I'm not advocating that people should book early, but this is my own experience. I was curious about the change in price of my previously preregistered cruises, and the actual price today. R217 has virtually doubled in price. J301 is now sold out, but the price did increase before becoming unavailable. R320 is £500pp more for a lower grade cabin but there is more OBC. R401 again more expensive for a lower grade cabin but loads more OBC. All of these are select fares after shopping around. So for me, right now, I haven't lost out by booking early on any of these cruises, in fact I would say I got the best deal on these particular cruises. Having said that, if you want the cruise, and happy to pay the price, then don't be put off if the price drops. It's swings and roundabouts. Sometimes you win.