Where to get best deal on cruise for several cabins?

[Pat H]

The sticky is pretty old. I missed a good dela that ended 7/31 and I'm kicking myself. Want to go on a Princess 10 day Panama Canal cruise with several other people. There will probably be at least 10 cabins. My favorite TA is no longer available. Price is important. Suggestions?

 

[DeniseM]

Did you try www.vacationstogo.com ?

 

[Passepartout]

It depends on how much you want to act as 'group leader', but if so, and are going directly through the cruise line, your passage might even be free. Call Princess. Another way might be to book through (gulp) RCI. Their discount is not worth it when weighted against MF on one cabin, but the discount can be applied to multiple cabins, making it a pretty fair deal. Of course it isn't available on every cruise, or line, but you might get lucky.

In either of the above scenarios, it would be up to you to arrange, then collect from your friends. A responsibility I wouldn't want, but might be worth the risk, depending on the friends.

Jim

 

[Ken555]

I've recently gotten into cruising and just booked three cruises thru 2016. There are a number of online resources for finding and tracking cruise prices, and agencies beyond count for purchasing your cruise.

I've found www.cruisefish.net excellent at notifying via email when cruise rates change. It's worth the ~$1 per cruise to be alerted when potential savings occur (especially since prices may change multiple times per day).

Ultimately, I've decided on buying from Costco Travel (www.costcotravel.com). I've been very pleased with the phone support from them and they tend to offer the best, or one of the best, prices on the cruises. They offer on board credit on every (or almost every) cruise based on how much you spend and which cruise line you book. And, they occasionally offer other benefits (for instance, they offer free gratuities on Royal Caribbean for sailings thru 4/30/16 right now, though I believe this is expiring (for the second or third time) today, unless they extend it again).


Sent from my iPad

 

[Ken555]

In either of the above scenarios, it would be up to you to arrange, then collect from your friends. A responsibility I wouldn't want, but might be worth the risk, depending on the friends.

I don't think this is accurate. I believe you can simply coordinate the group and each participant would pay the cruise line (or travel agency) directly.


Sent from my iPad

 

[Pat H]

I assume you have to be a Costco member in order to book thru them? There aren't any around here.

 

[MULTIZ321]

I assume you have to be a Costco member in order to book thru them? There aren't any around here.

I don't think you have to be a member.

Go to www.costco.com/travel to check.


Richard

 

[Fern Modena]

Pat,
It appears that you can book without being a member, but that being one gives you shipboard credits of $200 and more for balcony cabins. You can join online, and have your membership card in about a week. Cost is $55., so it is a good deal.

You and your friends know that if they are retired or honorably discharged military Princess will give them $100. shipboard credit for cruises of 7-13 days ($50. for less and $250. for more). Also, if you own at least 100 shares of Carnival stock, you get the same amounts.

Fern

I assume you have to be a Costco member in order to book thru them? There aren't any around here.

 

[PamMo]

Check several websites because prices vary widely, and be sure you're comparing apples to apples. Some sites offer extras like "free" prepaid gratuities, beverage packages, shipboard credit, shore excursions, etc. Since the daily gratuities are mandatory on some cruiselines, that is a worthwhile offer, but other promotions may not be worth much to you if you have to spend money to take advantage of the promotion.

I just booked a VacationsToGo.com's "Daily Deal" cruise, which saved me $500/pp compared to other websites. They help with group cruises - http://www.vacationstogo.com/articles/cruise_articles_Group_Cruises.cfm It's always a good idea to check prices directly with the cruiseline, too, and check for any discount you may qualify for (past cruiser, over 55, military, govt, state resident promotions, etc.).

 

[Passepartout]

Sometimes checking different dates on similar cruises can save a bundle too. We want to take a repositioning cruise between Miami and Valparaiso Chile through the Panama Canal. It's just over half the cost to take it southbound in (our) winter as to take the same cruise/ship northbound in the Spring.

Jim

 

[PStreet1]

I don't think this is accurate. I believe you can simply coordinate the group and each participant would pay the cruise line (or travel agency) directly.


Sent from my iPad

That's been our experience; each cabin group individually calls the rep. to confirmthe tenative booking that was made to hold the cabins 24 hours. All billing is sent to the person who will be occupying the cabin.

 

[LisaH]

I assume you have to be a Costco member in order to book thru them? There aren't any around here.

Pat, The easiest thing to do is to identify a ship/date then shop for best deal. I am a Costco member. PM me and I will be happy to help.

