Never book early!

[MagnoliaBlossom]

I have to differ with the never book early strategy.  I’ve had 86 cruises and after retirement most have been booked very early, some as within the week they were listed.  It has been my experience that UNTIL final payment date, it has been unusual for rates to drop.  I was recently chatting with mt OCC of 14 years and she agreed it is not common.   As a point of reference I have a family cruise booked next June and even one of the inside cabins has increased over $600 per cabin.  
 

yes, I have seen, and booked, super low fares but with that comes the limited choices of staterooms and offers of less desirable locations.  I do not want to be above the theater, or below the buffet, so early booking allows me a choice location as well as a good fare, at least prior to final payment date.  At which point anything can happen.

 

I would say if you are booking a big ship on a typical route, such as Westetn Carib, then go for it.  But if you want an itinerary that is offered only a few times a year on a smaller ship, the pre FBD price will likely not be lower than day 1.

 

just my experience.

[EngrJones]

1 hour ago, MagnoliaBlossom said:

 It has been my experience that UNTIL final payment date, it has been unusual for rates to drop.  

I just repriced four 2024 NCL cruises today because the prices dropped.

[bookbabe]

On 7/23/2023 at 7:37 AM, Bandit2301 said:

I usually cruise with Viking and with them you do book early as they sell out fast. 

 

LOL.  You’re a Viking cruiser complaining about NCL’s repricing policies?  I find that highly ironic, since Viking won’t reprice at all, unless you cancel and rebook, and it usually requires a date or itinerary change.  What you book at is what you pay, even if the price or promotions drastically change, and don’t get me started about their final payment dates falling years in advance in some cases.  At least NCL has a reasonable final payment schedule and you can reprice as often as you want before then.

[SimplyAlbert]

We booked early for our upcoming Hawaii cruise.  It's consistently been between a third more or double what we paid for the same cabin category (aft-balcony).  I checked continuously up until final payment and it never dropped.

[graphicguy]

18 minutes ago, bookbabe said:

LOL.  You’re a Viking cruiser complaining about NCL’s repricing policies?  I find that highly ironic, since Viking won’t reprice at all, unless you cancel and rebook, and it usually requires a date or itinerary change.  What you book at is what you pay, even if the price or promotions drastically change, and don’t get me started about their final payment dates falling years in advance in some cases.  At least NCL has a reasonable final payment schedule and you can reprice as often as you want before then.

Was about to post the same.  Thanks!

[Liljo22]

I understand you haven't cruised in a while but this is standard policy for the cruise lines.  Once you are past the final payment deadline, you are locked in.  NCL will offer FCC for 100% of the price but you can not get a refund.  

 

 

[SAmome]

14 hours ago, julig22 said:

Yes, they will return any cruise next certificates that don't meet the terms of the current promo if you reprice. Had that happen a few months ago, I just reapplied the certificate again a few weeks later when the "any cabin" promo came back the following week.

Thanks!  I assume would still need to be 4 months from sailing and if prices had gone back up you can apply the certificate but keep the lower price right?

[julig22]

1 hour ago, SAmome said:

Thanks!  I assume would still need to be 4 months from sailing and if prices had gone back up you can apply the certificate but keep the lower price right?

Timing depends on the promo - most recently it's been 4 months out but it's also been 6 months out at times.  

Certificates are payments and don't affect the terns if the reservation, so your pricing stays the same.

[MissBreezy]

We had a huge price drop on our cruise about 60 days out I believe and when we reached out about that NCL hummed and hawwed for weeks and finally came back and let us know that because the airfare portion of our booking had increased in price, that it offset any decrease in the cruise fare and therefore they would not be extending us any credit relevant to the price drop.

 

So I guess a slight buyer beware on getting airfare with NCL if you would like to take advantage of price drop credits? 

[julig22]

15 minutes ago, MissBreezy said:

So I guess a slight buyer beware on getting airfare with NCL if you would like to take advantage of price drop credits? 

Yes, taking the airfare option is often (but not always) a dealbreaker. The airfare deal currently drops off at 110 days (was 90 for a long time) and because NCL isn't subsidizing the "free" part, fares might go down at that point but they would also factor in the value of the airfare to determine if the fare had indeed dropped.

 

[CDR Benson]

On 7/23/2023 at 12:59 PM, amygutman said:

@dobiemom and @azappraiser Booked our DOS Alaskan cruise >600 days out as well. Wanted that room specifically and only 2 on the ship. Prices actually went up for the remaining room which was also booked approximately 450 days out. I checked the prices of that remaining DOS every week for a half a year to check for prices drops and never regretted it. However, other room classes actually went down a bit - interiors / ocean-views dropping the most (literally hundreds of dollars). 

