Are you checking for price drops?

[DCGuy64]

15 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

I used this strategy for over 30 years. You need flexibility and to enjoy research but it is totally doable, and actually not that hard  🙂

I guess it depends on your situation. I have my regular 9-5 job, and in addition I sing in a number of professional choirs. Most of the time I have to give my availability for an entire season sometime during the summer. For example, last July I committed to one group that has a concert coming up next month. If I were to find a great deal next month on a cruise, I couldn't go since I'd already committed to those dates almost a year ago. Same with my main job: if I took the risk and decided to try and book a last-minute cruise, I'd be in jeopardy of having my boss say "no" and have to miss out. I fully understand that your work experience was different but my professional life is hugely complicated-I literally sing in about 9 different professional choirs and navigating my time off for vacations is a veritable minefield.

Oddly, last year my former boss (now retired) went ahead and approved two vacations (for cruises) that were only 2 weeks apart, but that was because we assumed (due to ever-changing COVID restrictions) that either one or both would be cancelled. We ended up going on both, which was great. But there's no way my superior would have done that had I waited for a last minute good deal. Unless I wanted to be out of a job! LOL I had another boss who would routinely just flat-out say "no" when we asked off. Financially, I need the money from my job(s) to travel and even though I've earned the vacation time at work, my employer still has the right to decide when and if I take time off. I'm glad your situation was more conducive. That's great!

 

 

[BermudaBound2014]

15 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

I guess it depends on your situation. I have my regular 9-5 job, and in addition I sing in a number of professional choirs. Most of the time I have to give my availability for an entire season sometime during the summer. For example, last July I committed to one group that has a concert coming up next month. If I were to find a great deal next month on a cruise, I couldn't go since I'd already committed to those dates almost a year ago. Same with my main job: if I took the risk and decided to try and book a last-minute cruise, I'd be in jeopardy of having my boss say "no" and have to miss out. I fully understand that your work experience was different but my professional life is hugely complicated-I literally sing in about 9 different professional choirs and navigating my time off for vacations is a veritable minefield.

Oddly, last year my former boss (now retired) went ahead and approved two vacations (for cruises) that were only 2 weeks apart, but that was because we assumed (due to ever-changing COVID restrictions) that either one or both would be cancelled. We ended up going on both, which was great. But there's no way my superior would have done that had I waited for a last minute good deal. Unless I wanted to be out of a job! LOL I had another boss who would routinely just flat-out say "no" when we asked off. Financially, I need the money from my job(s) to travel and even though I've earned the vacation time at work, my employer still has the right to decide when and if I take time off. I'm glad your situation was more conducive. That's great!

 

 

 

You missed my point entirely. When I was working, my vacation schedule was planned one year in advance. This allowed me to purchase required airfare to my chosen destination at the 321 day marker. I had a timeframe to work with WELL in advance that required me to select a vacation destination, just not the details. In other words,  my vacation was not last minute but the cruise ship I ended up on was determined by supply and demand.

 

Being flexible is key, but making well researched financial decisions is what has allowed me to retire in my early 50s (I am no trust fund baby). IMO, being a mindful spender is excellent trade off for early retirement.

 

Edited to add... I don't mean to imply that you aren't a mindful spender. But purchasing cruises before final payment is almost certainly going to leave money on the table. 

Edited April 22, 2022 by BermudaBound2014

[DCGuy64]

2 minutes ago, BermudaBound2014 said:

 

You missed my point entirely. When I was working, my vacation schedule was planned one year in advance. This allowed me to purchase required airfare to my chosen destination at the 321 day marker. I had a timeframe to work with WELL in advance that required me to select a vacation destination, just not the details. In other words,  my vacation was not last minute but the cruise ship I ended up on was determined by supply and demand.

 

Being flexible is key, but making well researched financial decisions is what has allowed me to retire in my early 50s. A very good trade off for flexible spending :).

