$50 Deposits?

[stoddaj1]

I am just wondering if anyone might have an idea when the reduced deposit might be back?  Haven't cruised in a bit so have not been keeping track.  Thanks in advance for your help.

[modes]

Just keep checking they have new promos every couple of days.

[xDisconnections]

I never seemed to understand this one... why is everyone obsessed with these reduced deposit promotions? Usually I use an FCD or pay the refundable deposit amount when reserving cruises. If you end up having to pay the same amount down the road... what’s the point?

[PhillyFan33579]

8 hours ago, xDisconnections said:

I never seemed to understand this one... why is everyone obsessed with these reduced deposit promotions? Usually I use an FCD or pay the refundable deposit amount when reserving cruises. If you end up having to pay the same amount down the road... what’s the point?

 

I have never understood the appeal of reduced deposits when the cruise price remains the same. That is not a sale in my book. I guess if money was tight I could see how a reduced deposit might appeal to some people. But if money was tight, I wouldn’t be booking a cruise. Or maybe it appeals to someone paid on commission who knows they will be getting money in the near future, so the reduced deposit helps them out short term. 

[Jamman54]

Yes, in the long run the final cost is the same, but we look at it at it this way. We can have 10 or more cruises booked at a time and as far as two years out. That's a lot of money tied up in deposits. Using the reduced deposits keeps more money in our accounts longer earning interest (however little), and not in Carnival's accounts.

[Joanne G.]

18 minutes ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

I have never understood the appeal of reduced deposits when the cruise price remains the same. That is not a sale in my book. I guess if money was tight I could see how a reduced deposit might appeal to some people. But if money was tight, I wouldn’t be booking a cruise. Or maybe it appeals to someone paid on commission who knows they will be getting money in the near future, so the reduced deposit helps them out short term. 

 

I booked with a $50 deposit on another line for a cruise that was over a year away at the time of booking.   It was too soon for me to get the days off approved at work, and there were some other issues about the cruise that I had to think through, such as perhaps sailing solo.  But it was a dream itinerary in Europe, and  I wanted to lock in the price and the perks that were being offered at the time.    Of course in the end, assuming I go, I will pay the same amount, but I don't typically pay out anything before I have to.   It isn't a matter of money being tight.  It's a matter of less of my money being tied up and less to be waiting for as a refund if I have to cancel for some reason.

 

A lot of personal money management is psychological.  We do what makes us feel comfortable.  I have never wanted to pay off my cruise over months rather than in full at final payment date.    But obviously many people prefer doing that, and Carnival makes it easy to do so.   Some people buy the drink packages even knowing that they likely won't get their money's worth over buying individual drinks, but they like not thinking about the cost of each drink.  To each his or her own!

Edited July 11, 2019 by Joanne G.

[crzndeb]

As long as people know that the $50 deposits are usually tied to Early Saver, then they might have several reasons why they like them. But they need to make sure they know all the rules associated with that lesser deposit, especially on Carnival.

[jerrya72]

When I took all of our kids I would book during the reduced deposit because it was easier to come up with $500 than $1,000. I would book a year in advance with a small deposit and then make monthly payments.

[LuckyStar]

2 hours ago, Joanne G. said:

 

I booked with a $50 deposit on another line for a cruise that was over a year away at the time of booking.   It was too soon for me to get the days off approved at work, and there were some other issues about the cruise that I had to think through, such as perhaps sailing solo.  But it was a dream itinerary in Europe, and  I wanted to lock in the price and the perks that were being offered at the time.    Of course in the end, assuming I go, I will pay the same amount, but I don't typically pay out anything before I have to.   It isn't a matter of money being tight.  It's a matter of less of my money being tied up and less to be waiting for as a refund if I have to cancel for some reason.

 

A lot of personal money management is psychological.  We do what makes us feel comfortable.  I have never wanted to pay off my cruise over months rather than in full at final payment date.    But obviously many people prefer doing that, and Carnival makes it easy to do so.   Some people buy the drink packages even knowing that they likely won't get their money's worth over buying individual drinks, but they like not thinking about the cost of each drink.  To each his or her own!

Fantastic logic, Joanne! 

[ricew001]

so here's a good reminder that we are not all alike.

some folks like this. some don't. if you don't -- please keep scrolling.

 

for us, one family member gets a work bonus she uses for her vacations, so she grabs a $50 deposit and books a cruise while she waits for that to come in.

 

my parents always give us money for a trip each year for our anniversary - so if they run a $50 deposit i grab that while I wait for our (monetary) present to come.

