Singles travel has grown largely popular and has evolved since the days of singles surcharges and supplement charges.  The number of single travelers has reached to more than a quarter of the entire industry, and companies are taking notice.  And according to statistics, one-third of the adult population is single, and many travel single.

 Though traveling single shouldn’t be any big deal, many companies and tours charge supplement charges for singles.  For example, some tour add a $650 single supplement charge, and others add a 40 percent mark up on single bunks, oppose to the double-occupancy packages.

 Nearly two-dozen tour operators are offering tailored service to the singles traveling market.  These trips range from party cruises to backwoods adventure trips.  The most popular spots for singles travel are Miami, Las Vegas, Chicago, Madrid, London, Dublin, Prague, and Caribbean Cruises.  And the cruises range from salsa dance cruises, senior and baby comer cruises, gay and lesbian cruises and religious-themed cruises.  Singles can find whatever they’re looking for when it comes to comfortably traveling.  Many are also interested in adventure travel.  Many companies (such as the World Outdoors, Adventures for Singles, and Back Roads) take small groups of singles deep into the jungles and mountain ranges around the world.

 The MSC Opera is one of MSC’s 8 Italian-style cruise ships.  Weighing 59,000 tons, and a maximum capacity of 2, 055 passengers, since this ships launch in June 2004 it has gained much popularity.

 The MSC Opera offers four types of rooms:  inside, outside, outside with balcony and suites, and the entire ship has a total of 850 state rooms.  The Opera offers many activities and public areas to their passengers, such as their two swimming pools and Jacuzzis, poolside games, dance classes, a health club, the Sottovento Pub, and Entertainment at their Cotton club, Monte Carlo Casino, and La Cabala Piano Bar and nightlife at the Byblos Discotheque.  And many are attracted to the 713-seat Teatro Dell’Opera which features the “fantasy” variety show that offers a mix of acrobatics, dance and music.

 The dining on the MSC Opera is even more attractive at their two main restaurants: the La Caravalla and L’Appodoro.  At these restaurants they offer seating for 2,4,6 and 8 and many choices for appetizers, entrees, and desserts along with vegetarian choices and delicious regional Italian dishes.

 Carnival Cruise Lines has a fleet of over 22 Fun Ships and carries more children than any other cruise line (carrying nearly 600,000 per year), so it is no wonder they are adding and upgrading to become even better for those who travel with them.

 The Carnival Cruise Lines has put into action their $250 million Evolutions of Fun initiative, which will makeover and enhance their eight fantasy-class ships.  Such enhancements will include children’s water parks, a new design style, upgrades to pool areas, and the addition of the Serenity adults-only deck areas.  The guest spaces have been renovated as well; featuring fully remodeled staterooms and suites, new bathrooms, flat-screen televisions in rooms, updated sound and lighting systems, and additions of new clubs, coffee bars, a nine-hole miniature golf course, new art and photo galleries, and new conference facilities.

 And due to their popularity with children and families, they are placing a large amount of their efforts into upgrading their family friendly amenities, including new and expanded play areas, their Camp Carnival program, and new areas for their Club O2 teen program.  Also more than 50 interconnecting staterooms are being added, which will be ideal for large families.

 And Carnival Cruise Lines is not only upgrading their existing ships, but adding more, with three new ships on the way.  First of which is the 112,000-ton, 3,006-passanger, Carnival Splendor, which is scheduled to open in July 2008.  This ship will be host to many of Carnival’s firsts, including the line’s first Northern Europe cruise program, and their largest spa of all their ships.  The 21,00-square-foot Cloud 9 Spa will offer health and fitness areas for guests, along with the line’s first thalassotherapy pool covered by a glass dome and a thermal suite, and 68 exclusive spa staterooms.

There’s a new theme running in cruise ships, and that is high-end luxury on the sea.  Crystal Serenity is proving that such luxury can be found on not only the smaller ships, but the larger ones as well.  The Crystal Serenity is an 820-foot long vessel that can carry 1, 080 passengers, and offers one of the highest space-to-guest ratios at sea (63 square feet per person).  The Crystal Serenity is elegance, with their high-ceilinged Crystal Plaza atrium, which has all the features of a luxury hotel with artwork, glass chandeliers, comfortable furnishings and a spiral staircase.  And if staying high-end, you even get the luxury of a butler when staying in the penthouse suites.  As cruise ships are known for their claustrophobia-inducing rooms, the Serenity will be sure to blow you away with their comfortable 403 square feet suites which include a large balcony.  Also, they are appealing to the newly popular family cruising craze with third-berth options (in the form of an in-room fold out sofa) in 157 of their rooms.

