15 easy tips to get best cruise deals

To be clear. A travel agent will most often than not beat the “sale price” than what is reflected on the website? Not doubting, just confirming.

Mature cruisers, avoid the cruise lines that advertise "kids sail free" unless you want an amusement park experience.

What did you call the deal you could get on older boats that had been refurbished? Amfly ? Sorry couldn’t make out what you said. I have trouble with that sometimes. 🥴

Determine how long you can afford to have the cruise line make. Money on your money. Book early get insurance but pay over time within the set deadlines.

Do you have a travel agent to recommend?

Those older ships were huge once, but they shrink after a couple of decades in the water.

I'm planning my first cruise, still a ways in the future, and your channel is so fun and informative for me, thank you. No matter what, I'm saving for that mid-ship, unrestricted-view balcony. ❤️🥰🚢⚓

I book through the Club Royale travel agent. We usually get the best prices. I’ve bother through travel agents twice. One, a friend of a friend, I had to badger ever sale to make sure I got the best price. Then she crowed about how much more money she got me off. Really??? The second, I was online at the same time, I found a concierge balcony for $500 less than the regular balcony with $450 onboard credit. She switched my and then my other friend’s cabin. But she did get us another $100 in onboard credit. Overall, I am not impressed with travel agents.

Thanks for plugging Travel agencies! I own a travel agency and get my client better deals then they can on their own most of the time.

Any one know a TA that can guarantee savings over booking direct?

I booked an inside guarantee on Allure back in March during a Kids Sail Free promo. Sailing in January 2024, Its just myself and my 2 kids going $1202 with Prepaid gratuities! Interior guarantee cabins are currently sold out. To select your interior cabin right now on that sailing is $2110 without gratuities. Love a great deal on travel!!

Best ways to save are last minute if flexible with departure port, and transatlantic which was our first cruise actually! However, ease of travel is also worth a lot of money. As long as you can afford whatever cruise you purchase, paying more for ease is often worth it. Rarely have we shown up to the cruise ship and focused on the paid price, we are just excited to get easily from the car to the ship

We actually look for places we can drive to so that we don't have to pay airfair. Plus my Dad was honorably discharged from the Navy (he was Navy JAG) so we get the military discount. Plus, all 3 of us are Diamond and Emerald members of "Crown And Anchor Society" so we get special discounts. We also use a fantastic TA who knows our needs and has additional discounts.

booking with a travel agent is ridiculously expensive. A friend of mine spent $8,000+ on a cruise package and I did a better cruise everything included for under $2500.

The so-called Tourism Company, which should definitely be avoided. Trusting the Royal Caribbean brand, we still could not use the tour we bought from Sunorama, the brand representative of Turkey, before the Pandemic, even though the pandemic is over. They forced us to repurchase the tour we bought with higher additional payments with similar tours. I brought the matter to the Consumer Arbitration Committee and the decision was in my favor. Despite the decision to give the tour exactly to me; They are still trying to sell new tours with exorbitant price differences, and they do not give us the tour we bought.

Kesinlikle uzak durulması gereken, sözde Turizm Firması. Royal Caribbean markasına güverek, Türkiye marka temsilcisi olan Sunorama'dan Pandemi öncesi satın aldığımız turu, pandemi bitmesine rağmen hala kullanamadık. Daha yüksek ek ödemelerle aldığımız turu, benzer turlar ile tekrar satın almaya zorladılar. Konuyu Tüketici Hakem Heyeti'ne taşıdım ve lehime karar çıktı. Turun tarafıma aynen verilmesi konusunda karar çıkmasına rağmen; hala faiş fiyat farklarıyla yeni tur satmaya çalıştıkları gibi, satın aldığımız turu da vermiyorlar.

Where can I find the going, going gone sale flyer every week?

Thank you for being so honest and helpful to us new cruisers (been on 2 bout to go on 3 UTOPIA OF THE SEAS)! Thanks Matt!

Wow! I had no idea about the GGG list on mondays. Thanks!!

What travel agent do you use Matt

we always book a guaranteed room, the only down side is we don't get our state room assignment until really close to departure date

Is the Going Going Gone flyer available weekly? Thanks for all you do to keep us informed!

