Planning a cruise is a little bit art and a little bit of science. Unlike going to the grocery store cruise pricing varies significantly from week to week. One thing will always hold true if the kids are out of school it will cost more. Except during fall break! This truth is what led us to book our latest cruise on Allure of the Seas.
Now you may be wondering why fall break does not command the high prices like other times of the year. Well, this happens to be during Hurricane season in the Atlantic and Caribbean. So, many people will not cruise during this time and to be honest, my wife was one of those people. It took quite a bit of “conditioning” to get her to agree to
Cruising in the fall you will absolutely find great rates, but there are some things to consider to make sure sailing during this time is right for you. The first thing to consider is if you book a cruise for the ports absolutely do not go in the fall. There is a better than average chance your itinerary will change along the way as your ship navigates around storms, tropical depressions, and hurricanes. Itinerary changes go from missing a port, doing the itinerary in reverse, going from Eastern Caribbean to Western Caribbean, and even missing all the ports. So be sure you are happy with the ship you picked just in case.
The second tip to cruising in the fall. Be sure to make it to your home port destination at least one day before the departure day. You do not want to run into flight delays or unexpected traffic that will cause you to miss your ship. For instance, you may be sailing out of Miami, but a hurricane could be coming up from the Gulf and swing its way through Atlanta. If you had a flight that connected in Atlanta it could cause you to miss your flight to Miami and therefore miss the ship.
My third tip. Consider buying trip insurance. There are travel insurance comparison websites that can help you determine the best insurance for you. We always buy an insurance with a cancel for any reason feature. If for some reason we get close to the cruise and I am not feeling good about the situation I can cancel the cruise and get 75% of my nonrefundable money back. I feel this gives me peace of mind when traveling that I don’t have to sail if something changes.
If you are a first-time cruiser reading this. I would not recommend taking your first cruise in the fall. In my opinion, it helps to have a little experience under your belt and lowers the stress if changes do occur. Cruising is an amazing way to vacation, but it is quite a bit different from any other vacation I have taken. So your first cruise you want to be as easy and you can make it. If your still looking for a deal check out May as a great time for your first cruise.