The entertainment and accommodations of the Crystal Serenity are level to those of a large hotel.  They feature the Galaxy Lounge (where the main entertainment is held), the Hollywood Theater (which doubles as a screening room nightly and a meeting/conference venue).  They also offer a night life for the young and older, with the Pulse Disco for late-night dancing, and the Stardust Club, for cheek-to-cheek dancing and cabaret.  Not only do they have spots for dancing, but they also feature their own cigar lounge, the Connoisseur Club, the Avenue Saloon cocktail and piano bar, and a small casino with slot machines, blackjack tables, craps, roulette, baccarat and poker.  And for the kids they have the Fantasia children’s center and Waves teen center, which is stocked with video games, play station, crafts, games and computers.  And while the kids are off you can relax at the Crystal Spa, Salon and Fitness center.
 
The dining on the Crystal Serenity is like that you’d find at a 5-star hotel, or even a small city, offering you culinary options for all your tastes.  You can choose from the Crystal Dining Room, the Silk Road (which offers Japanese cuisine and a casual Sushi bar), or the Prego for Italian specialties.  The best choice for breakfast is the indoor-outdoor Lido Café.  But it doesn’t stop there.  They also have The Bistro (an all day coffee-wine bar), the Trident Bar & Grill for poolside lunches, Scoops Ice Cream bar which features homemade ice cream, and themed luncheon buffets which take place several times during a 12 day cruise.  And to say goodbye they offer their farewell brunch as your last days near.
 
So the Crystal Serenity is not only a cruise, but a stay at a luxury small city at sea.  They offer entertainment to keep you on your toes, accommodations for you or your family, and so many dining chances that you will hardly have time to choose your favorite.
 

There is a new class system being applied to cruise ships such as the Celebrity cruise line. Celebrity plans to launch exclusive dining rooms on their next ship, the Celebrity Solstice. This 130-seat dinning room, named Blu, will be the dining room reserved for passengers in the AquaClass.

The AquaClass is a new range of cabins aimed for spa lovers. These rooms will come with unlimited access to the spa relaxation rooms and aromatherapy and steam room. And also they will be given the privilege of dining in the Blu dining room. There will be 130 seats in the dining room, allowing just enough room for the 130 AquaClass cabins available. They are allowing other guests who are not part of the AquaClass to book a night in the Blu dining room, but it is on a “space available basis,” which doesn’t give very good odds.

Celebrity isn’t the revolutionary in dining classes on ships, the more well known for this cruise line would be Cunard. On the Cunard ships, the two classes (the most expensive, and the others) have long eaten separately, the more expensive cabin’s eating in the more exclusive dining rooms. Most other cruise lines offer the same opportunities and public areas for all their passengers, either in the least expensive or cheaper cabins.

The Celebrity cruise line is also offering other new improvements for their cabins. They asked experts from travel agents to hoteliers, to get the best recommendations for upgrades. Some of which are; a foot rail in showers for easy leg shaving (which was one of the first ideas the panel came up with,) better storage (by raising the height of the beds, allowing passengers to store bigger suitcases underneath, and leaving more room in closets, and more soothing colors in the rooms and areas, as the experts say that bright colors are out.

Between now and April 2008, the three Seabourn ships of the Seabourn Cruise lines will be newly refurbished and made over. The Seabourn Pride, Seabourn Legend, and Seabourn Spirit will succumb to multi-million dollar renovations. These three ships will be opened up to provide more room and increase capacity, and also to enhance their open-air dining areas. With cruises and luxury vessels becoming more of an attraction, the battle for high-end vacation lines begins. The new ships will offer new bedding in all suites, new carpets in all public areas, new furniture in the card rooms and internet centers, and upgraded accommodations in the spa treatment rooms. Not only will they revise the standing suites and public areas, but also will replace the twin staircases that lead to the ships’ sky bars with a single staircase to increase deck space below.

As one of the ships’ most famous attributes, the Sky bars, grills and open-air dining areas will be expanded and changed to become more adaptable for more possibilities. The small cocktail tables will be replaced with more versatile furniture that can be removed to clear the open deck to allow on-deck entertainment and dancing.

The Seabourn Pride is currently the only finished of the three re-modeled ships, but in 2008, the Seabourn Spirit will get made over and the Seabourn legend waits to be made-over in April. Not only will the three existing ships be made-over but two more luxury ships will be added to the Seabourn family in 2009 and 2010. The new ships will feature 225 suites, with 90 percent of the suites featuring balconies.

Hurricane Dean caused extensive damage to the area of Puerto Costa Maya, on August 21, 2007. This category 5 hurricane washed away pieces of the concrete dock at the port, many cruise ships use when they are traveling along the Western Caribbean. Costa Maya has gotten more popular over the years, due to it’s location to Mayan sites.

