Last Minute Deals

[EMess]

I've heard stories of people getting great deals at the last minute. I was wondering if those come from the cruise line directly and how do you find out about them? Also, what is considered last minute? Anyone with any experience with this?

[Jill SC]

You can get last minute deals if you are flexible on where and when you want to go. When a sailing has lots of rooms left, the cruise line will upsell the balconies and suites to passengers already booked and sell off the inside cabins at a cheaper rate.

To find deals, we monitor a couple of different on-line discounts sites on a regular basis. Some cruise lines will send e-mails for last minute sailings to their past passengers if you check that preference in your personal info.

[pr0pel]

I called NCL directly this past monday for sailings 2-3 weeks out and there was a special on the Dawn sailing from NYC on 6/22 for $699/pp. It was a category D, picture window ocean view on the 5th deck. I thought that was a pretty sweet deal considering it's over $1000 for this cabin so I secured it.

 

I'm sure if I hung up and called some TA's, they might be able to see the same thing but I didn't want to let it get away.

[yoyocruiser]

You definitely can find cheaper fares if you are flexible and willing and able to go at the last minute. This leads to a lot of lively discussion about the prices, as many people get very upset when the fares are drastically slashed. However, I think that it makes sense. When you go at the last minute you do not have the full choice of rooms--deck, type of room etc. as one has when booking way in advance. Last year we booked at the last minute--only a week prior to a sailing out of Boston to Bermuda. This was in September and we got an incredible rate. But we did not get a choice regarding the room. Also, you do nto have as much time to anticipate or even to prepare, and for some people this is as much a aprt of cruising as the cruise itself. But if you're flexible about your room, and willing to pick up and go with little time for planning, then you are the perfect person for this type of deal and I would heartily recommend it.

[alwayssingin]

We are thinking about trying to get on the Majesty out of Charleston next spring. We'd like to drive over a day before a sailing and see if we can get on at a big discount. If we can't it won't be a big deal as we have family/friends in the area and can spend our week in Charleston, Myrtle Beach, etc.

 

Is this possible? Can we just show up on the day of a sailing with passports and luggage in hand?

[CruisnGram]

We are thinking about trying to get on the Majesty out of Charleston next spring. We'd like to drive over a day before a sailing and see if we can get on at a big discount. If we can't it won't be a big deal as we have family/friends in the area and can spend our week in Charleston, Myrtle Beach, etc.

 

Is this possible? Can we just show up on the day of a sailing with passports and luggage in hand?

 

I don't know for sure, but have been told that since 9/11, security issues will not longer allow you to do that. I beleive that the passenger roster has to be submitted 24 to 48 hours prior to sailing, so if you show up, they will refuse to sell you a ticket, even if they have room.

 

If I am wrong, I apoligize and hope that someone here can post better info, but that is what I have read here on the boards.

[Toyz711]

my in-laws live in seattle. when we did a family cruise out of seattle, my niece was going to go a few days before the cruise and try to get on. but when she checked she found she couldn't do that. plus as time went on the ship was sold out a month before the cruise.

i have beed told that the cut off date is 3 days before the cruise? since most ship sail full, it's not a option to most of use.

[melligene]

Being a 1st time cruiser I don't know a lot about deals. I joined CC to see how much info could be gleaned from those with experience and try and make informed plans. Here's my take on deals......(could be way off base here but....) if final payment, for example, is due 75 days prior to sailing date and the boat isn't full....wouldn't it make sense to start looking for deals 74 days before sailing date? I would think that if you're flexable this would be a great opportunity for a deal. Unless of course the cruise line says ..."that's it....we're leaving half full/empty". Just sayin....

