My wife and I are planning to take a Hawaiian cruise in November on NCL. Is there an advantage to booking now or to wait for a last minute package?
We enjoy listening to your show
Thanks for your advice,
Tom Cook
Dear Tom,
Any other year, there might have been an advantage to booking early. But the pattern we've seen this year have been cruises consistently dropping in price the closer you come to sailing time. In general, you'll find the best prices about 90 days out.
And you run no risk of the cruise being sold out, especially in November, which is the depth of low season for Hawaii. The one exception might be the week of Thanksgiving, which can be popular.
As always, you should buy your cruise from a good discounter, such as TravelThemesandDreams.com or OnlineVacationCenter.com. Because these companies sell so many cruises, they're rewarded by the cruiselines with special perks to pass along to their cliens, such as free upgrades, onboard ship credits or pre-paid gratuities.
Or since you seem to have a very specific ship in mind and dates, you might try CruiseCompete.com. The site works a bit like LendingTree.com: you post what cruise you'd like to take, and then cruise agents compete for your business.
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