newbie question regarding lowest price of cruise

[caroline2007]

Hello,

 

I'm a newbie.

I plan to have a short-term cruise during this Thanksgiving holiday. We have low budgeting, so we plan to find lowest cruise price possible.

If I want to take cruise from Nov. 23 to Nov 27, when I should book so that I can get lowest price?

 

thanks much!

[paul929207]

You need to be aware that you are talking about a cruise over Thanksgiving. It will probably sell out. Discounts ar likely to be few.

[caroline2007]

You need to be aware that you are talking about a cruise over Thanksgiving. It will probably sell out. Discounts ar likely to be few.

 

there are some available. I know it's not a lot, but it seems most of people likes to take longer cruise like from Nov. 21 to Nov. 29 so that they can use some weekends. That's why I'm trying to book during the weekdays.

Some people said the closer to the sail date the cheaper price would be. I just don't know how cheap will that be.

 

also may I ask you do the cruise lines charge on water? I know they charge on coffee or drinks, but do they charge on water? just blank regular water

 

thanks

[arlodog]

No cruise lines do not charge for plain water. There is a charge for bottled water, but the tap water is just fine. There is also usually ice tea, coffee and sometimes lemonade available for no charge. Some lines will allow you to bring on soda if you want.

To find the best price on a sailing around Thanksgiving, you may have missed it :rolleyes:. Final payment on cruises are usually 70-90 days before the sailing. After that date any unsold cabins may be discounted for new bookings only. Thanksgiving is a popular time to cruise since many have time off work.

You can figure out what port you want to sail from and then check some of the cruise lines web sites directly. You may want to try a few of the on-line travel sites--can't name names, but you know the ones like the gnome and Captain Kirk advertise to see what is available. Good luck!

[firefly333]

Cruises seem to be cheapest around the time of final payment. If they havent sold out, about 8 days before, some cruises were dropping in price. In between you might not see any discounts, and the price could go up.

 

I find plenty to drink for free. Only specialty coffee has a charge, regular coffee is free.

[caroline2007]

thanks!

I did check on the price since September, but I didn't see any price dropped. That's why I'm thinking to wait until they can't sell them out. :p

I just google cheap cruise and compare the price.

so the price now is the lowest?

 

 

 

No cruise lines do not charge for plain water. There is a charge for bottled water, but the tap water is just fine. There is also usually ice tea, coffee and sometimes lemonade available for no charge. Some lines will allow you to bring on soda if you want.

To find the best price on a sailing around Thanksgiving, you may have missed it :rolleyes:. Final payment on cruises are usually 70-90 days before the sailing. After that date any unsold cabins may be discounted for new bookings only. Thanksgiving is a popular time to cruise since many have time off work.

You can figure out what port you want to sail from and then check some of the cruise lines web sites directly. You may want to try a few of the on-line travel sites--can't name names, but you know the ones like the gnome and Captain Kirk advertise to see what is available. Good luck!

[caroline2007]

Cruises seem to be cheapest around the time of final payment. If they havent sold out, about 8 days before, some cruises were dropping in price. In between you might not see any discounts, and the price could go up.

 

I find plenty to drink for free. Only specialty coffee has a charge, regular coffee is free.

 

ok, 8 days before cruise, that's too risky.:D

so you mean the price won't drop any more until then, right?

[Essiesmom]

There is no way to know when/if prices will drop. It's a crap shoot. You should go to the board here for each cruiseline that you are considering and ask for their experience of that line. For Carnival, they list 'Pack'n'Go' rates on Wed. and they expire late Sat. EM

[paul929207]

Eachcruise line has their wn proceedures for adjusting prices. If a cruise is not selling they will lower the price. If a cruise is selling well, they will raise the prices. Many cruises today are sailing full.

 

There is no charge for tap water or regualar coffee. There is a charge for bottled water and specialty coffees on most lines.

 

BTW, do you live close enough to the embarkation port to drive? If you try to get air fare at the last minute, you will likely wipe out any savings on the cruise price.

[Cactuscruise]

ok, 8 days before cruise, that's too risky.:D

so you mean the price won't drop any more until then, right?

 

Cruise prices tend to flucuate between final payment date and the actual sail date. I'm taking a cruise Thanksgiving week, since final date the fare has gone up and down. Now it's in down mode. Friends just booked yesterday and they paid almost half of what I did for the same cabin. Now would be a good time to book. The only caveat to this is if ou're flying to port the airfare will most likely cancel out the cruise fare savings.

