This is perhaps the most complexing and frustrating aspect of cruising. There are loads of traps not just for cruise virgins, but seasoned cruisers as well.
Like airfares, the prices of cruises fluctuate wildly, and sometimes on an hourly basis.
The key is careful research.
Generally when you first book you will need to pay a deposit per person, per cabin.
The final total payment will then be due by a certain date (3-6 months). And then the fun begins! Invariably once you have paid for your cruise the price is likely to move, either up or down. And if you want to make sure you get the best price you need to keep monitoring this because every cruise line has different change or cancellation conditions.
At a certain time prior to departure, normally several months out, a cancellation penalty will come into play. (Normally about the same time as the final payment is due). If the price drops before you get to a cancellation penalty you can go back to the cruise line and ask them to match the reduction. Usually they will.
If they won't match it, you can simply cancel, get your deposit back and rebook.
TRAPS! Make sure that if you have booked using an external website or travel agent that there is no booking fee that you will lose if you do so.
TRAPS! Virtually all of the major various cruise lines sailing to/from Australia have mirrored websites. This means that if you do a search for Princess Cruises on google, you will be taken to the Australian version Princess Cruises website - not the main USA based site. This has advantages in that prices will be displayed in Aussie dollars - HOWEVER if you do eventually get to the USA version of these websites site disappointment often awaits as most cruise lines have a different pricing structure for USA residents, which can differ from our prices by an enormous amount.
Unless you are a US resident, or have a family member who is, there is not much you can do about it, except be aware of the practice. And sadly the cruise lines won't match prices on overseas websites - even their own :((((
Royal Caribbean has a line at the top right hand side that says "Australia" click this to change to USA.
Celebrity Cruises - scroll down to the bottom of the screen and you will see in very small text "Australia" below that is "International Gateway" click that and then hit USA.
Princess Cruises: It can be done but it is very tricky to do. If you know how to do it, or indeed for any other cruise line please tell us via the comment section below.
TRAPS! Not only are the prices vastly different between the USA websites, but also in many instances the cancellation conditions are much more onerous. As in penalties for Australian's can kick in many months before US residents - again this is why it pays to do your homework.
How should you book. Again careful research is required. There are basically three ways to book, directly with the cruise line, with a traditional land based travel agent or with an external web based booking site.
All have pros and cons, (which we want your feedback on in the comments section below). It is important to know what if any additional fees are added to the cost of the cruise, if all taxes and port charges are included and any unique cancellation requirements/penalties.
Cruise Critic has a wealth of information on its bulletin boards with tips and traps about booking your cruise, however they have a policy of not referring or linking to external websites - which we here at Cruises Crazies do not have - this is one of our key advantages. Read our post on Cruise Critic here.
Related posts on Cruise Crazies
How much do cruises cost
Interline discounts
Onboard credits
Insurance
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