Advice for August Cruise out of Miami

[oohgrrl]

Hello! I'm planning a cruise for my husband's 40th birthday this August. I've narrowed it down to 4 options that are departing Miami; NCL, Royal and Carnival have cruises to Bahamas Aug 8-12 and Carnival to Cozumel Aug 11-15. I won't know if my vacation from work is approved until mid-April. Maybe I'm crazy but my idea is to book airfare for one of those after my vacation is approved but wait to book the cruise when they go on sale 60-30 days prior? Especially if I'm given the 8th-12th off, there are 3 options.

 

We also plan on visiting friends in Boca Raton either before or after our cruise.

 

All advice and thoughts appreciated.

[paul929207]

What makes you sure that there will be a sale then? What will you do if the fares have gone up by then?

 

Carnival Corp reported earnings two weeks ago. At that time they said that bookings for 2016 were ahead of a year earlier. If the ships are full, there will be no sales.

[oohgrrl]

Articles online that I've read indicated sale prices on cruises are 120-30 days before the sailing.

[kitty9]

Online articles can't predict how prices will run because it's all supply and demand. Cruising is increasingly popular and if you read these boards you'll see that oftentimes fares have risen close to sailing dates. There have been numerous posts where people report that fares have gone up by hundreds of dollars close to final payment time. On a cruise I was recently on, the fare for my cabin category was raised by $750 per person three months before departure. Another this is, cruises in the Caribbean in summer have high fares because not many ships stay in that area as most seem to be deployed to Alaska, Europe and New England/Canada, leaving far fewer ships in that area. Fewer ships can mean higher prices.

 

Another thing to consider is August is in the middle of hurricane season in the Caribbean, so that's another thing you have to take into consideration.

[serene56]

Articles online that I've read indicated sale prices on cruises are 120-30 days before the sailing.

 

 

yikes-- thats is scarey.

I can tell you that in 26 cruises only two have ever came down in price. Every one has sailed at a higher rate then what I booked. We are booked on the Freedom of the seas for April and can say that the cruise is NOW 300.00 more then what we paid.

 

The earlier you book the cheaper it is. (same with air fare)

plus you are taking the chance that the cabins will be all picked over-- leaving you cabins in a non desirable location.

 

Curious-- are you only looking at 4-5 day cruises?

[BillOh]

I would book as soon as possible and just keep watching for price reductions.

[fishywood]

Those dates are right before college students head back to school; here in Florida the "Fall" Semester starts August 22. The weekend one to Cozumel will especially be quite the booze cruise and will sell out with no discounting necessary. And I would expect the midweek ones to do similarly.

Edited December 31, 2015 by fishywood

[Keith1010]

It all comes down to supply and demand and my experience is that many cruises are actually going up in price. Also the lowest price rooms seem to sell out first.

 

Keith

[serene56]

Those dates are right before college students head back to school; here in Florida the "Fall" Semester starts August 22. The weekend one to Cozumel will especially be quite the booze cruise and will sell out with no discounting necessary. And I would expect the midweek ones to do similarly.

 

 

No matter what the dates-- those 3-4 day cruises are basically party barges and one I try to steer people clear 5 or 6 day cruises are also out there and would be worth the extra time onboard