 

I agree - it's personal so let people do what they need. Wish I could find and insert that cute video of the little girl who says "worry about yourself!" 🙂

 

 

 

[ishap]

My PVP is advertising $50 deposits now.

 

And there are a lot of good opinions in here.  I have booked both way, but if we are going to book a cruise a long way out I prefer to use a smaller deposit to ensure I don't lose too much money if something happens.  You can book multiple cruises that way as we all know you get your preferred room/location the further out you book.  Then again I booked the Mardi Gras with a higher depost just because I knew I couldn't wait.  Not everyone has the money right when they book.

[Chervil]

We like it because it gives us time to finish saving up.

 

We had just had a cruise in January for our anniversary.
About a month later,  friend we usually cruise with was wanting to go and had found a really good sale on a trip in October.
So we booked in February through a third party site and they prepaid the deposit. We paid the deposit last week and we make the final payment on that cruise today! That gave us extra time to save up for everything since it was really an impulse cruise!

While the prepaid deposit was a factor, we generally look for the extra perks and bonuses.
As much as I love booking through a cruiseline themself (I have done it 4 out of 7 cruises so far) sometimes the deals are too good to pass up!
This coming cruise we went with a third party and not only did they prepay our deposit, but they paid our gratuities, gave us $50 drink credit, $100 onboard credit, $25 excursion credit and $25 resort credit.
We probably won't use the excursion or resort credits, but the gratuities and onboard credits alone saved us about $350!

The price for the room itself was the same as booking through Carnival (within a few cents) and since they refuse to match offers, we had to go with the other site.

So it really depends, but I understand why people like using the prepaid gratuities!

[mek]

11 hours ago, xDisconnections said:

I never seemed to understand this one... why is everyone obsessed with these reduced deposit promotions? Usually I use an FCD or pay the refundable deposit amount when reserving cruises. If you end up having to pay the same amount down the road... what’s the point?

Money isn't an issue for me but I love reduced deposits. Why give the cruise line anymore of my $'s than is necessary  before final payment is due?  For the same reason, I never prebook/prepay anything - I'd rather just get the bill all at once any pay it off.

Edited July 11, 2019 by mek

[ProgRockCruiser]

11 hours ago, xDisconnections said:

I never seemed to understand this one... why is everyone obsessed with these reduced deposit promotions? Usually I use an FCD or pay the refundable deposit amount when reserving cruises. If you end up having to pay the same amount down the road... what’s the point?

 

Because there may be a myriad of reasons why I cannot go on the cruise, and hopefully I find out before final payment.  I may not want to rebook it, so since I'm going to lose $50 pp anyway, simply cancelling the cruise might be the logistically easier thing.

 

And as @Jamman54 said, with enough future cruises booked, giving Carnival as little of my money now is always preferable.

 

So I don't consider it a sale, just a useful promotion.

[Garf]

17 minutes ago, mek said:

Money isn't an issue for me but I love reduced deposits. Why give the cruise line anymore of my $'s than is necessary  before final payment is due?  For the same reason, I never prebook/prepay anything - I'd rather just get the bill all at once any pay it off.

I agree, Money isn't an issue with me too, But I prefer to book with the reduce $50.00 deposit, Also we all can't be selfish as many people cannot afford the large deposit at once.

[summersigh]

30 minutes ago, ProgRockCruiser said:

 

Because there may be a myriad of reasons why I cannot go on the cruise, and hopefully I find out before final payment.  I may not want to rebook it, so since I'm going to lose $50 pp anyway, simply cancelling the cruise might be the logistically easier thing.

This is our thinking as well.  DH has health issues that could keep us from going so this is easier as you said and for the same $50

[crzndeb]

So a question for those that book with reduced deposits. Did any of you ever have a price drop, between booking and sailing. I ask, because others have said that unless the price drop includes a reduced deposit, you have to come up with the full deposit before you can get the price drop. I know Carnival is very savvy about the reduced deposits, and then doing a price drop within a month. 

[ProgRockCruiser]

1 minute ago, crzndeb said:

So a question for those that book with reduced deposits. Did any of you ever have a price drop, between booking and sailing. I ask, because others have said that unless the price drop includes a reduced deposit, you have to come up with the full deposit before you can get the price drop. I know Carnival is very savvy about the reduced deposits, and then doing a price drop within a month. 

 

We usually book very specific cabins, and opportunities for comparison price drops are nigh impossible.

 

If I did find a price drop, I guess I'd probably pony up the delta in deposit in order to take advantage of it.

