How far in advance do you plan cruises?

[Guest]

I plan to get married in a bit over a year, and was hoping we could take our honeymoon in Madagascar next Fall. Most cruises just have a stop or two in Madagascar, but I'd really like to get to know the place better, especially to appreciate the unique fauna and flora. The only cruise company I've found which makes lots of stops is Ponant. They seem to have great itineraries, but don't have anything there planned past January. I called the company to ask if they plan to have similar cruises next year, and the response was completely unhelpful, as the rep had no idea. The best the rep could suggest was that I keep checking the site periodically. We'll be cruising Japan next month, and we made our first deposit some 15 months ago--and got one of the last cabins then-available (that cruise line has since added other sailings in Japan, presumably due to the success of the 4 sold-out cruises they had there this year). We've also booked a cruise for Alaska in June (2024) and most of the cabins had also been snatched up, as of two months ago. 

My past experience has been that most people tend to plan cruises a good year in advance, but Ponant doesn't seem to think so. I'm thinking I may have to simply plan a land-based vacation. I guess I can keep checking for the next few months, but I'd prefer to start making plans. How far ahead do you usually plan your cruises?

https://us.ponant.com/destinations/africa-middle-east-indian-ocean?sortingCode=Date+de+départ&hide=1

[CuriousByNature]

I've never planned a cruise that far in advance because I've never been able to arrange holiday outside of the particular fiscal year I am in.  Ponant is apparently a very good line, and I image they do book up quickly.  I'm not surprised they are noncommittal about future sailing schedules given recent increases in covid numbers and the fact that the industry was hit so hard.  If you have your heart set on Madagascar, definitely check their website weekly and jump on anything that gets added.  Also check other sites that sell on behalf of many cruises in case they have a notification system to alert you of cruises to a specific destination as they become available.  And perhaps I am a bit over cautious, but it might also be good to have a land-based plan as a back-up, just in case a cruise is not offered by the time you need to confirm.

[Becket]

On the other side of the spectrum, it's kinda fun booking a cruise a week in advance. One looks on those discount pages and can pick one of many that is 50% off or more for booking at the last minute. Or so they say. Come to think of it, it's probably a ruse and I'm just getting fooled. O well. Wouldn't be the first time.

[CuriousByNature]

4 hours ago, Becket said:

On the other side of the spectrum, it's kinda fun booking a cruise a week in advance. One looks on those discount pages and can pick one of many that is 50% off or more for booking at the last minute. Or so they say. Come to think of it, it's probably a ruse and I'm just getting fooled. O well. Wouldn't be the first time.

I haven't booked that close to departure, but have done so within several weeks in order to get a good deal.  A lot of cruise lines seem to have a program in place where if you book early at X price and the price eventually drops to Y, they credit you the difference in some way.  Or, you get all sorts of bonuses for booking early, which may not be offered to those who book later.  

[+ Vegas_Millennial]

I have been on 20 cruises.  Some I booked two years in advance (gay river cruise) and others I booked three months in advance (14 night Caribbean cruise).  But I try to aim for 11 months in advance to book.

[Guest]

21 hours ago, Becket said:

On the other side of the spectrum, it's kinda fun booking a cruise a week in advance. One looks on those discount pages and can pick one of many that is 50% off or more for booking at the last minute. Or so they say. Come to think of it, it's probably a ruse and I'm just getting fooled. O well. Wouldn't be the first time.

Yes, if you just want to go on a cruise, and you don't care where it goes, what kind of cabin you get, or which cruise line you'll be on, you can get some steep discounts by booking last minute. However, if you want to go to a specific place at a specific time, and especially with a certain kind of cabin and/or cruise line in mind, then it's very risky to wait. Most cruise lines count on filling up, so most end up selling out months in advance. In most instances, I wouldn't want to cruise in a cabin without a balcony, for example (I guess that for an arctic or antarctic cruise a balcony wouldn't be too useful, though). 

[+ nycman]

I wouldn’t recommend booking a cruise at the last minute unless you SERIOUSLY don’t care about what boat, what room, or what destinations you’re getting. I did it once with family….it was a shit show. By far my worst cruise ever. You’re getting the dregs that no one….literally NO ONE ELSE wanted. 

It will be a shitty room, on a shitty boat, going to shitty destinations. If you’re incredibly lucky, you might get one of those three upgraded from "shitty" to "not so horrible". 

Trust me. Do your homework. Plan ahead. Spend some cash. Have fun. It’s not difficult. 

