Hints About When Best to Book Please

[tring]

We are thinking of trying Azamara, but are wondering if prices tend to be better when the cruises are first released, or is it better to wait a while?  We are well cruised on a number of cruise lines and find some are better booked early, but others not.

 

We have not been on any related cruise lines (RCL and Celebrity), but seem to remember being told some years back that there are shares you can buy to get perks on cruises for those companies (like the share benefit that is available on Carnival Corporation cruise lines).  Is that the case, and if so would it apply to Azamara?

 

We are looking at a fairly lengthy fly cruise so those sort of things could make a big difference to us, so any hints would be greatly appreciated. 

 

 

 

[Grandma Cruising]

A couple of years ago I would have said that the best price is when the cruise first comes out, however that certainly hasn’t been the case recently. For example the Alaska Cruises for 2019 are now being sold at greatly reduced prices. Same applies to the Journey Norway cruise for July 2019. We booked it in 2017 and got 4 free days because we were going up a loyalty level plus a 5% discount for booking onboard. Even so we paid nearly £9000 for the two of us for a 16 day cruise (cruise only) for an ocean view cabin. We could book the same cruise, same cabin type, for just over £5000. I’m not complaining because we really want to do this cruise and booked it early because in the past that itinerary has sold really well.

However, it does depend on the itinerary and the current market - obviously neither the Alaska cruises, nor our Norway cruise have sold well this year, so Azamara have reduced the prices.

So at present I’d say it’s better to wait - but you do generally have to wait until after final payment date (90 days out) for prices to go down a lot, so it depends if you are comfortable booking so close to the cruise - and also whether you can get flights at a reasonable price at that time.

[tring]

16 minutes ago, Host Grandma Cruising said:

A couple of years ago I would have said that the best price is when the cruise first comes out, however that certainly hasn’t been the case recently. For example the Alaska Cruises for 2019 are now being sold at greatly reduced prices. Same applies to the Journey Norway cruise for July 2019. We booked it in 2017 and got 4 free days because we were going up a loyalty level plus a 5% discount for booking onboard. Even so we paid nearly £9000 for the two of us for a 16 day cruise (cruise only) for an ocean view cabin. We could book the same cruise, same cabin type, for just over £5000. I’m not complaining because we really want to do this cruise and booked it early because in the past that itinerary has sold really well.

However, it does depend on the itinerary and the current market - obviously neither the Alaska cruises, nor our Norway cruise have sold well this year, so Azamara have reduced the prices.

So at present I’d say it’s better to wait - but you do generally have to wait until after final payment date (90 days out) for prices to go down a lot, so it depends if you are comfortable booking so close to the cruise - and also whether you can get flights at a reasonable price at that time.

 

Thanks, yes that is a b i g difference.

 

Must admit we tend to book earlyish and are usually not keen to go for Guarantee Fares as we do like to choose our cabin location, which I assume you would not be able to choose your cabin at that price, though I see dining is open seating so we would not be constricted by dining time.  No big rush for us to decide at present.

Edited May 20, 2019 by tring

[BBMacLaird]

Hi Tring, and thank you for your interest in our Azamara Club Cruises!

The shareholder OBC still exists for those who hold 100 or more RCL shares; but, and this is important, it does not typically apply to a booking with a discount applied. This varies by type of discount and promotion, so it's best to send in application to see if you are eligible.

Here is the link to more information: https://www.rclinvestor.com/faqs/shareholder-benefit/

 

As for when to book for the best prices, as our Host Grandma Cruising says, it depends. Some voyages sell out fast, others may linger. If you are particular to a location or cabin type, I believe it is best to book as soon as you find a price you're comfortable with. 

[tring]

Thanks for the reply BBMacLaird it does sound a bit confusing about the shareholder benefit, though TBH we usually go for a specific itinerary rather than the best offers.  Good to have an idea though.

Edited May 20, 2019 by tring

[SoBaycruiser]

7 minutes ago, tring said:

 

Thanks, yes that is a b i g difference.

 

Must admit we tend to book earlyish and are usually not keen to go for Guarantee Fares as we do like to choose our cabin location, which I assume you would not be able to choose your cabin at that price, though I see dining is open seating so we would not be constricted by dining time.  No big rush for us to decide at present.

