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Last Minute Cruises... is it worth the wait?


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I'm interested in sailing March 2009, I have my sights on the CCL Liberty Western Carribean Cruise. Instead of booking now I was wondering if waiting for that 'spectacular deal' is worth the wait. I plan to go ahead and request off time for this vacation and keep looking for the perfect deal of the day! I already have my passport - I cruised once before and am curious if last minute cruises are the best deal ever... I figure that if I get the best deal possible for the cruise it won't matter much about the airfare. I'm new to the site and apologize if this topic is posted elsewhere.

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Some prices on some itineraries have been going up the closer you get to the sail date. The longer you wait, the less choice of cabins. When you book early, you have the best selection of cabins, plus, when the price goes down, you get the better price. There's no real downside to booking early, but there are some downsides to waiting, like having to pay higher prices, especially if the price of fuel keeps going up. I know our upcoming cruise has gone up more than $800 from when we booked.

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I'm interested in sailing March 2009, I have my sights on the CCL Liberty Western Carribean Cruise. Instead of booking now I was wondering if waiting for that 'spectacular deal' is worth the wait. I plan to go ahead and request off time for this vacation and keep looking for the perfect deal of the day! I already have my passport - I cruised once before and am curious if last minute cruises are the best deal ever... I figure that if I get the best deal possible for the cruise it won't matter much about the airfare. I'm new to the site and apologize if this topic is posted elsewhere.

Darcie, thanks! I'm not sure if I want to go this route or not...

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Airfare is usually considerably more for last minute buyers. That may be more than your savings on the cruise (if you can find one). You also may not be able to find a seat on the day you want. In that case add in the cost of one or more days in a hotel and meals.

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I wouldn't count on a last minute deal for March of 09 because it is spring break. We have sailed during spring break in March the last 3 years and have started looking at prices for the ships we are interested in already; but the prices are way too high right now. We have always had good luck in waiting until right after the final payment deadline and picking up a deal then. Usually right after the first of the year for March sailings. We did have a horrible time finding good airfare this year though--again spring break and this was our first cruise ever leaving out of Florida instead of driving to Texas. Good luck!

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Some prices on some itineraries have been going up the closer you get to the sail date. The longer you wait, the less choice of cabins. When you book early, you have the best selection of cabins, plus, when the price goes down, you get the better price. There's no real downside to booking early, but there are some downsides to waiting, like having to pay higher prices, especially if the price of fuel keeps going up. I know our upcoming cruise has gone up more than $800 from when we booked.

 

There is a potential downside to booking early - most cruiselines have sales near cruising time (within 90 days) that are limited to "new bookings only". I've seen many people on CC complaining that they get the offers, but can't get the sale fares without cancelling and rebooking. I usually book on relatively short notice (a couple of months) and have been able to take advantage of some new booking sales.

 

To a large extent, booking early or late is somewhat of a gamble. If a person wants a specific cabin, it really is necessary to book a long time out.

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Thank you for all the replies! Greatly appreciated, indeed. I will go ahead and book now and will stay watchful for a great last minute deal... the airfare is really gonna be the problem- price wise.

 

Has anyone ever booked the cruise AND airfare together? - some travel agencies offer this option. I booked separately in the past... what are the pros/cons of booking air and cruise together?

 

One last question, is it best to book w/CCL or with a travel agency? This will be my first time booking a cruise (someone else did for a group of us last year) so I have many questions... :confused:

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If you are inflexible about the date, then I would book ahead of time.

 

Also, since you want Carnival, I find that Carnival rates almost always go up and never come down to less than you could have booked over a year out.

 

Now RCL, I find their rates come down to less than I could have booked in advance, so for RCL cruises, I will wait until the last minute.

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One last question, is it best to book w/CCL or with a travel agency? This will be my first time booking a cruise (someone else did for a group of us last year) so I have many questions... :confused:

 

Unless the TA is offering a cheaper price or some incentives, I would book directly with the cruise line. If you find a better price, the TA may only work during the day and you can call Carnival 24 hours a day to get the reduction.

 

Also, by booking now with Carnival, if you do find a TA who will cut the price, you can transfer the booking easily to the TA any time before final payment.

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Thank you for all the replies! Greatly appreciated, indeed. I will go ahead and book now and will stay watchful for a great last minute deal... the airfare is really gonna be the problem- price wise.

 

Has anyone ever booked the cruise AND airfare together? - some travel agencies offer this option. I booked separately in the past... what are the pros/cons of booking air and cruise together?

 

One last question, is it best to book w/CCL or with a travel agency? This will be my first time booking a cruise (someone else did for a group of us last year) so I have many questions... :confused:

 

We're booked on the Carnival Freedom in August to the Western Med. Originally, I was going to go with Carnival's air/sea package from LA to Rome but knowing that it was going to cost me another $1500 to deviate (leave the day prior and come home 3 days later) I said forget it - I'll do my own air. That's what most are doing on our CC board. They want flexibility to be able to pick the days they want to fly and # of days in a hotel. By doing it all on my own, I can stay 4 nights in Rome and I'll be saving around $800! Yahoo! More euros in my pocket! When I asked about a non-stop on Alitalia, they said they weren't contracting with that airline - naturally, the non-stops roundtrip are running $1800 but I was able to get it on the return flight (have to make a change going but that's OK on Delta). Depending on what city you're flying to, it can at times save you money by doing the air/sea package and that way, the rep meets you at the airport and all your transfers are included. This will be the first time I've done this separately but as you can see, in order to get what I wanted, I had to do it ALL on my own and so far, it's worked out great! By chatting on the CC board, I've touched base with a family in SF who will be staying at the same hotel as us and we'll be able to share the cost of a shuttle from the ship to the hotel and the hotel to the airport. Good luck and happy cruising!

 

Laurie

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Great question. I struggle with the same thing every time. I've book early (but not as early as you're looking) and I've booked late. One thing I've noticed is that if you keep checking as the cruise get's nearer you can get a good handle on how the cruise is filling up by the price movements. On my last one, I noticed a little movement up so I booked it. The only benefit in doing that was I was able to book a GT at a lower class (that I could tell was full) and immediately got an upgrade at the lower cost.

 

Anyway, it's a crapshoot no matter which way you do it. I drive myself nuts doing it so hopefully you are smarter than I in not going crazy trying to figure it out.

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Thank you for all the replies! Greatly appreciated, indeed. I will go ahead and book now and will stay watchful for a great last minute deal... the airfare is really gonna be the problem- price wise.

 

Has anyone ever booked the cruise AND airfare together? - some travel agencies offer this option. I booked separately in the past... what are the pros/cons of booking air and cruise together?

 

One last question, is it best to book w/CCL or with a travel agency? This will be my first time booking a cruise (someone else did for a group of us last year) so I have many questions... :confused:

We have booked cruise air everytime with the exception of Carnival. I know many will say I am stupid or I could have saved lots of $$$, but the fact of the matter is, I do my homework and saving $50 isn't worth the time it takes me to buy one, two or even three tickets to get to our cruise port (we have gone to Europe the past 4 years, the airfare with the line has been between $750-$800 RT with transfers)! Carnival charges a lot for their domestic air. They wanted over $350 to fly us from El Paso to Houston. They also charge for transfers! We got a Southwest flight for $175 and flew in the day before. The cons are that you may spend a little more, or not. The pros, if you book directly with the line, you have control of your own booking and are free to call and speak with someone anytime. If you book through a ta, the ta has to call. If you're flying domestic, I would suggest that you price some flights, then fly in a day early for your cruise.

As for CCL prices, I also agree with firefly, they always seems to go up the closer it gets to the cruise....and so do the fuel surcharges!

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