Best Carnival deals?

S

stfarm

Guest
I forgot to ask, where do you guys get the VERY BEST Carnival deals.
Which site has the best rates, or how can I get the maximum bang for my buck?

Thank you all,

Steve & Maricel
 
C

Cruzman

Guest
Requires some research. There is no single answer. Sometime you can find an agency that has a group booking for the cruise in which you are interested. As a part of the group, you may be able to access these great rates. There are group bookings available on this website; do some research. Nothing beats having a reliable and efficient travel agent. Lot's of reputable TA's post here. Be sure when comparing cruise pricing that you are comparing apples to apples. Some agencies don't quote the total price of the cruise; adding taxes, fuel surcharges etc after the fact. Always ask for the TOTAL price, and be aware of other charges such as "document handling", cancellation charges, etc. Did I mention, do some research!
 
S

stfarm

Guest
Thank you for your reply. I tried many different sites, from ecruise to kayak, all not much different from Carnival.com itself.

But I will look around some more, thank you.

Steve
 
G

Giles612

Guest
You will find that going from site to site on the same cruise will generally result in very similar pricing. What I do to find the best deal is look at dates and itineraries, you will find great deals during the shoulder seasons. I always book with a T/A but I go to the various sites to get a feel for when the best pricing will be. Some people tend to want to avoid cruising during the hight (September 10th) of hurricane season so you can usually find good deals around that time. Though I have seen great pricing on November and December. I think it is good to get an idea of a price in mind and then go see if you can find it, if your schedule is flexible enough you can sometime find a good match.
 
A

awp529

Guest
My best results have been through Travelocity and Southwest Airline websites. They seem to offer the best on-board credits for using certain types of credit cards. For my upcoming cruise (9/21/08- Carnival Conquest) was able to get a three step upgrade and $100 on board credit where the Carnival Site only offered a one step upgrade for being a past guest. Someone has wisely mentioned already that you should be sure of what is being included in the price so that you don't have a surprise when all the "extras" are added on. The other thing to be careful of is booking a guarantee for a certain type of cabin. You may save $100 for two people but you can bet you will get what is left over. I did this with a suite guarantee, sure I saved $100, but the cabin we received at check-in had at what best could be called a "peek-a-boo" view from the balcony. When I asked after sailing was told that I received the type of cabin I had asked for and that was that. I still enjoyed my cruise but from then on selected my own cabin, no more guarantees. Another word about the two websites mentioned they seem to show a wider array of cabins available, also the cabins are displayed in a deck plan format with flashing arrows so you can quickly see where they are located. Other sites tend to show only a few cabins and then only list the number not the deck plan. All of the other posts you have received contain good information and there is not a single answer, just do your homework then enjoy the cruise.
 
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NiteStar

Guest
I've sailed on Carnival 6 times and have ALWAYS gotten the best deals from cruisequick.com.
 
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Kruzr41

Guest
Carnival does not allow TA's to advertise lower prices than the stated price from Carnival. To find a TA's REAL price, you must call them. A TA's commission for a cruise is fairly small so they are not going to quote you many many hundreds of dollars less than the cruise line. But $50. bucks is better than a kick in the butt with a frozen moccasin.

Dan
 
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