How to Plan a Great Cruise Vacation!
Planning a great cruise vacation involves time on your part and that of your travel agent. Finding the right cruise that fits within your budget & vacation window … is the key factor for most people.
Finding the Best Deals, Departure Months, Ships and Destinations is one of the major ways we assist our clients. Most cruise vacations are 3 to 8 days; however, some people opt for longer cruises.
It is always wise to work with an experienced travel agent that has knowledge of your destination & cruise lines as this can save you a lot of time and expense. A good travel agent will hone in on your budget and factor it into the perfect cruise vacation fit for each individual family, couple, single, group or honeymooners.
Transportation by air is one of the largest costs getting to the cruise port, so it is often feasible to take a slightly longer cruise since an extra day or two is not that much more when you have to pay for transportation to the cruise port anyway and the extra nights are usually not that costly when you average it out.
Planning early is another key factor for anyone, but especially honeymooners … so start looking at your options as soon as you can after you set your vacation date or wedding date and have established your budget.
If you do not know what to budget, we will be glad to give you some ideas from the simplest to the most exotic and romantic cruise vacaitons, then you can decide what will work best for you and your family.
Cruises worldwide … there are many options available for vacationers and honeymooners. The major cruise lines offer cruise to just about any destination you can imagine. The cruise lines are so adept at making sure that you have a wonderful experience they offer airfare from most major gateway cities in the U.S. and even offer pre & post hotel stays before and after your cruise. I usually want a vacation after my vacation and relish in the post hotel stay as a way to wind down from vacation. There are even combination packages that include cruises and resort stays.
Best Deals … are either offered months or years in advance or last-minute. However, do not be fooled into believing that if you wait until the last minute you will get the lowest price. This is not always true, cruise rates are based on supply and demand and if it is a popular ship, sialing date or destination it will most likely sell-out very fast, meaning you should have booked it months in advance. We have seen this time and again, especially for holiday sailings. You just don’t wait until 1 or 2 months prior to departure to book a holiday cruise unless you want to pay the highest prices if there is any space left. People who book the holidays months in advance normally get the lowest rates.
Family Reunions, Group Cruises … We would have to the say the one of the most fun vacations is to plan a family reunion cruise. Spent aboard ship, everything is included, no stress with packing and unpacking, where you are going to eat, what you are going to do, just about everything is included so everyone can just relax and enjoy themselves in the company of their loved ones! It is a wonderful way to get together and we often offer family payment plans for family reunion groups. We have one family that hail from all over the U.S.A. and Europe that get together and cruise once a year. Just think no mess at anyone’s house, the cruise ship offers you the opportunity to really enjoy your family get-together! It doesn’t matter where they all live, because the cruise lines offers air from the major gateway cities in the U.S. and we coordinate the entire reunion cruise for you.
Getting Married aboard Ship & Bridal Party Groups … Many of the major cruise lines have wedding facilities aboard ship with wedding coordinators to help you plan a wedding just for the two of you or plan your wedding and reception aboard ship for your family and friends accommodation small or large groups. This requires a bit more planning, but once we establish the cruise dates are open then we help you coordinate the wedding aboard ship. You can choose to get married and sail away on your honeymoon or you can invite your entire bridal party, family and friends to sail away with you too! the most popular ports for weddings are in California and Florida, as you are married aboard the ship while it is still in port the day of sailing. Having done this myself, I have to tell you it was an awesome wedding and reception, my family and friends loved it and it is something I will share with my grandchildren as a lifelong wonderful memory.
Hope this gives you some insight into planning your next cruise. Cruise Goddess Vacations