Okay guys, it is time for you to help out your fellow mycouponers! I have noticed a lot of questions about cruises so I thought I would make a sticky where everyone can look for general information. The only problem is that I have never been on a cruise so I don't have much advice to give.
I hope you all will help me with information.
I know that www.cruisecritic.com is a popular place to visit for information. Please list helpful tips!!
Thanks so much!
Mcleader Julie
Travel Board

http://www.cruise-addicts.com


http://www.cruisemates.com

HTH

Definitely do your research to make the best choice for you. Cruise lines vary widely. Some are more of a party, casual atmosphere with a younger crowd. Others are more elegant, and cater to an older or more subdued crowd. You will have more fun on a cruise that meets your needs.

Even though the cruises may sound the same, for instance a Carribean cruise or an Alaskan cruise, they can differ quite a bit. They may not all leave from the same city. They may stop in different ports. Even if they stop in the same ports, one ship may stay at that port for 12 hours while another is only going to be there for 6 hours. Again, do your research.

Prices vary a lot!! Shop around to find a good deal, don't just assume that if you go to your local travel agency that you will pay the going price.

I went on a 4 day cruise recently and while I never tell what I paid for our cruise to other passengers, they were quick to offer up that info to me. Some of them paid double what I had paid! Of course I booked late, only about a month out. The best deals are usually had when it's getting close to sailing time and they need to fill up the ship.

It's usually cheaper to book your own airfare rather than have the cruise line do it for you. It's easier to have them make the arrangements, so it's a matter of what you're comfortable with. You have no choice of flights if you allow the cruise line to book it, they just book you a flight and tell you what time it leaves.

It's also usually cheaper to book your own excursions than to purchase the ones offered on the ship. Again, it's a matter of your comfort zone. The cruise line will tell you that if you are booked through them and something happens to make you late back to the ship, they will wait for you. If you are on a private tour and you don't make it back in time, they will not wait. Tour companies are not in business to make you miss your ship, so they will do their best to make sure you're back. I have never had a problem with booking my own tours. If you don't make any arrangements prior to arriving in a port, you can just get off the ship and chances are there will be tour operators on the dock waiting to take you on an excursion. Just allow yourself plenty of time to get back to the ship and you should be fine.

I have never had a cabin with a balcony--(but will next week when we leave for Alaska!!). I have had inside rooms and outside rooms with a window. While the outside with windows are nice to be able to look outside, I will take an inside any day if the prices are quite a bit less. You typically don't spend that much time in your room gazing out the window anyway. There is too much to do on the ship to spend it in your room. The exception to this, I think, is Alaska. I have cruised there twice in an inside room because the price has been so much less. This time we decided to splurge and go for a mini suite with a balcony. The scenery is so beautiful here and you are almost always in view of land that I think a balcony is worth the money if you can afford it. On our last Alaskan cruises we spent the majority of our time on deck with binoculars every day. I'm looking forward to having our own balcony to be able to enjoy the scenery.

I think Cruise Critic is one of the best places to find cruise information. There are lots of knowledgeable people there who have answered many questions for me over the years.

I posted this on the helpful Disney links thread too, but this site is great for Disney Cruise information.

http://www.disneycruiser.info

She has taken nearly 40 Disney Cruises LOL.

Has anyone booked a cruise online? I've always gone thru a travel agent but my agent but I'm interested in booking online. Are there any good/bad experiences by booking online out there?

Thank you.

I booked a cruise last year through www.cruise.com. I highly recommend taking a look at them. They were the cheapest anywhere by far, and a month after booking, I found a price cheaper. I called them up and they discounted my tickets to match and upgraded my room (I had prepaid). I will always book through them.
(A bit of advice...I have heard that a few people had a problem when the same situation happened. If you get a bad rep, hang up and call back to talk to a new person.)
Good luck!
JD in Fla

While I've never booked on line, I won't hesitate to do so the next time we cruise. This last time I was booked thru our local AAA and ended up transferring my booking to an agent out of Ohio because her prices were so much better (I think cruisecritic.com is a great website to get info....that's where I found out about this agent).
I think it's the fear of not having a person in front of you to do business with. These online agencies, due to their volume, can offer better prices and more shipboard credit. If you're not comfortable speaking to an agent over the phone (you don't have to do it all over the computer, you can call these online agencies), then you may need a local travel agent.
I've priced cruises from quite a few online agencies and if the price was right, I would not hesitate to book. This next time will also be my 5th cruise so I'm starting to feel comfortable doing everything on my own.
The above poster is correct about booking your own airfare and excursions. When we were in Alaska, we booked everything independently. I booked through the cruise line when we were in Panama this Christmas though.....I wanted to make sure I didn't get left behind in a foreign country! I'm not that comfortable doing everything myself yet!

