too late to book a cruise?

[wld]

We're thinking of changing our 3rd trip in a year to WDW and cruising instead. We would cruise in May because I can stay a couple of days at WDW and see the flower and garden festival. My question is that everyone on this board seems to be booking a year or more out. Am I crazy to book 4-5 months out? Will I be paying alot more? Are there ever any good discounts on disney cruises if you wait until just before? (the last question is funnier than you know as I am terrible about waiting)
Thanks everyone, you've already been a big help.

 

[Michelle]

It's never too late to book a cruise, as long as they have space available. Yes, you will be paying more than if you had booked a year ago but May is still a great time to cruise and there are decent prices to be had.

Do NOT wait until the last minute, though, DCL does not do the last-minute discounting of cabins like many other cruise lines.

Go for it!

 

[wld]

Just wondering, how much "paying more" and ideas?

 

[Michelle]

It's really impossible to say. Each sailing with DCL has early booking savings "tiers". As more people book that sailing, the price goes up into the next EBS tier. One some sailings there are no EBS left, you pay the full brochure rate. Summer and holiday sailings book up the quickets so the EBS goes faster. In the spring they do not book up quite as quickly so your savings should be greater, as they are still in lower EBS tiers.

The only way to find out for sure is to get a quote for exactly what you're looking for.

 

[chuckncole]

We booked a 7 day disney magic e.Caribbean, 6 weeks ago, leaving next week. my husband, myself and our 4 kids are going for under $3K for 2 cabins! ( port and taxes included) thanks to Vacations to Go... check out their website. they pride themselves on low, last minute prices 90 days out or less. We were told we would see an on board credit as well since we are disney club member... Dont know if that will pan out but I think the price is right, regardless!

 

[Bev J]

I get a weekly travel/cruise listing from seasavers.com each week and I have seen some VERY low rates for cruises for the next year. In the past we have always booked our cruises up to 1 year ahead, after seeing the prices being offered it does not seem necessary to book so early, then keep checking back to see if the price goes down. I have seen balcony cabins on Royal Carribbean going for $850 pp for a 7 day cruise on a brand new ship.With so many new mega ships out now and more comming the cruise industry will have to lower their rates to keep cabins full, even Disney. Check out some of the cruise sites for great discounts if you want more info you can PM me.

 

[marymck]

I went last May over Memorial Day - the rates were awesome! I recommend the agent I used to book this: allseastravel.com. I am a "deal" shopper and worked hard doing my research to get the best deal, and this place had it! For my family of four, our rate was over $1,000 less than anywhere else I looked. My sister has a family of 6 & saved over $2,000 booking with this agency. They specialize in Disney cruises! I think he probably has rooms available this May - check out the site. He has rooms when no one else does at a good price. I am going to WDW in 2 weeks & just got a rate on a room at the All Stars cheaper than anywhere else.

Mary Mck.

 

[cathy59]

We booked our January 19th cruise in April. I expected the price to go up more than it has -- just $300-$400/adult. I guess it depends on when you are going, during high season or low season.

Go for it!