How to pick the best cruise deals

While travel agents can have varying levels of usefulness for different travellers and different types of travel, there’s no doubt they still rule the cruise kingdom. Travel agents often have deals for much better prices than you’ll see advertised, often with other inclusions as well. Beyond this, by chatting with you they can also help you end up on a ship and itinerary that aligns best with your interests and travel desires.

Register for a range of travel newsletters to ensure you have the best cruise deals constantly landing in your inbox and you never miss out. Plus, you’ll likely get some inspiration for cruises you might not have thought to take otherwise.

Booking a cruise a bit outside of the main season can often not only get you a much better price and worthwhile promotions, but might also mean you get to beat the crowds and have more space to yourself. For example, November to March is Australia’s cruise season, so booking a cruise that departs towards the edges of this period or just outside them can offer significant savings, and you might just find yourself with sunny blue skies anyway.

There’s nothing a cruise line loves more than getting your commitment nice and early and you’ll generally find rewarding savings in doing so. Many cruise line promotions offer good savings if you can advance your full payment well ahead of the cruise date. On the flip of this, it’s always worth keeping an eye out for super last-minute deals as cruise lines try to fill up those last-minute cabins on their ships. This strategy is much riskier but may occasionally prove rewarding.

In between cruise seasons around the world, cruise lines often have to reposition their ships to different countries and continents, and they don’t want this to be a lonely journey. Booking a repositioning cruise can often offer great value for plenty more days at sea and sometimes some exotic or faraway destinations. Especially with flights at high prices, repositioning cruises might sometimes prove a cheaper way of getting overseas.

Sometimes you can get a better deal, even if you’ve already booked. Many cruise lines, such as Royal Caribbean, offer price guarantees, meaning if the price of your cruise drops from what you originally paid, you can contact the line and be refunded the difference. With a bit of vigilance, you could end up having thousands of dollars extra to put towards splurging on future cruises.

Countries will have different ideal times both to book and to visit. For example, some big-name destinations such as Antarctica or the Galapagos rarely have promotions, so your best bet is to book well in advance. However, for many Asia cruises, luxury lines will offer last-minute deals around January to April.

If you want to cruise on brand new flashy ships like Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas you’ll have a wonderful time, but you’ll also generally be paying a premium. Whether cruising locally or trying to pick something abroad, if you look into some slightly older ships, you’ll often be able to shave dollars off your final price.