How to get the best price on a cruise.

[jennyopenny]

DH and I would like to take a budget, anniversary cruise.
Anyone have tips on getting the best price? I have heard there is quite a bit of wiggle room an the prices. I just don't know how to go about it.

Thanks!

 

[mjkacmom]

Either book far in advance, or at the last minute, depending upon your flexibility.

 

[browniemtb]

I've been looking at the cruises lately and it seems Disney is expensive compared to there competition. But I do agree with mjk...book early or last minute.

 

[Justsyd2]

Carnival has Early Saver fares that can save quite a bit of money!

 

[jennyopenny]

Thanks.
Keep posting tips!

 

[cjnix29]

there are all kinds of cruise websites, I think cruiseforless is one, also check travelocity, expedia too for their cruisedeals.

 

[a1tinkfans]

RCCL (amazing quality and service and clientele) can be booked on line, further in advance better deal...or last minute. Their website is actually quite good as well. Personally for first time cruisers, Id say ask people you know as far as which cruise line, they vary greatly!!! You can also go the travel agent route...Have you been on cruisecritic dot com? A GREAT wealth of information (the dis for cruising ) worlds of info, great forums and so much info so ask away.
We have cruised RCCL and I must say, it is truly first rate. My only cruise hint...for first timers, be prepared to spend more than just the cruise...it adds up (drinks, bingo, activities off shore) AND middle of boat up and across are steadyest....we had no issues but cruised in spring not during a rough season....
Rccl also has a credit card and amazing promos, we got lots of cruise money to spend on the ship and we went balcony, I would not do without it....Some say you are not in your room, well, we LOVED going to bed at night and waking up to see a "new experience" in the horizon just waiting for us, drinks and choc strawberries at night looking at the bluest water ...breakfast on the morning or just a cup of coffee....a WONDERFUL, not to be missed experience! Jr Suites are also great!!!
Good Luck choosing.....My personal opinion is that these new HUGE HUGE ships, rccl included are to keep you on board, more sea days rather than visiting and that is a shame...yes, THEY make money, but you LOSE on seeing/doing more. There are TONS to do on the ship but thats not really our thing,,,,though, yes we skated, rock climbed, basketball..inline skate, swim, Johnny Rockets "show" mini golf all while on ship...the list on RCCL goes on and on.... rccl is a Oh and their ships have a HUGE central promenade that runs the entire ship on one floor....has stores, bars, it is wonderful..... each night we'd visit another place, have a drink, relax...so much FUN FUN FUN.........
Good Luck deciding...research away................Oh the memories.......

 

[Clemson Cruiser]

Where do you live and will you be flying into port or driving?

 

[jenseib]

I've been looking too. I have searched some so called discount sites, but most don't seem much or at all cheaper than the actual cruiseline sites. I am looking at 4 day ones.Carnival and NCL are the 2 cheapest lines I have found. Fall is cheapest becuase it's hurricane season, but if you can go from now to mid March or so, they are pretty decent in price as well.
I have cruised on NCL twice, but it's been many years now, but we liked it.

 

[KKB]

try cruisecritic for great boards
.bestpricecruises is the only place I have booked; but cruise websites are getting alot more competative
We have paid no more than $500 for each of our 7 day Caribbean cruises on Princess (keep wanting to try other lines...Princess kept beating the price). These were on March or October cruises. If you find a cruise for this price, jump (right after you check airfare).
Disney is 30-50% more; as much as we enjoyed it, DH & I felt it was not worth the extra money, even with kids (and we all know Disney GETS kids). DCL had a couple of things we liked better...Princess had a couple of things we liked better. But overall, similar experiences. LOTS more kids on DCL, not surprising.
We did do a December Princess cruise and the clientele was definitively older. We are mid-40s and felt quite young. But our other cruises are a nice mix of ages.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

If you decide to book in advance and take advantage of the early saver program, for example through Carnival if the price drops you call and they adjust it for you.

You can download something called Cruisesharks, google it. It's like the Southwest ding. Everytime you turn on your computer it checks the price and will ding you if there has been a reduction, then you just call and they adjust for you.

I'm not a last minute kind of gal, so this is what we did.