We did a one way trip in Alaska

I booked icon of the seas back in April I believe to leave Miami in March, prices in April for me and my wife $3500, now the price to book for 1 person is $4500!!!! If we waited we would’ve had to pay $9000!!

Thanks for the "going, going, gone" upload! Is there anyway that we can either subscribe or locate this on a weekly basis?

i think icon of the seas will be a great cruise ship

Ive signed up for RCI emails and never get anything :(
Yes ive checked my spam folder

You should do a video on solo traveling. How to book a solo on a RC cruise on their website: Solo balcony rooms to save money. They are usually 1.5x the price. But you need to reserve in advance since there are so few solo cabins

Always check the price often before paying in full. I book my cruise in advance and check the price every month or two. When the price drops, I call RC and they lower the price and make a new bill with the new lower price

Don't forget booking a cruise while on another cruise. We booked a 12 night cruise in a Grand Suite while on another cruise and got a good price on the stateroom (it was a Guaranty booking) as well as $600 in OBC. Reduced deposits are also a benefit of on board booking. Since we know we'll spend that much (and probably more) while on board, we look at it as money saved.

7 night north south or reverse Alaska does not save as air fares are very expensive

The sailing on a smaller and older ship is very much region dependant. If you're sailing from outside the US, or even Europe perhaps, RCL, and other lines, may only send one or two ships to that region for the season, thus eliminating ship choice.

Love, love, love repositioning cruises! Almost always the best value per night available. We particularly like westbound transatlantic - for both Celebrity and Royal. These typically sail in the fall of each year from Europe back to the US. Barcelona, Rome, and Southampton are the typical departure ports. Air fares over to Europe also tend be less expensive that time of year as well. Our strategy is to go go over to Europe a week or so ahead of time, see some sites, and then invest our last day before boarding getting our laundry done and repacking to get on-board the next day. Then, we come home "the old fashioned way" via a sailing.

Right now, we are eyeing a Sept/Oct '24 repositioning cruise from HI to Sydney, AUS. There are several sailings spread across both Celebrity and Royal. This would also give us both an equator and a dateline crossing via a ship. Though we already have an equator crossing from a Lauderdale to Chile canal crossing repo on Celebrity, it's always fun repeat the equator crossing and watch the "Order of Neptune" ceremonies that are a mariner tradition.

Do you know of a good travel agent in the Orlando area.

what travel agency do u use. the royal caribbean one or do u use another one local to you?

I always book my next cruise the day I board my current cruise. The best perk is getting some really good onboard ship credit. I book anywhere from 7 months to 1 year in advance. I make payments as I go so when the final payment is due it's not as large a payment.

Going going gone. I found it. I call C&A Desk. The knew nothing about it. They referred me to sales. They also knew nothing about it.

Where is the link to the flyer PDF mentioned around nine minutes?

I’m going on Vision of the seas to Bermuda 4th time 😅 out of Baltimore on August 26th. Bringing two first timers with me. We got the drink package. We have a window room and placed a 200$ PP bid to upgrade to a balcony on a sold out ship… fingers crossed

Where are the links? I wanted the one towards the end of the video

Matt is completely correct , my cruise is in November and my flights have changed twice since March. My travel agent has kept me up to date and made sure that my choices have always been considered.

Know that the percentages on the website mean nothing. They just raise regular cruise fare and make it look like a sale

Is it best to book your next cruise while you are on cruise?

i try to book but the page doesnt work, what can i do? call?

I always book as far in advance as possible. I have cruises booked all the way up to July 2025! I work part-time as a travel agent but my full-time job does not have flexibility for when I can travel.

Alaska has been very cheap lately! We are traveling Friday on our first Alaska cruise and can't wait.

I’ve used vacations to go to book my cruises and they do a pretty good job on pricing, answering questions and knowing the layout of ships. They also reprice cruises if you notice a drop in price

Do you have a list of some of the travel agents you use?

The problem with Midwest cruisers is the flight to and from the port. That's why we don't cruise more often then we do.

Was there a link to the Going, Going, Gone rates? Or did I miss it?