Book Early Or Wait ?????
As a lot of passengers know P&O and Cunard are about to launch their new itineraries for 2013 on the 21st April.
Now being honest I have very mixed views on bookings early. I have had a few unhappy passengers lately that have booked as soon as the brochures have been released then later down the line the cruise liners have decided to cut prices or offer free upgrades. Yes you can get some really good prices BUT all late deals are based on guarantees which this causes a lot of problems when travelling with families and friends.
There are a lot of advantages for booking early BUT also disadvantages.
Advantages :
1 * You will get On Board Credit and extra discounts for past passengers.
2 * Families : Three and Fourth berth cabins are always very had to get hold of and with most ships only a 20% occupancy, so you do have to book early.
3 * Single cabins and disabled cabins. There are not that many on board ships and single cabins can go up by 100% supplements if left late to book.
4* You can actually book your cabin number and know exactly where you need to be on board.
5 * Confirm dining times rather than being waitlisted.
6 * If you need cabins next door to each other OR opposite.
7 * Free parking at port.
Disadvantages :
1 * Prices being reduced.
2 * No On Board Credit.
3 * Cabins being on a guarantee basis, which could be anywhere on board even an obstructed cabin.
4 * Dining times being waitlisted and not being advised till you are on board.
5 * No availability for 4 berth cabins and having to do two cabins on a guarantee basis which could mean that you are all on totally different decks.
6 * No Free Parking.
What’s your view on booking early when brochures are released ??? Do you book early OR would you wait ???
Would be good to hear your thoughts on this ???
3 Comments on “Book Early Or Wait ?????”
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About Me
My name is Michelle Fennelly and I have over 28 years of experience in the travel industry and cruising is my passion. I have worked for Cruise.co.uk for the last 6yrs which I absolutely love, before then I have worked for Air200 – Airtours / MyTravel – Tomas Cook. I…
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Second edition P&O brochure shows around Britain cruise 7th August on Adonia for a suite AB £4499 pp. Nothing about on board spend or free parking. The Complete Cruise Brochure shows same cruise and suite at £4529 with £270 pp on board spend. http://www.cruise “Ultimate Upgrade Sale” brochure, same cruise, same suite £2149 pp plus £270 pp on board credit! We booked this on 15th March 2012 and are so glad we hadn’t made an early booking. It may be that the cruise lines are having a difficult time, and perhaps our luck wouldn’t always hold out.
Our first cruise ever was on the Ruby Princess for a special anniversary last year and we were so overwhelmed by it we came home and booked another cruise for this year on the Crown Princess which being an identical ship which we love we have secured the same stateroom but this was booked 6 months after the brochure came out so apart from a discount for being a member of the Captains Circle we got no on board credit and paid quite highly for said cruise. We could now get a mini suite for less than what we are paying which is quite disappointing but as you point out there are some down sides to what you have to accept in late bookings so we will pay the price and look forward to the new itinerary. We have won in another way as we managed to get booked on the first day of booking on the new Royal Princess for June 2013 and our category as sold out being the maiden voyage and the next prices for a balcony are now nearly £1,000 more expensive for two of us, so some you win and some you lose.
There are just two of us and we are retired, so we keep an eye on the late deals and cruise more often than we could if we booked well in advance.
Many retired people do have minor health issues and perhaps six or twelve monthly hospital check-ups, late booking ensures you don’t delay important health checks too.