Ah, well you see that doesn't work for me, either. Where I work, we typically CAN'T schedule time off that far in advance. I CANNOT plan one year in advance because there are too many variables. I tried that scenario once: a group I sing with (and tour with) on a regular basis had a trip planned to the Baltic countries and I asked off work WELL in advance and was told it was too far in the future and to ask later. After I'd paid a deposit on the trip, I then asked closer to the scheduled departure date and my boss said "no." I had to forfeit the $1,000 deposit I'd made and I didn't get to go. So again, YOUR particular circumstances made that scenario possible but they wouldn't work for me. If I were able to say, right now, which dates I want to be off in 2023, that would work. But they don't allow us to block out future vacation time that far in advance. For one thing, it wouldn't be fair to my co-workers. We can only allow a certain number of people out of the office at any given time, so if I blocked off time for 2023 that would deprive my co-workers of the possibility of vacationing during those times.

Speaking of work, gotta get back to it. Thanks for a great discussion and have a great weekend!

[BermudaBound2014]

Just now, DCGuy64 said:

Ah, well you see that doesn't work for me, either. Where I work, we typically CAN'T schedule time off that far in advance. I CANNOT plan one year in advance because there are too many variables. I tried that scenario once: a group I sing with (and tour with) on a regular basis had a trip planned to the Baltic countries and I asked off work WELL in advance and was told it was too far in the future and to ask later. After I'd paid a deposit on the trip, I then asked closer to the scheduled departure date and my boss said "no." I had to forfeit the $1,000 deposit I'd made and I didn't get to go. So again, YOUR particular circumstances made that scenario possible but they wouldn't work for me. If I were able to say, right now, which dates I want to be off in 2023, that would work. But they don't allow us to block out future vacation time that far in advance. For one thing, it wouldn't be fair to my co-workers. We can only allow a certain number of people out of the office at any given time, so if I blocked off time for 2023 that would deprive my co-workers of the possibility of vacationing during those times.

Speaking of work, gotta get back to it. Thanks for a great discussion and have a great weekend!

 

No doubt each situation is different, but I could make my strategy work with much less time in planning ahead. It can be done in nearly every single situation. It's all about how much work you want to put into it. 

[Newfun4me]

Yes!  I actually just called today.  My fare went down by $164 (and I definitely asked to have it repriced as all the perks are the same) but my mom's dropped by almost $1,000!  

[LMKakaThing2]

1 hour ago, darius427 said:

I was able to upgrade after final payment on my cruise this past March and I did have the BOGO airfare.  However, the stipulation was that the upgraded cabin had to cost more than what I had paid.  So, in your situation, with the balcony cabin being $300 cheaper than what you paid, they would not let you upgrade to that cabin.  However, you may be able to upgrade to a Club Balcony for slightly more. 

Called and they were going to charge me $525 for a balcony.  Didn't bother asking about a club balcony since online it only shows the aft club available for an additional $3000.

[SimplyAlbert]

I keep checking mine, but I booked in 2020 when everything had stopped so I got a great deal.  So far it's doubled in price from what I paid.

[LMKakaThing2]

13 minutes ago, SimplyAlbert said:

I keep checking mine, but I booked in 2020 when everything had stopped so I got a great deal.  So far it's doubled in price from what I paid.

I booked in 2020 as well and my cruise has dropped by $1100 but since I booked airfare, they won't let me upgrade without paying an additional $525 for a balcony even though it's less than what I paid for my inside.  Hoping to find out in the next 5 days if my bid for a balcony gets accepted.

Edited April 22, 2022 by LMKakaThing2

[greatestvalue]

On 4/21/2022 at 2:08 PM, mking8288 said:

but don't book anything less than 2 to 3 months out

Hope to clarify - you are booking within 90 days of the cruise OR you are booking more than 90 days from cruise date?

[mking8288]

@greatestvalue - we've been in a position since mid 2019 to book, pack and cruise last minute, whichever way ships are going, especially when there are choices from the Northeast (USA) ... not limited to NY/NJ.  We will track but not book anything more than 60 to 90 days out from embarkation (final payment is now, 120 days & cancel at 121 days or sooner to avoid penalty). 

 

Just found a nice deal early next month and it's not a Sailaway - double points (2 extra ones) per night + 1 bonus point on top, total of 4 points per night.  Used 2 CruiseNext certs, overall price is almost a steal, not cheap but we are happy with our final cost - $100 bonus NCLH stockholders non-refundable OBC & another unexpected $100 OBC added.  This one is within 30 days, hustled to finish OLCI just a few days ago - just need to repack half of our checked bags.  

