Last Minute Booking - Timing Help

[kurukthemal]

Hi all,

 

I love a deal and am going to try something, mostly for fun, but a trip is nice too. I booked my flights for Feb 13 into Ft Lauderdale months ago and am looking to try and score a last minute cruise deal. Does anyone have any insights into when the best time to book may be relating to a last minute deal as you get closer to the sailing date?

 

If I don't get to book because the prices increase, that's fine and I will find something else to do that week.

 

Thanks and Happy Veteran's Day to all who served!

Bill

[alfaeric]

Hi all,

 

I love a deal and am going to try something, mostly for fun, but a trip is nice too. I booked my flights for Feb 13 into Ft Lauderdale months ago and am looking to try and score a last minute cruise deal. Does anyone have any insights into when the best time to book may be relating to a last minute deal as you get closer to the sailing date?

 

If I don't get to book because the prices increase, that's fine and I will find something else to do that week.

 

Thanks and Happy Veteran's Day to all who served!

Bill

 

IF there are any deals, they will show up after the final payment is due. Which I'm still trying to figure that one out- 90, 75, or 60 days?

 

Will there be deep discounts- dunno. But IF there are any- they will show up then.

 

We've done the same thing as you- booked a flight, and then hoped for a deal. It's worked a few times.

[FLACRUISER99]

Hi all,

 

I love a deal and am going to try something, mostly for fun, but a trip is nice too. I booked my flights for Feb 13 into Ft Lauderdale months ago and am looking to try and score a last minute cruise deal. Does anyone have any insights into when the best time to book may be relating to a last minute deal as you get closer to the sailing date?

 

If I don't get to book because the prices increase, that's fine and I will find something else to do that week.

 

Thanks and Happy Veteran's Day to all who served!

Bill

There is no magic formula you just have to be lucky.

[warezbabe]

My experience from trying to book last year during the same time frame was there were no deals. You are looking to take a cruise over Valentine's Day weekend. Good Luck!

[Biker19]

The TAs usually dump their excess cabins back to RCI around 60 days out. That's when RCI has a really good feel for inventory left and discounts needed to move them. In the past the sweet spot has been 30-60 days out. That all depends on inventory levels - for that, look at RCI's UK site. If there are still 40+ cabins (the UK site will show up to 50) in any one category 60 days out, there's bound to be some discounting. The level of that discounting may not be as deep as in years past. This year the prices on Allure and Oasis bottomed out around 4-6 weeks out for that week.

[WrittenOnYourHeart]

Hi all,

 

I love a deal and am going to try something, mostly for fun, but a trip is nice too. I booked my flights for Feb 13 into Ft Lauderdale months ago and am looking to try and score a last minute cruise deal. Does anyone have any insights into when the best time to book may be relating to a last minute deal as you get closer to the sailing date?

 

If I don't get to book because the prices increase, that's fine and I will find something else to do that week.

 

Thanks and Happy Veteran's Day to all who served!

Bill

 

Honestly? For that week, I'd say good luck. That week is a mid-winter break for many of the school systems in the Northeast (NYC for sure, and that is a huge population alone), so cruises and other vacation destinations will be pretty packed that week.

Edited November 11, 2015 by WrittenOnYourHeart

[Ourusualbeach]

As others have said, there is no set time that price drops occur.

 

We found a deal on our Oasis Christmas cruise for this year 2 weeks PRIOR to final payment. Prices since then have just gone back up.

 

When you see a price that you are comfortable with just book and don't look back.

[Regta]

We just booked Allure and found about 8 weeks out was the sweet spot.

 

Keep in mind, it will all depend on supply and demand. Our cruise was December 13 and that is the same week we usually cruise, so we knew is was a slow period.

 

Just keep checking every day around the time of final payment is due. This will give you the best chance. My sailing was only cheaper for a couple of days and we found it on a TA site, but wasn't on other sites......

[kurukthemal]

Thanks all and I appreciate the feedback. Again, I will be crying my eyes out if I just have to spend a week on the beach in Fort Lauderdale. Greatly appreciated!