Carnival Cruise Lines will be adjusting itineraries, and avoiding the port at Majahaul (also known as Puerto Costa Maya), through the reservation period ending spring of 2009. There doing this due to the damage caused by Hurricane Dean.

Royal Caribbean Cruises will also be jumping on the band wagon, and avoiding the Costa Maya port through the end of April, in total six ships itineraries will be effected.

Carnival and Royal Caribbean both stated, they hoped to return to Costa Maya, they will wait for the port authorities to determine when it will be safe for the ships to return.

Day 1: Departure

My Adventure starts right out of the gate. The plane departs Pasco Airport at 1:35pm. Salt Lake City had a fire in their control tower, so 30 minutes into my flight we were diverted to Boise. We refueled and waited until SLC re-opened.

I missed my connection and had to be re-routed. The Salt Lake City airport was very user friendly and easy to navigate. I did get patted down on my way back through security when my shoes set off an alarm ~ but all was well and it only took a few minutes. The security staff was friendly and pleasant. During my layover I enjoyed dinner at the Dave Clark Restaurant. This airport offers $9.95 per day or a per month internet usage package.

My next connection was in Las Vegas which I also found to be a relatively stress free airport. The Wi-Fi internet was free. Banks of slot machines are located throughout the terminal. This being my 4th and longest flight of the day ~ I was starting to get tired and stiff. I reached Orlando at 6am of Day 2. Checked into the Days Inn and Suites and learned they had a shuttle service to my ship. Had a shower, nap, changed and repacked my suitcases ~ bring it on!

Day 2: Embark

The shuttle departed the hotel at 11am, arriving at Port Canaveral around noon. Large bags must be checked, carry-ons go through X-ray, everyone walks through metal detectors, identity and boarding papers are checked every step of the way. The paperwork included filling out a small card for Bahamas national security and a signed verification that I had not been exposed to any gastrointestinal illnesses in the previous week. They take your picture for security purposes as you board the ship. Wrist bands are given to minors to ensure they are routed to the correct station in case of emergency. Rooms were not ready until 1pm, welcome cocktails & lunch at the Windjammer kept us occupied.

I opted to take a shore excursion to Breezes Nassau & arranged a private tour from the Hotel Management. A treasure hunt sends you around the ship to become familiar with the amenities aboard. Turning in your completed form entitles you to a drawing. What to see and where to shop seminars get you jazzed about our ports of call. After the mandatory muster with everyone on board taking part in the emergency drill, the ship leaves port and the party gets started.

Before opening the tables for the night, the casino holds free Gaming Lessons. The Welcome Aboard show features free prizes, reminders of the upcoming events and entertainers who draw the audience in (and sometimes even onto the stage). We are informed our itinerary was flipped around to miss the rainy day at Cocoa Cay. I tried one bite of everything at the Windjammer and headed back to my cabin to catch a nap. I missed Bingo ~ but one lucky winner was upgraded to an Owners Suite for the duration of the cruise.

I woke up about midnight and migrated up to Voltage for a couple hours. Met Leslie, a woman seated at my table for dinner (I’d missed dinner because of the show). Last Call varies by night and by the crowd ~ this evening it was 2am as quite a few people were intoxicated. The casino will be open until much later.

Day 3: At Sea

The day’s itinerary is slipped under your door during the night. After a shower I headed up to the deck for the BBQ.

It was raining intermittently as expected (which was why we had diverted from Cocoa Cay for today). A twelve-year-old won the Men’s Sexiest Legs Competition. The rock climbing wall was available when the weather permitted. I was having a wonderful time ~ I love it when the sky opens up, dumps buckets, then zips up and smiles down at you. That happened two or three times while I was up on deck before the cruise director shooed everyone inside.

The warm rain in the warm outdoors had not prepared me for the shock of being soaked to the skin inside the air-conditioned ship. I made my way back down to my cabin and discovered I looked slightly sexier then a drowned squirrel. I ordered soup to my cabin and got into jammies and under the covers until I warmed back up.

The afternoon’s activities included the Art Auction and raffle, where free Champaign was served. The entertainers taught swing dance lessons at the club Voltage. There was a wine tasting seminar. The spa and fitness centers were busy all day. The movie X-Men 3 played in the Theater. Several workshops were offered throughout the day including couples massage and scrapbooking.

The televisions in the cabins offer several channels about your voyage. These range from background information on our entertainers and Royal Caribbean’s production company to Gaming Lessons from the casino. Other channels focus on shore excursions, shopping, or explanations of what to expect onboard. Movie channels, cartoons and other channels are available as well. The ship does have internet café sections; you activate it with your keycard and are charged $.50 a minute. Alternately, you can create your own login and password to use with your laptop in their wireless sections of the ship on one of their payment plans.

