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It’s wonderful to see cruise lines building bigger and better ships that come with everything from ice skating rinks and public parks, to mini-golf courses and rock climbing walls. And let’s not forget the spectacular shopping promenades that are enclosed in beautiful atriums.

But the one thing the cruising industry seems to have overlooked is the single cruiser.

There are thousands of people who travel alone because they are single or occasionally take separate vacations from their spouse. Most are avid travelers and well suited to cruising because a ship is a great place to meet people and it’s a safer environment that many land-based locations.

And yet, most cruise lines don’t seem to be building new ships with any single cabins. And they are charging their solo sailors a hefty supplement just to walk up the gangplank.

For example, in the entire Holland America fleet of 14 vessels, only one ship has single cabins – the Prinsendam. And there are only three single cabins on the Prinsendam: two outside and one inside.

Furthermore, many lines are charging a premium for single cruisers to book a standard-sized cabin that borders on punitive. For example, single supplements with Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity run between 180 to 200 per cent. And Princess advertises single supplements of between 150 to 200 per cent. That means single sailors can end up paying twice as much as the per person fare for a couple occupying the same stateroom.

To be fair to the cruise lines, the cost of operating a ship is based on putting at least two people in every cabin, and generating on-board revenue from them. One person usually doesn’t spend as much as two people, and the cost of running the ship does not decrease much because it has fewer people on it. In addition, most land-based resorts operate the same way – their rooms are based on double occupancy because it doesn’t cost any less to have just one person in it.

So the issue isn’t that single travelers shouldn’t pay a premium to take a cruise, but rather how much of a premium is fair. And, what should cruise lines be doing to help reduce the financial burden on solo cruisers.

A number of cruise lines offer “guaranteed share” programs, where they find single travelers of the same sex to share a cabin. If the line can’t find a suitable person to share, the single cruiser gets the whole cabin without paying a premium.

Some cruise lines still have ships with a handful of single cabins on them – they are priced at a premium, but cost far less than the normal single supplement charge. And a number of lines have set single supplement fees at more reasonable levels.

For example, at Holland America and Star Clipper, supplements start at 150 per cent of the per person, double occupancy fare (e.g. $1,500 if the per person fare is $1,000). With Crystal, it begins at 125 per cent. And on Regent, it starts at just 110 per cent. The one caveat is that cruise lines with reasonable supplements for singles usually have a limited number of cabins available at these rates. In addition, the percent of supplement will vary depending on the cruise selected.

The bottom line is that while single cruisers still have to pay a premium to sail alone, some cruise lines are making a bigger effort than others to get their business. That’s a smart way to build loyalty with single travelers, some of whom may return one day with a companion, a spouse or even the kids!