Please can I just have price ?

[Doublescoop]

We are planning our first cruise but I have been overhelmed at how difficult it is to get a price. We are so used to going online and booking flights/hotels,etc that this is a whole new challenge.

Has anyone booked a cruise separately from flights, hotels etc ? Or is it better to do as a package ? We have airmiles so trying to use those for flights to the USA with a cruise from either Orlando/Miami/New York. We have been saving up for this so just don't want to do myself then see it go horribly wrong when we are out there.

We always book cruises separately from flights, as it's generally much cheaper than booking a package. We usually use either Vivavoyage or Barrhead Travel.

Vivavoyage is easy to search online, you can set the filters to put in the month you want to travel, which cruise lines you would consider, which ports you want to sail from, and it will give you the list of cruises available, and the prices.

But do check what is included, most do not include service charges for example. Drinks packages may or may not be included. On some lines, certain cabin categories may include certain perks such as spa access, drinks etc .

Also, I would recommend flying in at least a day or two before the cruise is due to depart, not on the morning, in case of delays.

Thanks Budgie that's good to hear. Planning to arrive the afternoon before so will give us one night stay before boarding the following afternoon.

We price up through travel agents such as Iglu and then price it all up separately. We also price up through the cruise company for the whole package.

Our last cruise it worked out cheaper to go through an agent. This years one I have booked it all separately.
Sometimes it depends on when you actually book the cruise. If you book through the cruise company then they are responsible to get you to the ship if there are any delays with flights etc.

If you book it all independently don't forget to add in the costs of getting from the airport to the hotel, the hotel to the port and then back to the airport at the end. Sometimes the ports are not that close to the airport and public transport is not direct. You may need to prebook transfers.

The cruise company we are sailing with give us the option to prepay the gratuities so we don't have a hit at the end. Quite a few companies give you this option. If drink packages are not included then some give you the option to book these in advance or when you first get on board.

Some companies also give you the option to prebook shows and restaurants - which comes in handy on some of the big ships. Research is well worth it

Thanks Sushi, are there any particular companies you would recommend - have you used www.cruisenation.com ?

I generally check a few- Iglu, viva voyage, vision cruise, cruisedirect etc.

You can also get prices from American Travel agents for some of the cruise lines. Such as Vacations to go. Not all cruise lines (e.g. Princess) will allow U.K. residents to book through US travel agents but some will. Just bear in mind their prices often don't include the taxes. So you need the price including everything.

We did a cruise last year with Norwegian and booked it through planet cruise. We went from New York and extended the stay to 3 days before the cruise because we wanted a few days there. They were brilliant I'd really recommend them. I'd also recommend Norwegian. They do All Inclusive, which it really is all inclusive. Drinks are all branded names, all cocktails are included (up to £17 value I think, but that was all bar about 5). The food was amazing and they now do a service charge instead of tipping, so you pay $10 a day per person, but you're not expected to tip anyone.

It can also be worth shopping around online, then giving the agent a call.
We’ve just booked a cruise for March 2019, and found a good price online. We called the agent rather than booking online, and they were able to take another £100 off, plus include $150 on board credit, and three meals in specialty restaurants.