Is there a benefit to paying off the cruise?

[kelkel2]

We are about $100 away from our final payment. Final payment is due in October. Is there any benefit to paying it off? Or on the other hand is there any reason we don’t want to pay it off until later?

[PhotoMike]

If you booked an early saver rate and the price drops, they will knock the difference off of the balance that you owe. If it's paid in full, they will give you on board credit instead. At least that's been my experience. (I might add, you need to fill out the price protection form online to take advantage of what I just said..lol)

Edited February 6, 2022 by PhotoMike

[scpirate]

No benefit unless you need to budget your money. I used to pay upfront when i booked but with all the cancellations i have been booking with the least deposit possible and do not make final payment until the last week. I usually book a year or 2 in advance.After feb 15 i guess they are going back to non refundable deposits  therefore i booked 2024 with only a $100 deposit. 

[NutsAboutGolf]

If the cruise "bill" gives one anxiety, pay it off...

[Silent Penguin]

On 2/6/2022 at 2:05 PM, PhotoMike said:

If you booked an early saver rate and the price drops, they will knock the difference off of the balance that you owe. If it's paid in full, they will give you on board credit instead. At least that's been my experience. (I might add, you need to fill out the price protection form online to take advantage of what I just said..lol)

 

I just got did this over the weekend and got $$ back.  I will add, if it hasn't been said already, if you booked through a TA and not directly with Carnival, your TA has to make the request.  

 

[Indytraveler83]

With COVID and ship changes, we've found our cruises moving around a lot.  Our last cruise on the Horizon was the 3rd attempt we made at a cruise, and our New Orleans cruise in January 2023 is our second try for that trip, with no garenteed it will pan out due to family complications.

 

I've found the less money Carnival has, the easier it is to move around.  I've booked several "non-refundable" cruise deposits and my PVP was able to have that overridden and applied to a different cruise.  

 

I was always taught that if you weren't being charged interest, don't give anyone money until you have to 😁

[TrqoisWtrs]

I've always been one to make final payment when final payment is due.  Can't see giving Carnival my money months or even years before I need to.  But that's just me.

 

 

On 2/6/2022 at 1:05 PM, PhotoMike said:

(I might add, you need to fill out the price protection form online to take advantage of what I just said..lol)

I've never had to do that.  Was just able to call and they did it then.

[bgrmini]

You get the benefit of having it paid, so they won't cancel your cruise for non-payment.

[famof4togo]

Can't you NOT book things like specialty restaurants, chefs table and excursions until you are paid in full too?

[ultrafighter]

If you happen to need to request a vaccine exemption from Carnival, you can't do that until you're paid in full.  That's the only thing I can think of.

[Lee Cruiser]

Really no benefit to paying it off unless it is a budgeting thing for you.  Honestly, we never pay ours off until a few days before the final payment due date.  We typically book a long time out with reduced deposit sales.  We watch the rates for price drops.  If there is a good price drop, we will pay the difference in the deposit to get the price drop.  Otherwise, we don't pay any more until the final payment due date.  We typically have several cruise booked for the next couple of years.  We don't see any reason to pay them off early and give Carnival the money interest free.

[Ellusionz]

7 hours ago, famof4togo said:

Can't you NOT book things like specialty restaurants, chefs table and excursions until you are paid in full too?

No, I book them as soon as they're available and that's usually before payment is due.

[sanger727]

Typically there’s no benefit either way. But in the days of covid, I wouldn’t pay it off early. So many things change so often and get cancelled; no reason to tie up more of your money in the trip than you have to. That being said, since you only owe $100, it’s probably not a big deal either way. 

[kelkel2]

Thanks everyone for your thoughts. The cruise is in January. We booked a sold out OT category, so although I have seen a price drop since booking, it’s now sold out so I wont see more now. I just wanted to make sure I wasn’t missing something.

Currently my 4 year old twins aren’t vaccinated, but they are going along with us. The vaccine requirement/exemption process is only currently in affect through 12/22 so we won’t know if it will apply to our sailing.