[Merion_Mom]

IF there are any deals, they will show up after the final payment is due. Which I'm still trying to figure that one out- 90, 75, or 60 days?

 

I can help you with that. :)

 

90 days = any sailing that includes Christmas or NYE

 

60 days = 5 days or shorter

 

75 days = every other cruise

[Griswolds]

We have done one last minute cruise. It was in early October, booked it about 36 hours before boarding. Paid $300 per person (total including taxes, port charges, etc) for 7 nights eastern Caribbean out of Port Canaveral. Full disclosure - it was another cruise line. :eek:

[searoses]

The entire northeast on vacation.....I am dreading getting off aos and going to seabourn....every airport is going to be crazy....good luck!

[Tee & Chilli]

Are you open to trying another cruise line?

 

MSC Divina departs Feb 13 from Miami. Insides starting at $549. Also, NCL Getaway departs Feb 14 from Miami starting at $749.

[cruisinfanatic]

Hi all,

 

I love a deal and am going to try something, mostly for fun, but a trip is nice too. I booked my flights for Feb 13 into Ft Lauderdale months ago and am looking to try and score a last minute cruise deal. Does anyone have any insights into when the best time to book may be relating to a last minute deal as you get closer to the sailing date?

 

If I don't get to book because the prices increase, that's fine and I will find something else to do that week.

 

Thanks and Happy Veteran's Day to all who served!

Bill

I tried exactly that 2 years ago. It didn't work and I ended up paying more than planed even though I booked shortly after final. The best prices I've found are booked a year or more in advance.

You are vacationing Presidents week and that's a problem

[John&LaLa]

We have done one last minute cruise. It was in early October, booked it about 36 hours before boarding. Paid $300 per person (total including taxes, port charges, etc) for 7 nights eastern Caribbean out of Port Canaveral. Full disclosure - it was another cruise line. :eek:

 

We paid $500 pp for an outside on Enchantment over Easter this year. Purchased the Monday before.

[kurukthemal]

Just checking the post again and thanks for the continued information. I am interested in exploring the newer ships and here is my current preference - RCL Anthem, NCL Escape, RCL Oasis and my back up just for fun and to see a sunset and Key West is CCL Conquest. My airfare is fully refundable and I won't be upset if I just have to do a scenic drive from FLL to Key West for the week.

 

Cheers!

[cruisinfanatic]

Just checking the post again and thanks for the continued information. I am interested in exploring the newer ships and here is my current preference - RCL Anthem, NCL Escape, RCL Oasis and my back up just for fun and to see a sunset and Key West is CCL Conquest. My airfare is fully refundable and I won't be upset if I just have to do a scenic drive from FLL to Key West for the week.

 

Cheers!

How do I know you are on Southwest out of Albany????

Leaving the 13th. when is you flight home?

 

Navigator and Conquest look reasonable out of Ft Lauderdale on the 14th, but only 6 nights

Glory out of Miami on the 13th looks good too!

Edited November 14, 2015 by SeaUs

[Tee & Chilli]

Celebrity Constellation sailing from Port Everglades makes a stop in Key West.

[msmayor]

You are doing exactly what my husband and I did for our vacation this past March. We knew we wanted to go someplace warm (we live in the Northeast) but didn't want to break the budget. We decided to watch for a good last minute deal and if nothing came up, we would just bum around Florida for the week.

 

We bought our airfare first as we knew what dates we could travel. I then looked at ALL the ships leaving from Ft Lauderdale, Miami and Tampa that would fit with our travel dates. I made a list, and started tracking prices.

 

We knew for sure we did not want Carnival so I never had them on the list. I was watching RCL, HAL and NCL. There were 8 or 9 itineraries. We ended up on a HAL ship which I booked about 5 weeks out. I never saw RCL go down, only up...and the per day cost was higher than the HAL ship.

