msmayor

Some will take that deal ..

The up sell I got was to go from an inside guarantee to a balcony guarantee for $150 each...so ultimately $599 each for a balcony. Less than the $749 they are at now and less than any stateroom we ever had...and those were ALL insides.

Since this trip is more about relaxing on the ship than being active in the ports, I think we will really enjoy having the balcony.

I spent $250 for one day in a cabana at Labadee...for me that makes $300 for a whole week with a balcony a bargain.

Do I make any sense?

 

Sorry, doesn't make sense to me. Your correct, there is a lot to do around Port Canaveral, but the weather from December thru March can be a bit iffy. It could be in the 80's, but it could also be in the 50's. If I'm going to spend the money and get on a ship from New York or Boston, in the winter, I want to go someplace where I know it's going to be warm. I think Port Canaveral is just a way for the cruise lines to save money on fuel costs.

 

 

Aft Cabins Rule

You have to realize, though, that when sailing from NY (I don't think anything sails from Boston Dec-Mar) there is only so far that ship can travel and return to NY in 7 days...the Bahamas is pretty much it (Bermuda, but that's in the summer). Even the Bahamas can have cooler weather this time of year because its just not the Caribbean.

Anything that goes to the actual Caribbean from NY needs at least 8-9 days to do so, and that eliminates a lot of folks who can only get 7 days off from work.

I think it is weird that in checking 6 times a day (at least) on assignments I never find it first on the luggage tags!

Often it shows up on MY Account before HAL sends the email alert, but not until later on the luggage tags!

Do they send an email when its been assigned? If so I'll have to watch for that like a hawk.

I'm keeping the fact that I upgraded our guarantee from an inside to a verandah from my husband; I don't want him to see it until we open the door and he sees the sunshine!!

This is my first experience with a HAL guarantee...our last cruise was on RCL and our guarantee was assigned 3 days after I deposited, about 6 months from sail date.

We are just 3 weeks away and I check my booking every day to see if its assigned, even though I know it probably won't be until the last minute. There's still a fair amount of rooms open, but it appears the upsells for suites are done. Those categories now show "sold out" as of a day or two ago.

I did get an upsell call...$300 total to go from an inside guarantee to a verandah guarantee. I took that one easily, and now THIS cruise will be our first verandah stateroom instead of next year's 10-day. I'm keeping it a surprise for my husband; we're both SO ready for this vacation after working a lot of hours through the holiday and into the new year and he will flip when he realizes we can enjoy evening cocktails and morning coffee right on our own balcony.

That is available in the library only, but every day, too.

Good luck! Some of those questions are hard!

I know!! I was determined to try and get mine 'posted' as the best of the day, and managed once! Of course, I have no idea how many were actually playing, but it was neat to see it posted.

Crazy how such a simple activity could add such fun to my vacation. Its something my husband and I actually talked about looking forward to though once we settled on HAL for our upcoming trip.

This is by far one of the best sail aways to watch live each year.

I'll have to try and watch today...looking forward to actually experiencing it in person in four weeks!!

I will have to make sure my DH and I check for the Times when we are in the Westerdam in 4 weeks. I know he will enjoy that. I remember getting a daily trivia quiz each day of our Veendam cruise...does anyone know if that is also always available? I am looking forward to doing that again...

Your TA probably said 'three weeks' so that IF you are interested in coverage for pre-existing conditions and/or cancel for any reason, you will still be able to get those options. Most policies sold only allow those options if you purchase the insurance within 14-21 days of the initial deposit on the trip.

I agree that its a good deal even with the lower on-board credit. The fact that you don't have to put down such a large deposit means you hold on to your money longer.

We did the Coba ruins on our trip last year and certainly enjoyed them...despite the long day.

We took a ship excursion to be certain the ship would be there for us. We were escorted off the ship first to a waiting ferry for the ride to the mainland, then boarded buses for the drive to the ruins. Very informative guide on the bus who gave us a great history of the Mayans and explained what we would see.

We had about 90-100 minutes at the ruins. Our guide took us to a few of the sites and explained what we were seeing (really helpful, and gave us a great sense of what life was like there) and then we were able to be off on our own. The nice thing about Coba is you can get up close to the ruins and climb...my husband made the trek up the largest structure there and said the view was incredible.

