Then look at their "90 Day Ticker". Prices drop as the sailing date approaches.
Mrs BN & I found an 11 day Hawaii cruise a few years back. Most Hawaii cruises are 7 days around the islands. However, US regulations require a foreign registered ship to visit a foreign port between leaving the US and returning to a US port. Norwegian Cruise lines only had a foreign registered ship available for this cruise. The closest foreign "port" was the Fanning Island ( Tabuaeran) in the republic of Kiribati, 1000 miles south of Hawaii.
So, we steamed 2 days to Fanning Is., an atoll about 5 miles by 10 miles. They launched the shuttle boats, we all went to the beach for a picnic for most of the day, rented bicycles and rode around visiting villages, then loaded back on the cruise ship for the 2 day sail back to Hawaii.
Our inside cabin was normally $559/person. We took the $50 upgrade to choose our cabin and ended up with a "handicapped" cabin, about twice the size of the regular cabin, for $599 each.
Last year we really wanted to take a last minute San Francisco to Australian, 23 day cruise with stops at several Hawaiian islands, Tahiti, Bora Bora, 5 stops in New Zealand and several in Australia. Cost for 23 days was $1995. Airfare was extra, of course.
Alas, commitments and bank accounts conspired to keep us from taking that wonderful cruise.
Generally, you can cruise for close to $100/day, if you shop and catch bargains.
| FastDeal # | Nights | Ends In | Cruise Line / Ship | Ship Rating 1-6 Stars | Brochure | Our | YOU | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Starting | Starting | SAVE!! | ||||||
| Price* | Price | |||||||
| #10139 Info | 14 | Guadeloupe | Costa Cruises / Costa Mediterranea | 4 | $1,629 | $390 | 76% | Military Rate! |
| #11390 Info | 10 | Santa Cruz, Tenerife, Canary Islands | Costa Cruises / Costa Classica | 3 | $1,089 | $609 | 44% | |
| #17675 Info | 12 | Athens (Piraeus), Greece | Holland America / Rotterdam VI | 4.5 | $3,079 | $629 | 80% | 80% Off! |
| #22551 Info | 11 | Athens (Piraeus), Greece | Holland America / Rotterdam VI | 4.5 | $2,879 | $629 | 78% | Exclusive Offer! |
| #14881 Info | 10 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Cunard / Queen Victoria | 5 | - | $702 | Info | Balcony! |
| #16426 Info | 11 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | Cunard / Queen Elizabeth | 5 | $802 | $802 | 0 | |
Vacations to Go is a good site but there are others. You can usually get the same deals at any large travel site.
Also, you don’t necessarily have to wait till the last minute to get good deals. We booked a cruise last July and watched the cruise line website for price adjustments. Price went down by about 20% for about a week and then back up. Called the cruise line during the drop and they adjusted my fare to meet the drop. Booked early and got the cabin I wanted and got the ‘sale’ price too. Just have to watch.
Also, most cruise lines make sure the travel agencies do not discount their fares but the travel agencies can give you On Board Credits (OBC), money you can spend while on board for booze, etc. Booked a cruise through Costco and got a $450 OBC which I would not have gotten had I booked direct with the line.
Need to watch closely though. Sometimes the cruise lines or travel agencies will offer various deals (maybe OBC or free booze) but will increase the price to cover the deal. A few weeks later the deal will go away and the price will drop too.
One final thing. Some cruise lines will offer military discounts (princess has a standing offer of $100 OBC on almost all cruises). Some are more restrictive. Some offer OBC if you own the cruise line stock.
You need to research to get the best deals.