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I have challenged myself to see how long I can go without flying (I am currently in the UK, having traveled back overland from Singapore this past summer). However, this summer I will graduate and will need to travel oneway to North America. The prices I have been able to find for cruises are very expensive for a student (at least $1000 including tax), and booking passage on a freighter looks to be even worse (about $100 a day, with the transatlantic voyages I can find taking 10+ days, plus about $300 in tax). Does anyone here know anything or have any experience with cheaper ways of crossing the surface of oceans? I can be very flexible with my dates, traveling any time in July, August or September. Are any rooms that would otherwise go empty sold off really cheap at the last minute? Is it possible to arrange to share a cruise-ship room with several strangers to get the price down? I am also willing to work passage, but have no particular skills, and would guess that supply of such people tends to exceed demand.

I asked this over on FlyerTalk budget travel, and it was suggested that I try again here, with the note that "Green Maned Lion" in particular might have experience with freighter travel. Any advice would be appreciated.
 
Aloha

A couple of my friends cruised frequently, they managed to use a bargain fare system that they called boat relocation cruise. As the sailing opportunity change the companies move the boats from one area to another. And since this means no return the ocean fare is less. you might look for these events.

Eric
 
One thing I have used a few times, and its never guaranteed, is looking in port rosters for ships sailing to where you want to go, particularly smaller ones (Especially avoid ships owned by Maersk-Sealand which explicitly frowns on the practice). Then go up to the ships mate or captain and discuss with them privately passage to New York. You should probably be the one to mention price first- I'd start around $400-500 and expect it to cost $600-700. Last time I did this particular route was before 9-11. I don't know if it works well nowadays.

Taking freighters on the cheap is consistant with "traveling with the wind" or "Go with the flow" travelling. Meaning, you have to be very flexible and patient. You have a day or two to work out the details on any ship, and you won't really find one prior to the day it gets in port. It's also unreliable- ships are not unknown to change course mid-trip to pick up some other cargo somewhere. It may also develop mechanical problems enroute- freight companies are not as careful as passenger cruise lines about avoiding them. They want a part to fail before they replace it. So if they say x days, figure a good estimate is x+.5. Don't negotiate on a per diem rate. Negotiate on a whole trip rate. Go with your gut instincts, but you may not be able to insist on documentation. Don't make yourself out to be wealthy. Its not entirely safe- if you feel wary sailing with a particular ship, don't.

Another option is working your way over- volunteer yourself as a spare hand. If you can find an independent freight hauler- they exist, although not as much as they used to, they may be happy to let you simply work your passage.
 
Green Maned Lion said:
One thing I have used a few times, and its never guaranteed, is looking in port rosters for ships sailing to where you want to go, particularly smaller ones (Especially avoid ships owned by Maersk-Sealand which explicitly frowns on the practice). Then go up to the ships mate or captain and discuss with them privately passage to New York. You should probably be the one to mention price first- I'd start around $400-500 and expect it to cost $600-700. Last time I did this particular route was before 9-11. I don't know if it works well nowadays.
Taking freighters on the cheap is consistant with "traveling with the wind" or "Go with the flow" travelling. Meaning, you have to be very flexible and patient. You have a day or two to work out the details on any ship, and you won't really find one prior to the day it gets in port. It's also unreliable- ships are not unknown to change course mid-trip to pick up some other cargo somewhere. It may also develop mechanical problems enroute- freight companies are not as careful as passenger cruise lines about avoiding them. They want a part to fail before they replace it. So if they say x days, figure a good estimate is x+.5. Don't negotiate on a per diem rate. Negotiate on a whole trip rate. Go with your gut instincts, but you may not be able to insist on documentation. Don't make yourself out to be wealthy. Its not entirely safe- if you feel wary sailing with a particular ship, don't.
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On one hand, I am quite happy to "go with the flow" and be patient, in that I certainly have no problem with the passage itself taking longer than planned, and I am happy to change my plans as circumstances require. However, if I have to spend a week in Southampton or some similar place (without cheap hostels) waiting for ships to come in and negotiating just to get a $700 passage, the cost for my accommodation etc for that week will almost eat up the savings compared to a $1000 fixed-date cruise.
Another option is working your way over- volunteer yourself as a spare hand. If you can find an independent freight hauler- they exist, although not as much as they used to, they may be happy to let you simply work your passage.
Click to expand...
I would be willing to do this, but how would I find such a ship? Would they really want to hire and (even minimally) train somebody for only ~2 weeks work?
Thanks to everyone for the advice, I will look at the cabinmatch.com site and also ask on the cruise critic forum.
 
Guest said:
I would be willing to do this, but how would I find such a ship? Would they really want to hire and (even minimally) train somebody for only ~2 weeks work?
Thanks to everyone for the advice, I will look at the cabinmatch.com site and also ask on the cruise critic forum.
Click to expand...
Depends what you are doing onboard. If you are cooking food, or cleaning, or a number of other completely non-technical jobs, why not?
 
Green Maned Lion said:
Depends what you are doing onboard. If you are cooking food, or cleaning, or a number of other completely non-technical jobs, why not?
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Do you know anybody who has done this? My experience, and that of my friends, is that it takes months of applying for dozens of things just to find a single non-technical temporary job on dry land, so I find it extremely difficult to believe that I would have success getting something as specific as a job on a ship going the way I wanted in a reasonable amount of time. That said, if you have evidence or advice to the contrary I am very interested to hear it. Thank you.
 

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