[Toyz711]

last cruise, i got a good deal the day off final payments...after that the price went up a little little. but i didn't have to fly. if you have to fly, getting last minute tickets can be costly.

with all the security, since 9/11...just walking up and getting tickets, as the ship is getting ready to leave, is not done any more. the cruiselines have to have time to create their manifest and sent it in.

after final payment, the ship is still selling cabins...plus they are doing "upsells" to get upper level cabins filled and resell lower level cabins. the last months, before sailing, is ...also...when they MAY lower the price for "new bookings" only.

[yaletown605]

How late i stoo late? We want to take a cruise out of London, anywhere anytime in August. we are there so no flight is necessry. I see there are several cruises still selling. when is the best time to committ?

[garycarla]

When is the million dollar question.

 

I have watched the ncl.com prices on a few cruises and watched them move up and down. For example, on a recent 19 day repo you would think most people would book well in advance. As the cutoff date approached, there were not many cabins available. Then as people cancelled out, rooms opened up. Two weeks before, there were lots of rooms. As we got near the sailing date, it was darn near full. I do not know how full, but the cabin availability if you tried to book was getting very low - down to a only a few in some categories, and others with zero rooms. The prices actually went up at one point.

 

Any rule of thumb is gonna be bad. Nobody knows how many people will decide to jump on a deal, or what deals will be had.

 

Last fall you could have sailed the GEM from Europe to the states very, very cheap. Pretty much all sea days, but they kept lowering the prices.

[musicgirl63]

For our cruise in June (Dawn), there were definitely no last minute deals, in fact some of the inside rooms cost the same for the same amount of people as our BA balcony did.

 

The best deal was for the Garden Villas. I believe they were not booked until the last week. How do I know? Well I kept dreaming and checking on a regular ok daily basis that by some miracle it would be in my range. :rolleyes:

 

anyways, when I booked and then upgraded way back in 2007 (fall I believe) the Garden Villa was going for close to $27, 000 if not a bit more for 3 people. 1 week before the cruise it was going for $15000 for 3 people. I would say those people definitely got a deal!!!

[TVLady3]

Early June 2006, I caught a 2 for 1 deal from the NCL site to sail the Dawn for 7 nights to Bermuda & the Bahamas. I booked it on a Monday and sailed on Sat. It cost $996. Total for 2. Port was only 40 minutes away.

I don't think I'll ever get that kind of deal ever again.:)

[salty dingo]

We are thinking about trying to get on the Majesty out of Charleston next spring. We'd like to drive over a day before a sailing and see if we can get on at a big discount. If we can't it won't be a big deal as we have family/friends in the area and can spend our week in Charleston, Myrtle Beach, etc.

 

Is this possible? Can we just show up on the day of a sailing with passports and luggage in hand?

Definitely no. But there is always the possibility of a late sale, so you can keep an eye on it. The prices out of Charleston are not too bad next spring. We are looking to buy two cheap inside cabins to take the kids on their first cruise. I am not too crazy about the itinerary but you can't beat the savings on airfare. Also, Atlantis would be a really nice treat when in the Bahamas. I think we'll probably do it.

 

If I were you, I would pick a week that is not popular for Spring Break, and then wait until about 60 days prior to the sailing and keep an eye on the specials. You never know what you will find!

[Go-Bucks!]

Back in Sept. 2003, my parents and I were to go to Italy for 2 wks, but 2 days before we were to leave my mom got sick. The trip was cancelled. But I had already taken off work and couldn't change it. So I started looking for a last minute cruise for my youngest daughter and myself. I found an online TA that had a 7 day Western Caribbean on Carnival Paradise for $200pp!! Unfortunately the room was way up in the bow (yes, we felt lots of motion during a storm one night), but it had a large porthole. I booked it just one week before sailing. It was a great cruise.

 

The toughest part, though, was finding reasonable airfare. I scoured the Internet for days on end - travel sites as well as the airline sites. Finally, late one night I found a round trip flight for $200pp, which was the usual price from here to Miami. So the trip cost just $800 for the 2 of us! I doubt if I'll ever get such a good deal again, but I always keep my eyes open hoping to find a good last minute deal. ;)