Thread: What's the shortest last minute booking?

Years ago (before 9-11) you used to be able to throw a suitcase in your trunk show up at the Purser's Office on the day of sailing for big discounts at literally the last minute. I heard of people who lived near the cruise terminals doing that and getting some unbelieveable deals. I know that in recent years the cruise lines have to pre-clear and submit passenger manifests days in advance so the "drive up" process doesn't work anymore. Nevertheless, my wife and I are retiring in March and will be spending our winters in Florida so getting to a cruise port quickly will be easy. Are there any short notice deals to be had out there?

Sailing on Celebrity Eclipse on April 9th.

Jack & Lianne

Welcome to our friendly cruise community!

As you said, those days are gone forever! Most cruises are leaving pretty full so the "deals" are few and far between.

Of course, it's all supply and demand. If a ship is not filling up as fast as the bean counters want, then some cabins will be reduced. Some will get Military discounts, some Senior discounts and some Residency rates. No formula for figuring out when any of these would apply or for how long.

Check the cruises right after final payment would have been due and you might see lower rates if there are a lot of cabins available...or you may not! Some cruises continue to increase in price after final payment date and never get any lower!

If you see one that strikes your fancy and are willing to pay the going rate, then jump on it! Good luck in finding last minute deals.

You will be getting off the Eclipse when we will be boarding for the transatlantic. Now we got lucky on this cruise. It's not past final payment date yet but they are offering Military rates and we got an $800 reduction in our total fare. We are happy campers!

Maybe one of the TAs here can say whether this is still true or not, but I seem to remember you can let the various cruiselines know you can go on a last minute cruise from your homeport. You may be able to give them your email address so you can be notified if there's a ship that has space.

I was surprised when we were able to book a holiday cruise within two months of cruising -- usually they are sold out months ahead. Just about all of their categories were waitlisted but I managed to find a cabin we could afford (and we felt it was an excellent one, albeit small -- midships and even mid-vertically). and the expensive ($5000/person) were still available, but not in our range, and not even in a good place on the ship, IMO. And some more cabins even became available after we booked ours. But probably all cabins spoken for by a couple of weeks prior.

In a perfect world, the cruise lines would like to have a completed manifest days in advance. However, since so many people do not pre-register, that is unrealistic. Cruise lines are REQUIRED to provide a manifest 90 minutes prior to sailing. That is why the cruise lines not state that you need to check in 2 hours prior to sailing.

Most cruise lines have good last minute rates, if a sailing is not selling very well. I don't know what the other cruise lines call them, but Carnival calls them "Pack n' Go" rates. You can also call the cruise lines the day before a sailing, and see if they have available cabins and what the prices are.

While we live within 4 hours of 5 different ports, I haven't retired yet, so we can't take advantage of the great deals. But, my times coming

You can book the same day as the sailing, but it is no longer drive up to the ship and book there. You need to call the cruise line and book through them.

I believe 60 minutes before sailing is the deadline for turning in the passenger manifest. SOme cruise lines like to pad the time.

Not sure about bargains, either. Sometimes they can be found, but usually at a port with a lot of cruise ships and you might not have a choice of cruise line much less cruise ship.

Of course, when there are lots of last minute cancellations - like just before or after a hurricane, you might have better luck.

You are correct - under the current Department of Homeland Security code level, the cruise lines are required to submit their final passenger manifest 60 minutes prior to sailing. This is why the cruise lines are suggesting passengers be at the pier at least 90 minutes prior to sailing to insure they complete the check-in process in order to board the ship before the 60 minute deadline.

As for last minute specials, it's not like it use to be where they would offer a really great rate for any unused space. While they may offer a discount, it's usually not all that great anymore. With computers, they're able to keep track of sales and availability so normally they will begin to offer specials earlier in the process to stimulate sales. They also recognize that most people simply can't afford to decide to go on a cruise at the very last minute. And while some cruise lines will still sell cabins up to the day of sailing, some cruise lines cut off sales one or two days prior.

Pete