Thinking of booking with NCL should i wait?

[bogofman]

We usually cruise with Royal Caribbean or Celebrity , but their itineraries and ports are getting quite limited, and we need a change,

 

do NCL play the same games regarding pricing as Royal and celebrity,

 

i.e

 

sudden price drops etc, is it worth waiting

 

I'm from the UK and cannot take advantage of price drops, without cancelling and losing cabin and deposit

 

also do NCL have any loyalty match schemes ?

[joyy7403]

NCL is always changing prices. Pick the cruise you want, the cabin that you want with a price that you are happy with & enjoy! They have no loyalty matching schemes, only their own loyalty program. Hope you enjoy them as much as we do!!

[DinaS]

We usually cruise with Royal Caribbean or Celebrity , but their itineraries and ports are getting quite limited, and we need a change,

 

do NCL play the same games regarding pricing as Royal and celebrity,

 

i.e

 

sudden price drops etc, is it worth waiting

 

I'm from the UK and cannot take advantage of price drops, without cancelling and losing cabin and deposit

 

also do NCL have any loyalty match schemes ?

 

There are just as many sudden price increases as there are sudden price drops.

 

Look around at a cruise you are interested in, and if its affordable and you are happy with the itinerary, price and cabin - then book it.

 

You can take a chance and wait, but your chances of the price going up are just as good as the price going down.

[KeithJenner]

It can vary. I tend to book fairly early. On a few occasions the prices have fallen a little bit. Probably more often, they have risen over time.

 

The big difference though is that whilst the ones that have fallen have only done so by a little, some of those that have increased have increased by a lot.

[ksmcdonald]

I did track a couple cruises that we were interested and there really was no rhyme or reason with the price increases/decreases. I tracked for about 6 months and it went up by $50 then down to original price I started with the up again. Sometimes it increase in the same week. Then the following month, back down. It really is hard to predict. When a certain category starts filling up, the price goes up. Sometimes only for "inside" and the balcony stays the same. Too many variables to predict.

[dacsmom]

I usually sail with Royal Caribbean and Carnival, but was offered a great deal to try NCL. They have the studio cabins so I was very happy to avoid the single supplement this time. I just got off the Epic yesterday and canceled my January RCI cruise and booked another cruise on the NCL Escape. The dates were the same but the itinerary was different. I had a wonderful time, even with bad weather and skipping a port. So glad I gave it a try. Each line has its pros and cons, but I really enjoyed my cruise.

[ladyref]

I have been tracking my December cruise since November. The price has only ever gone up even with the Christmas and New Year sales until this week.

 

There is currently a 7 day sale on and our price dropped by just under £300 - I booked yesterday as we still get the speciality offers I.e. Unlimited drinks and dining package.

[MICHLEV1974]

I have had the experience of booking early and paid the lowest price with NCL. I watched the price every day for several months and it trended upward in price.

 

I am now in a position where I booked one room early and now I want to add another room and the price is just going up up up....I am getting nervous and am tempted to book at the higher price now to avoid losing a balcony cabin...as they sell out quickly.

 

After watching the price go up up up, the price started to drop @ 3 weeks prior to sailing.....probably not the best scenario if you have flights to book, etc. I can drive to the port so we took our chances on the possible price drop.

 

With NCL, the theme with them is to book it early.

 

I have sailed with Royal and Carnival and the theme with them is to wait for the price drop.

 

All of this is dependent upon the time of year and the holidays .... are you sailing peak season or off season?

 

Either way, it's probably a good idea to set a budget and book early :)

[bogofman]

december 16th or 17th depending on cruise we take

[sanger727]

You will experience the same pricing games as on royal and celebrity. People booked under U.K. Bookings can't get price drops and they change all the time. In your situation it's really hard to choose between early and late booking. But the benefit of U.K. Bookers is when you book the UBP or SDP perks they are free... you don't have to pay the service fee on them US customers pay

 

 

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