A few of our clients have asked if planning travel for 2022 is completely futile at this point. They’ve heard horror stories of trips being completely sold out, or with significantly reduced availability.
For example, Egypt river cruises are extremely popular right now, and I’ve been struggling to find clients availability.
Those having trouble finding what they want right now are people travelling with groups of 6 or more and with very specific dates in mind. Clients in this situation are booking into 2024 to get what they want (Egypt, for example).
If you’re looking for just one or two staterooms on a cruise OR the equivalent on a land tour, you can still travel in 2022 if you haven’t already secured a reservation.
Here are some of our observations about dealing with the high demand for travel products:
- Plan Ahead. It goes without saying that the sooner you make your plans, the more likely you are to get everything you want.
- Be Contrarian. If you want to travel over Christmas or Spring Break, you’ll be competing with many more tourists. Consider travelling slightly off season (for whatever product you’re considering), and you’ll have more options. You’ll probably save some money too.
- Be Flexible. For some reason known only to the travel gods, east-bound river cruises in Europe sell faster than westbound (even though the itinerary is identical). It makes sense to look at both directions. On the ocean, round-trip ocean cruises sell faster than ships that embark and disembark in different locations. The only explanation I can think of is that in the old days, round-trip air was much cheaper than open-jaw itineraries. This is no longer the case.
- Watch Cancellations. The cruise lines make it very easy to book a trip, with little money down, and little in the way of cancellation penalties up to about 4 months prior to travel. It’s right about this time that we see spots open up. People like to have trips on the books, but when they have either make their final payment OR enter the penalty phase is when we find out if they are serious. Some are not, and those spaces open up. Some cruise lines and tour operators maintain wait lists. Others do not, so you have to be looking.
- Extra Space is now Open. When the cruise lines first came back into service about a year ago, many were only loading to 50% capacity. As conditions improve, the cruise lines will have higher load factors, so more cabins are opening up. If it was sold out two months ago, it might be different now.
- Look at Domestic Options. In 2020 and 2021, clients were mostly choosing domestic travel, and availability was really tight. Things have lightened up a bit now, so availability is better. For example, if you want to go to Alaska this summer, there is good availability for departure dates in May through September.
Today’s Travel Opportunities
Douro River in Portugal with AMA Waterways – FLIGHTS included
AMA just opened up 7 additional sailings for November and December 2022. This itinerary was largely sold out across all the river cruise lines, so this represents a real opportunity.
- Visit Mateus Palace, do a wine tasting at Pinhao, sample port wine in Porto, and enjoy the food and scenery in Portugal and Spain.
- Prices start at $5499 per person for a French Balcony stateroom on Nov/Dec. 2022 departure dates.
- AMA includes a shore excursion in every port, beer/wine with meals, onboard fitness and wellness classes, Wi-Fi on the ship, flights, and airport transfers.
SilverSea Alaska or Baltics – 50% OFF Second Suite
This is a great opportunity to explore with friends or plan a multi-generational family reunion this summer. Book by May 31st and save 50% on the second suite. Here are a couple of examples.
- Alaska:
- 7-nights from Anchorage to Vancouver departing June 30th. There are other departures in July and August as well.
- Window suites from $3950, and Veranda Suites from $4450
- Baltic Sea:
- 7-nights from Stockholm departing June 28th. Other departures are available in August.
- Visit Talinn, Helsinki, Riga, Visby, Gdansk, and finish in Copenhagen.
- Window suites for $2950 per person, and Veranda Suites from $3250 pp
- These prices are for the first suite (save 50% on the second suite).
- SilverSea prices includes airport transfers, shore excursions, all beverages on the ship, unlimited Wi-Fi, and gratuities.
Viking River and Ocean Cruises
The folks at Viking have created a marketing machine, and as more travel continues to open up, Viking is ramping up their marketing even further. In addition to their publicly visible advertising, Viking also does micro-targeted promotions – meaning they will send a particular promotion to a very small group of people – applicable only to them. These promotions represent some terrific value, and you are wise to take advantage of these if you receive them.
Please keep in mind that we can improve on ANY offer you get from Viking. We can get you a minimum $100 per person on board credit on ANY Viking cruise, in addition to any discount or promotional codes they send you directly (or that you see on their website). I’m pointing this out because multiple times just this week I’ve been asked by clients whether they need to book directly with Viking to get the deal that’s being offered. I really appreciate those who asked! But it also means there are many more of you out there who are under the impression that you must book directly with Viking to get the discounted price or extra perks.
If you’re considering a Viking Cruise (or recently booked direct) please get in touch as soon as possible. We can often get you a discounted price or extra perks that are NOT visible on the Viking website. You’ll want to act quickly, because some promotions end May 10th (others end later in the month) and availability can be tight.
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If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sue Bradley
Sue Bradley
