Late vs Early Booking: When to Book a Cruise for the Best Price
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Though the busiest season for Mediterranean cruises is typically July and August, the temperatures can be unbearably hot (85 degrees and higher). The advantage of traveling in the shoulder season is that you can experience the towns without the summer crowds and with cooler temperatures. Therefore, cruise lines often offer their best fares when bookings open to incentivize travelers to book early. For example, as of March 2023, I can book a cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line through spring or fall of 2025, depending on the ship. All this talk of the best time to book a cruise raises the question of how far in advance you should book.
The worst months to cruise the Caribbean - Cruise Blog
The worst months to cruise the Caribbean.
Posted: Tue, 23 Jan 2024 08:00:00 GMT [source]
Best time to cruise the Mediterranean: April-May, September-October
Weather is drier and warm in December, making the early part of the month a great relaxing getaway. Rain is generally limited to the Southern Caribbean, including islands like Aruba. Ocean temperatures in the winter hover around a pleasant 79 degrees and average highs and lows in St. Kitts, for example, are 85 and 74 degrees, respectively.
Best time to cruise Bermuda: April-June
The summer months bring the warmest temperatures, most wildlife viewing opportunities, and longest daylight hours. If you are hoping to participate in outdoor activities while in Alaska such as hiking or whale watching, the summer months are your best bet. June, July, and August bring more crowds and higher cruise fares, but offer the best temperatures for water and beach activities. You can enjoy snorkeling, jet skiing, kayaking, and relaxing on the beach during these months.
Best time to cruise Hawaii: June-August
However, November through March in Australia is also typhoon season, which may affect some ports of call (particularly in the northeast) and lead to some rough waters. Aussies generally vacation between late December and January, so expect big crowds and jammed ports during that time. Whether you want to have a summer vacation or a winter getaway, the weather somewhere in the Caribbean is always warm and welcoming. Summer is the height of the Alaska cruise season, which means crowds in port towns, especially when several ships are in port at the same time. You might have to wait hours for a table at Tracy's King Crab Shack in Juneau. Cruise ships arrive in southeast Alaska in spring, stay the summer and linger only into early fall.
May – October
The risk of rainfall rises as the summer advances, so anyone planning a cruise will find that early summer has a lower chance of rain in many destinations than later summer. Fall, especially September and early October, is not a bad time to cruise to the Caribbean – unless you are a worrier or someone who can't go with the flow when travel plans go awry. That's because the autumn months are the peak season for hurricanes and tropical storms. When it isn't stormy, it might still be a bit warm and sticky for some early in the season. But many travelers head to this region specifically to see the dazzling fall foliage, in which case the best time to visit is October.
Even though modern cruise ships are all designed for stability and passenger comfort, it is always more pleasant to be a passenger when traveling through calm seas. The Bahamas have average high temperatures in the upper 70s Fahrenheit or mid 20s Celsius from January through March. Nassau is still a good one-day stop for its attractions, but a Bahamas-only cruise is not a good choice during this time of year for beach goers. They reach the destinations with the warmest temperatures, such as Aruba, Curacao, Panama, Costa Rica, and Cartagena Colombia. People who love beaches may find that winter in the Caribbean brings cooler seawater, especially in more northern destinations such as the Bahamas. It is especially true during the Caribbean hurricane season, which lasts from the beginning of June to the end of November.
When to cruise the Mediterranean for the best weather
That said, you are in Alaska at a time for festivals and other special events, and frontier towns really come alive. Just be sure to do your due diligence early, set email alerts and have the right travel rewards card ready. Offering a rare mix of high rewards rates and redemption flexibility, this card is a dream for frequent spenders on travel & dining – while charging a modest annual fee.
Back home, everyone else is busy buying turkeys and cranberries and catering to the in-laws. You, however, could be lounging on deck sipping a frozen tropical concoction while waiting for your samba class to start. While most of the season offers moderate fares, if your cruise dates are limited to holiday breaks, be prepared for prices close to double what you'd pay during the few weeks before that. Except for the weeks that include holidays, ships aren't likely to be at capacity or filled with screaming children. Fares in winter are a bit below the yearly average (excluding the holiday weeks, which are often the highest of the year).
Also, you can get some great deals on pre and post-cruise hotel nights close to the port and eliminate the worry of missing the ship. For other cruise lines, you can apply the same strategy or also search one month before your vacation and pick up great last-minute deals. There is a great deal of stateroom availability in the cruise industry overall. Of course, that’s difficult for most people that must plan their vacation in advance. Several times during the year the various cruise lines will have special promotions that can reduce the cost of booking by over half.
The beginning of September is much like August, but after the kids go back to school and the family crowd departs, it's shoulder season for cruising and pricing drops. Most cruise ships will have repositioned out of the state by the end of the month. You will experience a change of season, with cooler temperatures (in the 50s or lower) and some rain. The shoulder seasons may not be the warmest, but they typically offer better pricing than summer cruises. For example, a 14-night sailing to the Baltic with Holland America is $949 in early May 2023 but $1,329 in mid-June. Summer is from May to October, and winter falls between November and April.
If you have your sights set on a high-demand sailing — on a new ship or during school holiday dates — the best time to book a cruise will be as soon as fares are released. This is the only way to guarantee a spot (and secure a particular cabin location). The best time to cruise to the Caribbean is, somewhat unintuitively, early December through mid-February.
This strategy is best for cruisers who live close to a homeport and don't have to rely on last-minute airfare. Also, beware of booking late when you have to fly to reach your homeport. The cost of last minute airfare could eat up your cruise savings, and the hassle of obtaining the necessary visas, hotels and transportation could further diminish that initial deal. This is also the optimum time to sail the Caribbean, with long dry days and calm trade winds. A cruise is a fun and convenient way to discover new destinations and spend a relaxing vacation with family and friends. Whether you’re a first-time cruiser or a seasoned veteran, there’s always something new to discover on the high seas.
When you choose to apply (and are approved) for a new credit card through our site, we may receive compensation from our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information. In actuality, most cruise lines will sell available cabins through the day before sailing, but limit or deny same-day bookings.
For the least chance of a rain shower (but the hottest temperatures), take a cruise to Hawaii in June, July, or August. For the best prices, look into voyages that sail in November and early December. There isn’t really a “bad” time to cruise to Mexico’s west coast, as the weather ranges from balmy to hot the majority of the year, and cruise ships sail there year-round.
For the best weather, book your cruise during the dry season, between November and May. December, March and April also offer nice weather, although the rainy season sometimes starts as early as mid-March before continuing through the fall. For example, in May 2023, you can sail on a seven-night Western Mediterranean voyage from Barcelona to Rome with Princess Cruises starting at $699 per person. If you prefer to travel in the fall, you can still find a good deal on the same itinerary for $848 per person in September. Since you'll have the greatest choice of ships midsummer, you might luck out and find a one-off deal if you can be flexible about ship and sail date.
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