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Holiday cruises out of FLL


abpplh
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Those that have sailed over Christmas out of Port Everglades, when do you typically book flights?  We are on the Adventure Dec 21-29.  We plan on flying in on the 20th to FLL or PBI.  Flights are outrageous right now!  Fingers crossed when Southwest releases 5/23 they will be cheaper!!!

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40 minutes ago, abpplh said:

Those that have sailed over Christmas out of Port Everglades, when do you typically book flights?  We are on the Adventure Dec 21-29.  We plan on flying in on the 20th to FLL or PBI.  Flights are outrageous right now!  Fingers crossed when Southwest releases 5/23 they will be cheaper!!!

 

Does that mean they are "outrageous" compared to other December pricings, or outrageous compared to when you usually fly to SoFla?  I suspect the latter.

 

This is a function of supply and demand.  Airlines know that they will be able to sell out just about every seat at that time of year to SoFla, so little reason to make cheap inventory available.

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Southwest may have the cheapest fares on the day they make flights available but that doesn't mean they'll have had the cheapest fares during the time all airlines were publishing fares for your dates of travel.

 

Southwest don't have anywhere close to the edge they did maybe a decade ago yet people seem to believe they do. On high volume travel days there is very little chance that Southwest fares are going to be lower than what you can get today.

 

Without knowing what "outrageous" means to you, or where you are flying from there's a good chance that what you see today is what you can expect to pay.

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As with everything, flexibility is key. Searching flights for the 20th and returning on the 29th with ITA Matrix, I'm finding flights from PIT to PBI for $678 on Delta; it goes down to $608 (with AA) if you fly into MIA instead (still returning from PBI). However, if you search for the 19th and return on the 30th, you can find $365.80 on Delta. Playing around with dates can make a big difference.

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Unfortunately, just as your cruise fare was probably higher, so are air fares during the holidays. For our New Year's cruise this past December, United was actually cheaper than Southwest, and we still paid over $600 per ticket. I booked our flights in June, and prices only went up as availability went down. I would not wait to book your flights.

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Its still just under 9 months out. If your are looking at flying economy, I'd say give it at least another 2 months. Right around 6 months out. That is because you are flying out on a Friday which probably won't be too bad. Saturday the 21st will be a madhouse flying.

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On 4/1/2019 at 9:56 AM, Twickenham said:

As with everything, flexibility is key. 

Question to Twickenham regarding 2 hotels in Quebec:  

 
Seeking your opinion regarding these 2 hotels: Hotel Manoir Morgan and Chateau de Pierre.  We are 2 seniors plan to spend 2 nights in Quebec before our Princess Cruise on Oct. 4, 2019.  We are looking for a hotel close to Old Town and the cruise port (if within walking distance will be even better).  Which one do you think is better?  Do you have other hotels to recommend? Thank You so much!
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On 4/3/2019 at 4:07 PM, Voelfgar said:

Its still just under 9 months out. If your are looking at flying economy, I'd say give it at least another 2 months. Right around 6 months out. That is because you are flying out on a Friday which probably won't be too bad. Saturday the 21st will be a madhouse flying.

 

I've flown a lot of Friday flights,  and that day can be very high demand/ loads.     No one has a crystal ball  and letting time tick by to 6 months is no guarantee    Prices can indeed be higher than today.    There is no answer.   

 

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19 hours ago, Budget Queen said:

 

I've flown a lot of Friday flights,  and that day can be very high demand/ loads.     No one has a crystal ball  and letting time tick by to 6 months is no guarantee    Prices can indeed be higher than today.    There is no answer.   

 

I base it on the 15 years of flying on the weekend prior to Christmas. This coming Xmas will be flying to Puerto Vallarta and have not purchased airfare yet.

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You are flying during a very busy, high demand travel week.  It's the start of peak season for Caribbean cruising, people visiting Grandma for the holidays, etc. You might get lucky if you wait for Southwest to release fares,or you might find that with inventory continuing to drop on other airlines, their prices are going even higher and Southwest is matching them...because they can.  As someone said, being flexible may help...check MIA, check other dates, and if you are insisting on flying nonstop, look at flights with connections as they are often cheaper.

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I feel your pain with a NYE cruise booked following an April school break cruise we cancelled due to the inability to find affordable airfare from BOS to FLL  (fares climbed to double for the same week last year). I recognize "supply and demand" and I am willing to accept a premium but can only stretch it so far. 

 

May I suggest using the "Hopper" app?  You put in your flight preferences and they will provide you "book now" or "wait" opinion with their prediction on how the fare may go up or down. I use it as a tool but don't follow it blindly. 

 

If there is flexibility in your dates, I would also watch google flights. There is a "date grid" that offers options on both ends. You then have to factor the added hotel costs and other expenses. 

 

If anyone knows of other tools (I realize there is no "magic wand"), I would be interested in what others use.

 

Good luck.

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