Cruises for Seniors

Senior cruise trips are a great option for many older adults because they tend take a lot of the stress out of planning a vacation. An all-inclusive senior cruise deal will take care of food, entertainment, transportation and accommodations often for the same price or less than other vacations. If you are considering taking a cruise there are a few things you should consider.

First you should decide who is going on the cruise. If you're traveling with a companion you tend to save money since most rooms on cruise ships are booked on a per-person, double occupancy rate. This means that if you're traveling alone, you usually still have to pay for a full room even if you're going to be the only one in it, which leads to a significant surcharge on the cost of an individual ticket. If you are thinking of traveling alone, consider bringing along a friend or family member, but if you can't or just prefer to travel alone, there are still some options.

Single cruises for seniors do exist thanks to a few companies that have come to realize that it's unfair to punish individual travelers. Often this means that you will be sharing a room with a fellow senior of the same gender, but you won't have to pay the “single supplement” fee, and if the cruise isn't fully booked, you may end up with a room of your own at no extra cost!

You should also consider when you want to travel. Senior cruises are usually more flexible than regular cruises because so many of the participants are retired and can travel whenever they choose. This could be a huge asset in finding senior cruise deals, particularly if you're traveling somewhere like the Caribbean where the weather is more or less the same year ‘round. If you plan on taking a cruise somewhere colder like Alaska or Iceland this is not the case though so research the seasonal weather patterns of your destination.

Senior discounts on cruises can mostly be found on cruises that don't tailor directly to senior citizens. Still, there are many senior cruise companies that offer very reasonable rates even if they don't give you an added AARP discount. At the very least you should be prepared to pay about $500 per person, per week and most cruises run at least $100 per person per day.