 

We book most of our cruises 1-2 years in advance to accommodate my work schedule plus looking for specific experiences / itineraries, ships, and rooms. 95% of the time it's in a Haven or cruise line with a "ship-within-a-ship" experience. If they don't have a room we like, or the Haven / suite area is sold out we don't book. It's that important to us therefore requires early booking. However, our TA is always on the lookout for deals, and if we happen to notice a significant price drop, he contacts the company and we will often get OBC or other perks (premium wifi, 2nd person free, etc). 

 

Because of the type of room we book, there are rarely significant price drops but that is a very different experience depending on your original room / package / booking agent. We hit the jackpot with our TA who we've used for almost a decade.

 

Warmest, Amy

 

Your approach to booking in advance is precisely my own, as well.  Getting the precise accommodations we want leads me to booking as early as possible.  That's more important to us than price, but it's worked out in terms of price, also.  I've never seen the fare for my booking go down; the fares have always risen.

 

The one item in which we diverge is in the quality of our respective travel agents.  I've had two travel agents whom were less than on the ball.  Both managed to pull off the first cruise she handled for us, despite being largely unresponsive and slow to move.  So much so that, because they fouled up our next cruises, I cancelled those cruises and their further services.

 

I chose a different T. A., one more familar with luxury lines, to book our Regent cruise.  That fellow did a keen, efficient job.  So, I used him to book our next NCL Haven cruise.  So far, so good.

 

[D&N LUV 2 TRAVEL]

On 7/23/2023 at 5:33 AM, ready2cruzagain said:

I have to disagree. I have a cruise that is still 545 days away and we booked 3 months ago. Have you ever cruised on a different line? All cruise lines I have ever sailed have this same policy. It is not just NCL.

 

We have 6 cruises booked right now and all were booked early. The price on our cruises have done nothing but gone up.  I sure wouldn't want NCL charging me more because the cruise went up.  

 

You booked at a price you were comfortable with therefore if I were you I would not be checking again after final payment if it is going to upset you that the price went down.  

Our cruise this past June 4 on the Prima went down $1,800 for the cabin after final payment and our TA applied for a FCC.

She did get one for us for $1,800 and it is a one time adjustment. 2 weeks later the cabin was reduced another $1,000 but got nothing for that.

[mertziek]

9 minutes ago, D&N LUV 2 TRAVEL said:

Our cruise this past June 4 on the Prima went down $1,800 for the cabin after final payment and our TA applied for a FCC.

She did get one for us for $1,800 and it is a one time adjustment. 2 weeks later the cabin was reduced another $1,000 but got nothing for that.

Yup, that’s why you have to decide when you want to ask for the FCC.  If you wait too long, your cabin category could be sold out and then you won’t qualify for the FCC but if you request it too early, the price could further drop and you won’t qualify for another price drop FCC.  Personally I’m happy if I get any FCC even if the cruise price further drops.

[D&N LUV 2 TRAVEL]

7 minutes ago, mertziek said:

Yup, that’s why you have to decide when you want to ask for the FCC.  If you wait too long, your cabin category could be sold out and then you won’t qualify for the FCC but if you request it too early, the price could further drop and you won’t qualify for another price drop FCC.  Personally I’m happy if I get any FCC even if the cruise price further drops.

That’s fine if you’re going to cruise with NCL within the next year as that’s all the FCC is good for.

Personally I think NCL does this by design as they have a cash flow issue since Covid and do not want to reduce the price prior to FP but rather do it after in the form of a FCC and hope you come back. 

[julig22]

6 minutes ago, D&N LUV 2 TRAVEL said:

That’s fine if you’re going to cruise with NCL within the next year as that’s all the FCC is good for.

Personally I think NCL does this by design as they have a cash flow issue since Covid and do not want to reduce the price prior to FP but rather do it after in the form of a FCC and hope you come back. 

Of course it's by design, probably has little if anything to do with cash flow issues.  It's an excellent marketing ploy.  The ability to adjust pricing up until final payment makes early booking a no-risk venture if you want to choose your cabin, get first choice of excursions and take advantage of perks that most likely won't be offered closer to sail date.  You can always cancel before final payment if it looks like rebooking closer to sail date is a better option. No penalty, unlike other cruiselines.

They owe you nothing but by offering FCC it can help resolve that oops feeling that some people get when they think they might have gotten a better deal if they had waited. It doesn't initially cost NCL anything to give the FCC, not everyone will use it.  But if they do, NCL gets more income if it entices someone to book another cruise.

As to adjusting prior to FP, I've recently made several price adjustments prior to FP.  On my cruise next month, the price hasn't gone down (actually went up slightly) since I adjusted it 2 months before FP.

[amygutman]

3 hours ago, CDR Benson said:

 

Your approach to booking in advance is precisely my own, as well.  Getting the precise accommodations we want leads me to booking as early as possible.  That's more important to us than price, but it's worked out in terms of price, also.  I've never seen the fare for my booking go down; the fares have always risen.