We got back on the bus and stopped for a late lunch at a restaurant in a cave near the ferry. Very tasty!! Then we were off to catch the ferry, again skipping lines by arrangement. Pulled up to the dock, walked on to the ship and within 30 minutes the ship dropped lines and was off.

FULL day, but well worth it. I did this excursion because my husband really wanted to see the ruins, but I ended up liking it so much I can't wait to see more on a future trip.

You may want to try what we are doing. We are from Philly and flights from here to FLL are costly the times we need to fly. Our cruise leaves from FLL also the day before yours.

 

We are driving down to BWI airport in Baltimore. We are only paying about $237pp RT on Southwest.

 

It would save you at least 12 hours of driving.

 

Bill

I second this option. We found a great park and fly rate at a Marriott right near the airport, so we drive down the night before our flight.

For that extra 45 min drive we get more flight options at better fares and less crowds.

We've always let our wait staff know if we will be missing dinner...they always appreciate the advance notice so they can focus on the other guests. We've often been told that they DO worry a bit when people are 'no-show'...they are afraid it is because the food or service is lacking. Its reassuring to them that it is only because you are choosing to dine someplace else for a change.

Thanks. We also did GTY last time and received assignment a few days after booking (less than 10 days before sail date). Then I saw the price for a verandah (VH) GTY has dropped since I last checked and I just need to pay a bit more to upgrade myself ... plus getting OBC. I called PCC but got voicemail so called main customer service line instead. We paid the price difference, and told her our preference (near forward elevator) and we got a VB assigned right away on the phone. Then 4 days before sail date we got the suite upsell email. Very good value but by the time I call back all suite were gone.

That sounds awesome! Not sure we would upgrade if prices in the categories above us drop; it depends on how much to upgrade. We're trying to keep this trip economical (splurging on Vegas in the fall!).

I'm just happy to be getting on another ship. We cruised last year at this time after a hectic holiday season for me (I work retail) and a tough year end for my husband (he does financial reporting) so by the time March rolls around we are both burnt out. Unhooking from the real world and heading to sea is a great way for us to recover.

I already told my husband if bad weather prevents us from flying into FLL for our next cruise (which leaves on a Saturday), we will call out of work Fri and start driving Thursday night. Even if we fight some bad weather getting into the Carolinas we should still be able to get to FLL by Friday night, plenty of time to catch the ship.

To rely on airlines getting their schedules back in order with a storm of this magnitude in any time less than a week is unrealistic. Travel is sure to be disrupted through the week in the northeast as things settle down once the sun comes back out.

I wonder if the op gets "special pricing" and didn't sign into the website to get it. I can't imagine how the PCC would be able to get anything better than the usual pricing.

I'm not sure how the lower price was available. I did check pricing both before and after signing in...it was identical. My PCC quoted me $50pp less.

Its a guarantee, so no idea yet where our stateroom is. To quote my husband..."who cares, we'll be on the ship!"

To update...as you can see by my signature, we ended up booking the Westerdam. Got a price (total...with insurance) about $160/day for two. We're very happy with that price.

We took HAL's platinum so we can cancel for any reason. I know not all agree with the insurance but now that a blizzard is headed into my area of the country its nice to know that if weather prevents us from getting into FLL in six weeks, we get a good chunk of our investment back.

I watched the prices of all the RCL ships we were looking at go UP in the last week. The HAL cruise is a day or two longer than the RCL trips for less money, so we're content. Our PCC at HAL got us a price less than the website currently shows.

First time I've ever had two cruises booked at the same time...and first time I've been able to START a countdown with so few days to go. Its always been well over 300 days...

USD $449pp was the price we paid for the Eurodam 7-night over Christmas. We booked it 2 weeks prior to sail date.

The PCC I am working with at HAL told me that pricing may very well be the bottom for the time frame we are looking. Since it is within a month of Easter, bookings are stronger and the need for bigger drops isn't there.

Considering the rates I've seen for hotels in FLL and some of the surrounding areas, that rate for a cruise still represents a great bargain. Room, food AND entertainment for 2 for less than $200/day? Not bad...not bad at all.

Thanks all for your comments...

Right now I have a chart posted on my fridge of all the ships leaving FLL/Miami/Tampa/Port Canaveral on the weekend we arrive. I went to one of those websites that lists all the ships in port on a particular day and made the list of possibilities.