I usually check the cruise prices on-line first and see if our regular TA can beat the on-line prices. He can always beat the lowest on-line fares I can find, so I always buy from him. If he can't I would buy on-line. The cheapest on-line site is always www.cruisevalue.com unless Travelocity has special cruise promotions. Either sites are reliable.

But there are many discussions about this topic on the cruisecritic.com message boards. I would highly recommend this site if you are interesting in cruising.

The key with cruise pricing is that the cruise companies uses yield management, so they will lower the prices if a particular sailing is not sold out. The best prices are off-season cruises. The summer months are the worst in term of prices.

The best prices for Alaska this year would be Diamond Princess for its first sailing to Alaska roundtrip Seattle. I've heard it was $549 for outside cabin. I believe the same ship in August, you can't find an inside cabin for less than $1000pp.

Some cruiselines have special pricing for children. Ask around do a little research ahead of time, know your prices.

Personally, I would not pay more than $90 per person per day for an inside cabin.

My husband and I went on a Disney cruise with our two children. We went through a travel agent and found it approximately $ 60 cheaper. We had an absolutely great time ! Planning another cruise in a few years.

__________________
As a child, a library card takes you to exotic, faraway places. When you're grown up, a credit card does it.
-Sam Ewing

The place I have had great service with is Journeys Cruise and Travel. They have a website that has online tours of some of the ships. Always very friendly and willing to help answer questions. Their website is http://www.journeysct.com

HTH

You can find out interesting facts on www.epinions.com. They have a section on travel that includes experiences of people who have taken various cruises...good and bad experiences as well as insites into what to expect or be prepared for on the cruise.

I hope this wasnt posted before but afew things to know are:

Watch the cruise rates after you book. If you have paid in full and the price drops on some cruise lines you can get onboard credits or room upgrades sometimes just by calling and letting them know you saw the price drop.

If you go on a the last cruise before a ship changes itineraries. Like for example the last couple of Alaskan cruises before they ship moves to warmer waters or vice versa. Alot of things go on Sale at that time so they can get rid of the merchandise geared towards that cruise and bring in new stuff for the new itinerary. I went on an Alaskan cruise right before the ship moved to Hawaii and I got winter jackets and sweatshirts dirt cheap. Also got candy bars, tote bags and other great items that said Alaska on them for gifts for co workers and friends.

Also watch in ports again in Alaska the season ends in Sept. I got cashmere lined leather gloves that retailed for 200.00 for $20.00 because the shop owner didnt want to pack them up. Also got a great winter coat for $50.00.

To keep drink costs down. You are allowed on most lines to bring a couple of 12 packs of soda, beer and wine on board. Different ships allow different amounts.

Always plan to fly in a day or 2 ahead of your ships departure. I can't tell you how many times I have heard of people missing the boat because they flew in the day the ship left and their flights were delayed or cancelled causing them to miss the boat.

Booking your excursions off the boat is a great way of saving money. But make sure you find out ships time versus port times. The ship usually stays on one time and when you come into port that port may be an hour or two ahead or behind ships time. When the ship says be back by 4pm they mean ship time. I have seen people book excursions or just go to the beach and look at the local time and miss the boat. Also for peace of mind if you book an excursion on the ship if that excursion runs late or your van has a flat or breaks down the ship will wait for you., If you book off ship the ship will not wait if you are late.


Those are what I can think of for now. If you have any questions just ask. I have been on lots of cruises and in fact going on another in April.

You might check on www.travelzoo.com or www.VacationsToGo.com. If your travel dates are flexible and your are over the age of 55 you might find some good deals.

I just bought my parents an Alaskan cruise. It leaves out of Seattle. Where is a convenient hotel to stay in to get to the ship easily?

Go to cruisecritic.com you will find your answer plus more

The DIS Discussion Forums - DISboards.com - Powered by vBulletin scroll until you see the cruise thread
Disney Cruise Line

Hope this helps someone.

Hugzzz


Carol

We booked a cruise online with expedia.com and LOVED it. Some friends also booked from them. The customer service was VERY helpful. I called to get our tables together and they were happy to help. I have nothing but good things to say about our cruise. (The alcohol is VERY expensive-- be prepared.)

Buy the insurance they offer you at the beginning. If protects you if you become sick or something else happens. On our last cruise they had to take a man off to be transport to a hospital on land.

I have cruised before and was checking prices at a couple of sites mentioned above along with Cruise Deals, Cruise Deal from CruiseDeals.com andCarnival Cruise Lines: cruise ship vacations, cruise dealsThe prices always seem to be about the same. my fiancee gave me a site called YTB - Home that was a bit cheaper. But for the most part it seems most online agents have the same price, but some with a few perks.

If you stay with the same cruise company, they give you all kinds of extra things.

After 5 cruises, I book online with the company. The first trip we used a travel agent. All 5 cruises were with Royal Caribbean. The best tip is watching for the price to drop about 60 days before cruising. RCCL will always give you credit for a drop in price if you call them.