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

Read a lot reviews on Ponant before plunking down money. 

I've cruised with them and the price did not correlate to the experience. 

If you're wanting  that yacht-like experience, look into the relatively new Ritz-Carlton ships. I've done one with a second booked early next year and think they easily beat Ponant. 

Aman is also readying a mega yacht to compete with RC, but I'm not sure of their timeline. 

[Bargara Leatherboy]

well we booked in March of 2023 for a cruise departing in January 2025 - I booked on the first day bookings were open and the prices were way down, but some categories had already sold out.  It is a world cruise so I knew it would be very popular and it was.

Last minute if you can do it you can find some bargains and often repositioning cruises are great value, so think change of season - so at the end of the US Summer ships moved from Alaska and Carribean to the Med or south to Australia and New Zealand.  granted you will need to fly one way but you can get some great deals then 

Great if you are good with sea days and dont want to be in a port each day 

 

[MikeThomas]

4 hours ago, BenjaminNicholas said:

Read a lot reviews on Ponant before plunking down money. 

I've cruised with them and the price did not correlate to the experience. 

If you're wanting  that yacht-like experience, look into the relatively new Ritz-Carlton ships. I've done one with a second booked early next year and think they easily beat Ponant. 

Aman is also readying a mega yacht to compete with RC, but I'm not sure of their timeline. 

I was on RC’s Evrima last spring in the Caribbean.  Beautiful ship, excellent staff… but port selection was awful… a whole day wasted in Nassau… no swimming off the stern and slight sewage smell on the top outdoor deck.  I think they were working out the kinks.  Would repeat.  Followed that by an Atlas Ocean Voyages cruise in the Mediterranean.  Sailing on Atlas again in January, this time in the Antarctic.

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

On 9/8/2023 at 5:12 AM, MikeThomas said:

I was on RC’s Evrima last spring in the Caribbean.  Beautiful ship, excellent staff… but port selection was awful… a whole day wasted in Nassau… no swimming off the stern and slight sewage smell on the top outdoor deck.  I think they were working out the kinks.  Would repeat.  Followed that by an Atlas Ocean Voyages cruise in the Mediterranean.  Sailing on Atlas again in January, this time in the Antarctic.

I completely agree that RC has taken this first year to work out the problems...  And from the latest reviews, they've listened and shaped things up.  

Their second ship, Ilma, is coming online in early 2024.  That will hopefully expand their itens a bit and allow for some truly interesting ports.

[+ azdr0710]

On 9/5/2023 at 5:42 PM, Unicorn said:

I plan to get married in a bit over a year, and was hoping we could take our honeymoon in Madagascar next Fall. Most cruises just have a stop or two in Madagascar, but I'd really like to get to know the place better, especially to appreciate the unique fauna and flora. The only cruise company I've found which makes lots of stops is Ponant. They seem to have great itineraries, but don't have anything there planned past January. I called the company to ask if they plan to have similar cruises next year, and the response was completely unhelpful, as the rep had no idea. The best the rep could suggest was that I keep checking the site periodically. We'll be cruising Japan next month, and we made our first deposit some 15 months ago--and got one of the last cabins then-available (that cruise line has since added other sailings in Japan, presumably due to the success of the 4 sold-out cruises they had there this year). We've also booked a cruise for Alaska in June (2024) and most of the cabins had also been snatched up, as of two months ago. 

My past experience has been that most people tend to plan cruises a good year in advance, but Ponant doesn't seem to think so. I'm thinking I may have to simply plan a land-based vacation. I guess I can keep checking for the next few months, but I'd prefer to start making plans. How far ahead do you usually plan your cruises?

https://us.ponant.com/destinations/africa-middle-east-indian-ocean?sortingCode=Date+de+départ&hide=1

back to the Madagascar chat.....have never been, but if your goal is to spend time there ("flora and fauna"), I wouldn't take a cruise there since it will inevitably be docked for 12-18 hours max at each stop.....cruise somewhere else where short port stops are more appropriate and make a dedicated air/land trip to Madagascar for several days 

Edited September 9, 2023 by azdr0710

[Guest]

2 hours ago, azdr0710 said:

back to the Madagascar chat.....have never been, but if your goal is to spend time there ("flora and fauna"), I wouldn't take a cruise there since it will inevitably be docked for 12-18 hours max at each stop....

Yeah, you're probably right. My only qualm is that I've looked at a number of these tours, and many towns around Madagascar don't have any hotels with A/C. But I guess we can manage a few days without A/C. But I am settling down with that thought...