Early Booking

[Cruiser-66]

After a few years of cruising other lines we are coming back to Princess next year. We are platinum and have always loved Princess. We left to find ships with more action to take our grand-kids on. They loved Carnival, but I miss Princess!

We are planning to cruise the new Regal Princess next year. As I remember Princess is more difficult to get price drops from. They often state for new bookings only. Those of you that have been with them recently, what is your thoughts? Prices seem high right now.

One of the things I liked about Carnival is you always get the lower price!

[Colo Cruiser]

After a few years of cruising other lines we are coming back to Princess next year. We are platinum and have always loved Princess. We left to find ships with more action to take our grand-kids on. They loved Carnival, but I miss Princess!

We are planning to cruise the new Regal Princess next year. As I remember Princess is more difficult to get price drops from. They often state for new bookings only. Those of you that have been with them recently, what is your thoughts? Prices seem high right now.

One of the things I liked about Carnival is you always get the lower price!

 

As much as Princess sells out and this being a new ship I would book asap and keep watching for price drops.

Soemtimes they come down and Princess will honor that and sometimes they don't. But I would not take the chance of waiting.

[skynight]

If the price drops before payment is due you can get it, even sometimes after payment, but I would not count on this. You will have to keep watch for the promos. You may have to cancel and re-book to get the lower price, depends on the promo. We do this all the time.

[Cruiser-66]

sknight Do you book completely on your own, or do you use a personal planner from Princess? When you cancel and re-book are you able to get your same cabin? We are booking with another couple and want cabins next to each other.

[Working 2 Cruise]

As previously mentioned, this is going to be a brand new ship so I would not expect fares to drop much, if at all.

 

You can always deal either with a Princess rep or better yet a good travel agent if flash fares are offered. Since you have friends sailing with you and want cabins in close proximity, I would book ASAP.

[Pam in CA]

Plus, Princess allows TAs to discount prices so you can save 10-20%, depending on cabin category and when you book. I can't remember exactly how much of a discount I got on my Royal T/A last October but it was a lot less than the pricing close to sailing. In general, even if there's a price drop, I pay less.

[diplomats]

I wanted to lock in a particular length cruise in late april 2015 to accommodate close friends from New Zealand. So, I booked the Royal April 28, 2015. Last week, the itinerary was cancelled as have been close in time itineraries on Regal. Some had booked Ruby in January and have been cancelled out. Seems Princess puts long range schedules out then ignores them if not convenient. And gives no information on alternatives either directly on the phone or to Travel Agents. Shame on Princess.

[Cruiser-66]

This is very interesting. I was under the impression that TA's could no longer offer lower fares than the cruise line. However they could offer perks. Can you book on your own and then transfer to an agent later if you find a better deal?

[RocketMan275]

sknight Do you book completely on your own, or do you use a personal planner from Princess? When you cancel and re-book are you able to get your same cabin? We are booking with another couple and want cabins next to each other.

 

We used a Personal Planner from Princess for our next cruise. Had two price drops. Just called the Personal Planner and they were applied. No need to cancel and kept the same room and the same booking number, etc. The two drops were significant about 40% of the room rate.

[Pam in CA]

This is very interesting. I was under the impression that TA's could no longer offer lower fares than the cruise line. However they could offer perks. Can you book on your own and then transfer to an agent later if you find a better deal?

Not sure where you got that impression but that's never been the case. What changed is that TAs can't advertise or promote discounted fares but if you call or email for a quote, they can discount as much as they want plus give you OBC and perks. That has not changed. You can book directly and then email or call TAs for a quote and transfer the booking.