Cruise Prices
Every cruise brochure spells out the price for each sailing,
as well as what's included and what's not. The price is basis
two or double occupancy--it's per person, based on two passengers
to a room. Price depends upon where the desired stateroom "category"
is located on the ship.
In general:
*The higher the deck your stateroom is on, the higher the price.
*Outside staterooms (which have windows) are generally more expensive
than inside or interior staterooms (generally without windows).
Often, the outside stateroom is refered to as an "ocean-view"
stateroom.
*Larger staterooms on a given ship are usually more expensive
than smaller ones.
*Outside staterooms whose views are obstructed (e.g., by a lifeboat)
often cost less.
On many ships, it's possible to have three or four different
stateroom price categories on a single deck: The smaller outside
staterooms toward the front (bow) might be one price, larger
outside staterooms another, inside ones another, a suite on that
deck still another, etc.
Many other factors can affect price.
*Booking six to nine months or more in advance usually yields
a savings.
*A last-minute "sale" when the ship isn't fully booked
also results in lower prices.
*To encourage early bookings or to energize slow sales, cruise
lines often offer special promotional fares, such as two-for-one
prices, 50% off the second passenger, and the like.
*If there's a third or fourth person in your stateroom, their
per-person price is often much less than for the first and second
persons. (Conversely, a single occupancy--one person in a stateroom
designed for two or more--usually costs much more.)
"Seasonality" is a factor, too. Cruise lines always
price their itinerary according to seasonal demand. For example,
summer is high season in the Mediterranean; that's when cruises
there are most costly. Spring and fall are shoulder seasons,
when prices are somewhat lower. Winter is low season. Prices
for a Mediterranean cruise then are usually the lowest. (The
weather is windier and rainier.) Repositioning cruises. when
vessels are moving from one general cruise area to another, are
almost always a bargain.
Other factors that can reduce the cost of a cruise are special
alumni or past passenger (rates given to people who have sailed
on that cruise line before), group rates or the special pricing
to stimulate bookings.
Since cruise pricing is such an "elastic" thing, you
should not consider the rate given in the brochure as set in
stone. Think of it, instead, as something more akin to a "suggested
retail price."
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