Paul&Karen Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 We have been cruising with RC for sometime now and booked our current cruises (2) about 5mths ago for Christmas cruises. I like many of us, get the emails in regards to cruise deals ect. Just received another email stating that there is currently a 30% for the 2nd passenger through RC. Though Hmmmm might just check this out. So after doing the normal checks and balances (online with RC) found out the deal it isn't a deal at all and still quite abit more money than originally when we booked 1st cruise we saved $600 on a Suite, 2nd $800 on a Balcony. So another email, comes in from another company offering deals for all cruise lines. Thinking Hmmmm try again, with the "deals" even more exspensive. Is everyone else seeing this sort of thing???? Not saying in any way or form that it's "false advertising" but when is a deal "a deal". Yes I understand that when we booked sometime ago prices can go up and down. Travel safe, Paul and Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melski94 Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 Over time, I find my cruises almost always go up in price. The earlier I book the better deal I receive regardless of the current sale. It is very similar to airline tickets. You are booked on a Christmas cruise which is one of the most expensive weeks to cruise and I am not surprised that the price has gone up that much. Sometimes, I find the price goes down but the savings aren't huge as the biggest savings come from booking early. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChessE4 Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 I think you just decide what a fair price is for the itinerary, ship, stateroom, and time of year you want. I used to go by the rule of $100 per person per day. We lived near Baltimore, the ship was small, and we could get an Ocean View room for about that price. Now for Europe, the amount per day quickly changed to about $150/day/person. When we are ready to book and we can get those prices or close to it, we pull the trigger. Some relocation cruises are cheaper, and the Harmony Coco Cay grand openings were much more. Now the actual costs are more when taxes, gratuities, excursions, trip insurance, and everything else is added in. But at least I have a "ballpark" number I can use to compare cruise lines for similar ships, itineraries, and dates. As Matt has posted, older ships and off-peak periods offer the greatest discounts -- I see that Galveston is cheaper than Orlando, all things considered, but the ships are different. The only two real discounts I have seen from RCI is this: The discount for the 2nd person in a room is sometimes 50% and other times 60%. The other discount seems to be kids or extra persons in the same room. I am not going to lose any sleep over $100 (50% vs 60% discount on 2nd person for a 1-week cruise). So I had this all figured out until my wife decided she really likes balconies, so now I start all over again.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FManke Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 That's the elusive question. I think in the end, everybody just has to be comfortable with the price you are paying. Chasing that "best deal" is exhausting and addictive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hagar Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 The world of "BOGOHOAX" can soitenly be frustrating After 30 years of cruising with Royal I agree that booking when the deployment is released is the best overall route to take. Booking later usually involves comparing other ships and/or sail dates if you are truly bargain hunting. Finding one or more that isn't selling well is key since those will have the best promotions and qualifier discounts (senior, resident, military etc.). Lastly, booking after final payment isn't as lucrative as it once was but there are some carrots "out there." Final is now due 90 days out which can help with booking reasonable air too (was just able to book a qualifier rate earlier this month for AN on 8-1 so I do know this is still effective ;>) ChessE4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 Few rules that we follow: - book early and watch prices - usually the BOGO 60 or 30% off sale yields the best price. (That promo usually alternates with the current one) - KSF if you qualify also yields a pretty good deal. - instant savings come and go so those are not a big deal ChessE4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickinSTL Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 I feel its a deal if its less than I expected to pay.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fuzzywuzzy Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 I booked our August cruise the day after last Christmas. I checked Friday and found it to be $600.00 more than it was then. Early bird, worm? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DunkelBierJay Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 It's a deal based on the price the day you see the promo and your willingness to take advantage of it. Past pricing is irrelevant. mom2mybugs 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RWDW1204 Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 We're on Oasis in November. Booked it last May. We, and our travel agent, kept looking for price drop or better deals since then. They've now added more discounts, military and balcony, but that initial price went up $2800 with no OBC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FloridaCruiseGirl1210 Posted June 23, 2019 Report Share Posted June 23, 2019 I find the best deals are booking ahead of time or extremely last minute (I know not the case for holiday cruises and not always accessible for everyone). I booked my upcoming Adventure trip in April of last year... yes you read that right... 700+ days ahead of time.... Whats interesting is that the price has not once gone down. They did offer extra OBC with the same price a few weeks after we booked which our TA was able to add but other than that... no price drops at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2mybugs Posted June 24, 2019 Report Share Posted June 24, 2019 6 hours ago, FloridaCruiseGirl1210 said: I find the best deals are booking ahead of time of extremely last minute (I know not the case for holiday cruises and not always accessible for everyone). I booked my upcoming Adventure trip in April of last year... yes you read that right... 700+ days ahead of time.... Whats interesting is that the price has not once gone down. They did offer extra OBC with the same price a few weeks after we booked which our TA was able to add but other than that... no price drops at all. We did the same with our trip this summer...the price has gone up and up and never ever went down. We thought about adding our daughter to the trip and it sold out. That makes a difference too...if it’s popular the price will just go up as demand increases. Definitely book early! Jane Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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