 

Good luck!

[uppitycats]

there are some available. I know it's not a lot, but it seems most of people likes to take longer cruise like from Nov. 21 to Nov. 29 so that they can use some weekends. That's why I'm trying to book during the weekdays.

Some people said the closer to the sail date the cheaper price would be. I just don't know how cheap will that be.

 

also may I ask you do the cruise lines charge on water? I know they charge on coffee or drinks, but do they charge on water? just blank regular water

 

thanks

 

 

Don't forget that you also have to budget for tips for the crew -- depending on your cruise line, that's around $10-$12 per passenger per day. And of course transportation to/from the port. Specialty coffee. Alcoholic beverages. Excursions.

[cherylandtk]

Cruises leaving Nov. 23 are already about as discounted as they will get. You have a choice of the Majesty of the Seas or Norwegian Sky, both leaving out of Miami on Nov. 23 for 4 days at about $65 pp per day, plus tax. Monarch OTS leaves out of Port Canaveral for about the same price. Those are the least costly per day rates for your time frame. For two people, your total fare would be about $640 on any of these, including tax. (Tips and onboard costs are extra.)

 

For ~$20 more pp per day Carnival Imagination also leaves from Miami. If you wanted to add one day (5), there are a few more cruises leaving the 23rd, running between $80-$100 pp per day. There are also cruises leaving Nov. 22 at comparable rates.

[kitty9]

I hope you drive to the port because getting flights to Florida during a holiday will not only be nearly impossible but terribly expensive. Anytime you book a flight less than 30 days out, getting a flight is really tough but you'll be spending as much as three times the fare.

[caroline2007]

Thank you so much for all the input above!

 

ok, like cherylandtk said, there are only two choices for me right now.

 

Majesty of the Seas or Norwegian Sky

 

So which cruise ship is better?

I saw some people got bad inside room which is close or under the restaurant. They can't have good sleep. I'm concerning about that.

Which ship deck design is better to avoid that situation if we pick cheapest inside room?

 

If you ever have great experience in either of these ships, care to share? thanks

[cherylandtk]

The two ships are rated the same, although Norwegian Sky is a newer ship. The prices above are for guaranteed insides, meaning you don't get to pick where your room is. All ships have good and bad locations in almost every category, so I don't think it is possible to say your chances would be better with one deck plan or the other. Many people take earplugs when they book a guarantee room and find that helps a great deal if you happen to have a noisy location.

 

If you have specific room needs, you are better off to pick your exact room. It will cost you more, depending on the level you want.

[smrtypnts]

Thank you so much for all the input above!

 

ok, like cherylandtk said, there are only two choices for me right now.

 

Majesty of the Seas or Norwegian Sky

 

So which cruise ship is better?

I saw some people got bad inside room which is close or under the restaurant. They can't have good sleep. I'm concerning about that.

Which ship deck design is better to avoid that situation if we pick cheapest inside room?

 

If you ever have great experience in either of these ships, care to share? thanks

Always try to choose a cabin which has a cabin above you and below you. Sometimes the site which you are buying the cruise from won't or doesn't show you the entire ship, whereas if you go to the site of cruiseline you're booking with, that site will show you...in other words, on NCL, you can go to their site and look at the decks of Norwegian Sky. By looking at the decks, if you're looking to book on deck 4, see if deck 3 has cabins and deck 5 has cabins, then you'll know a good night's sleep is probable.

[learning]

I went on the Majesty of the Seas last Thanksgiving. The ship is one of the older ones. I personally found the ship to feel very crowded and the inside rooms were even smaller than I am used to from other ships. On the positive, food was good, ship was clean and the entertainment enjoyable. No problem with noise in the cabin (and I am a light sleeper).

 

All in all, we had a fun week.

 

 

 

Thank you so much for all the input above!

 

ok, like cherylandtk said, there are only two choices for me right now.

 

Majesty of the Seas or Norwegian Sky

 

So which cruise ship is better?

I saw some people got bad inside room which is close or under the restaurant. They can't have good sleep. I'm concerning about that.

Which ship deck design is better to avoid that situation if we pick cheapest inside room?

 

If you ever have great experience in either of these ships, care to share? thanks

[PattyG12]

Funny ... I'm getting ready to do my third trip on the Majesty. I love the size and feel of that ship. The crew truly loves it as well.