11 Ways to Save Money When Booking a Cruise

Almost 10 years ago I came across a deal for a Disney Cruise and our family’s travel life made an unexpected turn for the better. The Disney deal was “kids sail free” and it really was as good as it sounded. We set sail on that cruise to the Mexican Riviera and that began our family’s love for cruising. Although I don’t think many cruise deals will beat our first Disney Cruise back in 2011 when our kids sailed free, there are still some great ways available to save money and still enjoy an amazing cruise with your family.

Over years of traveling on cruises with our family, I’ve come up with a list of ways that we use to save money on cruises and get the most value out of each vacation.

Use a travel agent. Honestly, before cruising, I’d never used a travel agent and didn’t think I needed one. The cost is the same OR LESS when using a travel agent. Travel agents are able to easily compare prices on a variety of cruise lines, find itineraries that work with your plans, and sometimes offer extra onboard credit that you wouldn’t get if you booked directly with the cruise line. It’s so nice having someone looking out for you and a person you can ask questions to instead of calling a call center for a cruise line.

2. Explore a variety of cruise line options. You could sail on identical itineraries on two different cruise lines and pay a very different price for each ship. If you are booking on your own, check out your itinerary and pricing on a few cruise lines to be sure you are getting the best value. Although we have loved sailing on Disney the most because of their high level of service, close in second place are Princess and Norwegian. We’ve had had some of the best pricing when sailing on Royal Caribbean and Carnival. As you can see, we have been able to sail on a variety of cruise lines because we were open to going with the best price that matched our desired itinerary. Each cruise line has benefits and I will do more posts soon sharing what we love about each cruise line.

3. Set your budget and then book accordingly. Once the “kids sail free” deal was no longer offered on Disney, it was hard for our family to justify spending more than double to sail on a comparable Princess Cruise. We learned that we also loved sailing on Princess. A lot of the cruise experience is what you make of it. Each cruise line has fun activities and many of the same port stops. One of our favorite Disney stops is their private island, Castaway Cay, so we did have to miss out on that when sailing on another cruise line.

Setting Sail on the Norwegian Getaway in Copenhagen, Denmark

4. Look for special offers. Many cruise lines off perks or discounts when booking between certain dates of on certain itineraries. A travel agent will point these things out if you are using one but if you are booking on your own, be on the lookout for perks. Norwegian usually offers really nice incentives like added specialty dining, free wi-fi, and drink packages when booking certain cabins on their ships.

5. Book your own excursions. I have a separate post here about how to book the best cruise excursions and I really believe that doing this will make your cruise experience more special and personalized. When you use the excursions offered through the ship, you will generally pay a lot more and be on a big bus that wastes a lot of time moving a lot of people around. You can pick small-group or private excursions that are more focused on what your family wants to do while saving a significant amount of money. That said, I’m looking into excursions for an upcoming Carnival Cruise and noticed on their excursions page that they will price-match any 3rd party excursion. I haven’t tried that yet but if I do I will be sure to report back on how it goes.

6. Skip the drink packages. This may not work for some people but for me, I just love to drink water. I’d much rather each a delicious dessert instead of indulging in a fancy drink. Or if you know you will want to drink, maybe just pay for a drink or two a la carte each day. Unless you will be consuming a lot, I don’t think the high prices drink packages are worth it. For example, the Carnival drink package is currently $51.95 per person per day if purchased before boarding the ship. You have to purchase the package for the entire length of your cruise so on a 7-day cruise, you are adding $363.65 per adult. For me, that is money I’d rather put into excursions or just keep it in the bank.
Side note: One of our Princess Cruises, my husband and kids did get the drink package. It included soda and smoothies (no alcohol) and they did take full advantages. Letting the kids order whatever drink they wanted was a fun perk of that trip. That was the only time we’ve added on drinks and it was at a much lower rate than the alcoholic beverage package.

Hannah enjoying her grandparents’ cabin in the Haven on the Norwegian Getaway

7. Enjoy all of the fun included activities on the boat. Take full advantage of your cruise by joining in on fun ship activities. The Disney Cruise has an indoor movie theatre that runs new release movies plus older favorites all day long. Other cruise lines have outdoor movies at night. We love getting to sit back, relax, and watch a movie! We have also joined in on trivia, game shows, scavenger hunts, boat building contests, ropes courses, mini-golf, swimming, and shuffleboard.
Seeking out the fun activities offered helps our family bond as we do fun things together. When you focus on free (included) activities, you will likely be less tempted to spend money in the spa, arcade, and other cost-added activities.

Cruises are a perfect multi-generational vacation!

8. Sail out of a port close to home. When you leave from a port close to home, you can drive there instead of flying. This can provide huge cost savings.

Look for cruise itineraries that set sail within driving distance of your home.

We have chosen to sail out of California a few times based on the fact that it’s only a 6-hour car drive from our home in Arizona. Driving doesn’t always make sense depending on where you live but it is something to consider if you are looking for ways to shave some cost off of the trip.

If you are going to fly to your port city, check out flight prices before you book the cruise from your home airport to different port cities. This can help choose the most cost-effective place to start your cruise. For example, if you live in Tennessee, it will likely be less expensive to fly to Florida instead of San Diego to start your cruise.

Enjoying ice cream + mini golf on the Norwegian Getaway

9. Choose sailing dates in the off-season. Of course, if you are sailing with kids, the off-season will be a bit of a challenge since they will likely be in school. Honestly, when my kids were in elementary school and junior high, missing a week was a challenge, but totally do-able and worth it. We missed a full week in October once and had a fabulous time sailing on a Disney Cruise over Halloween.
Now that my kids are in high school, they really cannot miss a week. My advice: let your younger kids miss some school. The memories will matter more than whatever schoolwork they have to work to make up.

10. Book ahead and watch prices. True story: We booked through a travel agent for an upcoming Alaska cruise and we were all set. About a month later she emailed us and said she was watching cruise prices and our price had dropped $275 each and she was crediting us the difference in the price. Sweet! We wouldn’t have caught that if we’d looked on our own.

If you book on your own, watch for prices to lower and ask the cruise line to refund the price difference if it drops. They may not honor the price drop for a refund but it cannot hurt to ask.

The cruise itinerary isn’t important. It’s all about bonding as a family.

11. Choose a cabin that fits your budget. The prices vary widely between inside cabins, oceanview cabins, balconies, and suites. Be sure to look at the prices for each of the rooms options and choose one that best fits your budget.
When our family cruises, my husband and I usually book a balcony cabin and then we book an interior cabin right across the hall for our kids to share. The kids can hang out in our room and enjoy the light + balcony, but we are able to save a lot of money by having them stay in an inside cabin.

Every little bit of money saved counts when booking a cruise! Cruises are a great family travel option and figuring out how to make it work for your family can provide you with priceless days spent together making memories that will last a lifetime.