Air Fare!?!?!? Hotel!?!?!?

[SayingIDo]

So we have the cruise booked and all we lack is the flight. I go online to compare prices (all the while knowing that Southwest is always cheapest.) It is over 300.00 to fly from Nashville to Ft Lauderdale. Last year in September I paid less than 200.00! There has to be a cheaper option for travel. Then there is the hotel. I will obviously be on a budget since the flight is costing so much. Any ideas? I would like to save money on the travel portaion so that I can spend it on the cruise relaxing. Geez... this is nerve racking.

[jeanarch]

Go to Priceline for the hotel. It's always been great for me.

[steffaroonie]

Check www.cheapoair.com I'm flying from Seattle to Ft. Lauderdale on 2/8/2008 and just paid 238 (plus 70 for misc fees) for roundtrip tickets. When I checked a couple of weeks ago the tickets were 400 +. Haven't picked a hotel yet, but if you want one close to the airport/pier they are about 200/night.

 

Hope that helps.

[NCTribeFan]

When I'm researching cruises, I actually make a spreadsheet. I put the base cabin fare, taxes & fuel charges, tips, estimated excursion costs (based on number of port days), estimated airfare, other travel costs (gas, food, hotel if I'm driving).

 

I then calculate a per day/per person cost.

 

I then sort this, lowest to highest, and pick the itinerary I like most that has the lowest pp/pd cost.

 

I don't book a cruise until I have a really good idea of what the total cost will be. I don't like unpleasant surprises.

 

Hey, I don't have a lot to spend. Even if I did, I'm still going to find the best value that gives me the itinerary I want.

 

That doesn't really help you, but it's how I do things.

 

Airfare fluctuates a lot. Check out the "Cruise Air" board for suggestions and helpful tips. There are sites out there that will alert you if/when prices drop so you can book then.

 

Or you could consider driving. It's a pain, but at least you have more control.

 

I see a lot of threads where people have booked a Med or TA cruise and then are shocked at the cost of air! I can't imagine booking something like that before having a good idea of how much it was going to cost to get me to and from the ship!

[4Cruise4Fun]

Check some other airlines! I used to believe Southwest was the cheapest, but recently I have been able to book on other airlines cheaper. Also, try booking one way flights. We cruised out of Miami, so I booked a flight from Nashville to Miami on American. Then I booked our return flight on Southwest from Ft. Lauderdale. Even with paying the cab fair from the port to Ft. Lauderdale airport we saved about $200.

[Ehpride]

Can you drive to another airport that might have less expensive rates? Even with rental car costs, there might be a rate that works for you that would be worth it.

 

Also, try http://www.kayak.com. It's not a travel agent. It just lists all the rates that are available for specific dates so that you can book directly through the airline or your travel agent.

 

As far as the hotel, do you have anything like AAA, AARP or other organizations? Also, don't just go by the hotel's website rates. Try calling the specific hotel or their booking line to see what they can do for you. They may have some unpublished rates that they have available for people who ask.

 

Check discount sites for air and hotel. They might have lower rates too.

[Roz]

I paid $300 round trip on Southwest when I flew during peak season. When is your cruise? SW also had the advantage of offering non-stop flights. If I can't fly out of Nashville, I don't fly. :D

 

Roz

[Jrabbit128]

We are on the same boat (no pun intended)! I have a cruise booked in February out of Orlando and the flights from NY are $250 each!! I am going to Orlando in October and when I booked the flights, it was only $140 r/t! I have been using sidestep.com. They are really good because they compare the rates for you and unlike Travelocity and Orbitz, when you choose the flight you need, the site directly to the actual airlines website, so you save money by not having to pay the booking fee Travelocity and Orbitz and Hotwire charge you.

[arpie05]

You might look and see if Air Tran flies there. they're inexpensive.

For my trip to Seattle I booked round trip on Alligiant to Las Vegas. Air Alaska round trip Las Vegas to Seattle. Tix were $400 and the cheapest I had seen on AA or United were nearly $600. Only hassle was rechecking luggage. We did have to spend the night in LV coming home so we had a night in a hotel but still saved money. (It was was so unfortunate to be forced to spend time in LV :D )