 

[jennyopenny]

We are pretty much crusie virgins. We took the Carnival Ecsasty out of Galveston last year. It was lovely, but the ship was a little outdated.

I love the tips!! MORE-MORE!!

 

[Ashlotte]

Try Costco. We took a Disney cruise last year and it was about $600 cheaper for our family of four to book through them, even after adding in insurance and transportation.

 

[blanq]

I am a fan of www.cruisecompete.com This is a site where cruise travel agencies bid for your business, based on the cruise (date, cruise line, stateroom category, etc) you want to take. I would suggest doing some research first; you can give cruise compete the price you are trying to beat as another option. I recently booked a cruise for next month via cruise compete and am confident I got the lowest price I could based on the time I was booking. Cruise prices rise and fall so it is always a gamble. Some cruise lines will reduce your price if your fare drops after you book.

 

[ekatiel]

We are pretty much crusie virgins. We took the Carnival Ecsasty out of Galveston last year. It was lovely, but the ship was a little outdated.

I love the tips!! MORE-MORE!!

Ecstasy just got refurbished a few months ago. It's supposed to be really nice now!!

As far as the best deals-- if you have to fly to get to a port, then you'll probably find the best deals out of Flordia. If you can drive to a port, then check out that port first (we live in the Houston area and cruise out of Galveston-- no plane tickets=cheap!!!). The PP who said to look for a 7 day under $500 pp is right on the money (pun intended ). We were able to get our latest 7 day out of Galveston for $399 pp !! We are super excited to go!! Someone on here mentioned a website that compares different travel agent deals on another thread--- I can't remember what it was-- hopefully someone will chime in. It looked pretty neat. We usually just book directly with the cruise line. --Katie

 

[jenseib]

Does anyone know off hand what the tipping is for DCL per day per adult and child?

 

[uromac]

Another fan here for cruisecompete - but always double-check reviews of agencies. Far in advance I like to deal directly with the cruise line to obtain best room, info etc...then ask cruisecompete to come up with the best price for the category you would like... then transfer over your reservation if that room category is available and they can rebook that cabin for you. However, I do like the control I have working directly with the cruise line and will not change over to an agency if it is not a big difference. We have done DCL, NCL, HaL, Cunard, Celebrity, so we have been around. Most recently we just did the NCL Jewel which we enjoyed after a quick holiday family WDW trip. BTW, remember before the final payment you can ask for a price adjustment or on board credit (even after that time sometimes depending on the discretion of the line and/or agency) I also like Costco and BJs who give giftcards to their store in lieu of a cruise discount for those lines that do not allow discounting. I also second the cruisecritic boards - (almost as good as the dis !)

Good luck and happy sailing!

 

[Clemson Cruiser]

If you are flying I would recommend the cruises from Miami or Ft. Lauderdale. They are usually cheaper and alot more to chose from. If you do fly one thing I would not scrimp on is flying in the day of the cruise! I have heard horror stories of people missing their cruise due to flight delays or cancellations and although a hotel stay beforehand might be costly its worth the piece of mind to me (so much so if its the difference between an inside cabin or a balcony it would be inside cabin for me!).

If you do use an agency to book your cruise make sure that they will honor ALL price reductions if the price goes down. Some don't, but usually Carnival or Royal Caribbean will honor all price reductions until sailing. If you chose Carnival and consider the Early Saver please read the fine print because they used to make you forfeit your deposit make any changes to your sail date.

I love cruises~

 

[Whitty]

Check out icruise.com and vacationstogo.com I've gotten great deals from both of them!! Have fun!!

 

[caribear]

Lots of good info...and definitely check out cruisecritic dot com! Lots and lots of info on cruising.

Many cruise lines do not allow agencies to discount their cruisies...instead the agencies will offer different incentives such as additional on-board-credit, free travel insurance, a bottle of wine in your stateroom, ect....

I know that Royal Caribbean has "one-day" specials which they email to you in advance...so sign up on their website to get the latest info.

My cheapest cruise was on Adventure of the Seas out of San Juan. The flight was around $125pp (I'm in FL), but we were able to get a balcony cabin for $565/pp. After that cruise DH and I were hooked on balconies!

Gratuities are approx. $10/day per person in your cabin....might have gone up since the last time I cruised though.