When do I book

[marsworth75]

Planning a cruise in early 2015, when should I book the cruise. I want to get a decent price but don't know when the best opportunities happen, timewise.

[Bonnie J.]

I would suggest you only use a TA who will meet ANY lower price. If the price goes down you must tell them, then they must meet the lower price. Carnival had- don't know if they still do, Early Saver. If YOU saw a lower price you notified them, told them where you saw it and they would match it. If it was after final payment they gave on board credit for the amount. This was not done automatically, YOU had to tell them. Once we had $140 OBC thru this!

[Krazy Kruizers]

We prefer to book as soon as possible so that we can get the cabin we want.

We use a TA and if we should see the price go down, then we call her and she calls the cruise line and requests the lower price.

[Keith1010]

We book early for the best cabins.

 

Keep in mind that the lower priced and the highest price cabins go first along with the best within each category.

 

Book soon.

 

Keith

[sparky-elpaso]

We book early for the best cabins.

 

Keep in mind that the lower priced and the highest price cabins go first along with the best within each category.

 

Book soon.

 

Keith

 

Exactly. Also, with most cruise lines you can call and get the lower price if the price goes down before final payment date. Unless the lower price is for new bookings only or something like that. So monitor the prices once or twice a week or so after you book.

 

We just got a $50 pp reduction, plus some OBC and dinner in a specialty restaurant on our Princess cruise - and a better placed cabin (which technically would have been about $150 pp more if we'd booked it originally). So as far as I'm concerned we saved $200 pp.

 

Another thing to check is resident rates (not offered on all cruises all of the time) and senior rates if you qualify. These tend to show up randomly so you have to be proactive. We got a huge drop on our Australia cruise a couple of years ago because we were over 55. I told DH that finally our gray hair was worth something. :D

[BlueRiband]

Planning a cruise in early 2015, when should I book the cruise. I want to get a decent price but don't know when the best opportunities happen, timewise.

 

It's a crap shot that all depends on how well a particular cruise is selling. Best prices usually appear right after the final payment date - 90 days before sailing - but your cabin choice will be limited. However if the cruise is selling well you may not see a price drop and it may actually go up. And the later you book the higher the deposit.

[beachbum53]

There is one other thing that may happen. If a particular cruise isn't selling well, for whatever reason, you (or your TA) might get an e-mail from the cruise line offering a free upgrade to a different cabin. This would happen if some cabins in a certain category are in low demand, while others are higher in demand. Remember the old saying "The early bird gets the worm." The earlier you book, the better your chances are of getting a free upgrade, OBC, or some other perk. But once you've made your booking, you have to be diligent and check frequently for any price drops or free upgrades that may come along. Even the world's best TA may not catch every perk that comes along, due to the number of clients he/she has.

[marsworth75]

Thanks for all the info. definitely a newbie at all this but i do like looking for and getting all the discounts I can. Grey hair here too, so i'll be looking for the old guys discount for sure.