One question we are often asked is “when is the best time to book a cruise?”. This is a really good question in the context of Black Friday & Cyber Monday. Is this really a good time to buy a cruise or packaged land vacation?
Maybe… but most of it is pure marketing hype when you dig into the details. Like the retailers you deal with at home, the cruise lines have different pricing strategies that may impact what you’ll pay. Here’s a look at those strategies, and who employs them:
Book Early to Save. With these products, the earlier you buy it, the better the price you’ll get. Companies that employ this strategy actually increase prices the closer to departure. In some cases, it is done on a calendar basis (prices go up on X-date), or on a capacity basis (the first X cabins are at Y, price, and then it increases after that). Explora Journey and Oceania use this pricing strategy.
Wait to the Last Minute to Save. Companies that sell this way, sell as much as they can, and then when it gets close to departure, they mark-down what’s left to try to get something for it. When a ship leaves, and a cabin is empty, it is the very definition of a “perishable” product. You can do well if you’re buying this type of product, as long as you’re not set on your dates, or fussy about what type of cabin you want. The mass-market cruise lines employ this strategy – so it’s worth waiting if you’re flexible. We see this a lot in the Caribbean market.
Precision Marketing Campaigns – Companies that market this way use big data to finely target their marketing strategies and pricing. There is normally a set price on these products, but there may be dozens of highly targeted promo or discount codes. Such promo codes usually offer extra amenities, but sometimes have additional discounts or credits. Viking is master of such campaigns, but we have seen other companies try their hand at it as well.
Pandemonium Marketing – This is where there is no discernable patterns to the pricing strategy, and the cancellation and rebooking conditions are punitive enough to rule out re-faring. In this situation, it is possible two different people will pay a radically different price for the same product (which is infuriating). From the consumer point of view, it looks like mass-confusion, but companies that employ this strategy purposely generate such confusion as a way to maximize their bottom line. The airlines practice this strategy will great success.
Rotating Promotion with Equal Value – Many of the luxury cruise lines employ this strategy. The actual price really doesn’t change but they rotate extra goodies, that ultimately means everything works out the same (this way they don’t have re-fare those who booked earlier). For example, one month it might be a stateroom upgrade, and the next month perhaps an additional onboard credit. The “book value” is the same… just the specifics change. This allows them to have “specials” without discounting the product (a big no-no for any luxury brand).
The bottom line for those of us buying cruise and packaged land vacations is to understand the inclusions and how much we value them. On the mass-market cruise lines, your fare might be $100 per night, but your room charges can easily exceed what you paid to get on the vessel. The higher-end lines will cost you more to get on board, but maybe you don’t have ANY room charges.
So, is Black Friday worth the hype?
It’s possible you’ll end up with some incredible deal. Keep in mind that cruise and packaged land vacations are usually structured to make them fully re-bookable (or cancellable) until 3 or 4 months prior to departure.
There is no chance suppliers are going to put themselves in a position of having to re-fare everyone because they have a Black Friday Sale. What you might see is incredible incentives to travel in the next 3 or 4 months, because the cruise lines are under no obligation to re-fare anyone departing that quickly. The higher end brands don’t play such games, but if you’re looking for cheap cruise getaway on a floating amusement park, then Black Friday might work out really well for you.
Today’s Travel Opportunities
Oceania Free On-Board Gratuities – Only available till Nov. 30th
Oceania does a very good job of “segmented luxury”. The onboard product is excellent (particularly the culinary program), and you have the choice of paying cruise only OR their O-Life Package that also includes air and your choice of some goodies. Get free pre-paid gratuities (value up to $500!) on 61 sailings in 2023 and 2024 – bookings must be made by Nov. 30th. Here are a few examples:
- Miami round-trip for 8-days departing January 24. Veranda staterooms at $2399 per person.
- Seattle round-trip for 10-days departing August 18 or 28. Verandas at $4799 pp.
- New York round-trip to Bermuda for 7-days departing September 20 at $2499 p. This is a great cruise if you wanted to try out small-ship cruising!!
Uniworld Sale on Spring River Cruises – Only available until Nov 26th
Uniworld’s Boutique River Cruise Collection is running a flash sale until November 26. Remember that Uniworld includes transfers, a choice of shore excursion in every port, an open bar, and wifi on the ship. Here’s a few examples:
- Budapest to Passau departing May 7 for 8-days. Window: $2199 pp / French Balcony $4399 per person.
- Paris to Normandy departing March 26 for 8-days. W: $2499 pp. FB: $3899 pp
- Venice & Northern Italy departing May 14 for 8-days. W: $2299 pp. FB: $3399 pp
Here’s a link to the complete list of sailings included in the Flash Sale:
https://pamperedcruiser.uniworld.com/us/current-offers/2023-flash-sale
Hurtigruten
Sail on the first hybrid-electric cruise ship, OR take advantage of Hurtigruten’s Northern Lights Promise if you want to see them from a ship:
- Antarctica and the Falkland Islands for 16-days departing February 24 for $9871 per person.
- Northern Lights Cruise round-trip from Dover (England) departing February 4 for 15-days for $5453 per person. If you don’t see the Northern Lights, they’ll give you another cruise!!
- Irish Sea round-trip from Glasgow departing April 2 for 7-days for $3405 pp. Visit Isle of Man, Giant’s Causeway, Belfast, Dublin.
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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
