irondragon02 Posted February 23, 2020 Report Share Posted February 23, 2020 Hello all, I was wondering if it is common for the prices to jump a lot on these cruises. I am really mad at myself because I was looking to book a cruise for April 2021 with my family (4 staterooms required) but the deals were gone when I tried to book us all today. They gone up substantially because we lost the kids go free deal. Does anyone know if, or when these deals will come back? also should I book direct with royal Caribbean or with a Travel agent because of the large group. Any advice is greatly appreciated. The specific cruise we were looking at was... April 4, 2021 or April 11, 2021 on the Anthem of the seas departing from Cape liberty NJ and going to the Bahamas (7 Days). Thank you all for your input Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted February 23, 2020 Report Share Posted February 23, 2020 Yes, prices can go up and down often without warning. I always find it best practice to book early and watch prices for drops along way. You can re-price anytime before final payment date if you within North America. Neesa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thrifty99 Posted February 23, 2020 Report Share Posted February 23, 2020 The prices move around a lot. I’m surprised that April 4, 2021 had “kids sail free” as they normally don’t include weeks around Spring Break / Easter. It looks like Easter is April 4th next year. We usually book direct and track our cruise prices weekly for any drops. If you can find a travel agent who will do that for you with 4 cabins that may be beneficial. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deep1 Posted February 23, 2020 Report Share Posted February 23, 2020 We have April 4 this year on 5 night Western on Independence and it comes at a huge premium... Well over double what we spent on last years... I tracked its price all year and it never went down. Now it went up... A lot... This year those dates fell on school vacation. Thats why so high... Year before last prices we had been looking at shot through the roof and we figured "no trip" for that year... Next day fiance logged on from different computer and price was where we had originally seen it We booked right away... I have to wonder if they lock on "computer cookies" and know who's price checking... I clear cookies on one of my laptops and go in as a "stranger" now and then and often find things different when shopping for something... Baked Alaska 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ampurp85 Posted February 24, 2020 Report Share Posted February 24, 2020 Prices will jump like crazy because of promotions. Also there seems to be a ship premium, Anthem is quantum class so the price might be a bit higher to accommodate all the jazz. Also most holiday or spring break cruises seem to be at least 1.5 times the regular rate if not double. Like some of the others said book and reprice, a TA would save you the hassle of being constantly on the phone with RCI when anything happens. Baked Alaska 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neesa Posted February 24, 2020 Report Share Posted February 24, 2020 (edited) I second @Lovetocruise2002, I peruse to my hearts content, but when I land on something I place the deposit. I have three future sailings booked and every one of them have been repriced at a better rate or an added OBC from when I placed my deposit. I love MEI and specifically my advocate Sharla Manglass. [email protected] I have more then once received emails stating she checked the on going sale for my sailings, when this newest virus hit I called her and asked if anything could be done as an incentive for my sailing in the very near future, maybe a good will gesture, glad your still sailing OBC? I received an email a few hours later from Sharla "I'll do you one better! $300.00 OBC plus a Florida resident adjustment of $840.00 savings woot, woot!! Sorry so long winded but book NOW, place your deposits and then re price along the way, maybe you have a desired deck? Repricing when using Sharla is painless (for me lol) and the worst that can happen is you have an amazing sailing with your family. I watch the RCCL stock and peruse the prices about once a week, if they go down either Sharla has emailed me or I send a quick "can you take a look at this or that?" I literally saved enough money to almost pay for a quick 4 night I have in August 2020. Good Luck my friend, enjoy your sailing! *reprice before final payment, I always wait to pay at the very last minute just for this reason Edited February 24, 2020 by Neesa Thought added Chadster and Baked Alaska 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WannaCruise Posted February 24, 2020 Report Share Posted February 24, 2020 I find with our future cruises (Aug 2021 and Mar 2022) that the price constantly juggles between two numbers. One week it's A, next week it's B. Then maybe A - 50 with $50 OBC, but generally the total is either A or B. Ones that are now to a year away, have only gone up since we booked (and recently did a big jump so not expecting any price drop going forward) We also have Mariner booked end of summer. For awhile, it was included in the KSF, which surprised me as kids are still out of school for us, but I've noticed the past month, KSF stopped showing up for the cruise (even though it is int he main banner that the sale is on). My theory is that Royal realized that it is still summer for some and it is no longer included. I'm guessing though that this is not a normal case (and lucky for us, we grabbed KSF when we could which helped with our younger one). Either way, no harm booking the cruises as refundable (if not sure on the date) and then watching for price drops on a weekly basis. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StayFrosty Posted February 24, 2020 Report Share Posted February 24, 2020 My wife and I are both teachers so it is hard to make KSF deals work. We don't get out of school until the beginning of June and go back to school mid to late August. I'd love to take a cheaper cruise around this time of year... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hagar Posted February 24, 2020 Report Share Posted February 24, 2020 I enjoy the positive feedback on here regarding MEI reps and don't forget that the initial reservation doesn't have to include a deposit (except when booking onboard ship which I also highly recommend). Sometimes having a few days to ponder your navel can be reassuring ;>) Neesa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copteacher Posted February 24, 2020 Report Share Posted February 24, 2020 21 hours ago, irondragon02 said: Hello all, I was wondering if it is common for the prices to jump a lot on these cruises. I am really mad at myself because I was looking to book a cruise for April 2021 with my family (4 staterooms required) but the deals were gone when I tried to book us all today. They gone up substantially because we lost the kids go free deal. Does anyone know if, or when these deals will come back? also should I book direct with royal Caribbean or with a Travel agent because of the large group. Any advice is greatly appreciated. The specific cruise we were looking at was... April 4, 2021 or April 11, 2021 on the Anthem of the seas departing from Cape liberty NJ and going to the Bahamas (7 Days). Thank you all for your input I have booked an Alaska cruise in May 2021 for a large group. Went through John Ames, my agent at MEI, and he was able to save us a great deal of money over what RCI listed the cruise fare to be. The fare we received included a pretty good discount for a group and he put a courtesy hold on the entire group for 5 days to give us all time to commit 100 percent. This was also a refundable rate so we feel we got a great deal. I will always recommend MEI and John! Neesa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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