BTW, used Costco a couple of times for cruise and their price was the best...

 

[PStreet1]

Check several websites because prices vary widely, and be sure you're comparing apples to apples. Some sites offer extras like "free" prepaid gratuities, beverage packages, shipboard credit, shore excursions, etc. Since the daily gratuities are mandatory on some cruiselines, that is a worthwhile offer, but other promotions may not be worth much to you if you have to spend money to take advantage of the promotion.

I just booked a VacationsToGo.com's "Daily Deal" cruise, which saved me $500/pp compared to other websites. They help with group cruises - http://www.vacationstogo.com/articles/cruise_articles_Group_Cruises.cfm It's always a good idea to check prices directly with the cruiseline, too, and check for any discount you may qualify for (past cruiser, over 55, military, govt, state resident promotions, etc.).

I was told by a TA that in order to keep their contracts with the cruise line under the rules now, they have to offer the same base prices as the cruise line on open cabins--but they are legally allowed to offer perks the cruise lines don't: prepaid grat./specialty dinners/spa treatments/on-board credit/etc.

He also said when the travel agent's company is large enough, they sometimes purchase and hold cabins on a specific sailing when it is first announced. Then, when the ship begins to fill and prices go up, they offer the cabins they hold at rates that are less than the cruise line is currently offering them, and that's why you sometimes see the rate per cabin being considerably less from a travel agent company (such as CruCon.com or Vacationstogo.com). They can sell them for less because they aren't open cabins.

He said, too, that the contract with the cruise lines is not the same for all cruise companies, so, for example, Royal Caribbean requires the base price to be the same, but Princess may not.

And that's just what I was told; there may be no truth in it.

We've generally--but certainly not always--gotten the best deals from Crucon.com, but the negative there is that if you decide to cancel later, you lose $100.00 per person, whereas with Vacationstogo.com that's not the case, nor of course, is it the case with a direct booking with the cruise line. Sometimes, we're sure enough about the booking that we don't mind the chance of losing $100.00 a person to get the better price; sometimes, we're not that sure, so we go for a deal with another company where we'll get everything back.

LOTS OF VARIABLES ON THESE THINGS!

 

[PamMo]

...LOTS OF VARIABLES ON THESE THINGS!

No kidding! This is very true. I figure if anyone can sniff out the best deal on a cruise, it's going to be one of our fellow Tuggers!!!!

 

[Ken555]

Sometimes checking different dates on similar cruises can save a bundle too. We want to take a repositioning cruise between Miami and Valparaiso Chile through the Panama Canal. It's just over half the cost to take it southbound in (our) winter as to take the same cruise/ship northbound in the Spring.



Jim

That sounds like a great cruise. Did you select one? I like the sea days...just booked three cruises (two of which are transatlantic).


Sent from my iPad

 

[Passepartout]

That sounds like a great cruise. Did you select one? I like the sea days...just booked three cruises (two of which are transatlantic).

We're still a little wishy-washy on it. Watching prices- including flights. Just 5-6 ports in 2 weeks. I like the sea days too. We did 2 T/A's 2 years ago- one each way (WB is best), and a transpacific (Tokyo-Vancouver via Russia/Bering Sea and Inside Passage) last year.

 

[PStreet1]

I was told by a TA that in order to keep their contracts with the cruise line under the rules now, they have to offer the same base prices as the cruise line on open cabins--but they are legally allowed to offer perks the cruise lines don't: prepaid grat./specialty dinners/spa treatments/on-board credit/etc.

He also said when the travel agent's company is large enough, they sometimes purchase and hold cabins on a specific sailing when it is first announced. Then, when the ship begins to fill and prices go up, they offer the cabins they hold at rates that are less than the cruise line is currently offering them, and that's why you sometimes see the rate per cabin being considerably less from a travel agent company (such as CruCon.com or Vacationstogo.com). They can sell them for less because they aren't open cabins.

He said, too, that the contract with the cruise lines is not the same for all cruise companies, so, for example, Royal Caribbean requires the base price to be the same, but Princess may not.

And that's just what I was told; there may be no truth in it.

We've generally--but certainly not always--gotten the best deals from Crucon.com, but the negative there is that if you decide to cancel later, you lose $100.00 per person, whereas with Vacationstogo.com that's not the case, nor of course, is it the case with a direct booking with the cruise line. Sometimes, we're sure enough about the booking that we don't mind the chance of losing $100.00 a person to get the better price; sometimes, we're not that sure, so we go for a deal with another company where we'll get everything back.

