We build Deal Pages at Cruisedeals.com for the best deals in cruising. I have to update the pages as prices change. In November and December, everytime I would update a deal page the prices were dropping. Now, I cannot keep up with the prices as they have come off never before seen lows and they have started going back up.
The last week of December 2008, I told readers that this would be the best week of the year to lock in the lowest prices for 2009 Cruise. Click here to read The Calm before the 2009 Booking Storm.
Even as pricing goes back up, the prices are much lower then they have been the past 3 years. I will give you some examples of current deals that are trending upward in price. If you want to go on one of these cruises, I recommend booking it quickly to get these prices.
Carnival Elation 5 night Mexico out of San Diego on Jan 24th was $239 at the beginning of the week and is now starting at $279. The least expensive date on this Itineary is now February 2nd starting at $269 per person.
A lot of the price increase are subtle, like the 5-Star Celebrity 5 night Western Caribbean cruise out of Miami on Valentines Day, was $299 yesterday and is $309 per person today. I know that is only a $10 difference, but it illustrates that fact the trend in pricing is upward which we have not seen for a few months.
Typically, the closer in the cruise the faster the prices fluctuate. The sailings that are in peak season from June – August will also fluctuate quickly as families plan their summer vacations.
If you are looking at a particular ship and sail date, you can write a comment in the comments section and I will tell you when I think will be the best time to book that cruise. I am not always 100% accurate, but I am pretty close…
One last deal that is one of my favs that has started slowly trended upward in price: May 24th, 2009 14-night Holland America Alaska roundtrip Vancouver today is at $887 per person with a $100 ship board credit for the cabin. Earlier in the week it was priced at $873.
4 Comments
January 10, 2009 at 11:10 am
I am probably going to book a cruise to Alaska around July 19 timeframe. It will be for 6 or 7 people (one being my 13year old daughter). Can I wait to book this and still get a good deal? We’ve done this with Royal Caribbean before.
January 10, 2009 at 11:24 am
Debbie,
July is peak season and Alaska is one of the most popular destinations. We have 50% deposits for Royal Caribbean and we honor most rates all the way up to the time of sailing with Royal Caribbean…so if the rate drops you get the lower rate… Plus you are going to need two rooms with 3 or 4 passengers those are more limitied too.
The 50% deposits will not be around long, so I advise booking this trip soon!
here is a link to all Alaska Sailings during that time frame: http://tinyurl.com/9smyc8
January 10, 2009 at 2:05 pm
Hi, here via Twitter: My husband and I are taking our parents (both sets!) on a cruise in 2010 for their 40th anniversaries (and our 5th). We’re trying to encourage other family members to come along. We could have as few as 6 people and maybe up to 12 or 14. We would prefer to use Celebrity, as we feel the service on board is the best. We’re leaning towards Alaska because my MIL is freaked by the idea of not seeing land! What do you suggest?
January 10, 2009 at 5:05 pm
Charity –
My opinion is begin having this same exact conversation with a trusted cruise consultant and with your family. If you feel like you can get the momentum going with your family then start the process as soon as you can. Celebrity Alaska 2010 sailing are not available yet so you would need to wait for that destination.
I am sure that you would like to get up to 12 – 14 family members to join you. When there is potential for 6 or more cabins we set the cruise uip as a “group” it gets the group special amenities and it locks the price in for 30 – 60 days. So you do not want to officially set up the group until you think you can get everyone to put down fully refundable deposits. The initial deposit in some cases is as low as $50 per person, so it usually pretty easy to get people signed up for the cruise.
Alaska is a one of my favorite desitnation for family groups. Here is a link of a family review of the RCCL Rhapsody of the Seas Alaska. They ended up booking a lot of cabins and had a wonderful time:
http://cruisesource.us/2008/07/22/royal-caribbean-alaska-cruise-review/
Rich Tucker