In tough economic times, the first category that consumers will attempt to cut is “luxuries.” Unfortunately, travel is considered more of a luxury than a necessity for most, so when times are tough, the travel industry is among the first to suffer financial losses. More people are opting to stay home during their vacations rather than book a flight or hop on a cruise. This is why cruise lines are currently offering excellent deals and cruise discounts on sailings just to get people cruising!
If you are willing to consider taking a cruise during your upcoming vacation, you could enjoy some of the best cruise discounts the industry has ever offered. Not only this, but besides offering cruise discounts as an incentive to get people cruising, cruise lines offer cruise discounts for booking early, booking last minute, booking off-season, booking online or booking with a group.
Cruise lines prefer to fill up way in advance, so you may enjoy cruise discounts just for booking far in advance. Cruise lines also offer cruise discounts for booking last minute. If a cruise lines have a good number of vacant cabins several weeks or so before any given cruise departs, prices may be reduced by as much as 75%.
If you don’t mind booking off-season, not only will you enjoy big cruise discounts, you will also enjoy smaller crowds, and discounts and lower prices on everything from excursions and shopping to dining and hotel stays. You will find the most cruise discounts during slow or shoulder seasons in year around destinations. The following is a list of destinations and their slow seasons: Alaska, May and September; Bermuda, April-May and September-October; Canada/New England, July-August; the Caribbean, late April-May, September-early January; Hawaii, late August, late November, and February; Mexican Riviera, early January and May, October-November; Eastern and Western Mediterranean, March-April and September-November.
Other ways to enjoy cruise discounts include taking advantage of special senior rates and booking with popular cruise lines. The world’s most popular cruise lines include: Carnival Cruise Lines, Celebrity Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Disney Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line, Oceania Cruises, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean, Seabourn Cruise Line, Regent Seven Seas, SilverSea Cruises, and Windstar Cruises.
A senior is typically defined as a person who is 55 or older. If you are a senior, in order take advantage of senior rates, you can’t book online. There are two ways to book if you are a senior: you can call a cruise travel specialist or book directly with the cruise line. Keep in mind that proof of age is required. To enjoy cruise discounts for groups and families it might be a good idea to book your cruise through a cruise travel specialist for the best deals or if you have a cruise line in mind, contact a live cruise travel agent.
To find the best cruise discounts, visit any of the following popular discount booking search engines or websites below to check out the lowest prices on cruises, to shop and compare, and you can even book your discount cruise right online!
Kayak.com
Expedia.com
Orbitz.com
Travelocity.com
CheapTickets.com
VacationsToGo.com
Cruise411.com
Cruise.com
To find out more about cruise discounts, you can visit any number of cruise review websites to read reviews from real passengers, with real experiences. Some of the most popular (and reliable) cruise review websites are:
Cruisecritic.com
Cruisereviewsonline.com
Cruisereport.com
Cruisedirectonline