Royal Carribean rates are getting higher

[lighthousedeb]

I have been watching a couple of cruises in October and they were a good buy before the buy on get one half off and add kids.  Now they are $800.00 to $1000.00 higher.  Will they go down?

[LBumb]

Just like. Airfares

keep looking be patient 

[ShillyShally]

2 minutes ago, LBumb said:

Just like. Airfares

keep looking be patient 

And book when YOU are happy with the price.  🙂

[LuvCruising8]

My experience has been when you see a good price pull the trigger.  Prices tend to go higher the closer you get to sail date.  Sometimes there are good last minute deals if you are able to do last minute, but generally best prices are 1 year prior to sail date.

[Bee Guy]

I am a big fan of booking as early as possible.  If prices go up you are protected, if prices go down, you can ask for a price reduction.  It ties up your deposit and has a risk of changes in plans/circumstances, but has been a good strategy for us.

[Biker19]

28 minutes ago, lighthousedeb said:

  Will they go down?

Sure, during the next recession.

[forgotmyCCname]

Our June Allure is far from near capacity with many suites available . We booked only in February and the price has gone up close to 1200 and rising everytime I look at upgrading ourselves. We did get two price reductions early on- one for $600 and one for $75

[ryano]

2 minutes ago, Bee Guy said:

I am a big fan of booking as early as possible.  If prices go up you are protected, if prices go down, you can ask for a price reduction.  It ties up your deposit and has a risk of changes in plans/circumstances, but has been a good strategy for us.

 

Absolutely this ^.  I booked my September 1 Harmony cruise over 500 days out and got what I thought was an excellent price on a accessible oceanview balcony.  The same cabin is currently 1100.00 more. I dont expect it to drop much until after final payment date. 

[lighthousedeb]

I guess I waited to long.  I  was trying to free up calender and caused a delay.  Not willing to pay $1000.00 more for a lesser cabin. 

[BrandFam4]

I just noticed this with our cruise booked for Spring Break next year. We booked it last month and it is now $800 more! I've been tracking it looking for a price drop and it jumped up from 3 days ago to $800 more today. Like others have said book early and with refundable  deposit if reasonable. I've done the price adjustment in past and saved another $350. 

[bosoxfan5]

Or you can book with a travel agent who can watch the rates for you.  DM for info

[TeresaJ]

Same here! I was looking at an 8 nt on Adventure yesterday for my family of 4. With this new sale today, our cabin costs would be $1,000 more. 😳 Not a sale!!

[ucfpirate]

I wonder how often one should check the price after they book to have the best chance at finding a lower rate. Daily? Weekly?  Or every few hours like me 🙂

[TwinMamainMN]

I just checked our Hawaii TP sailing in May 2020. There are 7 balcony cabins left on the whole ship, and all are forward. We booked over President's Day weekend and got a great deal with 60% off the second guest. The price now is almost double that. Glad we booked when we did!

[Melsyboo14]

I've been checking several times an hour for a specific cruise this May...it has gone up and down by 250....so annoying..I know I am very last minute, but this bogo is nuts..I should've gotten them when it was 30%! This sale says ending in soon, but I am sure it will be extended..

[lighthousedeb]

I can't plan a cruise much in advance because of jobs and schedules.  Maybe in retirement I can get some good last minute deals.

[fred30]

2 hours ago, lighthousedeb said:

 Will they go down?

 

Edited April 11, 2019 by fred30

[LuCruise]

1 hour ago, ucfpirate said:

I wonder how often one should check the price after they book to have the best chance at finding a lower rate. Daily? Weekly?  Or every few hours like me 🙂

 

I check daily for the ones where a price drop is possible.  Usually a "sale" (i.e. current price) lasts a few days... and then gets extended... but doesn't take long to check.

 

I find in general though that prices are rising and its best to book early. For example, the same Mariner cruise is costing us $1000 more for next summer than it did last summer (exact same date).  And for our Anthem, Navigator, Mariner, Harmony bookings...I've just watched the price go up and up.

