Last minute cruise deals

Hello all,

Could anyone advise how I can find a last minute cruise deal? I keep checking various sites that claim to have price cuts for last minute cruises but none of the deals seem much better than if I had booked months ago. Would love to take the hubby on a surprise get away next week. Can you help?

Sign up for email specials on all of the cruise lines that interest you, and some of the large internet TAs. Last minute deals are not what they used to be. And unless you can drive to the port, airfare will cancel out any last minute savings. EM

You can also subscribe here on Cruise Critic for deals.

Hello all,

Could anyone advise how I can find a last minute cruise deal? I keep checking various sites that claim to have price cuts for last minute cruises but none of the deals seem much better than if I had booked months ago. Would love to take the hubby on a surprise get away next week. Can you help?

This is peak season.

Not much for deals.

Shoulder seasons have the best deals.

Also depends on your cabin preference. Insides, outside obstructed, and outsides are typically available. The price might not be right...all down to supply and demand. Having said that we have done two late booking Xmas cruises from MIA and FLL. Not only that, we were able to score balcony cabins. Both were about 20 days out...Celebrity and an NCL 14 and 10 days respectively. The seven day trips typically offer the best pricing because of the competitive marketplace.

Hi

I agree, last minute prices aren't anything to get excited about. People plan and book sometimes years in advance. If cruise lines were in the habit of lowering their prices just before sailing people would catch on. Don't forget many passengers have price protection and if they discount severely near sailing, it could cost more than they would like. They sail almost full by trying to maintain a balance of cabin classes that the know will fill, and doing the "upsell fairy" thing when they want to shift the balance of available cabins.

If you want to go on a cruise, just find an itinerary you like, a price you like and book.

Now all you have to do is enjoy your cruise.

Sign up for email specials on all of the cruise lines that interest you, and some of the large internet TAs. Last minute deals are not what they used to be. And unless you can drive to the port, airfare will cancel out any last minute savings. EM

This pretty well says it. Significant last minute discounts are pretty rare - the lines have gotten rather good at inventory management. If you see an itinerary at a price that seems right, book it, whether it's 18 months or 18 days out - and remember to figure in air fare and a hotel night as well.

Interesting thread. Those that say that last minute pricing is nothing great...have simply not found (or have no clue how to find) the best last minute deals. Yes, you can sometimes get a good last minute 7 day cruise. But more likely it will be a longer cruise that might involve any of 6 continents and air fare issues. Yes, we have gotten some decent last minute deals that involve the Caribbean...although they have been repositioning cruises. We have also gotten fantastic deals on repo cruises that involve both Europe and Asia. In fact, some of the best deals I have ever seen involve very exotic itineraries in Asia, South Asia, South Pacific, etc. These involve some sophisticated last minute planning and complex airline issues. Hence, the cruise lines have to give the cabins away to get anyone to make the trek.

The best deals are not going to be found on public web sites online...because most cruise lines insist that the cruise agencies that sell these trips...cannot make it public knowledge. So one needs to register an e-mail with multiple cruise agencies that handle these type of bookings. And it helps to build a relationship with one or more agencies (and agents). Think like a cruise line. They have extra berths that need to be sold...but they do not want other passengers (already booked on those cruises) to become aware of much lower pricing.

We have found some amazing deals over the years, but its not as simple as deciding, "we want to take a cruise next month so will look for a deal." It is often about flexibility in terms of when you go, where you go, etc. If I offered you an amazing deal on a cruise leaving in 10 days that went from Singapore to Dubai ....would you be ready to book (in minutes), do your own air arrangements, and be on a plane in about a week? Just for a hoot I took a quick look at some sites. I spotted a 14 day Silverseas (a very ultra-luxury line) in September for less then $400 per person/day. This might sound expensive, but this line often books cabins for twice that cost (or more) and that price is truly all inclusive. But its from Alaska to Japan. If we did not already have plans (we will be on another cruise) we might jump at this deal. Now you might think that is very expensive, but consider that with Silverseas you are booking a suite on a high end ship with great cuisine plus all tips, drinks, etc. are included. Want a last minute Alaskan cruise? There are some good deals...although Alaska does have airline issues that most be resolved before booking a cruise.

