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You might have heard of “wave season.” This time of year — running from January through March — is supposed to be when the cruise lines offer the best deals. That’s due to the cold weather in most of the country making people think of warmer places combined with the passing of the Christmas holiday. It is definitely true that more booking activity goes on during this period. Although most passengers “Loyal to Royal” won’t reach Pinnacle Club status, they can still receive the benefits of discounted cabins and onboard offers. Even if you don’t find the cheapest cruise deal available, you’ll still save significant money with Crown & Anchor benefits like free drinks and complimentary laundry.
Cancel then rebook if you find better cruise deals
For families, a kids sail free promotion is one of the most lucrative offers Royal Caribbean has, especially if you book a suite since the per-person savings are highest in these luxurious cabins. As mentioned earlier in this article, prices tend to go up over time as more and more people book a sailing. But sometimes a sailing doesn't sell as well as Royal Caribbean wants, and you can find a price drop meant to spur sales.
How to Find the Best Cruise Deals
Know when prices aren't set in stone and negotiate a lower fee to save on your in-port purchases. You can often barter over the price of crafts, food or souvenirs in open-air markets, or negotiate rates for taxi tours or rides. Always be friendly and polite when haggling, and be prepared to walk if the vendor does not accept your offer. If you’ve already paid in full, it’s still worth calling the cruise line if you see a lower fare. The lines want happy customers and will sometimes work with you to compensate for the new lower price. First, you should be monitoring the price of your cruise after you book if you want to save money.
How can I maximize the value of my cruise vacation?
18 easy ways to save money on a Royal Caribbean cruise (2024) - Cruise Blog
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While Royal Caribbean's Oasis and Quantum Class ships are as amazing to cruise on as they look, they do not usually have the cheapest cruise fares out there. In addition, bundling multiple vacation elements together can help you save on individual costs. Luxury and river lines sometimes offer promotions that will include economy-class airfare, or a pre-cruise hotel stay at the price of your upscale cruise. For some lines and sailings, you can forget it unless you book months -- or a year -- in advance. This is particularly true for bucket-list voyages to places like Antarctica, the Galapagos Islands and world cruises -- some of which can sell out in a single day.
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You’ll never be downgraded from the option that you’ve chosen but there is a possibility that you could be upgraded. This increased flexibility will allow you to save a bit of money and enable you to get the best deal possible. Companies have always used every avenue that they possibly could in order to advertise their products.
Top cruise lines will give discounts to large groups and you could even get free berths as part of the deal. Firstly, you could simply cancel then rebook your cruise at the cheaper price. This can depend on their terms but it can save you a lot of money. Another option is to contact the cruise company and ask for a refund on the difference, and some will give you this in-store credit.
Book a Cruise Late—Just a Few Weeks (or Days) in Advance
I'm happy to share the wealth, so to speak, so you can avoid money mistakes and stretch your travel budget as far as it can possibly go. It’s difficult to compare apples to apples as different ships sail to different ports at different times, but we found two similar cruises to compare. If you know the cruise line you’d like to sail, we suggest booking directly through them.
It usually takes a lot of digging and a little math to unearth real Royal Caribbean deals. But once you know what to look for -- and where and when to look -- spotting deals becomes easier. How much of a bargain is a cheap cruise that requires you to spend twice as much on airfare? For instance, you'll typically see more Anchorage-to-Vancouver voyages on last minute lists than the more affordable round trip Seattle itineraries.
ISLE SEE YOU IN GREECE THIS SUMMER
But many times, there is no huge advantage to booking a year or more in advance (although you will have more cabin options). A room with two people being charged an extra $5 per person, per day would rack up $10 per day — or $70 in room location charges over the course of a week-long cruise. That may not sound like much to some of you, but that comes about to about 4-6 drinks from the bar if you were to want to spend your money on alcohol instead. While not every cruise line does it, many will charge you different amounts for the same class of room in different locations of the ship. For example, a room on a higher deck will cost more than one on a lower deck.
Every week, Royal Caribbean publishes a PDF flyer online of their “Going, Going, Gone” rates. This list of last-minute cruise deals is one of the most convenient ways to check for the cheapest cruise fares available. Instead, keep your search flexible and search for cruises of varying lengths. Many experienced cruisers book repositioning cruises to get the best cruise deal. Cruise ships sailing in destinations like Alaska or northern Europe must move (reposition) to warmer locales in the winter months. Repositioning cruises include many sea days and are usually longer in length, so they might not be right for you.
In other words, you don’t see that much of a discount — if any — by waiting until the last minute. It’s no guarantee that you’ll get the lowest rate offered for your cruise, but these rules will help you be smarter about buying your vacation. The older ships are, of course, older, and they sometimes don't have quite as much to offer on board as the newer ships. While there are many cruise travel hacks that still work, there are also specific things you can do to actually find those great deals and promotions this year.
You'll have to act fast if you want in on these days because by week’s end, most of the deals are gone. In exchange for this ambiguity of room selection, you can often save hundreds of dollars off your cruise fare. One way to turn an average cruise price into a great deal is to let Royal Caribbean pick your exact cabin. The most common type of repositioning cruises are transalantic and transpacific cruises, where the ship moves between North America and Europe or Australia. The great thing about the Voyager and Radiance Class ships is that you are not compromising a ton on the onboard experience, but will save a lot compared to the bigger ships. Though not as exciting as sailing for free when you book a large group cruise, small group perks are out there too.
Alternatively, a private tour guide for a group may not always save you money, but you will usually get more value out of a small-group tour that you can customize to your preference. Your cruise ship's spa or boutiques will often host seminars about wellness practices or understanding gemstones. These events are really marketing plays to get you to sign up for spa treatments or buy shoe insoles or jewelry. However, they often convince people to attend by giving away spa credit or jewelry in a raffle. If you've got nothing better to do on a sea day, you might show up in the hopes of winning something. Spa tours and port shopping lectures also run raffles (plus you might get a free massage for a minute).
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