At the bottom of my list is Carnival and NCL. We've been on Carnival before and not a particular fan of the overall atmosphere of those ships (and on vacation, we want to feel GOOD about where we are) and hesitant on NCL. I have RCL on the list but won't consider Oasis or Allure...I have zero desire to be on those enormous ships.

At this point in our lives, we remain tied to specific vacation weeks and due to the work my husband and I do, we can't take advantage of all the great deals before or after the holidays. That will wait for retirement.

I'm taking Hank's advice and contacting agencies. I've already found one that has a stateroom price cheaper than what I see on line...

You have already eliminated (in your mind) many possible deals since you are looking at one cruise line for one port. With an airline reservation to FLL you also would be able to take advantage of deals out of Miami, Port Canaveral (just get a one-way rental car) and there are multiple lines using these ports. The key to getting great deals is expanding your horizons :).

 

But since you mention Spring Training, that sets off my internal alarms since you might be up against "Spring Break" which is not often the best time to snag good prices or be on any ship :)

 

Hank

Thanks Hank...we are looking at Miami as well...even Tampa. Port Canaveral is certainly a possibility...I actually put a chart on the fridge with about 10-12 itineraries and the current pricing, just to keep track of what's out there. We're four weeks before Easter so early enough from 'true' Spring Break for most families.

Its just so weird knowing I'm going on vacation in a few weeks and have no clue what I'll be doing....

There can be some low prices after final payment, no doubt. But there can also be cruises that are sold out as well, leaving you without a cruise.

 

Do you have your airfares? If you do, you run some risk of having airfares w/o a cruise. If you wait until last minute, the increase for last minute airfares may take a significant bite out of your cruise fare savings.

Just bought the airfare the other day, so we are committed to FLL.

There's quite a few available staterooms on the HAL cruise we're watching; we're also watching some RCL ships too...about 6 in all.

If we don't get on a ship, no worries. We'll just stay on land and bum around FL for the week. Spring training will be underway and we're big baseball fans.

I did just get a quote from a HAL PCC for $449 for an inside guarantee. For a whole week? Sure I can live with that price.

So my husband and I are doing something we have NEVER done in our 27 years of marriage...NOT pre-planning the heck out of a vacation. Scary but fun, really!

We have a week already approved and we knew we wanted someplace warm. We love cruising and decided why not do what some folks do and hunt for a 'last minute' deal...something after final payment date passes and prices fall?

We don't care about ports cause we're literally just looking to relax and use the ship as our retreat. We may still get off to wander about, but no plans for excursions or shopping trips.

Anyone have some insight as to when the best time to snag the last minute deal will be? Anyone know what the lowest fare for a 7-day inside guarantee is? I know I've seen some cruises get to $399...is that the floor?

My very first cruise was 1985, Carnival's Tropicale, out of Los Angeles....we had streamers and confetti on that one,

My husband and I are going to try doing just this next March. We have a week of vacation but no plans yet, and really just want to be someplace warm. We're going to grab some airfare to FLL and just keep looking for a great deal. We don't care what ports and will look at all the cruise lines...just to be relaxing on a ship will be enough for us.

I haven't sailed Celebrity, but did sail the Veendam to Bermuda and wouldn't hesitate to do so again...docking in Hamilton was fantastic.

When we wanted to ferry to St. George, it was a short stroll to the ferry dock where we waited with about 20-30 people. When we got over to the Dockyard for the stop prior to going to St. George, the line was enormous for the ferry (two other ships docked there at the time).

When we wanted to get a bus, it was a short walk to the main bus depot where we could board any of the buses in the terminal, and getting back was so simple because all we needed to do was find a bus stop and board at the right colored "pole" (blue for outbound from Hamilton, pink for inbound to Hamilton).

If possible, I would consider sailing in January or February. Not sure if those months are an option, but if they are I would recommend them. Not too busy and good weather, maybe some occasional light rain during sea days. I think we only had one day were it was overcast and we had light rain for about an hour while at sea. The rest of the cruise was magnificent! But we were sailing to Mexico.

Those months are really outside the 'season' for Bermuda cruises...they port there regularly from late April through late September. Cruises may stop there for one day as part of longer itineraries but to stay more than one day you need to plan for spring and summer.