 

No ships for June & July on our radar but with the hurricane season peaking, late August thru early October is going to look interesting for deals - got 3 to 4 itineraries on the short list.  Plan B - we'll just fuel up for a Fall foilage trip & head north across the Canadian border, early ... assuming the lockdowns are behind us.  We have hoped to cruise S.E. Asia by now but ... ain't going overseas & stay inside 4 walls to self isolate for 7+ nights first, flights options - prices - availabilities and insurance combined, just mad crazy, even if we manage to upgrade our cabin class using air miles.  

[greatestvalue]

1 hour ago, mking8288 said:

we've been in a position since mid 2019 to book, pack and cruise last minute,

We too are in a position to do last minute book; pack & go

 

We've not tried the last minute booking yet, but may just do so for our typical end of year cruise. We dont care where we go. We can either go from our coast (West) or fly to the East coast, to see the family and hope on a ship.  Actually considering that for this year.  Head to Disney for Christmas & sail out of Miami back to LA via the Panama Canal. 

 

We head out to the Baltics in August. Its been planned for some time now and like you I consider what we ended up getting the cruise for, even before several price drops, a steal. 

 

Biz class RT flights, hotels in Denmark & Boston several nights prior in both cities are all booked on points. 

 

We too get the shareholder benefit. We have the Amex card as well, so get additional OBC, champagne & other goodies.  

 

Love this game!! 

 

Happy to share deals & steals with you, when I find them. 

 

Thank you for the clarification!!

 

 

 

 

 

[NCLGirl2013]

On 4/22/2022 at 10:06 AM, BermudaBound2014 said:

It seems NCL has gotten tighter with the rules applied to price drops. For those who are uncomfortable booking last minute I do understand that there are some circumstances that require a firm plan. My best advice is to keep checking right up until final payment and then walk away. After final payment prices are dropping significantly more than they have historically, and historically last minute has been a great deal. This pattern will likely continue until NCL can start filling ships again.

I know it is unpredictable but would you guess that would be by Jan 2023 or would you guess it will be back to Before COVID price wise?

[tgloersen]

We leave on 07/05 Sun trip to AK, the price is still double what i booked at!

[BermudaBound2014]

12 hours ago, NCLGirl2013 said:

I know it is unpredictable but would you guess that would be by Jan 2023 or would you guess it will be back to Before COVID price wise?

 

I am obviously only one voice here, and lots of people are much more positive about future cruising, but I believe there will be exceptional last minute sales in January of 2023 (especially the first two weeks after nye). 

 

 

3 hours ago, tgloersen said:

We leave on 07/05 Sun trip to AK, the price is still double what i booked at!

 

You're still too early. I don't believe those prices will drop for another 5-6 weeks. Although historically, 9 night itineraries fluctuate much less than 7.

[kacurl]

Saved $100 Friday on our Breakaway ta next April. Woohoo!!!

[galveston gal]

I am on the Prima from Galveston to Miami this October.  Prices have doubled since we booked right after that announcement.  I really doubt waiting till final payment would get close to what we locked in.  It’s all a game and you get to pick how you want to play it.

[deliver42]

We don't sail until May, 2024 on the Bliss to Alaska. Due to the length of time, I'll be checking during holiday sales only until we get close to the end of '23.  Then I'll check once ot twice a week.

[ChiefMateJRK]

7 hours ago, deliver42 said:

holiday sales

??

[casofilia]

I tend to check many of our cruises on a Tuesday NZ time, late Monday Miami time, as that seems to be when price drops seem to appear.   Have just saved over NZD1000 with a downside of the loss of two Specialty meals. 

[akduane]

Doing the Getaway T/A Copenhagen-Port Canaveral in June. Past final payment. Originally booked a Single Inside on Deck11(Cat IB). Was going to bid on an upgrade using the lowest bid possible, but checked daily for price drops. The Single Balcony price dropped big time 2 weeks ago,  so I was able to just purchase the upgrade to a balcony on Deck 11 (cat BB) for $336 instead of bidding. Great value!