NY and BALT: what is the least busy time of year?

[ShakyBeef]

You won't be able to find out the kid count of any sailing until you're on it. Then, sometimes, the CD (cruise director) or some other staff member may announce it as part of a talk on stage, or on the TV show, or on announcements over the speakers on one of the days - just as a bit of specific-to-your-sailing demographics trivia. Or, I guess if you really wanted to know (while onboard) and hadn't heard it mentioned yet, you could go to GS (guest services) and ask.:)

[FireStation46]

If you are flexible look to cruise towards the "shoulder season".

 

We sail from NJ and will try Baltimore this year, Tampa the year after so we don't always visit the same places.

 

It is a easy drive to either port.

 

Sailing out of Florida will require a flight so luggage needs to be mananaged vs. what you can haul to the port if you drive there.

 

We tend to sail April/May. It is still cool to cold up here by not at our destination. I am not willing to visit the Carribean in the summer. We also like to avoid the Hurricane season (June to November).

 

As far as crowds it was never an issue. We did not realize out 1st cruise was during upsate NY spring break. We met a lot of nice teachers there and the teenage/kid crowd were behaved. The teachers liked to party!

 

On the last cruises there were a very, very few jerks but since we met so many at the Meet & Mingle all our Cruise Critic friends gave each other a heads up on who to avoid.

 

Regardless of the time, destination, or ship it really is in the attitude you bring.

 

Enjoy!

[luckyinpa]

there are jerks on cruises..tell me more

[RSLeesburg]

thats the part i dont get. this is literally the cheapest cruise of the year. so how can the demand be high? its like opposite day lol. i did figure would be heavy family week if they only have to take the kids out 3 days of school.

 

so how do you know the kid count on the ships?

 

 

When we booked Grandeur for Thanksgiving, I remember it being a bit less mark up than the cruises out of Florida. In terms of it being cheapest week, that does surprise me - although I have noticed that Grandeur sells well throughout the year, so prices do not vary too much.

 

As others have mentioned, we learned kid counts because they announced it while we are on board. Although, on our Bermuda cruise, I emailed the concierge and about a week or two before the cruise, he checked with kids club manager and could give us rough estimate of kids before we boarded.

 

We are heading out on our third Thanksgiving cruise this year on Harmony - great family vacation. Another thing to consider - Gem used to do 10 day cruise over Thanksgiving. That cruise would have less kids as it requires a lot more missed days from schools.

[Cuizer2]

Actually: the greater the demand, the higher the price ----- basic economics.

 

The reason for lowering the price is to increase demand.

[Cuizer2]

You won't be able to find out the kid count of any sailing until you're on it. Then, sometimes, the CD (cruise director) or some other staff member may announce it as part of a talk on stage, or on the TV show, or on announcements over the speakers on one of the days - just as a bit of specific-to-your-sailing demographics trivia. Or, I guess if you really wanted to know (while onboard) and hadn't heard it mentioned yet, you could go to GS (guest services) and ask.:)

 

Just ask the group counselors, they know.

[ShakyBeef]

Just ask the group counselors, they know.

 

Interesting, I hadn't thought of that option. But would they know the total 'kid count', or just those registered for camp? Many children, like mine, don't ever go to the camps. I suppose they would have both counts. But this is still information that the typical cruiser isn't likely to have access to prior to sailing. Staying in a Suite on RCI, as RSLeesburg did, one has access to the Concierge pre-cruise. But other than having that or some other 'insider' source, most cruisers can't find out the 'kid count' until on board.

[Cuizer2]

Interesting, I hadn't thought of that option. But would they know the total 'kid count', or just those registered for camp? Many children, like mine, don't ever go to the camps. I suppose they would have both counts. But this is still information that the typical cruiser isn't likely to have access to prior to sailing. Staying in a Suite on RCI, as RSLeesburg did, one has access to the Concierge pre-cruise. But other than having that or some other 'insider' source, most cruisers can't find out the 'kid count' until on board.

 

They know how many kids are on the ship, as they base their staffing levels on that number.

[navybankerteacher]

The reason for lowering the price is to increase demand.

 

Yes - but a line only lowers the price when demand is unexpectedly low; as soon as demand increases, the price will stabilize or actually increase. Lines do not just want demand, they want revenue - which is maximized when prices are as high as they can be without reducing demand.

 

At any given time, the greater the demand is (say at school vacation time, when it comes to cruises) the higher the prices will be.