Tonight was Formal Night. The Captain’s Reception served free Champaign and the head’s of staff were introduced. Guests could have their picture taken with the Captain. Formal photos of couples or groups in front of a romantic background were offered.

Then it was off to the Illusions dining room for me where I met Leslie. We shared a three course dinner. I went back up to my cabin and changed into slacks and comfy shoes before going up to see the guest karaoke and then the show ~ Flashback. Directly following that was a comedian. His show was listed as Adults-Only but he did a wonderful job of keeping it funny and not crude and actually drew on the younger audience members for several of the topics.

The dining rooms were holding a Chocolate Buffet between midnight and 1 am. I went to check it out but didn’t stick around when I saw the line circled up both staircases for 2 floors. At the end of my evening I rechecked my schedule for the morning and used the phone to set my wake up call.

Day 4: Nassau

This morning I was out of my cabin early enough that my Attendant could make up my room. In the mornings between 9:00 and noon they come and make the bed up pretty with the spread and extra decorative pillows. In the evenings they come and turn down the bed, remove all the fluffy stuff and leave you a mint. I also sent some clothes to the laundry service before I left.

My tour of Breezes Bahamas was set to start at 9:30 am. It took awhile for everyone to show up so it was extended to a 10 – 2pm excursion. Exiting the ship, my Sea Pass was scanned and checked several times; photographers were taking a variety of poses. Outside there was another ship docked, shuttles coming and going, but actually it was fairly simple to find who your tour was with ~ they were holding signs and before they departed they would give a final call. The walk to our shuttle bus was less then 10 minutes, on the other side of the craft stalls.

Breezes Bahamas: I arranged with the Sales Rep for a tour of the property at 12:30 and then headed down to the pool area. The activities start as early as 7 am (some are available 24 hours a day), the bars open around 10 am. The music came on at 11ish.

Our All-Inclusive Day Pass gave us full use of all the hotel’s amenities for the day. I was so hot and thirsty I couldn’t even imagine drinking alcohol ~ but the water was so disgusting, I couldn’t drink it either. I saw several other people throw it away after one sip as well. I ended up ordering virgin daiquiri’s just to keep myself hydrated with the ice.

I had almost two hours to sit in the shade in the pool and sip sweet drinks before I met with Krystine. The grill opened soon and served everything from nachos, hotdogs and burgers to salads and seafood. Soda and juice were available from self-serve fountains. Local venders had their wares spread out on tables along the path to the beach.

The lunch buffet was being served ~ it was Mexicana Day. I was still so hot I just had a few bites of fruit and cheese. This left me with almost an hour to kill before my bus returned to pick us up ~ so I got back in the pool!

The second dunk cooled me off and I felt much better afterwards. I returned to the ship to fetch money and some dry clothes. Then it was time to go shopping. The television has the recording of the short “where to” seminar I attended the first day. As you departed the ship each person was handed a map of Nassau with the recommended shops and descriptions of what they sell, along with warnings about things to avoid.

Bahamas’ security requires photo ID and your boarding pass to let you back onto the pier. The ship’s security compares your original check-in photo with your face when your Sea Pass is scanned upon return. All items and passengers are subject to the airport-like security measures. No raw or cooked food is allowed. Alcohol is kept securely for you until the last day of the cruise. Our itinerary handout for the day listed how much can be brought back from outside the US without incurring fees and tariffs along with the amounts allowed of those items which are limited.

A midnight BBQ and dance was held up on deck. The last night of karaoke trials was in Voltage. A comedian held court in the Follies Theater. I explored more of the ship & did some shopping on board, before meeting Leslie and Tracy for a drink before bed.

Day 5: Cocoa Cay

Royal Caribbean owns Cocoa Cay. A small venders market is set up on one side. Many water sports and activities are offered. An open grill area dominates the center section and, of course, bars and little tiki hut bars are scattered throughout. A ferry boat shuttles you from the ship and back. Your Sea Pass is the only identification needed, which pulls up your photo for comparison on the return. The boat shuttle stopped at 4 pm and we departed for Port Canaveral at 4:30 pm.

In my cabin I find the envelopes and vouchers for my pre-paid gratuities, the Customs form for re-entering the US, baggage tags for my luggage along with instructions to leave my bags in the hallway before midnight tonight.

I went up on deck for the Sail Away from Cocoa Cay party and stayed to talk to Tracy until early evening. Then back down to my cabin to pack my bags. My instructions say I will be in the 6th wave of 24 called to disembark in the morning. Meaning if they start at 7:30 and it only takes two hours, I could be off the ship as early as 8:00 am

Written by Page Eaton