Price drops?

[ERNLYN]

Can someone tell me step by step how to watch for price drops? What price to I look for for comparison?

[Keith1010]

You can just visit the cruise line web site and check the prices from time to time to see if they have gone down.

In the end it all comes down to supply and demand.

Keith

[ERNLYN]

Thanks Keith for your reply. Can you or someone advise me what specific price do I monitor? the price for the 1st and second passenger, before fees and taxes? or without the fees and taxes? or the brochure price? or some other price???

[jeffs713]

Total for the passengers, without taxes and fees.

[Ernie G]

Originally Posted by ERNLYN

Can someone tell me step by step how to watch for price drops? What price to I look for for comparison?

Ernlyn: As the previous poster stated the price changes based on supply and demand. Some people book a specific cruise a 1-2 years ahead of the sail date, some do 6 months, some do less. Normally, final payment is due 70-80 days prior to the sail date. In cases where cruisers have changed their plans for whatever reason and decide to cancel, the cruise cabin inventory increases. This normally creates a sale, but other sales may have already taken place. Several online travel agencies offer sales with increases in incentives (in the way of on board, pre-paid tips, complimentary specialty dining, etc.) on holidays - like 4th of July for Fall Holiday cruises and Christmas for Spring Cruises. As one poster said - keep checking prices for drops for your cabin category or an upgraded category. On RCCL, Celebrity and Azamara they generally occur on Tuesday. If prices drop before your final payment you should be able to get the lower price. Hope this helps.

[D&N LUV 2 TRAVEL]

I can only speak of what I do with regards to Princess but am assuming the other lines are similar.
When I book our cruise I record the Princess website price as a reference point and then compare that to the price I paid the TA.
Once a week I monitor the Princess website prices and if a change I notify my TA immediately who then passes on the savings to me. You need to do this yourself as your TA will not notify you. You also need to do it weekly because I have seen a price drop one week and the next week it was higher than originally booked. It's all about supply and demand.
Last year for example for my Feb/12 cruise which I booked in Mar/11 I received discounts at the end of May, June and July 2011 totalling $600. Not all TA's will pass on the savings so you need to ask that question at the time you book.

[tcw92]

the website is carnival.com/fareviewer

it will ask you which ship, sailing date, # of travelers and cabin type. Look for the cabin catagory and that is what you will go off of to see if you qualify for on board credit after final payment is made. you need to fill out the price protection form and submit for Carnival to review and they will email you to let you know if it was approved or denied.

[swoopest]

Here is NCL's Best Price Guarantee, from http://www2.ncl.com/freestyle-cruise...ice-guarantee:

Our price is the best price

If you find a lower published price for the same cruise on Norwegian Cruise Line, either on ncl.com or on a piece of communication directly from Norwegian, we will either:

• Re-price your cruise at the lower price
• Or, you'll receive 110% of the difference in the form of an Onboard Credit

How To Claim Your Guarantee

Just complete the "Best Price. Guaranteed." claim form and submit it online within 48 hours of making your booking. If it meets the Guarantee criteria and you choose to receive an Onboard Credit, we will automatically attach that credit to your account. Once you are on board the ship, you can use the credit however you please.