[Cuizer2]

Yes - but a line only lowers the price when demand is unexpectedly low; as soon as demand increases, the price will stabilize or actually increase. Lines do not just want demand, they want revenue - which is maximized when prices are as high as they can be without reducing demand.

 

At any given time, the greater the demand is (say at school vacation time, when it comes to cruises) the higher the prices will be.

 

So then, you admit that lowering the price increases demand, which is what I originally said.

[RSLeesburg]

Interesting, I hadn't thought of that option. But would they know the total 'kid count', or just those registered for camp? Many children, like mine, don't ever go to the camps. I suppose they would have both counts. But this is still information that the typical cruiser isn't likely to have access to prior to sailing. Staying in a Suite on RCI, as RSLeesburg did, one has access to the Concierge pre-cruise. But other than having that or some other 'insider' source, most cruisers can't find out the 'kid count' until on board.

 

 

Yes. When I called the normal RCL vacation planners, I was told that their screens do not show them totals of people booked on the cruise - either in total or by age. The concierge told me that about about one or two weeks before the cruise, the shoreside computers start to send over estimated headcounts to ship, so Adventure Ocean Manager will get estimated counts for how many children are going to be onboard, and which age groups they will be in. But, this information is worthless for planning as you will not learn this until one week before you board...lol. We only inquired because it was our first cruise, and were told that out ship would have relatively few children on board - we just wanted to ensure that our son, who was 3, would not be only child on board - turned out there were about 12 in his age group, and I think he met and played with all them during the cruise.

 

But in general, the number of kids will be very high during popular vacation times - summer, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and winter breaks. Longer cruises and those in between the popular holidays will have children, but far fewer. That being said, another thing to consider - if you do go during holiday breaks, try to go on ship with more bells and whistles, as these will keep kids busy and (somewhat) out of trouble...

[luckyinpa]

i've been doing more research and oct 30 isnt much more and according to what i read not as much rain toward november for bahamas. just gotta take the hurricane risk

 

my guess is less families or large 'spring break' type groups on a week like this though. ive also been reading they shut kids activities down for 2 times a day so parents come get their kids on NCL which by definition will increase the population on the other areas of the ship.

[ShakyBeef]

i've been doing more research and oct 30 isnt much more and according to what i read not as much rain toward november for bahamas. just gotta take the hurricane risk

 

my guess is less families or large 'spring break' type groups on a week like this though. ive also been reading they shut kids activities down for 2 times a day so parents come get their kids on NCL which by definition will increase the population on the other areas of the ship.

 

If you're sailing over Halloween, there will most likely be costume contests/parties. Keep that in mind, in case you want to bring costumes.;)

[RSLeesburg]

i've been doing more research and oct 30 isnt much more and according to what i read not as much rain toward november for bahamas. just gotta take the hurricane risk

 

my guess is less families or large 'spring break' type groups on a week like this though. ive also been reading they shut kids activities down for 2 times a day so parents come get their kids on NCL which by definition will increase the population on the other areas of the ship.

 

 

On sea days, this is true on most cruise lines. But, as much as my son loves kids club, he would rather spend the day at the pool and go to club at night.

[navybankerteacher]

So then, you admit that lowering the price increases demand, which is what I originally said.

 

There is a difference between a " low price" and "lowering the price". Sure: lowering the price increases the demand - and as soon as demand goes up the price will go up as well. A price is only low when demand is low.

 

What you originally said was "the lower the price the greater the demand" - you seem to have confused "low price" with "lowering the price"

 

At any given time a low price means that the demand is low.

[luckyinpa]

On sea days, this is true on most cruise lines. But, as much as my son loves kids club, he would rather spend the day at the pool and go to club at night.

 

speaking of sea days. i actually figured them out . its almost 4 full days at sea during this trip. 46 hours after you leave NY then fri/sat. its an obvious thing i hadnt thought of before but this makes the room/amenities even more important as far as choices of ships and what you want to do/spend money on.

[RSLeesburg]

speaking of sea days. i actually figured them out . its almost 4 full days at sea during this trip. 46 hours after you leave NY then fri/sat. its an obvious thing i hadnt thought of before but this makes the room/amenities even more important as far as choices of ships and what you want to do/spend money on.

