Article - Cruises - AllCruiseNetwork.com

DISCOUNT CRUISES

When vacation time rolls around every year, we all hunt for the best value.  Planning for a cruise is no different.  It might seem like taking a cruise would be too expensive for many, but it is not so hard to get a discount on the cruise you want.  It is important to make sure that the discount you are getting is actually a good value.

Everyone has different priorities when planning a cruise.  Are you interested in a particular cruise line?  A particular cruise destination?  Do you want a particular type of room?  Do not sacrifice personal enjoyment for a cheap cruise.  However, the more flexible you are, the more discounts you will find rewarding.

Below are six different ways to get discounted cruises.  One is certain to be a good fit for your travel needs.

Book Early, Save Big
This discount is widely available for most destinations and from most cruise lines.  If you book well enough in advance of your travel date, the line will give you a discounted fare.  These discounts are often not the very cheapest, but an advantage is that you generally get the trip you want, in terms of destination, lodging, cruise line, and amenities.  Because you can still get the cruise you want this way, this discount can be the most attractive.  Even with the large number of cruise ships out there, cruises do sell out, which is a risk you can avoid by booking early.

Wait until the last minute
This discount is the biggest gamble.  Preferred destinations and staterooms often sell out first, and so you may not have many choices left.  However, sometimes you can get lucky this way.  The prices are generally the best this way, because cruise lines are looking to fill up empty slots quickly.  If you are flexible as far as where you want to go, when you can go, and the type of room you want, this could be the choice for you.

Go with a group of friends
If you can convince co-workes, relatives, and friends to go with you, you could get a “group rate” for your trip.  Not all cruise lines offer this option, but many will work with a group to fill up a number of vacancies at once.  While this may not be as high a discount as a last-minute discount, you can get many of the amenities you want by booking ahead with a group.

Travel Off-Peak
If your line of work permits you to travel during one of the “low” seasons for cruise lines, you can save a lot of money.  The Carribean “hurricane season” is a great time to travel, because rates are rock-bottom.  While this may sound like a dangerous time to travel, it is fairly easy for a cruise ship to move to a calmer part of the sea, well ahead of the hurricanes.  Also, hurricanes move so slowly over the water that cruise ships can easily evade or out run them.  If you vacationed on a land resort, you would be a sitting target for a hurricane.

Value Added Upgrades
While this sort of discount does not make your trip cheaper, it can give you upgraded amenities for the same price.  Examples include stateroom upgrades or on-board credits, which is money placed in a type of account that you can access while you are on your vacation.  Bottles of wine in your stateroom or cruise-line logo wear can be additional upgrades.

Return Client Discounts
If you have gone on cruises in the past, you will be offered this sort of discount to take more trips with the same cruise line.  There may be a wide variety of discount offers that you receive.

No matter what discount you choose, and no matter what your destination, a cruise on one of the premier cruise lines will be a vacation to remember!