Last MInute

[macka]

Hi Folks.

 

Did Our first cruise, Crown Princess last Year and fell hook line and sinker for Cruising.

 

We'd love to go again, but money is tight and it's just out of our reach, even though the prices seem pretty reasonable compared to what we paid last time. Is it it possible to get even cheaper deals right at the last minute? We spoke to some folks on the Crown, who actually waited quayside in I think, Galveston and got fantastic deals. We don't have the luxury of being able to wait in the sunshine at Galveston, but would Southampton England be possible, or would a last minute phone call produce a result?

 

It's that or nothing for us I'm afraid.

[spongerob]

I doubt you could wait at the pier and expect to get on board if someone didn't show up. It might be possible to look at short notice prices within a few weeks of sailing to see if any bargains pop up. You could certainly do that in the US, but I'm not as sure about the UK. It doesn't hurt to look, however.

[cacy6893076]

It is maybe different in the uk but the us no longer allows you to wait at the pier for last minute deals for homeland security reasons. The cruises are "locked down" to new passengers at the 24 hour prior to sailing mark and no new passengers are added after that point.

[Bill B]

You can register for the 'Standby' program for the port of Southhampton on the Princess website to get 'last minute' deals.

[Colo Cruiser]

I registered for the last minute sailings several years ago and have never received a call.

 

The longer you wait the less chance of a cheaper price as Princess sells out their ships on a weekly basis.

[InterNettie]

I signed up years ago for last minute deals and no one ever called me either. Were retired and live in florida. I would love to hop on a ship at the last minute for a cheap deal just to get away. I dont care about where as I been an extensive traveler for years. We no longer fly due to blood clots and being hospitalized in Ireland for them, so we took up cruising about 9 years ago and use to take 2 cruises a year. We like the food and nightly shows and spend most days napping and reading otherwise, so hoping on a ship for a bargain price would be a dream. I have checked lots of web sites for unsold cabins and last minute deals and dont find any. Sometimes I laugh because the "so called last minute deal" is more than we ever paid on any cabins when we planned them out. We dont plan much anymore since we just feel like getting away and would simply like to drive to the port and get on any ship, except carnival. Were too old to enjoy carnival.

 

If there is truly a way to get an unsold cabin at a bargain I would love to hear about it.

[caribill]

If there is truly a way to get an unsold cabin at a bargain I would love to hear about it.

 

A good travel agent can inform you about last minute distress sales.

[RickEk]

A good travel agent can inform you about last minute distress sales.

 

 

Yes, let the TA know that you want to be informed of "Flash" promotions. These are limited time promotions that they run to fill a ship.

[Grannycb]

No calls from Princess here either. I don't think they do that. I've seen last minute cruises posted at My Dream Deals. That's located on the My Princess page. Most of the time there aren't any listed. Once there were two or three great deals that we couldn't take advantage of because we were already booked for the dates.

[rcacace]

In past years I haven't received any "last minute deals" but in the last few months have received a few great deals like yesterday. A Grand P Caribbean 14 day trip for $799 (inside) or balcony $1,399 on Mar 27. I don't know if you would consider this a last minute offer but it's an indication that the ships aren't filling to capacity any longer.

[envy4u]

Find a good website and monitor the cruise you want to take. Going a little off season helps.....ie.. going to Europe in Nov. Look for flash promotions which ususally happen after final payment when the cruise lines want to fill their ship. Many people hold cabins and then change their minds just before final payment.