$449 is not bad but I had seen lower. The price is ship and date dependent. One week off or a different ship would mean all the price differnces in the world. I would speculate that it is for a lower category inside cabin.

If you ahve never cruyised before, beware of the other add on expenses.

You can do a lot of comparison shopping by checking cruises on vacationstogo.com. look at their 90 day sticker.

Sort of depends on the cabin super bad deal for an inside.

Legend Western Carib BALCONY for me last $429.00 plus upgrades

booked by me with www.priceline.com best price also try

crucon.com

vacationstogo.com

mpraete@cruisone.com

all good discounters

Happy Shopping!

The price of $449 is for an inside cabin. I am finding that same price everywhere. Do the prices typically drop as it gets closer to cruise time or once it is posted on the 90 day ticket etc will it stay the same? Thanks!

You never know. If cabins are selling well, the price may go up closer to departure time. If sales are down, cabin prices may drop closer to departure time. Sometimes, there are one day sales. I keep an eye on them, decide exactly which cruises (date, ship, itinerary, etc.) I am interested in, then book when I think it is as good as it will get. It is a gamble. Once, it dropped a bit more after I booked. Another time, it went up again after I booked. If you want a particular cabin on a particular sail date, you may not want to gamble with price.

You can go to Expedia, Cruises, they have an option for home port, and you can sort them by price.

$449 per person makes it $128 a night... agree with Eschew: not bad, but can go lower.

If the price and itinerary are right for you, make a reservation, and don't look back.

Dayenu, you need a new calcualtor. $449 for 7 nights works out to $64 a night. The same cruise goes for $409 on a different sailing date.

$64 a night per person or $128 a night if I take my husband with me, which I think I will

The lower prices I have found are all for December dates which don't work for me. Any dates in Jan or Feb work so I guess I will keep checking the websites everyday to see if it drops. Thanks!!

I thought the $409 is for Jan 29.

Eschew, I don't travel by myself. It's still $128 a night for a couple

yeah ... you both got me ... but since we are talking about per person on the $449, the reasonable assumption is be per person on the per day ...

Yes, this is a good price. If the sole reason you're choosing a cruise is the price, then you might find a slightly cheaper rate somewhere, but this one isn't going to change. They can't operate the ship any cheaper. Just be aware that some of these low price quotes don't include taxes and never include tips. The cruise is really going to cost about $100 more than the quoted base price. But either way it's incredibly cheap.

Actually I was choosing the cruise based on departure port (I can drive to it) and the port visits, I have never been to any of these. I just want to get the best price possible.

There's a brand-new itinerary from New Orleans on Royal Caribbean's Voyager of the Seas that is worth considering. You should take a look at that. It doesn't call in Belize, but it does call in Cozumel and Grand Cayman (as well as Falmouth, Jamaica). Prices are similar to those from NCL.

Generally, you can get good "deals" on cruises, but my experience is that people who are looking for a fun vacation and choosing solely on price are often disappointed. Speak to a travel agent and see what other options you might have for New Orleans, Galveston, or Mobile cruises. All the cruise lines coming from these ports have Western Caribbean itineraries, and the cruises are typically cheap.

Doug, you may want to add that the cruise lines typically hoome port the "older" ships out of New Orleans, Galveston, and Mobile. Voyage of the Sea, the latest ship added to the area, was launched prior to the year 2000, and is probably the newest and the best ship there right now.

The price is cheaper from ships home ported there for a reason: that is bcasue they are older and less competitive with the newer ships sailing from Florida.

Most major cruise lines do not allow individual agencies, be they on line or brick and mortar, to discount or rebate, so you should shop for a reputable, knowledgeable travel agent, preferably a local one that you can go to or call in the event of a problem. The only way you can sometimes find a better price is if an agency has a group of blocked cabins held before a price increase goes into effect. (I am a travel agent, so I am well familiar with the rules.) If a travel agency is caught discounting or rebating, they stand to lose their ability to earn commissions with that cruise line, since it is against the cruise line policies, which the agencies must agree to in order to be authorized to book.

What do I need to be aware of about an older ship?

They're usually smaller, and they have fewer of the big-deal new amenities like rock-climbing walls, gigantic spas, and all the newest restaurants.

Though many companies, including Royal Caribbean, are outfitting some of their older ships with a lot of new features.

The Voyager Class, however, has a lot of these amenities, so that ship is actually quite nice and may not feel its age. Some of the older NCL ships, however, just weren't built for their freestyle cruising concept, so they don't have the multiplicity of restaurants you'll find on other ships.

Be aware of Royal Carribean out of New Orleans, the port is brand new we just went on a cruise in Nov 2011 to Mexico, Grand Cayman, and Falmouth. Very disorganized port. Falmouth is was the worst they want $50 for someone to take you to the beach and all thats there is a few shops down a row and a flea market thing in the middle. Just past the small row of shops are taxis and vans. Royal Carribean was horriable I have never been told "No" by someone that we are paying in all my life. You ask if you can have an iternary for the next day No you ask them to let you sleep in NO you ask for room service and they question you. Royal Carribean is suppose to be the best but I was ready to throw a rope to Carnival and jump ship.

Well phillipsfam did you join Fodors just to rip RCI? Do you really expect people to believe they refused to let you sleep in or that bit about room service??? If you have an issue make it sound plausible. This sounds riduculous. JM2C.

So silly. I've never asked if I could sleep in on a cruise; just put the little "Please do not disturb" sign on the cabin door, and no one bothered me - ever. Very unusual about the itinerary - they are usually in your box or in your cabin every evening for the next day. If this is the first time in your whole life you have been told no by someone you are paying, consider yourself lucky.