What am I missing???

[Tarius]

What is the deal with October? Last year (2003) we went on a cruise on the "Majesty of the Seas" and didn't have a problem booking even one month in advance. This year, we were planning to go in October on the "Adventure of the Seas" out of San Juan, and the only thing available is an owners suite. Is there something about October this year that I don't know about? What is it that makes this month so popular this year? I would have thought that there would be a lot of options available!

 

Any and all replies greatly appreciated...

[imosoreal]

I can't really tell you what happened but I can tell you that we booked our cruise last December and around March this year we noticed that our sailing was practically sold out.

[nrunnion]

We booked the Mariner for 10/31 in February and it sold out in March. It isn't even listed any more.

NR

[aqusis]

You're comparing Apples to Oranges. The Majesty is an older, smaller ship doing short runs to the Bahamas. It does 2 trips a week. The AOS is a Voyager class ship-these are widely popular. It's also a much newer ship, more activities, more interesting itinerary, etc. I bet if you check the Majesty, you'll still find space available. More people are cruising every year and prices tend to be some of the lowest of the year in October which makes it more affordable to cruise on the Voyager class ships. I know our September Mariner cruise is about 40% of what it would cost to do the same trip in June.

[KKeeganS]

I know when I booked in March they were running really great rates on balcony staterooms for AOS. That may be why the ship is so full for October.

[springtxbill]

There are a lot more people cruising this year.:)

[checkard]

We just booked Granduer for Nov 2005. Our TA told us that some of the cruises leaving from Baltimore and Bayonne are almost sold out up through August. Looks like a lot of folks like the home port cruising as much as we do

[APagano]

Just some stabs in the dark here...

 

1) The economy is better than it was a year ago.

2) Airfare wars. I've seen fares as low as $59 from the NE to major cruise ports like FLL and MIA.

3) As Aqusis pointed out, not all cruises are created equal. You are trying to book a more popular cruise less than two months in advance.

[Tarius]

aqusis

 

Yeah, apples to oranges is right, but I couldn't get on the Majesty either. I think that one of the other posters hit the nail. Way too many people cruising.