Alaska Cruises - Last Minute Bookings

[Taer al Saefer]

Hi all -

We are planning on taking my aunt on a cruise from our home port of Seattle/Vancouver to Alaska this year. Problem is, my aunt is the biggest flake I will ever meet. We no longer book anything with her involved until the very last minute. That being said, does anyone have any experience booking last minute cruises to Alaska? I'm worried that the prices will be jacked up, or it'll sell out early.

 

Thank you!

[CruiserBruce]

Define "last minute". A day or two? A week or two? A month or two?

 

If it is one of the first two, yes, the ship may be sold old. Certainly the choice of cabins will be very limited...which may leave you with very poor choices, particularly if sharing a cabin is the plan.

[geoherb]

We've waited until after the final payment date to book our last two cruises to Alaska. If you're flexible about dates, it can pay off. The latest I booked was about eight weeks before the cruise, so it may not have been as last-minute as you're thinking of.

[Taer al Saefer]

Define "last minute". A day or two? A week or two? A month or two?

 

If it is one of the first two, yes, the ship may be sold old. Certainly the choice of cabins will be very limited...which may leave you with very poor choices, particularly if sharing a cabin is the plan.

 

See, this is the thing. My last cruise was booked 45 days prior and we were given an oceanview GTY, and got extraordinarily lucky with cabin choice. The issue with my aunt (and her boyfriend) is that they live halfway around the world, run a business, and take care of my great aunt so if she gets sick, they're not coming. However, if they tell us they won't know until two weeks prior, or two months prior, and historically speaking it would become a huge challenge, then my mother and I are planning on bailing on her to go to Europe. We just aren't sure how much time to give her to let her decide.

[Eaglecw]

We live in the Seattle area. We cruise to Alaska every summer. If you think you’re going to get a last minute deal it’s not going to happen. Every ship sailing out of Seattle will sold out, it’s been that way for years. Princess has cut back the number of sailing to keep the numbers up and demand up. The last time we got a deal was in 2007 and it was about 90 days out and it wasn’t all that good of a deal. If you want to cruise to Alaska, now is the time to book. Princess has some pretty decent offers going on now. We just booked last week for the second week of June and the cabins we wanted we couldn't get.

[BJS]

See, this is the thing. My last cruise was booked 45 days prior and we were given an oceanview GTY, and got extraordinarily lucky with cabin choice. The issue with my aunt (and her boyfriend) is that they live halfway around the world, run a business, and take care of my great aunt so if she gets sick, they're not coming. However, if they tell us they won't know until two weeks prior, or two months prior, and historically speaking it would become a huge challenge, then my mother and I are planning on bailing on her to go to Europe. We just aren't sure how much time to give her to let her decide.

If I'm understanding correctly the Alaska cruise for you and your mother is just for your aunt. Go to Europe unless Alaska is a place you want to cruise more than Europe.

If your aunt can book now and you want to travel with her to Alaska give her a week or two to decide. I hope she is the one paying and takes out insurance to cancel for any reason.

[COMBOY]

Alaska is seasonal from early May to late Sept with June July and Aug the most popular and warmest months. It you plan to travel those months you might find many sailings sold out. But May to early June and late Aug thru Sept are considered off season and you have a better chance of finding available last minute and at good discounted prices. Of course the weather during those times might not that optimal and much cooler than Jun, Jul, Aug. The best thing for you to do is find a good travel agent that specializes in Alaskan cruises and let him or her watch for minute deals. They have all discounts and availability at their finger tips. You might find last minute space on peak sailing but I won't count on any large discounts. Better deals are found on off peak sailing dates. The other issue to factor in is dining time. If you want early fixed seating - forget it. Most everyone wants that time on Alaska cruise that so you either have to go with traditional second seating or Anytime dining.

[frugaltravel]

Every year I have seen great last-minute cruise fares for Princess' one-way cruises between Vancouver and Whittier. Often they are $299-$399/person plus port fees. I took advantage of a great fare several years ago. Though I have looked at lot since then, and seen great deals, I have not been able to take advantage of them since.

[moki'smommy]

Cruise fares may decrease on any remaining cabins as the sailing date nears, but airfares generally increase.

[jcruise20]

Last year, I was lucky to get a cheap fare on RCCL Explorer (rt SEA) in one of the awesome ceiling to floor window cabins, about 60 days out. However during my research I saw most prices going up. Alaska is a different beast is more like a gambling.

[jdvmd]

Airfare may be a problem, at least cheaper airfare.

[Wishing on a star]

We cruised from Whittier/Anchorage to Vancouver, a similar route is the Northbound from Vancouver up to Whittier.

We did not book last-minute, but I have seen promo fares from around final payment date. Especially early in the season, and late in the season. We sailed late May. You might not be so lucky in June-July-Aug.

We had booked in advance, and I considered cancelling, and hoping for one of those fares.... But we really wanted to keep our specific cabin category/area. Turns out, we probably could have pulled that off, and saved some money on our cruise. Cabins were still available.

 

So, having said that....

1. Who is paying... is this a nice gift/goodwill gesture that you all will be paying for. Or will she pay?

I am am thinking that you are trying to make the arrangements and also pay for this Aunt, who finds it hard to commit until close to travel.

2. One can cancel, within a certain number of days after final payment, and only forfeit the deposit.

Keep that in mind when deciding when you should either finalize or cancel your plans, based on her ability to make the cruise.

3. GET cancel for any reason insurance, if you really want to be able to cancel right up to departure date. One major insurance company, we all know the name, offers specialized cruise insurance that I think you can purchase up to that date that you make final payment. Get good third party (not by the cruise/air carrier) that will cover the whole trip, door-to-door.... departure to return home.

[Cruise Raider]

We just got a very good deal on Celebrity up to Alaska last year ... booked after final payment date (a little over a month out). We had to choose a guaranteed cabin (OV) but were upgraded to a concierge balcony. It was such an awesome cruise at such a great price. Is that a last minute deal? Well, I think so. I know some friends were onboard that paid a couple thousand more than we did and in a lesser cabin category and fewer perks. We didn't mention what a great deal we had gotten as that just makes for awkward conversation. Oh, BTW, it was in mid-May. We also sail up to Alaska often, mostly in September and those ones have sold out early so no last minute deals there. The May ones, not so much in my experience! I don't travel in the summer for the most part so can't speak to those sailings.