We’ve written extensively about singles cruises. We’ve explained what singles cruises are, we’ve listed examples of singles cruises, and we’ve given instructions for how to take a singles cruises. When we come across a cruise topic that’s in need of explaining, we explain it with extreme (and perhaps even overzealous) thoroughness. We have not as of yet explored any of the normative questions surrounding singles cruises, however. In other words, we have described singles cruises, but we have not entered the world of oughts and shoulds. We now seek to remedy this deficiency, such as it is, by writing about who should take a singles cruise. Are there certain types of people who are particularly well-suited for singles cruises? If so, are they well-suited because of their circumstances (the facts of their life) or their disposition (the facts of their character)? The answer, as is so often the case, is both.
To begin, people who take singles cruises should in fact be single; if they aren’t, they are potentially causing harm (“harm” is to be understood broadly) to two sets of people. Most obviously, a person who is not single may cause harm to his partner by taking a singles cruise (either by acting unfaithfully or giving the impression of acting unfaithfully), and so they shouldn’t take a singles cruise. Obviously, a person who is in a relationship can physically take a singles cruise – there is nothing about the structure of the universe that could prevent this from happening – but such a person shouldn’t take one. Also, a person who is not single may cause harm to the other passengers by taking a singles cruise. This is the case because people on board a singles cruise are under the impression that everyone else on board the ship is also single. (Indeed, we are of the opinion that this is the greatest thing about singles cruises.) As such, any interaction a married or otherwise “taken” person has with someone on board a singles cruise is by its very nature misleading, unless the “taken” person immediately informs the person he is talking to that he is unavailable. To do otherwise is to mislead, and to mislead is to do wrong. Therefore, unavailable people shouldn’t take singles cruises.
Even if you are single, though, this doesn’t necessarily mean you should take a singles cruise. You might also want to consider who you are as a person, and whether your personality is properly adapted for the world of singles cruises. You should be outgoing and comfortable speaking with strangers. You should be undemanding in your scheduling needs and open to new experiences. Generally speaking, most singles will have no problem enjoying and thriving on a singles cruise, so we don’t mean to imply that you need to morph into a social butterfly to enjoy a singles cruise. However, if you can hardly tolerate a spontaneous conversation on an airplane or if the thought of meeting someone new at a bar fills you with terror, a singles cruise is probably not the best place for you.
It is one thing to provide bare information about singles cruises, and it is quite another to supply subjective judgments about the same. We have up until this article only opined about the former, and now we have dipped our toe in the latter – but we should add that we have done so not without right, to borrow the phrase on Shakespeare’s coat of arms. We are, after all, far more preoccupied with and knowable about singles cruises than the average person, and in our opinion there are certain people who should take singles cruises. Speaking in broad terms, these people should be, one, available and, two, open to new encounters and experiences. For the flip side of the issue, check out our article on who should not take singles cruises, and also our treatment of the difficult question of whether those in an open relationship or polyamorous relationship should take singles cruises.