When is the cheapest month to book our cruise?

I am keen to book our first cruise - to Alaska. I am the sort of person who books years in advance if I can get a good price - the joy of marriage! I have already booked the land Alaska part - for August 2020 - at 2018 rates, yippee!

I hate waiting for the 2020 cruise dates to come out, but obviously I have to. My question is - should I book with whatever early booking discount I can get, as soon as I can, or is there a usual month - eg 9 months or 12 months before a cruise - when there will be deep discounts and I really should wait for that........... (eek!) We don't yet know which cruise line we will be on, ideally it will fit in with existing arrangements - but if I have to I trust I can put them back a week ok if needed. What do you think?

PS We are in the UK, where I don't think anyone gives guaranteed dropping prices, sadly.

I would say book as early as you can and then watch the prices. If there is a drop you should be able to get the lower price. On the ones we have had the price has always gone up though. There are tyip ally always some kind of sale, but prices remain similar. Plus, Alaska sells quickly. If there is a specific cabin you want you will need to grab it early.

for Alaska you need to book as soon as the itineraries come out. the season is very short, very popular and prices seldom get any better the closer you get. most lines allow you to take advantage of most price drops up until Final Payment Due Date.

My experience is that prices always go up. Years ago perhaps there were rooms left unfilled close to departure date but that hasn’t been the case for a while. Ships sail full. We currently have 3 booked for 19 and every one of them has gone way up since March when we booked the first two and even since about 2 weeks ago when we booked the third. Like has been said, if they go down I just contact my TA and get the lower fare locked in. But it’s been a long time since that happened.

Does anyone REALLY READ the original post? The OP clearly states they are in the UK and can't take advantage of price drops without cancel, rebook, and lose deposit. EM

Cheapest weeks for Alaska cruises are the first weeks of May when the Alaska cruise season starts and the last weeks of September and early October when the season ends. Alaska cruises are very popular and the season is very short so when you find a week and price you are happy with book it now. An Alaskan Cruise is absolutely beautiful. It’s one of the most beautiful places to see on earth.

Does anyone REALLY READ the original post? The OP clearly states they are in the UK and can't take advantage of price drops without cancel, rebook, and lose deposit. EM

My thought exactly!

Cheapest weeks for Alaska cruises are the first weeks of May when the Alaska cruise season starts and the last weeks of September and early October when the season ends. Alaska cruises are very popular and the season is very short so when you find a week and price you are happy with book it now. An Alaskan Cruise is absolutely beautiful. It’s one of the most beautiful places to see on earth.

Watch the school calendar. Alaska is very popular for family cruises so the May and September suggestion is quite apt.

Also, May is better, IMO, because the days are longer and there's nothing quite like watching the gorgeous sunsets after a late seating dinner from the deck of a cruise ship! (The days in September are much shorter.)

Thank you all. Someone - sorry I forgot who - recommended this website: https://www.cruisetimetables.com/

So I don't have to keep checking 6 separate cruise line websites waiting for my dates to be bookable, I can just look here and as the ships 2020 dates come out they are featured. So far nothing fits my onward travel dates, but lots more ship dates to come out.

I will book as soon as I can, and try and negotiate an early booking discount. I do have a local cruise specialist travel agent, we shall see if that is cheaper than booking directly with the cruise line.

I've never seen deep discounts for Alaskan cruises.

Roz

Alaska tends to have one of the highest per diem rates, due to popularity. Early and late cruises will probably have lower per diem rates and will have the highest probability of getting price reductions, but I certainly wouldn't guarantee it.

Have completed 2 full Alaska seasons many years ago and also a number more recently as a pax. Weather is always a potential issue, but I have experienced worse storms in September than in May. I believe somebody else also pointed out that the days are longer in May than September. When to book - my suggestion is book early and get a better choice of cabin, as it is unlikely prices will drop.

In Alaska you have a number of options R/T from Seattle & Vancouver, but they only go as far north as Skagway & Glacier Bay. Vancouver also has 7 day N'bd sailings to Prince William Sound, which is then followed by a 7-day S'bd.

Cruises out of Seattle also head up the West Coast, which may experience more weather issues, while Vancouver departures spend more time in the inside passage.

Good luck finding a cruise.

Thank you all very much - I will write a review when we do cruise!

I wouldn't book an Alaskan cruise based on price alone. That would limit me to early May and September, some of the worst weather times to be cruising.

I wanted to do an Alaskan with some land travel, as it is probably my only once in a lifetime experience to be there. I would also do either a 7 day NB or SB from Vancouver or Whittier, as well as making sure my ship stops in Glacier Bay. The RT Seattle sailings were less than optimal for us.

While price figures prominently when I book my various Caribbean cruises, it wasn't in the top 3 deciding factors for our Alaskan cruise. For a once in a lifetime trip, we didn't want to say "coulda, woulda, shoulda" afterwards.

The “cheapest month” to book a cruise is the same month as the best month to invest in the stock market (or the best month to liquidate your holdings if already invested).

It is that month which only identifies itself after it has passed.

Just to confirm - we are already booked onwards in Alaska in August 2020 thank you. And we would like at least a premium cruise to keep the ship smallish and hopefully with good food. What I meant was will the price of our cruise go down, and based on all your thoughts above I don't think it will, so I shall book it as soon as a suitable cruise comes out which fits in with our onward dates - none so far.

Check out Windstar's Alaska itineraries. Small ships and excellent cuisine...but not a large number of Alaska cruises.

Just to confirm - we are already booked onwards in Alaska in August 2020 thank you. And we would like at least a premium cruise to keep the ship smallish and hopefully with good food. What I meant was will the price of our cruise go down, and based on all your thoughts above I don't think it will, so I shall book it as soon as a suitable cruise comes out which fits in with our onward dates - none so far.

For a premium line, I suggest checking out Viking Ocean, which have their very first Alaska season in 2019. Small ships, with 930 passengers, very good food, no casino, no annoying photogs, no art auctions. The ships even has a planetarium and resident astronomer.

The 2019 season is fully booked except the first cruise, so if Viking is of interest may want to book quickly.

Good luck finding a cruise.

Does anyone REALLY READ the original post? The OP clearly states they are in the UK and can't take advantage of price drops without cancel, rebook, and lose deposit. EM

You’ve been here a long time. You know people don’t!

Watch the school calendar. Alaska is very popular for family cruises so the May and September suggestion is quite apt.

 

Also, May is better, IMO, because the days are longer and there's nothing quite like watching the gorgeous sunsets after a late seating dinner from the deck of a cruise ship! (The days in September are much shorter.)

OP was not looking for the time of year when cruise fare would be cheapest - rather when might the best deal be gotten for a particular time to cruise: already identifying August 2020— so it is a question of lead time, not time of cruise.