Charlie from Maryland asks, When do you find the best cruise prices?Great question. And the answer is not obvious. Most believe that it is best to wait till just before the sail date. Wrong! As a matter of fact, you will often pay hundreds more per person if you do that. More on that in a future post.

For this time, the following info will be relative to cruises in North America. Hands down, the lowest cruise prices are going to be found in what is considered the off season which would be the sailing dates in September, October, and the first two weeks of November. There are obvious reasons for this. First, is is the peak of the tropical storm season, which officially begins June 1st and goes to December 1st. Second, these are simply the months where the fewest people are traveling and taking their vacations.

Next, note that any week during the year when the school systems are out, you will find an increase in cruise fares. Again, it is a simple matter of increased demand. Obvious times are the summer months, Spring break (which runs from mid-March to mid-April) any holiday, and the second and third week in February (those being Winter break weeks).

Speaking of the holidays, Valentines Day, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas all attract more demand so pricing will be higher. Surprisingly, Christmas and New Years are possibly the highest demand two weeks of the year to cruise! Plan to pay the price here and book early or else. Most are very shocked to hear this, but more and more families are cruising at this time as it makes for a most memorable holiday.

On another note, if you wish to cruise from a port where there are few cruise line choices combined with a huge market that the lines can market to, early booking is absolutely required. Examples? The ports of New York, Los Angeles, Galveston, San Francisco, Boston, Baltimore, and Bayonne (NJ)….expect pricing to start high and go up. Cruise lines really have the upper hand here and they know it.

Lastly, if you are are looking at a sailing on a new ship or a high demand destination (like Alaska), booking a year in advance is not unusual for capturing not only the best rates, but the best cabin selection.

Looking to secure the best price? More often than not, in today’s market, the key is booking your cruise early and that means a minimum of six months out or more.