My message to some of the posters is that if it were truly easy to get a great last minute deal...everyone would do it and those deals would disappear. We are always looking, and there are times we find nothing and might decide to grab a last minute good deal to an All Inclusive or perhaps just fly to Europe..instead of a cruise. Right now I am looking for some kind of last minute deal for late October...and I start out with a blank slate...not knowing if it will be a cruise, AI, land trip, etc. All options are on the table (this makes it a lot of fun) and one option would be not to do anything :).

Hank

We have had some great last minute deals from FLL/MIA. Especially 7 day. Same for Alaska but we have an advantage that we can drive to the port. 7 day Alaska trips, insides, mid season, were as low as $349 on HAL and Princess. 10/11 cruise and land trips were 800-900/insides. This year prices are higher because of demand (low Canadian dollar perhaps).

Agree, the best deals are through a good TA. We use the web sites to identify prospects. Then we call around. Our last Med cruise was last minute. $100. day per pp for a very nice balcony. We were in Sicily. It cost us $40 each to catch a Vueling flight from Palermo to Rome to pick up the RCI cruise. Picked up an Aus/NZ 20 day balcony cruise for a considerably lower per diem. It is much easier for us since we retired. Much of our travel is last minute...part of extended land trips.

There are deals out there but it does take a bit of time and effort to sus them out. We search for air at the same time if required. Once we find a cruise our TA holds it for a few hours so that we can ensure that the air is a reasonable price.

Comes down to supply and demand. The cruise lines pulled a few ships from Europe last year, the dollar is strong, Euro and GBP a little weak so demand is up. Not many deals this season from what we can tell. Not sure about Caribbean...we have had our fill for the time being so we have not watched the pricing this year.

Those that say that last minute pricing is nothing great...have simply not found (or have no clue how to find) the best last minute deals. Yes, you can sometimes get a good last minute 7 day cruise. But more likely it will be a longer cruise that might involve any of 6 continents and air fare issues. Yes, we have gotten some decent last minute deals that involve the Caribbean...although they have been repositioning cruises. We have also gotten fantastic deals on repo cruises that involve both Europe and Asia. In fact, some of the best deals I have ever seen involve very exotic itineraries in Asia, South Asia, South Pacific, etc. These involve some sophisticated last minute planning and complex airline issues. Hence, the cruise lines have to give the cabins away to get anyone to make the trek.

Your answers to these "Last Minute Deal" posts are always spot on, always accurately documented based on your experiences, and always interesting to read, Hank.

However ... and I think you know this, Hank.... is that the vast majority of these types of posts are people looking to find "el cheapo" 3 & 4 day spur of the moment weekend Bahama getaways or perhaps week long Caribbean cruises and are looking to pay a fraction of what the rest of the ship is paying.

These type of posts are siblings and close cousins to the "What If I Show Up At The Port To Book On The Day Of Sailing" threads.

Your answers to these "Last Minute Deal" posts are always spot on, always accurately documented based on your experiences, and always interesting to read, Hank.

 

However ... and I think you know this, Hank.... is that the vast majority of these types of posts are people looking to find "el cheapo" 3 & 4 day spur of the moment weekend Bahama getaways or perhaps week long Caribbean cruises and are looking to pay a fraction of what the rest of the ship is paying.

 

These type of posts are siblings and close cousins to the "What If I Show Up At The Port To Book On The Day Of Sailing" threads.

Agreed - the overwhelming bulk of those who seek "last minute deals" are talking about one week (or less) round trips - who are really not flexible about major expenditures of time. The really significant deals often are segments of longer itineraries -- which usually only come up on the radars of people who are always on the lookout.

There are thousands who think to themselves any given week: "Hey, wouldn't a Caribbean cruise next month be great?" So even if there were a few possible "last minute deals", the huge demand for them would keep the price up.

Your answers to these "Last Minute Deal" posts are always spot on, always accurately documented based on your experiences, and always interesting to read, Hank.