 

The one item in which we diverge is in the quality of our respective travel agents.  I've had two travel agents whom were less than on the ball.  Both managed to pull off the first cruise she handled for us, despite being largely unresponsive and slow to move.  So much so that, because they fouled up our next cruises, I cancelled those cruises and their further services.

 

I chose a different T. A., one more familar with luxury lines, to book our Regent cruise.  That fellow did a keen, efficient job.  So, I used him to book our next NCL Haven cruise.  So far, so good.

 

@CDR Benson A TA can make or break a cruise. Glad you found one to help out with your needs.

 

Clearly, it seems like your early cruises were at the behest of the government and they really don't care if your accommodations are luxurious nor if you have the drinks package. As the daughter, grand-daughter and great-grand-daughter of veterans who is honored to take care of our service-members daily, thank you for your Service!

Warmest, Amy

[RD64]

At the end of the day, I book at a price that I think is fair. I check just prior to final payment for any change in price. I do not drive myself crazy checking for changes once I have paid in full, because obviously, that is the price that I was willing to pay. 
 

 

[CDR Benson]

2 hours ago, amygutman said:

Clearly, it seems like your early cruises were at the behest of the government and they really don't care if your accommodations are luxurious nor if you have the drinks package.

 

You're on target there, doctor.  For those first cruises, it took me eighteen years to get a steward with my stateroom.  And the premium beverage package was two cans of no-name beer every hundred days straight at sea without a port visit.  

 

Fun times.

 

Thank you for your kind thoughts!

 

 

Edited July 25, 2023 by CDR Benson

[azappraiser]

17 hours ago, CDR Benson said:

 

Your approach to booking in advance is precisely my own, as well.  Getting the precise accommodations we want leads me to booking as early as possible.  That's more important to us than price, but it's worked out in terms of price, also.  I've never seen the fare for my booking go down; the fares have always risen.

 

UPDATE:  Booked two weeks ago... checked price yesterday for same ship/date/aft-facing Haven PH w/lg balcony - minor differences in FAS, but the cost increased $450.00 from our booked fare.

[DCGuy64]

My sympathies to the OP over this, but as others have opined, you took the risk of a price drop when you decided to book early. We always use a TA, and one of the things he did for us earlier this month was to check the price of our cruise before making our final payment July 5. Sure enough, the price had dropped by something like $150 pp and we also got $100 onboard credit. I never would have known this if I'd been doing it on my own, and even if I did, it would be MY time and MY hassle to phone up NCL and ask (pretty please?) for an adjustment. The TA did everything and I didn't have to lift a finger. Of course, if OP decides to dump NCL over this, it's his choice.

[Agent999]

4 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

My sympathies to the OP over this, but as others have opined, you took the risk of a price drop when you decided to book early.

 

The problem here is that there is no price drop. When the OP booked, the offer included the BOGO Airfare. Once the cruise passes 110 days before embarkation, the airfare option for Free at Sea goes away. Since the airfare is no longer part of the offer, the price changes. This is not what most people think of as a price drop since the before includes airfare and the after does not. This is very much an apples to oranges comparison.

[julig22]

3 minutes ago, Agent999 said:

 

The problem here is that there is no price drop. When the OP booked, the offer included the BOGO Airfare. Once the cruise passes 110 days before embarkation, the airfare option for Free at Sea goes away. Since the airfare is no longer part of the offer, the price changes. This is not what most people think of as a price drop since the before includes airfare and the after does not. This is very much an apples to oranges comparison.

Don't forget that the OP also just assumed a price drop - there was no comparable cabin available for price comparison.

[Agent999]

53 minutes ago, julig22 said:

Don't forget that the OP also just assumed a price drop - there was no comparable cabin available for price comparison.

 

I feel like I've missed something as I don't recall seeing where the OP stated that this was the case. If you don't mind, which post # in the thread contained this information?

[MagnoliaBlossom]

On 7/24/2023 at 7:45 AM, bookbabe said:

LOL.  You’re a Viking cruiser complaining about NCL’s repricing policies?  I find that highly ironic, since Viking won’t reprice at all, unless you cancel and rebook, and it usually requires a date or itinerary change.  What you book at is what you pay, even if the price or promotions drastically change, and don’t get me started about their final payment dates falling years in advance in some cases.  At least NCL has a reasonable final payment schedule and you can reprice as often as you want before then.

I just bailed on a Viking cruise booking when they told me final payment was 22 month in advance 😳. I asked for reconsideration and they said as I had no other Viking bookings it was non negotiable.

[RD64]

1 hour ago, MagnoliaBlossom said:

I just bailed on a Viking cruise booking when they told me final payment was 22 month in advance 😳. I asked for reconsideration and they said as I had no other Viking bookings it was non negotiable.

It may not work for you, but this has been Viking’s business model since day one, and it works for them.