2010 cruise booking

[alaskabound2323]

Does anyone have any idea when the best time to book an Alaskan cruise for next summer? There are a ton of deals now for this summer so I am not sure if we should wait for a good deal for next summer or book soon so we get exactly what we want.

thanks,

Janet

[tetleytea]

That's discussed elsewhere on these threads that should be able to help you. Having cancelled, rebooked, and taken a cruise myself this summer, I really think you need to seriously consider this summer. For multiple reasons, the best deals are probably this summer, not next.

[alaskabound2323]

i looked for a thread in the alaska forum about booking but couldn't find them, that is why i started a new one, maybe it is in the general forum?? I wish we could go this summer but we are coordinating 4 familys and this summer is impossible at this point.

[coo359a2]

I booked for 5/22/2010 on the Diamond Princess the day bookings open. Wanted to have a certain HC cabin plus 2 others close by. I'll be watching Princess pricing and hope for prices to drop. We couldn't go this year so will just hope for the best. As long as you don't want a particular cabin location, you could hold off and see what happens with the prices.

[jks9103]

I booked for 5/22/2010 on the Diamond Princess the day bookings open. Wanted to have a certain HC cabin plus 2 others close by. I'll be watching Princess pricing and hope for prices to drop. We couldn't go this year so will just hope for the best. As long as you don't want a particular cabin location, you could hold off and see what happens with the prices.

 

So if you book now for a 2010 cruise and the price drops, you can get the better price? I've only cruised once before so I'm clueless on how this price game works. How does this work exactly? Will you automatically get the better price, or do you have to keep an eye on the prices and contact Princess? Thanks.

[KermitClin]

So if you book now for a 2010 cruise and the price drops, you can get the better price?

 

That's how it worked for us. We're using a TA who keeps watch on the prices and tries to negotiate the lower rate with the cruiseline (there sometimes only available for new bookings). She created a group booking for us and our friends and the entire group saw a drop of $230/person about 3 weeks after she created the group for us.

It's not a guarantee that the rate will go down of course, but if it does your TA should be able to help. Or if you book directly with the cruiseline you can call them to see if you're eligible for the lower price.

Having experienced this on our current booking for May 2010, I will never again hesitate to book early to get a good room with the possibility of fares being lowered too. Just make sure you're happy with the fare you originally book in case it doesn't drop. We were very happy with our original rate so when it dropped it just made us that much happier.

[cbowler]

I would also mention that if you are considering an independent land tour as well, either before or after the cruise, that you book sooner rather than later. That way you can start planning and booking the land portion early, which often yields big savings, particularly with car rentals.

[ellbon]

you can book now as i did and learn a lot from these boards for this year. pricing willchange but the tours, hotesl etc will be there next year,.