 

We like to book early also and we did for our upcoming repositioning cruise... our first in over 11 years with Azamara.  Some months later the prices dropped and we were able to rebook at the cheaper price ... only losing the first promotional items and gaining different ones.  This was before final payment.  I don’t think after final payment one can make changes.

 

[tring]

4 minutes ago, SoBaycruiser said:

 

We like to book early also and we did for our upcoming repositioning cruise... our first in over 11 years with Azamara.  Some months later the prices dropped and we were able to rebook at the cheaper price ... only losing the first promotional items and gaining different ones.  This was before final payment.  I don’t think after final payment one can make changes.

 

 

Thanks for the reply.

 

I see you are from the US and I know US people can usually cancel cruises without loss up to the final payment date, but in the UK we loose our deposit if we cancel a cruise at any time after we book.  If there is a very big discount, I have know people re book, but that is unusual to be able to do that and gain a financial advantage in the UK.  Worth thinking about though, so thanks for mentioning it.

[Lottie A]

There have been large discounts on late deals on many Azamara cruises recently, so if you can, I would say wait to book after final payment. IMO many of the cruises were overpriced to begin with.

 

 There are usually specific cabins to be chosen even if booking late, unless you want a top suite. Those do tend to sell out quickly.

 

Of course you have to factor in the rising cost and availability of airfare if you book late. For me it's a no brainer for Med cruises as UK flights there are easy to book. 

 

 

[Ithikan]

24 minutes ago, tring said:

 

Thanks for the reply.

 

I see you are from the US and I know US people can usually cancel cruises without loss up to the final payment date, but in the UK we loose our deposit if we cancel a cruise at any time after we book.  

We are from the US and were assessed $75 pp for the 2020 cruises we recently cancelled.  Will keep an eye on those cruises, however, for the potential entertainment value of watching the price fluctuation -.

Edited May 20, 2019 by Ithikan

[Grandma Cruising]

1 hour ago, tring said:

 

Thanks, yes that is a b i g difference.

 

Must admit we tend to book earlyish and are usually not keen to go for Guarantee Fares as we do like to choose our cabin location, which I assume you would not be able to choose your cabin at that price, though I see dining is open seating so we would not be constricted by dining time.  No big rush for us to decide at present.

No, that price wasn’t for a guarantee cabin - you could choose your cabin!

[BBMacLaird]

1 hour ago, tring said:

Thanks for the reply BBMacLaird it does sound a bit confusing about the shareholder benefit, though TBH we usually go for a specific itinerary rather than the best offers.  Good to have an idea though.

 

Here's a thread from 2018 discussing the pros and cons of our RCCL shareholder benefit:

 

[tring]

2 hours ago, BBMacLaird said:

 

Here's a thread from 2018 discussing the pros and cons of our RCCL shareholder benefit:

 

 

Thank you very much for those links, will read when I have bit more time.  Will likely keep an eye on the price of the shares and perhaps buy if it looks a good time, then will not matter if we do not get the cruise perks.

[AllisonJames]

This is not a scientific response but just based on my experiences tracking a number of AZ cruises over the last four years.  We have to plan ahead due to busy work schedules so we have booked another onboard every AZ cruise we've been on (only 3) so far.  We are kind of picky about room location and category, and always have a specific cruise we want, so early works for us, we enjoy the onboard benefits and also departing AZ knowing when we will be back 🙂, but recently I've been a bit discouraged watching low prices turn up 90 days out, but mostly this is on cruises I can't take anyway! (can't wait until I'm retired and hopefully have more flexibility to take advantage of deals!)