 

However ... and I think you know this, Hank.... is that the vast majority of these types of posts are people looking to find "el cheapo" 3 & 4 day spur of the moment weekend Bahama getaways or perhaps week long Caribbean cruises and are looking to pay a fraction of what the rest of the ship is paying.

 

These type of posts are siblings and close cousins to the "What If I Show Up At The Port To Book On The Day Of Sailing" threads.

Sigh,,,,,I know you are probably right. But unless somebody is specific about what they want we play to the entire crowd :). But the funny thing is that our best bargains in the past 4 years have both been 10 day repositioning cruises to the Caribbean from NYC. Another irony is that HAL seems to often have some great last minute deals on shorter (usually 7 day) Caribbean cruises...but we do not recommend HAL in the Caribbean for various reasons.

Regarding those very short cruises, we have seen plenty of bargains...but they are often sold by nearby Florida travel agents who do not advertise on the web. One can just be driving around South Florida and perhaps spot a notice about a last minute steal. But these deals are generally intended for Florida residents (not me). We do know of a retired couple who lives in Plantation (near Ft Lauderdale) that takes many of these last minute specials...every year. They told us they have a very friendly local travel agent who seems to have the ability to keep coming up with the last minute deals. And these are truly last minute...as they told us they will often book a cruise on a Wed or Thurs...for that same weekend.

Hank

I book most our cruises after the final payment date. For our upcoming British Isles cruise, I booked it 56 days before sailing. The price held steady for the next couple of weeks, and then the prices started going up bit by bit until the cruise sold out July 10. Anyone hoping to get a really last-minute bargain is out of luck.

Some of the best per diem late bookings that we have enjoyed were 14 and 19 day trips.

Our situation is a little different. We often embark on a two-three month land trip with an extremely flexible schedule-often one way air. Then, depending where we are we try and pick up a last minute cruise. So far, the only area that we have not been able to do this is Asia. Either because the prices were too high for us or the itinerary was not what we wanted. We pass on a great Celebrity offer that stopped several places in India. We were in the middle of a trip however the Indian visa procedure was onerous and slow. We could not be assured of getting the documentation in place in time for sailing.

Until recently I hadn't seen last minute discounts on luxury cruises posted in public until recently. A number of luxury cruises have shown up on a site that discounts all sorts of vacations know as travel zoo. You can google it and see what is available . I was very surprised. Honestly you might do as well or better with a good travel agent.

We learned our lesson the hard way...several times. We saw a great price on a last minute cruise, thought about it overnight or for a few days. Then, puff it was either gone or increased substantially.

So now we do some research to understand the pricing and set an attractive target price. We research air at the same time. When our target price hits we book. And then never look back at the price. No point. Cannot understand people who seem happy when the price increases after they have booked. Why be happy when others may end up paying a premium over what you paid?

We use the same method for hotel and air bookings. Works for us.

. Cannot understand people who seem happy when the price increases after they have booked. Why be happy when others may end up paying a premium over what you paid?

.

Wouldn't you feel happy if you know you timed your purchase perfectly and snagged a good cruise deal? I bet 99.99% cruisers in this world would.

We learned our lesson the hard way...several times. We saw a great price on a last minute cruise, thought about it overnight or for a few days. Then, puff it was either gone or increased substantially.

 

So now we do some research to understand the pricing and set an attractive target price. We research air at the same time. When our target price hits we book. And then never look back at the price. No point. Cannot understand people who seem happy when the price increases after they have booked. Why be happy when others may end up paying a premium over what you paid?

 

We use the same method for hotel and air bookings. Works for us.

It's not a matter of being happy others have paid more - it is a logical part of testing your own approach of looking for, and setting your "attractive target price". How will you ever know how effective your approach is if you do not try to find out whether you did well or not?

Another irony is that HAL seems to often have some great last minute deals on shorter (usually 7 day) Caribbean cruises...but we do not recommend HAL in the Caribbean for various reasons.

Hank

Loved your 'last minute' informational response and then I saw your comment about not recommending HAL to the Caribbean....doesn't it figure I'm sailing HAL to the Caribbean for the first time this fall (have only sailed HAL to Alaska so far). Would you mind expanding on the why of your non-recommendation?