15 incredible cruises for less than £100 a day
Keen to keep costs down on your holiday? Factor in multiple ports of call, food and drink, and the pendulum swings in cruising’s favour
When hunting for a holiday bargain, is cruising cheaper than other types of holidays? When you factor in the multiple ports, possible ports of call, food, drink (and sometimes alcohol) and the opportunity to sail from the UK (no flights to fork out for) the pendulum certainly swings in cruising’s favour. The destinations you can visit on a “budget” cruise may surprise you. In this search for cruises costing £100 or less per day, we found an itinerary that visits Canada, Greenland and the Faroe Islands, a transatlantic crossing on Cunard’s Queen Victoria, a voyage from Alaska to Japan and a riverside mooring that puts you at the heart of Paris.
Once on board, all passengers enjoy the same facilities, regardless of the fare. Meals including afternoon tea and entertainment including theatre shows, live music and dance classes – enrichment lectures and talks by guest speakers are part of the fare. Large, so-called resort ships are often built with water parks, climbing walls, zip lines, race tracks, 4D theatres, surfing and sky-diving simulators and cinemas. Gyms are high-spec and access to the spa’s thermal suite is often included.
Most (but not all) of the prices quoted are for inside cabins with no window, but it’s also possible to bag a bargain in a window cabin with a restricted view. The biggest unforeseen expenses on board – especially on American lines – are service and tipping, which is charged daily, per person, and added to the room bill. British lines including Saga, P&O Cruises, Virgin Voyages and Marella now include tips in the cruise fare. Service can be as much as 15 per cent on all drinks (including coffee) and 18 per cent on spa treatments – so enjoy the view, use the gym and pools, and perhaps save that massage or beauty treatment for when you get home.
Vancouver to Japan
From £85 per day
Most repositioning cruises set sail in October from the Mediterranean and cross the Atlantic to Florida and the Caribbean for a season of winter sailing. Instead, Celebrity Millennium leaves Vancouver and sails via Alaska and the Bering Sea to Japan. Nine sea days are bookended by port calls in Ketchikan in Alaska and Sapporo and Aomori in Japan, with a final day at sea before disembarkation in Tokyo. Millennium was refurbished in 2019 and good restaurants, three pools, a theatre and a bells-and-whistles gym and spa will liven up days at sea.
How to do it: A 15-day Bering Sea and Japan cruise costs from £1,278pp departing Sept 23 2023 (0344 493 2043; celebritycruises.com)
Faroe Islands to Canada
From £83 per day
Contrast the remote beauty of far-flung Torshavn (the capital of the Faroe Islands) and off-grid Narsarsuaq and Qaqortoq in Greenland with knockout food and cultural highlights in Montreal and Quebec City – the jewel of French Canada. This month-long trip with Ambassador Cruises also scoops up the Canadian maritime provinces of Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia. Homeward bound, the ship, Ambiance, spends half a day in Reykjavik. Put the 18 sea days to good use by taking advantage of the gym and spa and fitness and dance classes – all included in the fare.
How to do it: A 35-day Grand Canada and Greenland Experience visiting The Faroe Islands, Greenland, Canada and Iceland costs from £2,919pp. Departs round-trip from Tilbury on Sept 12 2023 (0800 102 0129; ambassadorcruiseline.com)
Spain and Portugal
From £58 per day
Ten days, visits to eight European ports and kind winter climes for around £58 per day? Offering exceptional value for money this Spain and Portugal routing visits Seville, Lisbon, Funchal in Madeira, Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands, Arrecife in Lanzarote, and Gibraltar. Refurbished in 2018, Norwegian Sun is a large and lively ship filled with dining and drinking venues and a late-night party spot, the Bliss Ultra Lounge. Leave time in the departure port of Granada for a visit to the Alhambra. The Moorish palace will be less busy and you’ll be able to admire the peaks of the Sierra Nevada in all their snow-capped glory.
How to do it: An 11-day Europe, Spain, Portugal and Canary Islands cruise round-trip from Granada costs from £646pp departing on Feb 3 2023 (0333 241 2319; ncl.com)
Greek Islands
From £90 per day
Greece in early autumn means fewer crowds, inviting sea temperatures – around 68F (20C) – and a comfortable heat that makes exploring a pleasure. The fare, unusually, includes all drinks and two free excursions. Cruising round-trip from Athens, the 1,664-passenger Celestyal Olympia will call at Mykonos, Kusadasi in Turkey, Patmos, Crete and Santorini. Tack on three hotel nights in Athens to make a week’s break of it.
