Discount Cruise Vacations

Believe it or not, discount cruise vacations are a lot easier to locate than you might think. If you know where to look and when to book, you may very well enjoy special incentives, huge discounts up to 75 percent or more, and you might even score a sweet cash back deal here or sizable credits! So you want to know how you can save on your next cruise? Continue reading to find out more.

How to Find Discount Cruise Vacations

Cruise lines prefer to sell out far in advance, so you may enjoy discount cruises just for booking well in advance. On the other side, cruise lines also offer discount cruise vacations for booking at the last minute. If cabins are still available several weeks or so before the cruise departs, prices may be reduced as much as 75% off the regular rate.

Other ways to enjoy discount cruise vacations include: booking off-season, taking advantage of package deals, booking online, 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.

If you don’t mind booking off-season not only will you enjoy big discounts, but you will also enjoy smaller crowds, and discounts and lower prices on everything from excursions to shopping. You’ll find the most discount cruises during the 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.

Besides discount cruise vacations for groups and families, just about every cruise line also features special rates for seniors. 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 cannot 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 discount cruise vacations 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.

For more discount cruise vacations visit any of the following popular discount cruise websites or discount booking search engines listed below to check out the lowest prices on cruises, to shop and compare, and you can even book your cruise right online!

Kayak.com
Expedia.com
Orbitz.com
Travelocity.com
CheapTickets.com
VacationsToGo.com
Cruise411.com
Cruise.com

To find out more about discount cruise vacations, you can visit any number of cruise review websites to read reviews from real passengers, with real experiences. While there are many cruise review websites to choose from, some of the most popular (and reliable) cruise review websites include:

Cruisecritic.com
Cruisereviewsonline.com
Cruisereport.com
Cruisedirectonline.com
Cruisemates.com

Cruisecritic.com offers more than just reviews, this site has several search functions to help you find everything from bargains and discounts to theme cruises, and exotic itineraries. The site also includes features, news, planning tools, and a variety of cruise message boards where fellow cruisers can exchange stories and information.

Reviews, ratings, rankings, and popularity contests — at Cruisereviewsonline.com find out which cruise ships are at the top and which ones are not. Get other information on cruise lines, as well as information, ratings and rankings on embarkation ports, and ports-of-call.

Cruisereport.com offers the lowdown on cruise lines from A to Z. Unbiased reviews, cruise searches, quotes, and feature articles are just a few of the sites extras. You can also search for “the perfect cruise” and browse through news pieces about cruising. After checking out their ratings and reviews, you can also search for discounts and deals. With more than 50,000 visitors per month, Cruisereport.com has information on roughly 8,500 current sailings.

Cruisedirectonline.com relies on reader surveys to help keep reviews & ratings in check. In addition to cruise ship reviews and ratings, visitors to the site will find top ten and top thirty lists, as well as feature articles about the best of the best in the world of cruises. The site has other information about discounts, as well as information on roughly 12,000 sailings. Cruise Direct Online has been featured in Frommer’s Budget Travel Magazine, and on MSNBC, CNBC, MSN Money, and more.

Cruisemates.com offers short reviews and ratings. The two types of ratings include: star ratings and value ratings. Star ratings are based on one question — “how good is this ship?” One star is the worst, five stars is the best. Cruisemates.com takes everything from age and accommodations to food, service, and entertainment into account when rating the worlds cruise ships. Value ratings or “thumbs up” ratings are all about the “Bang for your Buck.” Five thumbs up means the ship is an excellent value while one thumb up means you won’t find much of anything that resembles a value here.