Cruise Planning – Step 4: Booking the Cruise
The fourth step in planning a cruise is actualy booking the cruise.
There are several ways to book a cruise the fourth step in your planning route.
The first is on line here at Prow’s Edge where you actually tell the agents where you want to go and with whom , and they compete to offer you the best price. You simply sit back and watch them out-deal each other. Click here to request a quote...
Another way is to visit one of the many cruise oriented travel agents around the country.
Yet another is to go online and book with the cruise lines direct if possible or with agencies that take care of the job for them.
However you decide to book your cruise, there are a couple of handy tips it is worth keeping in mind when looking for the best deal.
Timing
Most agree that booking the cruise as soon as you’ve made your mind up will get you the best deal. There are occasions when a last minute “better” deal can be had, but you will need to be fairly flexible in terms of your cruise choices and dates of travel.
Single Supplements
If you are travelling on your own, be aware that the single supplements can be huge. Some cruise lines offer a guaranteed share for single travelers, where the supplement is waived and the cruise line promises to find another single person of the same sex to share the accommodation.
Cheaper Cruises
Certain types of cruises are naturally cheaper than others - such as cruises during a region’s off-season, or repositioning cruises where the ships are being relocated after a season in one area, ready for a season in another.
Some cruise lines are simply cheaper than others. Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) fall into this category.
Other cruise lines are known as budget cruise lines and are able to offer lower prices because they provide fewer amenities. Voyages of Discovery, for example, focus more on the exotic destinations than the cabin luxuries and pass on the savings to their passengers. Another example of a budget cruise line is Imperial Majesty offering fun but basic 2 and 3-night cruises out of Florida to the Bahamas.
Some cruise lines offer cheap tickets with a “Category Guarantee”. This saves money but does not guarantee a particular cabin or stateroom at the time of booking. The cruise line will assign the cabin shortly before the cruise. The advantage is that some cruise lines advertise the possibility of an upgrade if you chose this option.
Another cheap ticket is the “Run of the Ship” ticket that guarantees neither cabin nor category. You may be allocated an inside cabin on the lower decks, or by the same token, a suite with a balcony on the upper decks. It’s a gamble that may pay off financially.