Booking early is more important than ever

I know there will be people reading this who will not agree with me but, there’s sometimes a fine balance as to when to book your next cruise.

Book too early, and what happens if the cruise line subsequently drop their prices? Will you get reimbursed, or what?

Book too late, and will you get on the cruise at all?

So, I’m going to be fairly diplomatic here, and answer as follows. There are occasions when it could never be too early to book…  and, there are occasions when it might, but that’s not a certainty, be better to wait to see if the price reduces.

The first option of booking as early as possible is the best way to go. I can think of quite a few reasons to justify this.

Top grade accommodation on cruise ships invariably sells the first. Top suites are always harder to find the longer you leave it.If you are looking for specific cabins, in particular positions, then you’re never too early to book. Travelling as a family and want either interconnecting or adjacent cabins and again, you must book early.Want a particular itinerary that is unique is another reason. Limited dates that you can travel to fit with work, personal commitments, and here’s yet more reasons as to why early booking is essential. I can think of many more reasons but I will let you think here for yourself.

With river cruises, these can book more than a year in advance so, if you are wanting to cruise the Danube or the many other European rivers, they are so popular, you’ll never be too early.Okay, before I move on to reasons why a late booking could suit you, let me cover a rather frequent comment I have heard for years.

The price has gone down since you made a booking. Why is this point relevant I sometimes ask myself. If you went out and bought items from your local high street shops, and months later, those same items went on sale, you could not expect to return to the shops and ask for a refund…   so, why do people sometimes approach their travel agent and expect a refund because the price of their cruise has been reduced by the cruise line.

My advice is make your choice and then look forward to the trip without looking elsewhere for the same trip to see if you could have got it cheaper. This practice does not stand up if you’re buying from any high street shop.So, when is it worth hanging on and booking late.

Clearly, there are occasions when making a late booking may be beneficial. Think of the opposite to all those reasons I gave to book early.Guarantee cabins are banded around a lot. This is simply when you agree to buy at a vastly reduced price, a specific grade of accommodation. The cruise line will then assign the cabin for you and it could be anywhere on the ship, at least of the grade chosen. You have no comebacks if you don’t like the cabin offered, so beware!! Also guarantees often mean the cruise line will decide when you will dine and you’ll get no other incentives like onboard spend, car parking.

I hope this blog wins the case for booking early!!