When to book Mediterranean cruise

[Ocwanda]

Hello fellow cruisers.  My DH, DS, and I are looking forward to booking our first Mediterranean cruise for May 2020.  We are very excited but I am very nervous as this will be my first trip to Europe.  Ive obtained tons of wonderful tips from everyone but Im hesitating to commit to booking now and then for the price to drop.

 

I know that you usually get best pricing the earlier you book but one time I booked NCL Breakaway from NY during Spring Break just 3 weeks prior to sailing and it was tons cheaper than when I had originally eyed the trip months before.

 

What has your experience been with the Mediterranean Epic cruises?  Has anyone seen a substantial drop in price the closer to sail date?

 

Any feedback will be most greatly appreciated!!

[schmoopie17]

Cant give advice as to the best time to book (we booked our May, 2020 Mediterranean cruise several months ago) but I see you appear to be limiting your options to the Epic. You do realize that the Escape has a couple of great itineraries (including the one we're on)?

[mapleleaves]

I made our reservations on Sept 1 2018;   our sailing was Sept 15 2019 from Barcelona.   Inside cabins. For the whole yr I watched the prices!   They never got lower than what I paid.  The only significant drop I saw was for a balcony and that was about 3 weeks prior to sailing ..... it was still more than I was willing to pay.

 

We got an email offer to bid on an upgrade, but we were content with our cabins so we didn't bite.  Turned out that our sailing was sold out.  There was sign at Customer Services alerting folks that no changes or upgrades were available because the ship was fully booked.

 

Fabulous cruise, but exhausting !

 

 

[Ocwanda]

22 minutes ago, schmoopie17 said:

Cant give advice as to the best time to book (we booked our May, 2020 Mediterranean cruise several months ago) but I see you appear to be limiting your options to the Epic. You do realize that the Escape has a couple of great itineraries (including the one we're on)?

Thanks for the tip! Unfortunately we’re  limited to a certain number of days of travel. Epic would not have been our first choice due to inconsistent reviews but I tend to not have a lot to complain about.  I went on Escape two years ago and loved it!! Enjoy!!

[JustAPilot]

The price drops the closer you get to sail date if there are unsold cabins. You also risk getting undesirable rooms depending on what your definition of that is. My observation comes from balcony or above rooms. Usually 3 months in advance has been a good buffer point if we want to wait for a deal. 

[Ocwanda]

1 hour ago, mapleleaves said:

I made our reservations on Sept 1 2018;   our sailing was Sept 15 2019 from Barcelona.   Inside cabins. For the whole yr I watched the prices!   They never got lower than what I paid.  The only significant drop I saw was for a balcony and that was about 3 weeks prior to sailing ..... it was still more than I was willing to pay.

 

We got an email offer to bid on an upgrade, but we were content with our cabins so we didn't bite.  Turned out that our sailing was sold out.  There was sign at Customer Services alerting folks that no changes or upgrades were available because the ship was fully booked.

 

Fabulous cruise, but exhausting !

 

 

Thanks for your feedback! I’ve read several of your posts and took notes!!

[Ocwanda]

53 minutes ago, JustAPilot said:

The price drops the closer you get to sail date if there are unsold cabins. You also risk getting undesirable rooms depending on what your definition of that is. My observation comes from balcony or above rooms. Usually 3 months in advance has been a good buffer point if we want to wait for a deal. 

Will keep that in mind. Thank you!!!

[Turtles06]

Don't forget that there are more things that go into the total cost of a cruise than just the cruise fare, and some of those things, especially air fare to/from Europe, can cost much more at the last minute, or even just closer to the travel date.   So can hotels. (My experience in Europe is that the earlier you can book a hotel, the cheaper it usually is.)    

 

When you book a cruise well in advance, you not only have a better choice of cabins, but also, up until final payment, you can generally take advantage of price drops.  I'm not quite sure, especially with limited travel dates, why you are afraid to commit now because prices may drop, unless you are totally committed to booking AFTER final payment, and making all of your other arrangements (like air travel) that close to the date of your trip.

 

Also, Med cruises are about the ports.  There are terrific private tour operators in the Med ports (you can find them here in the Ports of Call forums), but some of them book up well in advance.  You may lose out if you plan your trip too late. 

 

It's one thing to take a last minute cruise out of the U.S.  Quite another for it to be your first trip to Europe and your first Med cruise, imho.

 

Good luck with whatever you decide! 

Edited October 28, 2019 by Turtles06

[njcruiser27]

We were just on the September 15 sailing of the Epic and the price kept going up the closer to the sail date, and eventually sold out.  We just booked another cruise for September 2020 out of Athens and since we booked it last month it has already gone up $100. I would rather book early and get the cabin I want in the location I want. I watch the prices until the final payment is due. If I see what I want cheaper I’ll call  and get the adjustment.                                                       Also if you are planning to stay pre or post cruise in Barcelona or Rome, I can tell you that out of Barcelona the hotels booked up very early so you need to be looking at that now to get the hotel you want. We booked the hotels 10 months  before the cruise and for our next cruise the hotels are already booked. 

Edited October 28, 2019 by njcruiser27

[schildiams]

Europe prices are amazing right now - brooked a few months ago and already has gone down almost $500 pp - called to get adjustments bc am before final deposit. 

[boogiedownwanda]

Thank you all so much for your feedback.  Booked my trip yesterday and I'm super excited!!!  This is my 11th cruise but first time in Europe so I'm super nervous. Y'all will be seeing tons of questions from me within the next few months.  Thanks again!!