 

We booked an inside guarantee on a 7 day for $449. One week after booking, I was offered an upsell to a balcony guarantee for just $300 total (making the cruise $599 each). I thought that was a great deal for a balcony and we really made out well...was assigned an aft with a HUGE balcony that had more than enough space for two loungers plus two chairs and a table.

 

That experience has hooked us on looking at last minute fares for trips.

[John&LaLa]

Just checking the post again and thanks for the continued information. I am interested in exploring the newer ships and here is my current preference - RCL Anthem, NCL Escape, RCL Oasis and my back up just for fun and to see a sunset and Key West is CCL Conquest. My airfare is fully refundable and I won't be upset if I just have to do a scenic drive from FLL to Key West for the week.

 

Cheers!

 

Anthem goes out of NJ

[Cobaltstargazer]

I thought of doing this, were doing a driving holiday next year (August) to Salo on lake garda from Scotland. I noticed that there was a 4 nighter from Rome visiting Nice a long stop in Barcalona then sea day back to Rome.

Seeing as we were going to Salo i thought we should wait till we were in Italy before trying too book.

The price started at £720 for 2 (inside cabin), then it increased too £800 then £920 now it's dropped to £620. So i scrapped the original plan and booked at £620. (actually it was only a plan in my head, as soon as it came out my mouth, it was squashed lol)

My better half didnt fancy not knowing if we would be cruising or trying to book hotels etc and at the booking price i was comfortable.

I will keep an eye on it though, i fancied the not knowing part as the trip is going to be an adventure anyway. But the bargain hunter in me is still uneasy.

[kurukthemal]

How do I know you are on Southwest out of Albany????

Leaving the 13th. when is you flight home?

 

Navigator and Conquest look reasonable out of Ft Lauderdale on the 14th, but only 6 nights

Glory out of Miami on the 13th looks good too!

 

Yep and I'm using SW points, so pretty much I can cancel the day before the they just get redeposited back in to my account, unlike if I paid cash for the ticket. I am scheduled to come back on the 20th. I'm realize the airport is going to be a nightmare. That's why the Anthem looks good too. However, the thought of cruising out of NYC in February isn't very appealing. During our Alaskan cruise it was so cold that the top deck wasn't used at all which made the interior of the ship that much more crowded.

 

It's fun to have options, I'm not committed to any particular cruise line and I love scoring a deal, so we will see. :)

[kurukthemal]

You are doing exactly what my husband and I did for our vacation this past March. We knew we wanted to go someplace warm (we live in the Northeast) but didn't want to break the budget. We decided to watch for a good last minute deal and if nothing came up, we would just bum around Florida for the week.

 

We bought our airfare first as we knew what dates we could travel. I then looked at ALL the ships leaving from Ft Lauderdale, Miami and Tampa that would fit with our travel dates. I made a list, and started tracking prices.

 

We knew for sure we did not want Carnival so I never had them on the list. I was watching RCL, HAL and NCL. There were 8 or 9 itineraries. We ended up on a HAL ship which I booked about 5 weeks out. I never saw RCL go down, only up...and the per day cost was higher than the HAL ship.

 

We booked an inside guarantee on a 7 day for $449. One week after booking, I was offered an upsell to a balcony guarantee for just $300 total (making the cruise $599 each). I thought that was a great deal for a balcony and we really made out well...was assigned an aft with a HUGE balcony that had more than enough space for two loungers plus two chairs and a table.

 

That experience has hooked us on looking at last minute fares for trips.

 

Carnival is my backup and my cruise line of choice for getting "out to sea." I fully understand their amenities are not usually up to par with other lines, but I don't mind it. Just give me a place to sleep, a pot of coffee in the morning and a sunset at sea at night and I am happy. I am fascinated with Anthem and am very curious about these virtual windows/balconies.

[kurukthemal]

Good luck to you and I swear my kids would tell you that I like the planning more than our actual trips! :D I remember getting a rental car on Priceline using their bidding option for $12/day and was giddy for a week! I think November 30th or the day after will be interesting as that passes the 75 day mark.