to 1650 S. Dixie Highway, Suite 510, Boca Raton, Fla. 33432, USA.
Premier Cruise Line
Single parents sail at 125% off the regular fare on Premier Cruises, which is a relatively modest single parent supplement compared to most. There are four different kids’ clubs on board divided by age offering treasure hunts, ice cream parties, theatricals, sports activities and dances; children even get a tour of the bridge by the captain. There is also a designated kiddie pool and junior pool for young children.
Vacations to Go
This US company hosted a cruise in the Caribbean exclusively for single parent families in early 2005. The cruise included plenty off onboard and port activities for both parents and kids, as well as for kids and parents separately. Rates for the cruise started at US$900 from Miami. Keep a watch on www.vacationstogo.com/singles.cfm to see if they’ll do a repeat.
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