How far in advance to book holiday cruise

[mdin]

So over the weekend, my family suggested we should go on a New Years cruise. If we're all in, we decided December 2024 would be ideal. Just need to figure out ship, itinerary, and duration that we want.

 

Now normally, my wife and I pick cruises sailing anytime from January through March, and then book it about 12 months in advance. It obviously gives us plenty of options to choose from. For this one however, we are limited to a specific week.

 

How far in advance should we book it? Originally I was thinking booking it by this time next year, but now wondering if these sailings sell out faster due to the week it's on.

 

TIA

 

 

[shof515]

book early like a year in advance. holiday cruises is always more money and its cheaper when it is booked in advance

[WhaleTailFlCruiser]

Whenever I chose to do NYE Cruises I book a year+ in advance. 

[mz-s]

Whenever you know for sure the cruise you want to go on, go ahead and book. Why wait? If the price goes down, price match. If it goes up you're insulated.

 

Why exactly are you thinking it's advantageous to wait?

[mdin]

1 minute ago, mz-s said:

Whenever you know for sure the cruise you want to go on, go ahead and book. Why wait? If the price goes down, price match. If it goes up you're insulated.

 

Why exactly are you thinking it's advantageous to wait?

No reason to think it's better to wait. I've since explained the advantages of booking early and will book as soon as the family confirms they are in.

 

Yesterday it didn't occur to me to book asap and I didn't want to rush anyone into a decision. Ended up saying we have plenty of time to decide without thinking if a holiday trip books faster than usual.

[mz-s]

6 minutes ago, mdin said:

No reason to think it's better to wait. I've since explained the advantages of booking early and will book as soon as the family confirms they are in.

 

Yesterday it didn't occur to me to book asap and I didn't want to rush anyone into a decision. Ended up saying we have plenty of time to decide without thinking if a holiday trip books faster than usual.

 

The cruise won't sell out for a while probably. But prices will go up and room selection will go down as time goes on more than likely.

[Tierun]

Book a holiday sailing as early as possible. The prices rarely drop and usually come out twice as much as normal sailings.

[asalligo]

As far out as possible. Holiday cruises almost always sell out.  

[pe4all]

Grab it now if you can commit.  That way you will get your pick of cabins.  We have booked as early as 18 months out for a holiday cruise.  And if you book early saver you can always get a price drop.

[cyntil8ing]

If you're sure of the cruise you want, book it now. Availability will never be better and you'll get any price drops before final payment (unless a price drop takes you out of Early Saver).

 

But if you're only sure you want to cruise for the holidays and aren't committed to any particular ship or itinerary, it may make sense to wait. Last year, with the restart, we hemmed and hawed about a holiday cruise and just couldn't make up our mind. We ended up booking in late October, when the cruise I had previously written off as too expensive dropped within our price range. That said, had it booked up or the price not dropped, we would have been home for the holidays. Last minute airfare wasn't an issue as we could drive to the port.

[johnboy036]

I booked a New Years cruise in 2019 in September of that year.  Pricing was fair for a holiday and still a good selection of balcony cabins three months out. It was on the Legend out of Tampa. If you know what you want, no reason to wait, but if you are one to be more spontaneous you will still find lots of options.

[havanadaydreaming]

from our experience with december cruises things vary widely depending on what time in december the cruise departs and from which port. 

 

for example, last month we booked a cruise departing this weekend for $100pp inside cabin - 6 nt.  out of miami. 

 

last year we booked a family cruise, 4 cabins, for much, much more than that, best deal was out of canaveral.  and "forget about" the week of Xmas/NYE.  big price bump.  

[Mum2Mercury]

I've only sailed a holiday once -- won't do it again -- but I'm sure it's best to go ahead and book ASAP.  A holiday cruise is going to be very popular, and your preferred cabin might sell out.  Also, the price is likely to go up-up-up, so it's best to "lock in" at whatever price is available now -- and, if it goes down, call for a price match.  

 

In short, if you're sure of your dates (and with a holiday, you probably are), you have nothing to gain by waiting.

[Sigyn]

We are on a Christmas cruise this year on NCL's newest ship and I booked the first of October. I was more limited in cabin choices, but each category was still available. I went ahead and booked ours for next year just a couple of weeks ago so that I'd have a better selection available. 12 months out was plenty of time to have a wide selection of cabins. 

Edited December 14, 2022 by njsmom

[pris993]

one year ahead.

[navybankerteacher]

1 hour ago, pris993 said:

one year ahead.

Which is probably the right lead time for itineraries you are interested in - especially if you have preferences for accommodations.

[M.Travels]

We looked at holiday cruises for six months and finally booked a Christmas cruise during Thanksgiving and then a New Year’s cruise yesterday (there were extenuating circumstances on why we had to wait). Having watched cruise after cruise sell out, I can confirm your choices will narrow drastically … but at the same time there will be rooms available.