Best time to book a cruise?

The very best time to book is far in advance. Heck I just booked a cruise a year and 4 months in advance. But that far is not necessary at all. Most of my cruises, I book between 6 months to a year in advance. You get a early book fee which lowers the price. But sometime last minute(a month or less before), you can also get good deals. But that's only if the cruise has not filled up. Many cruises are full when final payment is due which is usually about 90 days before sailing.

Some cruises are so popular they fill up very quickly. For instance a launching of a new Cunard ship the QM2 was 100% booked in 22 minutes after the bookings opened. But that is rare.

So if you want a certain cruise, book it asap. Then watch the price over time. If it drops before your final payment you can often get the cheaper price by calling your travel agent. So there you go.

These words of advice from someone who cruises three or four times a year; book early and cruise deals and specials. The cruise lines typically have the best prices for those who book early and then the price starts to go up as the cruise date nears. There are a very few exceptions to this but in general you get the best deal and your best choice of cabin if you book early.

In addition, for the most part the cruise line will refund you the difference if the price drops, IF you have not made your final payment. The final payment will be due about 65 days before the cruise so any time up to that point if the price drops you can call and get an adjustment.

All of the cruise lines list specials on their web site. So you can look for specials and book those and get a good deal.

My advice is book early and then watch to see if you find a lower price and if so you have up until that "final payment due" date to cancel and get all of your money back. And these days the last minute deals will be about a month or so before the cruise date and not a few days or week before hand. cruises do sell out.

It is usually better to book further in advance. You can sometimes get a good deal at the very last minute if you live close to the departure port city and can be ready to go with a month or less notice and are willing to take any stateroom since the cabin choices become very limited. If you have to fly into the departure port the airline fares are usually so high that any money you save on a last minute cruise are usually lost by the cost of the airfare. I like this website to help me easily sort all of the cruises by departure port, destination and cruise line to make it easy to see when you can get the best deal on the cruise you want: http://www.kqzyfj.com/click-3894326-9224301

The best deals these days are for advanced bookings. All the holiday cruises and flight providers got wise to people waiting for the bargains at the last minute. They put out the best price early and it increases as the departure date approaches.

I got caught a year ago. I checked a flight price and it was around £50 return. A month later it was £75. I still thought that a last minute booking would be the best way but with 1 week to go, even with plenty of vacancies the cost was £125.

It is good that you are not too picky about the cruise you want to go on. This means you will probably be able to book last minute and get a really good deal. If you are flexible with your dates then this will be perfect.

Being a travel agent, I usually recommend my clients book well in advance since they are guaranteed to get a good deal and a good selection of staterooms. I would also recommend you check with a travel agent before booking yourself, because sometimes they will have promo groups in place that can get you a lower price plus extras. Just be wary of one that nickel and dimes you to death. It is common for a travel agent to take an administrative fee(non-refundable(this is mainly due to a lot of price shoppers)) and a service fee for airfare. Keeping this in mind, you can get some great deals if you work with a good travel agent.

Booking early is better because the cruise that you like could end up selling really fast