How to do it: A four-day Iconic Aegean cruise departing Oct 28 2022 costs from £357pp including drinks, two excursions and gratuities (0808 2803547; celestyal.com)
Mexico
From £99 per day
Off-ship adventures on this Mexican Riviera cruise with Princess Cruises include whale-watching, catamaran sailing, horse riding, coastal kayaking and a hike to El Tular canyon, for spectacular views of the Sierra de la Gigante. There is also a visit to one of Mexico’s charming Pueblos Mágicos. Along with its architecture, art galleries and surfing beaches, Todos Santos is where you will find the Hotel California, immortalised by The Eagles. The ship, Royal Princess, was christened by the Duchess of Cambridge in Southampton and features a glass walkway built 128ft above the waves.
How to do it: A 11-day Mexican Riviera cruise costs from £1,099pp departing round-trip from Los Angeles on Jan 6 2023 (0344 338 8663; princess.com)
Denmark and Norway
From £93 per day
Artists have long been lured by the quality of light on Denmark’s northern tip. Grab some spring sunshine in one of the country’s sunniest spots and learn about its maritime history in the fishing towns of Skagen and Kristiansand. Explore Skagen’s pretty streets, white sand beaches and galleries by bicycle and tour the island and islets of Kristiansand – linked to the mainland by a ribbon of road – by schooner. This no-fly Scandinavia cruise on Sky Princess also visits Copenhagen and Oslo.
How to do it: A week’s Scandinavia & Norwegian Fjords cruise costs from £649pp through Trailfinders, departing round-trip from Southampton on May 27 2023 (020 7084 6502; trailfinders.com)
Fort Lauderdale to The Caribbean
From £80 per day
Pick your island and you could be hiking in the rainforest, visiting a coffee or cacao farm, or taking a therapeutic dip in thermal springs or waterfall pools. Beach snorkelling, waterfall hopping and chocolate tasting all feature in this cruise on Nieuw Amsterdam and, while the ship is in Aruba, certified divers can visit the wrecks of the Antilla and SS Pedernales (£106). Novices can book an introductory one-tank dive for £88.
How to do it: A 10-day Southern Caribbean Seafarer cruise round-trip from Fort Lauderdale and calling at the Dominican Republic, Aruba, Curaçao and Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas costs from £799pp departing on Dec 11 2022 (0344 338 8605; hollandamerica.com)
Norway
From £79 per day
Northern Lights season is around the corner and Cunard’s flagship, the Queen Mary 2, will be sailing on a 12-night itinerary to Norway, calling at Bergen – once the centre of the Hanseatic League’s trading empire – and Trondheim, Alesund, Stavanger and Tromso. The QM2 spends two nights here, leaving plenty of time to explore. Slide up Mount Storsteinen in a cable car, visit the Arctic Cathedral, warm up with a hot chocolate and a bolle (sweet bun) at a candlelit café and stroll along the Nidelven river under a star-filled sky. On board, enjoy music recitals and workshops and performances by the Royal Shakespeare Company.
How to do it: A 13-day Norway and Northern Lights cruise costs from £1,028pp round-trip from Southampton. Departs on Nov 1 2022 (cruise.co.uk)
Dalmatian Coast
From £80 per day
The ravishing Dalmatian coast is heaven-sent for cruisers. On this 40-passenger boat you’ll be nudging into some of Croatia’s smaller ports and dropping anchor in quiet, tree-dappled bays. The holiday begins in Split, site of the Roman-built Diocletian’s Palace, and calls at the islands of Korcula, Hvar and Bol, where there’s a chance to swim off the showstopping Zlatni Rat (Golden Horn) beach. On Mljet, a stroll along wooded pathways followed by a short boat ride brings you to a 12th-century Benedictine monastery set in one of two saltwater lakes.
How to do it: An eight-day Southern Croatia Cruise round-trip from Split and including nine ports of call costs from £639pp. Includes breakfast, lunches and one dinner and children under 10 get a 50 per cent discount (01273 823700; responsibletravel.com)
LA to Mexico
From £68 per day
On the Mexican Riviera January through to April is migration season for humpbacks and grey and blue whales journeying south through the Pacific. Join this cruise on Celebrity Solstice for whale-watching, parasailing and snorkelling and a bonus overnight in Cabo San Lucas. Located at the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California peninsula, Cabo is known for its nightlife and foodie scene. On the return trip to LA, Celebrity Solstice also spends a full day in San Diego for some last-minute sunshine and shopping.
