Cruise Ships and Travel Deals - Celebrity Carnival and Princess Cruise Lines Compete for Discount Fares - Package Deals Available

June 19th 2006

Cruise Ship

Summer is a popular time to take a cruise vacation but that does not mean you can’t still find a deal. The first thing you need to do is determine where you would like to travel. Some popular local destinations include Alaska, the Caribbean, and Hawaii. Typically you can choose a cruise length between 3 and 10 days.

You might want to wait until the last minute before you book. Travelocity and Priceline offer discounts on last minute travel, but there are also specialty cruise travel sites that offer last minute deals as well.

Booking inside-rooms can also save you money. Exterior rooms cost more but offer ocean views. Some of the newer ships have balconies. If you plan on spending a lot of time in your room, you may want the exterior room. But since there is so much to do on a cruise ship, you may want to save the money and opt for an interior room.

The top traveling times are summer, Christmas and Thanksgiving. There are some real good deals off-season. Here you can save money by booking in advance. Even during the winter the weather in the Caribbean and Hawaii is beautiful. Many people fly to Hawaii and stay in a hotel in Waikiki. If you decide to take a cruise you can fly to Hawaii and cruise various islands on your floating hotel.

The Internet has made shopping for travel deals much easier. Years ago the traveler would visit their local travel agent and pretty much take what they had to offer. The travel industry has changed drastically and shopping is as easy as clicking a mouse now.

First pick the departure and return dates and then start your comparisons. Visit the various travel sites and compare prices and amenities. You may end up visiting the same site more than once as you begin planning your vacation.

Travelocity, Priceline, Expedia and Orbitz have bundled packages with airfares included. But remember, just because they are bundled packages does not mean you will save money. It may be better to use Priceline to book the Cruise and Orbitz to book the air travel. Various carriers, including Celebrity, Carnival and Princess Cruise lines, may also offer bundled travel packages as well.