 

 

OK. A couple of things to consider - first, time of year. You mentioned that you can travel at any time but were looking at Nov. The Grand Suite on Grandeur is huge and it has a covered adult pool, which is great if weather is a bit nippy when you leave. Breakaway has way better entertainment, so which is more important to you. Second, have you looked at Anthem sailing out of Bayonne NJ. It has great entertainment and covered pool - so best of both worlds. Third, you should not plan on spending too much time in your room. When we sailed. We tried to get our son to bed early, so the bigger room with tub and DVD player was important to us, but if you are planning to be out and about on the ship, I would not be too concerned with the size of the room. However, I think it's been mentioned before, but the Haven suites are very nice :).

 

I still think Breakaway may be great option for you, but try pricing out Anthem too, just for comparison. But if you do go with Breakaway, I would take train to NYC and just stay downtown, as parking at pier is pricey.

 

Good luck.

[luckyinpa]

for the fun of it i checked out a 5 day grandeur in sept. GS is 3320, drinks would be 500 if we got the plan (is there a surcharge added like NCL?) internet is 20 a day i think. so thats 3920. which is 392 pp per day. so thats 1000 cheaper than my NCL price for 7 days.

 

but thing is, that NCL haven cruise is 4920 including the drinks and internet and even the 4 fine dining and 1 gig of internet. 4920 is 351 PP per day which incredibly is less than that GS on grandeur. i'm truly shocked. maybe i'm doing the math wrong?

 

but on an absolute term it is cheaper of course! which i will keep in my back pocket since i didnt realize how much all those other charges were (butler tip etc then parking is 280 in NY plus insurance) i have no doubt NCL would be 6000 when its all done.

 

 

15 a nite for parking in balt. 238 for insurance. is definitely cheaper than if i go NCL though.

 

 

rooms in the GS are under windjammer, is that an issue? i do like to manage every finite aspect of my research :) i do like the size of the GS!! and the balcony too and much prefer balt to leave out of.

 

regarding train to NYC, i cannot see us lugging that luggage to train and to cab and to ship. we do have a friend in the limo biz but unsure that would even be cheaper for us

[luckyinpa]

cheapest anthem listed is 5 day and the JR suite is 3200. roughly same as the grandeur above i researched. but at least i have an idea what that is. didnt research parking fees up there in NJ

[ShakyBeef]

Regarding the GS location on GotS, here's a post of mine from the "Don't book this (these) rooms" thread:

 

 

"We stayed in 8008 on Grandeur, and had no noise problems. There was a noise that I thought of as "rolling thunder" above us occasionally, that I assume was the cart traffic of which others have spoken. It never woke us (and I am a light sleeper), and didn't seem to occur more than once or twice a day. Each time we heard it, it only lasted a few seconds. No big deal.:)

 

Our door was loud in a strange way, though. It rattled upon opening and closing as if it had loose sheet metal inside the door itself. Again, this was no big deal, just odd.

 

The door to the crew area across the hall from us was very frequently in use, but the crew were almost always very quiet while doing so. The noisiest times for that area were understandably the first day and the last night, when luggage was being moved. Again, no big deal.

 

I would recommend this suite and will stay in it again with no hesitation.:)"

 

Here's a link to the thread. It can be quite useful to look up particular cabins with which others have had issues:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=41634040

 

Looks like you're well into your research. Carry on, soldier!:cool:

[luckyinpa]

this is a very good post that i found

 

NCL Breakaway cabin 14738 - a beautiful haven spa suite with haven access etc - with whirlpool bath in the room etc - the bad news, there are 8 treadmills above the cabin as it directly under the gym. Get ready to be awake at 6am every morning with continuous footsteps of treadmills

[ShakyBeef]

this is a very good post that i found

 

NCL Breakaway cabin 14738 - a beautiful haven spa suite with haven access etc - with whirlpool bath in the room etc - the bad news, there are 8 treadmills above the cabin as it directly under the gym. Get ready to be awake at 6am every morning with continuous footsteps of treadmills

 

Yes, under the gym on any ship is a bad location, unless you're a very early riser anyway.

[RSLeesburg]

If I recall, we stayed in 8514 and 8016 on our cruise - neither was directly under WJ but we did hear a little noise but not too bad. We noticed more noise when kids were running up and down the stairs out in the hallway. Even though they are carpeted, it sounded like underneath the stairs were hitting metal. It was weird. But, the location of GS is great - WJ and pool deck is one floor up, so easy to grab coffee or snack. The kids club was up two floors, which was great for our son.