[LuckyStar]

On 7/11/2019 at 8:49 AM, mek said:

Money isn't an issue for me but I love reduced deposits. Why give the cruise line anymore of my $'s than is necessary  before final payment is due?  For the same reason, I never prebook/prepay anything - I'd rather just get the bill all at once any pay it off.

I agree with this.  I can book more cruises if I have to tie up less money on deposits.  Great points.  

[mikayla73]

On 7/11/2019 at 12:39 PM, crzndeb said:

So a question for those that book with reduced deposits. Did any of you ever have a price drop, between booking and sailing. I ask, because others have said that unless the price drop includes a reduced deposit, you have to come up with the full deposit before you can get the price drop. I know Carnival is very savvy about the reduced deposits, and then doing a price drop within a month. 

Yes, and you do have to come up with the rest if the new price isn't tied to a reduced deposit.

 

So if it would save me $ I'd do it and just pay the full deposit if needed. I've also seen it where the new price includes a lesser deposit, instead of $50 it'll be $99. If I got any OBC with the original booking, I also take that into account. To make it easier after we book I figure out how much the price has to drop to for it to really be a price drop for us and only bother with getting the price drop if it's below that number.

[lagienomai]

On 7/11/2019 at 8:13 AM, Jamman54 said:

Yes, in the long run the final cost is the same, but we look at it at it this way. We can have 10 or more cruises booked at a time and as far as two years out. That's a lot of money tied up in deposits. Using the reduced deposits keeps more money in our accounts longer earning interest (however little), and not in Carnival's accounts.

This is me. We only have 3 booked currently and branching out and have one booked for 2021 on NCL. We are a family of 5 but the oldest is starting to stay home but even still the deposit for 4 people is high especially for something I have booked almost 2 years down the road. I have found we also get the best price booking that far. I watch for drops but it only seems to go up. My cruise in October dropped a whole 20 dollars lol. 2 drinks for me I guess.

[scpirate]

On 7/11/2019 at 8:13 AM, Jamman54 said:

Yes, in the long run the final cost is the same, but we look at it at it this way. We can have 10 or more cruises booked at a time and as far as two years out. That's a lot of money tied up in deposits. Using the reduced deposits keeps more money in our accounts longer earning interest (however little), and not in Carnival's accounts.

So that's how the top 1% do it.i just book it on my credit card and pay it off when it's due.its the same in the end.but I have other things to do besides cruise so one every other year is good.and certainly not every  one on carnival.i like variety.

[summersigh]

example ... today I booked a cruise for Nov 2020.  Price and timing were great for us.  Not sure I'd have jumped on it this early if not for the $50 deposits.  (sale is over tomorrow July 13 on my CCL site).  Got our favorite cabin too 😉

[Doggielover68]

On 7/11/2019 at 7:58 AM, PhillyFan33579 said:

 

I have never understood the appeal of reduced deposits when the cruise price remains the same. That is not a sale in my book. I guess if money was tight I could see how a reduced deposit might appeal to some people. But if money was tight, I wouldn’t be booking a cruise. Or maybe it appeals to someone paid on commission who knows they will be getting money in the near future, so the reduced deposit helps them out short term. 

It's not always about money being tight. Why give Carnival the money upfront when it could be in your bank account, collecting interest or just being there for an emergency until it's time to pay down the balance? 

 

I usually have several cruises booked at a time and I would rather have $50 per person tied up than $250 per person per cruise. 

 

Simply put, I like to keep my money as long as I can. 

[Lee Cruiser]

On 7/11/2019 at 11:39 AM, crzndeb said:

So a question for those that book with reduced deposits. Did any of you ever have a price drop, between booking and sailing. I ask, because others have said that unless the price drop includes a reduced deposit, you have to come up with the full deposit before you can get the price drop. I know Carnival is very savvy about the reduced deposits, and then doing a price drop within a month. 

We typically book our cruises two years out and have multiple cruises booked at the same time.  We have four cruises booked right now through April 2021 on the Mardi Gras.  We usually book with reduced deposit promotions and don't pay the final amount until a week or so before the final payment is due.  Yes, you have to pay the full amount at some point, but we get to keep our money longer.  When you are booking that far out you are usually getting the best rates.  For us, it has been very seldom that the price has dropped.  On our cruise in April (booked two years earlier) the price never went down.  It was actually a few hundred higher a year out, so we were much better off booking early.  If a cruise does go down substantially, we will pay the remaining deposit required and get the better rate.  On one of our cruises next year the price recently dropped $20.  For that small amount we just kept the rate we had.  I know some people don't understand why people do it, but everyone has different opinions.  For us, we would rather keep more of our money until the final payment date.