Need advice/opinions on when to book

[luvmyboyz]

My hubby has a commission-based job and summertime is hit or miss. Some years he has awesome paychecks, other years, not so much. :p

 

Last year we booked our fall cruise with early saver and after a bad summer when we were wishing we could cancel and get our deposit back, we couldn't because we booked early saver. We went on the cruise anyway since it was paid in full, but we had to scrimp for the next couple months and couldn't do any excursions (not a big deal for us, but still.) Plus, getting early saver didn't even pay off, because we got no onboard credit (price never dropped - we had a 4F room).

 

This year we are being smarter and booking past guest rate - yes, it will cost $80 more and we don't have the price protection you get with early saver, but it's worth it for us because we will know by the time final payment is due if he had a good summer or not - if not, we can cancel, get our deposit back in full, and not have to be all stressed financially like we were last year. If he has a good summer, well, hooray, the cruise is on, and we paid $80 extra. Oh well, right? It's like our own personal trip insurance.

 

Anyway, here's my question - should we still book while early saver rates are available, or is there a good possibility the past guest rate will go down after early saver rates are no longer available? I guess I'm asking the seasoned cruisers if they know if there is a trend in how the rates fluctuate. :p Also, if the rate goes down before final payment is due, can we benefit from that without having early saver? If it matters, we are planning to book an oceanview room this year.

 

I hope that wasn't too confusing. :p

[firefly333]

I dont know that there is a trend. If your ship is filling well, or has several large groups, prices can be going upward, and then collaspe if the groups give back too many cabins.

 

Watch prices on the cruise you want and see if you see a trend for that particular cruise, up or down.

[jdbmga]

You can book now at Past Guest (or any rate) and still get price drops until final payment. ES gets you price drops after final payment.