How to do it: An eight-day Mexican Riviera cruise roundtrip from Los Angeles and departing on Jan 14 2023 costs from £541pp. An extra £35 per day takes care of tipping and buys unlimited drinks and Wi-Fi (0344 493 2043; celebritycruises.com)
The Caribbean
From £75 per day
Launched in 2017, P&O Cruises’ Britannia was designed and built for British cruisers sailing from the line’s home port of Southampton. The modern ship champions UK artists, chefs and ingredients. On board you’ll find an eye-catching contemporary art collection, a luxurious spa, a sports deck and stylish restaurants including The Glass House – overseen by award-winning wine expert Olly Smith. This Southampton-bound cruise leaves Barbados for the Caribbean islands of St Lucia, St Kitts, Antigua and Barbuda before making a final stop at São Miguel in the Azores, where an excursion takes passengers to twin crater lakes at Sete Cidades.
How to do it: A 14-day Caribbean cruise departing on March 25 2023 costs from £1,049pp including one-way flight to Barbados (0344 338 8003; pocruises.com)
Southampton to New York
From £70 per day
When it comes to bucket-list cruise experiences, sailing into Manhattan at dawn is up there with the best. The “Transatlantic” between Southampton and New York is commonly associated with Cunard, which began passenger crossings in 1840. This trip is on Queen Victoria, the smallest in the fleet. An extensive refit in 2017 added swish new suites, an elegant dining room and an expanded pool deck where guests can unwind in cabanas and dine alfresco under billowing canopy sails. Cunard’s famed White Star service is alive and well in the refined Winter Garden, where scones are served by white-gloved waiters under a new glass roof.
How to do it: A 10-day cruise from Southampton to New York departing on Jan 11 2023 costs from £699pp (0344 338 8641; cunard.com)
Uruguay to Spain
From £84 per day
Time to spare? Sailing between continents on a working freighter is a fascinating way to travel. This winter the former Royal Mail ship St Helena will embark on a transatlantic passage from the Uruguayan capital Montevideo, to Algeciras, in Spain. Following a major refit the cargo-passenger vessel now has an 80-seat restaurant, an on-board science centre and a large exterior deck. Cabins are no-frills, but comfortable, and passengers share the ship with 50 crew and 90 shipping containers.
How to do it: The Cruise People offers a 24-day (approx) sailing from Montevideo mid-December, arriving in Algeciras around Jan 4. From £2,801pp or £96pp per day (three sharing), or £84pp per day (four sharing) 020 7723 2450; PassageEnquiry@outlook.com
Paris
From £99 per day
It’s hard to argue with Paris in the spring – especially when you’re bobbing on the Seine at the heart of the French capital. This languorous sail through Paris on the river ship MS Botticelli takes in classic sites on foot and by coach and includes a night-time sail along the Seine. One evening, Botticelli docks minutes from the Eiffel Tower and Trocadéro – a perfect vantage point for the Tower’s sparkly light show. The ship has a sun deck and panoramic windows for cooler spring days.
How to do it: A four-day Short Break in Paris cruise departing costs from £398pp including some excursions. Departs on March 26 2023 (020 8328 1281; croisieurope.co.uk)
France
From £91 per day
France’s gastronomical capital Lyon, the Burgundian vineyards, the architecturally significant Palais des Papes and majestic ancient Roman aqueduct bridge Pont Du Gard fill this Rhône cruise with interest. Christmastime in Lyon is extra special, and not just because of the food. From Dec 8 to 11 the city’s buildings are brought vividly to life by the Fête des Lumières (Festival of Lights). This festive itinerary on board Viva Voyage begins and ends in Lyon and calls at Tain-l’Hermitage (the home of Valrhona chocolate), Arles and Avignon, which hosts the prettiest Christmas market in the whole of Provence.
How to do it: A six-day Rhone Magical Advent Cruise on Viva Voyage costs from £550pp departing on Dec 1 2022. Slightly over budget but not when you factor in the free Wi-Fi, snacks and soft and alcoholic drinks (0330 818 7271; viva-cruises.com)