Cruises are among the most popular vacations. They give you a magnificent view of the ocean, and travel through different locations in the same package. It is basically a hotel at sea.
There are several kinds of cruises offered nowadays. Some are simple ones that take you from destination to destination. Others offer themed trips depending on your preference and lifestyle. With the number of options to choose from, it is guaranteed that you will find something to fit your requirements, regardless of your budget.
- Travel Agent. Hiring a travel agent may be the most expensive method of booking a cruise. Since agents earn commissions for the package, they may recommend unnecessary amenities and services. Sure, they get to book staterooms in bulk, and they may get discounts from the cruise lines, but they also charge a service fee to make all the arrangements for you.
- Cruise Lines. Cruise Lines may show you discounted prices. While these are probably already less than one would pay for a full package from the line, this is still the retail price.
- Internet Websites. To get the most affordable cruise rates, it is best to go to large suppliers. Examples are Travelocity, Expedia and CruiseDirect. com. The lack of a personal agent removes the additional charge. There is also less of a chance that you will be tricked into paying for an expensive package for the sake of the agent's commission. These suppliers are able to get the latest discounts and offers from the cruise lines. They also buy bookings in bulk, giving you wholesale prices. Online booking websites also allow you to search for the best deals by simply adjusting the date and the destination.
- Be Late or Early. Most cruise lines are seasonal. You can easily guess that off-peak seasons can offer cheaper rates. Aside from choosing an unusual date for the cruise, you can also book in advance. Suppliers and cruise lines typically offer discounts to early buyers, since these guarantee that their trips will be booked. Some will also drop prices for last-minute bookings. In the latter case, the ship has already reached its target passengers and simply wants to make additional money.
Become a cruise insider
Cruise Critic Community Guidelines
Welcome to Cruise Critic; we're happy you decided to register to become a Cruise Critic Member.
Important: Do Not Use Your REAL NAME as your USER NAME
Important: Please disable your email verification software so that you receive our activation e-mail. Please add @cruisecritic. com to your email safelist.
Please respect that this is a MODERATED community for people who absolutely LOVE cruise travel or want to learn about cruise travel.
Registration to Cruise Critic's Cruise Community is free! We require that you use a valid e-mail address. You will receive an e-mail asking you to verify your e-mail address before you are allowed to login and post on the boards. Again, please disable your spamblocking or verification software so that you receive our activation e-mail. Also, as a member of Cruise Critic you will receive copies of our weekly newsletter plus our "Cruise Sails" and one "Member Offer" mailing. Should you not want to continue to receive these e-mailings, simply unsubscribe by following the directions in the newsletter. By agreeing to become a member, you are agreeing to receipt of our newsletters.
Additionally, we do insist that you abide by the rules and policies detailed at this link: Community Guidelines.
This is a moderated Community. If you do not agree with the terms and conditions of this Web site and do not wish to be bound by them, please do not use this Web site or continue the registration process. Cruise Critic reserves the right to remove any content in its sole discretion. Additionally, if you violate our Community Guidelines you may lose your posting privileges -- permanently -- without warning. By continuing the registration you are agreeing to the terms
These are moderated message boards. What this means is that we do our best to remove all objectionable messages from the boards. It also means that you cannot say whatever you'd like on the forums. If you are looking for an "anything goes" setting, Cruise Critic might not be the place for you. Understand, too, that our community is comprised of folks who LOVE to cruise. It therefore stands to reason that they will have a favorite cruise line or port of call -- in other words, they are "fans" and will sometimes take offense when a brand new member has arrived on the scene to bash a cruise line.
Keep in mind that we do not prescreen posts so there may be a period of time when an inappropriate post is visible. Please use the Report A Post icon located in the UPPER right hand corner of each posting if you wish to report a violation of our Community Guidelines. All messages express the views of the author, and neither the owners of Cruise Critic Message Board Forums, nor Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd. (developers of vBulletin) will be held responsible for the content of any message.
By agreeing to these rules, you warrant that you will not post any messages that are obscene, vulgar, sexually-orientated, hateful, threatening, are in violation of our Community Guidelines or otherwise violative of any laws.
Cruise Critic reserves to right to remove, edit, move or close any thread (discussion) for any reason from the forums without warning. or notification to the Community. Additionally, we also reserve the right to deny posting privileges to any member at our sole discretion.
You hereby grant Cruise Critic the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, non-exclusive right and license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, perform and display any message posted in our message board community (in whole or in part) worldwide and/or to incorporate it in other works in any form, media or technology now known or later developed.
Our mission is to provide a haven on the Internet free of harassment and advertising for our community members' enjoyment. Any company or person(s) that interfere with that mission risk losing their posting privileges.
If you have any questions about how our community is moderated, please address them to our Community Manager via e-mail at community@cruisecritic. com. Please do not post on the boards.