?? Has anyone ever waited for more last minute cruise specials?

[suzyed]

We usually book last minute deals (1 month or less) but with last minute deals you can't be as picky about what cruise you take or cabin selection. The last minute deals are rarely balcony cabins...rarely, not never. Also, with last minute deals the airfare can cost you more.

 

As for Carnival, I agree that the bigger ships with the 7 night or longer itineraries are great! We have cruised Carnival quite a bit and would not hesitate to cruise them again.

I guess we really have gotten lucky! Our Alaska cruise was booked 3 months in advance of sailing, and we got a suite on the stern at an excellent price. Our QM2 transatlantic, was booked 4 DAYS in advance and we got a balcony for an inside price, with return airfare from London, included!!!:D

[slowpoke58]

If you can afford to book the ship you want with RCCL and they lower the price they will give you the difference- I got $200. back on my last cruise. So for me I would book the cruise you want and then at least you know that the price won't go up.

As for Carnival- I think if you read the Carnival boards, you will find plenty of Carnival fans. I'm sure your teenagers would like them just fine. Last year I sailed with Royal Caribbean and loved it, but this year I'm likely to go with Carnival because my budget is less and their prices are better. I think if you stick with the longer cruises and newer ships you will avoid the party crowd. I've sailed with both lines and had a great time on each

 

For RCCL to lower your room rate, do you have to be booked through them? Will they do it automatic or will you have to keep an eye on the RCCL web site and watch the rates, and if they fall, call RCCl?

 

We are booked on the FOS for 12-7-08, but was booked through our TA.

 

slowpoke58

[Michele Noel]

Thanks Clarea, I will try that way to see the roll calls. Michele

[Giorgi-one]

Highly unlikely that Summer prices will go down at last minute. Choice of cabins at that time would be really bad. Also doubt that RCL would give rebates for last minute deals. That means they would have to do the same for 4000 passengers. These prices are usually marked as "new bookings only".

[firefly333]

Originally Posted by birdie16

We usually book last minute deals (1 month or less) but with last minute deals you can't be as picky about what cruise you take or cabin selection. The last minute deals are rarely balcony cabins...rarely, not never.

 

They had D1 and D2s for $869 and $889 on my last cruise. I dont look at enough cruises to know, but these looked like good deals to me. I always get D1s and D2s mixed up. The D2s were $20 more pp, but someone told me these are the ones for only 2 people, so Im probably still confused which is which. Only one D1, but quite a few D2s were available on my Voyager cruise right up until Sat, for a Sunday cruise. I got the feeling from someone who booked more last minute than me they got a even better deal by booking late Fri afternoon, they were at my table looking like the cat who swallowed the canary.

[destiny217]

Sorry if I sound dumb, but these are pdf files. Do you sign up to get them emailed to you? I poked around what I thought was the main site, but I am lost.

I have saved the 2 sites as 'Favorites' and check them weekly, just in case!

[pcur]

The sales event and specials pdf files are resaved every week with the latest specials. Same file name; different data. So, keep the url in your favorites and check weekly.

 

To the OP: I suggest booking what you want, at what you can afford, as early as possible. Now for next June.

 

Then, check the specials and RCCL's web site for a better price, even a similar cruise on another ship at a lower price. You can always switch the booking to another cruise.

 

We did this for our cruise to Hawaii in October. I had it prepaid in full a year ago. I watched the prices carefully, and recently found an almost identical cruise leaving a little earlier in October for almost $1,000 less. So, I switched to that one.

 

Booking early means you get to choose your cabin. If a better cabin comes on sale at the same price, then you can switch to that cabin.

 

It's like your booking is a placeholder up until final payment: you have the cruise booked while you keep shopping.

[Cruising89143]

If price is your determining factor then go by that. There are some of us that have been there and done that with certain cruise lines and do not care to cruise with them again at any price. I suggest trying every cruise line that interests you to see how they stack up to your favorites. I stepped out twice within the last year or so and tried two other cruise lines. Both were nice but I realized just how much I missed cruising with RCI.

[honeywell]

For RCCL to lower your room rate, do you have to be booked through them? Will they do it automatic or will you have to keep an eye on the RCCL web site and watch the rates, and if they fall, call RCCl?

 

We are booked on the FOS for 12-7-08, but was booked through our TA.

 

slowpoke58

 

That is the beauty of RCCL! You can book through them or through your TA and you can get the lower rate if the fare goes down. (except for the sales that say "new bookings only") If you check the RCCL website and enter a fake booking, see the rate decrease - call your TA immediately!

 

The second nice thing is that RCCL will do this even AFTER you have made your final payment - something rarely found in the cruise industry.