Unsold Cabins

[happycruizer]

Generally speaking, do the prices of unsold cabins go down the closer you get to sailing date?

[paul929207]

If the sruise line has more unsold cabins than they expect to sell then they will lower prices. If they have fewer unsold cabins, they will raise them. They can do this for different types of cabins, so, for instance, they could lower the price for minis which are selling poorly, while raising princes for balconies that have sold very well.

[cb at sea]

Depends on the cabin catagory...they may move their "good" customers up, and sell the lower catagories a bargain prices....but, they might not!

[klfrodo]

I had a cruise highlighted that I was going to suprise my wife with at the last minute.

 

I started watch about 2 months out. I had my price in mind. I kept watching and watching. The price is dropping. Opps, no suites. I'm watching, price is dropping. Still not to my buy point. No Ocean Views left. Kept watching. Opps price going back up WTH :eek: No balconies left Price going back up

 

Gave up with about 2 weeks to go.

[happycruizer]

I had a cruise highlighted that I was going to suprise my wife with at the last minute.

 

I started watch about 2 months out. I had my price in mind. I kept watching and watching. The price is dropping. Opps, no suites. I'm watching, price is dropping. Still not to my buy point. No Ocean Views left. Kept watching. Opps price going back up WTH :eek: No balconies left Price going back up

 

Gave up with about 2 weeks to go.

 

 

Interesting. Thanks for everyone's opinion.

[justlaff69]

I'm watching 4 cruises right now, I'm just check Interiors, Ocean Views and Balconies, using fake bookings here are my results so far:

 

On these two cruises, there were no price drops during my observation, even while on vacation I checked prices, I just couldn't chart room availability. Fluctuations explained by upgrades and cancellations.

8/6 Triumph (NO):

7/27(9dys)-18 unsold (1-OV/7-Int/10-Bal)

7/28(8dys)-16 unsold (8-Int/8-Bal)

7/29(7dys)-12 unsold (5-Int/7-Bal)

Went on vacation and returned 8/2

8/02(4dys)- 6 unsold (2-Int/4-Bal)

8/3-8/6 NO LISTINGS

 

8/11

7/27(13dys)-73 unsold (20-OV/32-Int/21-Bal)

7/28(12dys)-68 unsold (20-OV/32-Int/16-Bal)

7/29(11dys)-64 unsold (20-OV/32-Int/12-Bal)

Went on vacation and returned 8/2

8/02(7dys)- 48 unsold (11-OV/28-Int/09-Bal)

8/03(6dys)- 35 unsold (04-OV/24-Int/07-Bal)

8/04(5dys)- 25 unsold (06-OV/20-Int/02-Bal)

8/05(4dys)- 11 unsold (06-OV/05-Int/03-Bal)

8/06 NO LISTINGS-INT & BAL shows rates but aren't available for booking

 

For those of you that read this far, these probably differ than cruises while school is in session.

 

The Labor Day cruise peaked our interest, on 7/19, we decided to make Carnival an offer on their 9/1 Triumph (NO). The current rate was 349.00/per, we offered the Early Saver rate of 279.00/per, 43 days till cruise and over 180 staterooms showing, they accepted and the next day it was showing on the website as a Pack N Go rate. With 28 days to sail and 185 rooms public, they again offered a pack n go, but at 299.00/per.

 

An interesting point to me, was that on the 9/1 5 day cruise, the price point to an OV is 40/per and the OV to Bal is 60/per, on the 10/30 Halloween cruise, the price point have a greater difference.

 

More ramblngs;

I've watched 2 other cruises that left in late July and where they had 6-10 staterooms with 4 days left, on the 3 day they are no longer are available.

Two weeks till cruise date saw no drop in fares, watching 4 cruises.

[Colorado Kat]

Boy, justlaff69 - those stats are impressive. How do you find out all those details?

[justlaff69]

Boy, justlaff69 - those stats are impressive. How do you find out all those details?

 

Alot of time setting up fake bookings.

 

My ultimate goal is to see if I can get my Interior upgrade to an Oceanview at a discount and was trying to gauge when a reasonable time frame would be. It's looking more like a month out is better than the final two weeks. We'll just have to wait and see.

[EGG]

Last year for Oct cruise on Celebrity Solstice we booked about 5 to 6 weeks out. We missed some fantastic bargains, but paid a very good price. As the next weeks passed, the choice of cabins became fewer and some of the good deals were gone.

 

I did notice that some of the great deals were available at night and before 9a.m.. They disappeared at 9 and were back again the next night. I thought X was trying to force you into using their online booking, or at least their own travel agents. I was booking with another couple so I couldn't coordinate the online booking.

[gerryl12]

Sometimes you can get fantastic deals by waiting until the last minute (week or two), but then of course they may sell out. It is like throwing a dice.

 

I have seen some super deals when the cruise line gets desperate to fill a ship. You could check the lines empty rooms ( very time consuming) by making test bookings and you would have a better idea of availability.

 

The only way to know for sure is to keep watching but they come and go real quick.

[justlaff69]

Sometimes you can get fantastic deals by waiting until the last minute (week or two), but then of course they may sell out. It is like throwing a dice. .

 

While you maybe able to get great deals at any time, from the few months of research, it more like a month until the cruise when you'll will most like find the best deals.

 

Like Airlines, they don't want passengers to wait till the last minute to book, so the prices remain high in the last two weeks.

[janina]

The prices change back and forth because many people do hold fake bookings, and that is why the hold time has been shortened, and cruiselines want the deposit pretty fast. Doing all the stats with fake bookings only hurts others trying to find a sailing.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

We think so