 

My theory is all these amplifications that Royal is doing, is driving the cost up.

Edited April 11, 2019 by LuCruise

[Sherri914]

Last cruise we took was Nov 2015.  We always go in November.  We booked August 2014 for a November 2015 cruise.  Great prices on two boardwalk balconies (firs time in that category, and we actually loved it because it was a lower balcony price and we had the last two aft, so we had great ocean - wake - views.  After initial booking, i checked weekly at a minimum, and we repriced a total of 4 times as different sales took effect.  

 

Fast forward to 2019, we booked same category, similar itinerary, for November 2020 (so quite a ways off).  The initial booking price for this trip four years later is very close to what we paid four years ago for the same cabin, same time of year, similar itinerary.  That said, I will continue to look weekly for price drops and will reprice if needed.

 

We did change categories though last week w/ the new BOGO sale.  We switched from a boardwalk to a central park balcony.  I was able to snag on of the double-sized balconies.  They don't show that way on the deck plans, but there are two on decks 10, 11 and 12 that have double-sized balconies for the same price.  Looking forward to a new experience in Central Park this time. 

[ShillyShally]

1 hour ago, lighthousedeb said:

I can't plan a cruise much in advance because of jobs and schedules.  Maybe in retirement I can get some good last minute deals.

If you see a price you like and can afford to lock up the deposit, pick a category that doesn't require NRD and book with the refundable deposit, that will still give you some flexibility.  I've also heard you can later reprice down to the NRD once you are certain you are staying on the cruise but that won't always save you money, but is something to try when seeking any other repricing as well!

[zoepipes]

If you book with a TA, do you risk losing your "perks" when rebooking at a different price?

[Johnamac123]

1 hour ago, LuCruise said:

 

I check daily for the ones where a price drop is possible.  Usually a "sale" (i.e. current price) lasts a few days... and then gets extended... but doesn't take long to check.

 

I find in general though that prices are rising and its best to book early. For example, the same Mariner cruise is costing us $1000 more for next summer than it did last summer (exact same date).  And for our Anthem, Navigator, Mariner, Harmony bookings...I've just watched the price go up and up.

 

My theory is all these amplifications that Royal is doing, is driving the cost up.

There are websites that will watch a given cruise/category for you and notify you by email if the price falls below a specific price, all for a minimal ($1) fee. Look for a fishy site. 

[bosoxfan5]

17 minutes ago, zoepipes said:

If you book with a TA, do you risk losing your "perks" when rebooking at a different price?

 

It can depend on the promotion you are booked under.  This is the same for booking direct as well as booking with a TA.  My TA would always tell me if I'd be losing something if I called with a lower price.

[itsmeagain]

3 hours ago, bosoxfan5 said:

Or you can book with a travel agent who can watch the rates for you.  DM for info

Or you can go to that fish site and set up alerts to tell you about price changes.   It costs but has saved me money in the past, enough so that I have now signed up for the unlimited club.  You can even get historical information.   If you google cruise and fish you should see it.

[Casino Comp Chick]

51 minutes ago, Sherri914 said:

Last cruise we took was Nov 2015.  We always go in November.  We booked August 2014 for a November 2015 cruise.  Great prices on two boardwalk balconies (firs time in that category, and we actually loved it because it was a lower balcony price and we had the last two aft, so we had great ocean - wake - views.  After initial booking, i checked weekly at a minimum, and we repriced a total of 4 times as different sales took effect.  

 

Fast forward to 2019, we booked same category, similar itinerary, for November 2020 (so quite a ways off).  The initial booking price for this trip four years later is very close to what we paid four years ago for the same cabin, same time of year, similar itinerary.  That said, I will continue to look weekly for price drops and will reprice if needed.

 

We did change categories though last week w/ the new BOGO sale.  We switched from a boardwalk to a central park balcony.  I was able to snag on of the double-sized balconies.  They don't show that way on the deck plans, but there are two on decks 10, 11 and 12 that have double-sized balconies for the same price.  Looking forward to a new experience in Central Park this time. 

 

Which ship?