LOTS OF VARIABLES ON THESE THINGS!

Just got through talking----at length---with a Costco rep. because of what appeared to be a glitch in the software, but which turned out to be just weird pricing. He said several times, "I don't understand it; our price should be EXACTLY what the cruise line offers." Then, I clarified, and said, "That's what I thought: it's just the extras you're allowed to offer that make the difference, right?" and he said, "Absolutely."

So, that makes comparison shopping somewhat easier. You are only comparing the extras offered--base price for the cabin is the same (unless the company owns some cabins). As a result, I now know how the Costco shipboard credit from Costco works, too. In some cases, it's a good deal; in some, it's a stupid deal. On the one I was looking at it cost $253.00 to add that option from Costco, and the shipboard credit after doing that was $235.00. When I pointed out that would be dumb, he said, "Yes, but that's just the way our grid works."

 

[Pat H]

RCI and Costco have almost identical prices after factoring in the TPU's I would have to use. Does anyone know if the price goes down between now and the cruise, would we be able to get the lower price?

 

[timesharejunkie4]

RCI and Costco have almost identical prices after factoring in the TPU's I would have to use. Does anyone know if the price goes down between now and the cruise, would we be able to get the lower price?

I have always been able to get a lower price as long as it was before final payment.
I have used Cruise Vacation Outlet for my Mediterranean and Alaskan cruises and found their prices to be excellent. http://www.cruisevacationoutlet.com/
You can also use Cruise Compete, http://www.cruisecompete.com/. You tell them what you want and TA's will send you quotes.
Cruise Critic can be as valuable for cruises as TUG is for timeshares.

 

[Passepartout]

RCI and Costco have almost identical prices after factoring in the TPU's I would have to use. Does anyone know if the price goes down between now and the cruise, would we be able to get the lower price?

It depends. If you book direct through the cruise line, you can cancel/rebook at the lower price no problem. Discounters like CruCon or VacationsToGo often book blocks of cabins when a cruise is announced and will charge ($50-$100) to cancel/rebook at a lower price. You'd have to check with RCI or Costco about their policy.

This is one reason we shop through the discounters, then actually book direct with the line. Also, we've found that the cruise line sells blocks of less desirable cabins to the discounters and keeps the better ones themselves. Be sure to check the 'deck plan' of the ship you're on. Look at what's above/below the cabin you are considering. Are you above a smoking area or the galley? How far is it from the elevators? Might the view be obstructed (is lifeboat hardware outside the balcony)?

 

[LynnW]

Pat I sent you a PM

Lynn

 

[dioxide45]

If you are looking for 10 cabins, I would really suggest working with a travel agent. Perhaps could get some group discounts. In fact, you may not even be able to book these on your own through the websites. Most of the time, you need to work through the group booking department.

 

[dioxide45]

Interval International

I would also suggest looking at II. They often have member only rates that are not otherwise publicly available. So they may be cheaper than many other websites. We saved about $300 on our next cruise and a cruise for next year the cost savings is about $400 over Carnival.com.

 

[ibcnu]

If you are booking 8 or more cabins I believe YOUR cabin can be free under the "group" rate.

I wouldn't book with a travel agent if you like having control over your booking and cabin choices. If in the future you want to switch or move around, or people cancel, etc., you'll have to nail down your travel agent to make the change and they usually charge a fee per reservation to make any changes, working directly with the cruise company is easier. Also, if you use a travel agent and not direct with the cruise line, the cruise line will not speak to you about your reservation, price drops, or make any slight changes, etc., everything is through the travel agent.

Also remember to check around for travel insurance as it is important to have since you are going out of the country and not covered under US insurance, especially if you need to be airlifted from the ship. You'll need to buy the insurance within 7 or 21 days from the INITIAL deposit in order to have a "pre-existing condition" met. I would NOT cruise without insurance (over and above what you may carry in your daily life in the US). If you need help, I've used www.insuremytrip.com, they've been helpful both over the phone as well as online - but be mindful of that "pre-existing condition" that should be met.

As mentioned above, after you book monitor your cruise on cruisefish.net and submit refunds for any price drops. It's much easier to do this if you book directly with the cruise company rather than a travel agent because it takes time to get ahold of the agent and some don't like putting in price drop requests too often and sometimes by the time they get around to do it, the price might have risen.

 

[cissy]

Sent you a pm.

Chris