A region by region assessment of the best three- to five-day cruise deals for 2010.
In case you haven't heard, two cruise lines just announced across the board fare hikes, coming March 20 for Carnival and April 2 for Norwegian Cruise Lines (NCL). You'd better bet the other cruise lines will follow suit even if they do not announce it formally. They may not raise prices across the board but they will raise most of them on a regional basis depending upon demand.
The one area of exception to the rule of rising prices, according to industry newsletter Cruise Week, is the short, three to five-day "getaway cruise" market. We took a look at these prices and they are about the same as they were a year ago - so we are going to show you where the last true recessionary bargains remain in April through June.
For clarity, we compare the lowest cabin category prices (known as the "lead rate") for a given itinerary and time frame. Cruise prices can vary a great deal week to week for the same cruise (ship and itinerary) depending on availability, so when we quote the lowest price, it may not apply for the entire time period in reference. We are mostly looking at the time period of April though May, because prices will very likely rise across the board in June when summer vacation starts.
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Florida Cruises
Royal Caribbean uses its older ships for their short "getaway cruises" and this is where some of the biggest bargains are to be found. We see the lead rate for Royal Caribbean's Majesty of the Seas (Miami) is downright cheap with fares starting at $243 and only going as high as $303 in June for the three and four-day cruises. Monarch of the Seas (Port Canaveral) starts at $279 and goes up to $350 in June.
Carnival offers short cruises on two older but recently upgraded and renovated Fantasy-class vessels, the Imagination (sailing from Miami) and the Sensation (Port Canaveral). Both of these ships sail to Nassau and are selling for nearly the same bargain rates as offered a year ago. These cruises are as low as $249 for the lowest category inside cabins in May. Prices go up to $329 in June when summer vacation begins.
NCL offers the Norwegian Sky, the newest ship in the short cruise space, sailing from Miami to Nassau with prices as low as $209 per person on May 14 and at $239 to $279 through June. The four night counterpart cruise on this same ship sells for roughly $20 more per cruise.
One of the best deals we see on any older ship is the five-night option at just $349 per person on Royal Caribbean Grandeur of the Seas sailing from Ft. Lauderdale to Grand Cayman and Cozumel.
*** Top Pick
For newer and bigger ships, we see a nice cruise bargain on the Carnival Destiny, sailing out of Miami on four-night cruises starting at $339 per person calling in Key West and Cozumel. This is a great bargain for these popular ports of call. Balcony cabins can be had for as low as $489 per person. Destiny also has five-night cruises to Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay (Holland America's private island) and Nassau starting at $369 in May, but this price jumps to $599 in June. Another five-night cruise available on Destiny is Miami to Ocho Rios Jamaica and Grand Cayman starting at $389 per person in May with balcony cabins available at $529.
*** Top Pick
Another steal we see right now is the five-night Caribbean cruise on Celebrity Century sailing out of Miami to Roatan and Cozumel on May 10. This cruise starts at an amazing $299 lead rate and just $599 for a balcony cabin. For a premium cruise line this is an excellent bargain, even if it is one their oldest and smallest ships, which many people actually prefer.
West Coast Short Cruises
On the West Coast the biggest three-night cruise bargain comes from the Island Princess (Princess Cruise Lines) where you can snatch a balcony cabin May 14 for just $340 per person.
Carnival's three-day cruises are surprisingly more expensive, especially for an older Fantasy-class vessel. Carnival Paradise (long Beach) starts at $389 in May and goes up to $489 in June. The four-night cruises to Mexico are actually cheaper than the three day cruises, starting at $349 in May but going up to $449 in June when summer vacation starts.
*** Top Pick
Our top pick to Mexico is Radiance of the Seas sailing on five-day cruises from San Diego to Ensenada and Cabo San Lucas starting at just $409 per person. This is one of our favorite Royal Caribbean ships, newer but smaller for less crowding and better service. Grab this one while you can, however, because the ship is scheduled to be re-deployed to the Caribbean this summer. The final Mexico sail dates are in May.
*** Special One-time Offer
Another nice five-night option on the West Coast is the Golden Princess sailing just once from Los Angeles to Vancouver, British Columbia. This cruise starts at $439 with balcony cabins available for $584 per person. Ports of call include Catalina Island and San Francisco.
New York Summer Getaway Cruises
*** Top Pick
One of the best short cruise summer cruise bargains we see is the four-night Carnival Glory cruise to New Brunswick, Canada, out of New York City in June starting at $279 per person in June. Balcony cabins are even available for a mere $379 to $479 depending on sail date. Glory is a newer and larger Destiny-class Carnival ship. Glory even offers a five-night cruise to Canada for $369 in June.
Other Short Cruises
The two other Fantasy class ships sailing on short cruises, Ecstasy (Galveston) and Elation (Mobile) are not at bargain prices, starting $449 lead rate.
That is our short cruise round-up. Of course short cruises only make sense if you live close to the ship, so those of you in Miami, New York and Los Angeles are in great shape. If you live in New Orleans, Galveston or Mobile you are going to be paying a little more to cruise, but it is still worthwhile.
Keep in mind that cruise prices are not going any lower. As long as the economy exhibits signs of recovery and the demand for cruises remains cruise prices will go higher. So, take advantage of these bargains while they last.