 

After watching a while you learn which cruises are popular and tend to book up early (as others have mentioned) which have been Irish Seas/The Open cruise mid-July, Japan, Norway, I'm sure there are others, HOWEVER, this year has felt a little different because of AZ's 50% increase in capacity and the apparent lack of demand for the extensive Alaska itinerary AZ offered.  But it seems to me that Asia & South America in particular have been getting discounted.  Australia & NZ seem popular (and expensive) but I could be mistaken and competition in that region seems to be increasing.  In the next two years, there seems to be a lot of Europe and there's so much competition there so we'll see.  It also seems to me that the inside and oceanview categories are the ones that are most often available 90 days out and many people won't consider these.  On the cruises I track, I often see CC Suites and Veranda categories sold out.  For our upcoming Irish Seas/Open Championship cruise I knew it had sold out the last time we took it (2016) and the initial price for the 2019 was $6,399 pp for Veranda.  That's a lot, so we booked on board two years in advance and used our LCV free nights and thankfully, I never saw that category any lower than what we paid -- but, Inside and Oceanview were discounted 90 days out but as of right now (two months out) the only availability is oceanview guarantee and a few of the large suites.  So it worked for us!  In the end, decide what you are willing to pay and seize any opportunity...we haven't seen the Az "sales" usually be actual "sales" due to our price tracking and seeing the prices being moves up and down.  But again, that's only on cruises we've tracked, and some people have snagged price discounts during a "sale."

[tring]

Thank you for the considered reply Allison.

 

We are happy in an outside, or perhaps even inside cabin as we can go on more holidays if we keep the cost down, though do splash out on a balcony at times.  Will start looking more closely at different destinations.  We are retired, but I do like to have holidays planned quite a while ahead, especially as we have taken a combination pf cruise/land holidays of late, so will need to arrange one part around another. 

[uktog]

I would book as late as you feel comfortable doing re flight prices. This year we booked all our cruises too early. 

We lost over £2k on this current cruise by booking too early. We will cancel and rebook our November cruise ok lose the deposit but the price drop across the 2 is £2.6k. FAR TOO MUCH! 

Next year nothing booked for the med / used to do 4-5 a year but too badly burned to commit now. We know the cruises we want. We can wait. 

[Literary Lynne]

I just look at the particular cruises that I'm interested in and watch the prices go up and down over time. I've noticed that around British Bank Holiday times the prices increase, then drop again afterwards. I wait until I feel that I would be very happy with the price and then book. Currently booked for a cruise that is only costing just over a £1,000 each for seven days in a deck 4, midship, ocean view stateroom, travelling to unusual ports - that seemed just right to me!

 

Lynne🤩

[berkshireboy]

Hi Tring

 

In the past we always booked early to get the deal we wanted.  However, with the recent substantial increase in prices this is no longer the case and we tend to book much closer to the sailing date than before.  This can also be an advantage when cruises are dropped, chartered or itineraries changed at short notice. 

 

Some of the larger UK cruise agents [you will know which ones I mean] also package some cruises to include flights, transfers and hotels before and after the cruise.  Often these are cheaper than the cruise only fare but, of course, you don't know in advance which ones will be sold like this.  Although I know you like to book your own flights this can be a good way of justifying that one extra cruise!  [If any justification is needed!]

 

Like you we aren't too worried about the grade of accommodation we take  and have been in a selection of cabins - we have two cruises booked at the moment, In November we have an inside cabin on the Quest and next September we have a Club World Owners Suite on the Journey - you cannot get more extreme than that!

 

Alan

 

 

[Trend]

I think it totally depends on the cruise destinations and popularity.

We booked the South African cruise when it came out for a CC cabin, now they are sold out.

We have checked with all the sales and our price is still less than offered through these special deals.

[Cool Fool]

3 hours ago, uktog said:

I would book as late as you feel comfortable doing re flight prices. This year we booked all our cruises too early. 

We lost over £2k on this current cruise by booking too early. We will cancel and rebook our November cruise ok lose the deposit but the price drop across the 2 is £2.6k. FAR TOO MUCH! 

Next year nothing booked for the med / used to do 4-5 a year but too badly burned to commit now. We know the cruises we want. We can wait. 

On our upcoming cruise we booked an Oceanview, as the Veranda was a lot more expensive when we booked. Azamara recently slashed the Veranda prices to a point over $1000 less than what we paid for the Oceanview. We had put in an upgrade bid that I guess is unsuccessful now that the Verandas are sold out. 

 

I understand supply and demand but still feeling a little scorched. 

[tring]

Gosh lots of tips - thanks to all 🙂    Sorry to hear about your bad luck, Cool Fool and hope you do much better next time.

 

Barbara