Lenore

We want to do the 10 day Caribbean cruise on Celebrity's Summit in early April. We got an okay price on one of our favorite web sites, but wonder if we're better off waiting for a better deal. Since this is "wave period", should we hold out?

Paul Therault

I really do not think you should wait Lenore. The Celebrity prices are awfully good for April. When they fill the ship the prices will go up for sure. Stands to reason.<BR><BR>Paul

Tim

What is a &quot;Wave Period&quot;? I've cruised for almost 20 years and never heard that term used.

Lew

Tom--<BR><BR>The first three full weeks after the New Year holiday is known in the cruise industry as the “Wave Period.” These weeks have traditionally served as a barometer of booking activity for the remainder of the year.

ParrotMom

The cruise lines are offering right now fabulous deals...but whether the cruising public will buy will be another story.What with the economy and the threat of war in the Mid-East. Will be going to a travel show on Saturday and perhaps I'll get an idea of how the bookings are going and who are booking and what age group. It maybe a that people want to wait until the end of February to see what happens with all the troops being sent over.....

Lenore

Good information ParrotMom. Please post a report of your findings after you get back from the travel show. I think we'll wait until the end of this month to book.

BeachBoi

Parrotmom-<BR>Hows your injury?Hope itsOK.One of my roomies got sucked into going to a TravelShow over the weekend.All they wanted was bookings...and more bookings.All the news was &quot;good&quot;--ships are filling up fast.....we take AX/VI/MC/even Discover.LOL!! Lots of folks as usual went just for the freebies...I think they even had a wet-Tee shirt contest.

Parrot Mom

Thanks for asking...my hand is doing very well much to the amazement of my morthopedic surgeon, except for the strength which I'm still working on. At this particular travel show the bargains and discounts are incredible... the resort we want to go to just went down for the week we want to go $100.00 per person.. and then jumps three to four hundred dollars two weeks later. when you walk into this show...there are two black boards from the two main charter companies in Boston... each one vying with the best bargains for the next few weeks.. you see people standing there taking notes.. and not surprising as one trip is sold out they add others.. As for the cruise lines..they will have everybody there.. Just imagine this large exhibition hall...all around the perimeter are travel agents and computers from the sponsoring company and then aisle after aisle of resorts, countries with their tourism people, from this country and the southern climates etc. etc. I've just discovered a new charter &quot;product&quot; is being introduced and I am so excited...I will probably not take a cruise and go to Majjorca instead...never been.. As a matter of fact I have the prices for a cruise I thought I might take and thought I would compare them.. I'm looking to rob a bank...anybody know of an easy spot...lol As of this moment I'm in my winter funk and I need that warm and hot sun beating down on me.. instead of thinking of my icy driveway and bitter cold outside.. Will let you know...

Parrot Mom

Have just come back from travel show in Boston. Last night they had fewer people (from 5:00 to 10:00 p.m.), but the clients that showed up knew what they wanted. Today was the first Saturday when we arrived that people were just milling around...no long lines. Everybody seemed to have the free passes for the show which means they were previous buyers. There definetely wasn't the crowded conditions when the door opened and three hours later that we have seen in previous years. One rep told me her Punta Cana was completely sold out for the winter and evenat $599, less $50.00 a person was having difficulty selling Puerta Plata.. The perimeter area where the agents sat normally was very busy, there were fewer agents or terminals this year. The cruise area had Costa, Holland American, Princess, Disney, N.C.L,. Orient and Royal Carribean None seemed overly busy. Our trip to the D.R. is in a month and when I asked the sales manager what was going to happen at the end of February if war broke out... He didn't want to discuss it.

Nobody knows

Quote<BR>______________________________________<BR >Our trip to the D.R. is in a month and when I asked the sales manager what was going to happen at the end of February if war broke out... He didn't want to discuss it.<BR>_______________________________________<BR> <BR>What did you want the sales manager to say? That they would herd all the cruise ships into the Bermuda Triangle to protect them from the Iraqi Air Force?<BR><BR>You make it sound as if information was intentionally withheld from you. What about he didn't know, and was tired of this inane question?<BR>

Lenore

So ParrotMom - Are you saying you've been to these travel shows before and this one seemed less crowded (fewer bookings?) than in previous years? I didn't understand your comments about the Mexican resorts, are bookings up or down? How would you gauge it overall compared to last year's show?

ParrotMom

Yes Lenore, we go every year to this particular travel show which had been held MLK weekend until this year. When we arrived this year before the show opened instead of the long snaking lines people were just milling around...there were definetely less people waiting and when we left more than two hours later....it was noticably less crowded than previous years. People were still slowly streaming in...as you walked in there were was a huge bulletin board with incredible saviings. Punta Cana is not in Mexico...it is in the Dominican Republic. I was told that the people who attended the show on Friday night when the show opened were far fewer, but weren't just looking...they wanted the bargains and sale prices. At the cruise booths there appeared to be fewer people sitting and booking. We did book a cruise for September, but not at the show...when we got home. Oh yes...we did book a cruise, but not at the show when we got home..but not until September.. and if we make the decision we can always cancel. I'll be glad to discuss this off the forum...

Lenore

Thanks again ParrotMom for all the information. Silly me.....I just assumed that Punta or Puerta were Mexican resorts!! Based on your observations, I predict there will be cruise bargains galore after the &quot;wave&quot; is over.

Sandy

Does this &quot;wave&quot; period apply to Alaska cruises, too? Since they are just for a couple of months (May-Sept), should we try to book early or wait?<BR><BR>I don't want to miss out on getting a balcony but I surely would be unhappy to book now and then find out I could have save a lot of $$ by waiting a month.<BR><BR>What's the advice from the pros?<BR><BR>Thanks,<BR>Sandy

Parrot Mom

I'm not a pro...BUT if you book now you can always cancel can't you? We dont have to put our final payment for our Sept. cruise until July.. That makes sense to me...I don't know what Paul thinks..

cruise

I'm a new cruiser, so please bear with me. You mean I can book with no money down? And then I can cancel with no penalty?<BR><BR>ParrotMom, do you mind sharing your TA's name or website where you book? You sound like you know how to get the good deals.

Lenore

Every cruise we've done requires a $500 deposit at the time of booking, which is completely refundable if you cancel at least 60 days before sailing. They generally want the balance 60 days prior to the cruise. Like someone stated above, the wave period is when the industry experiences heavy bookings during the first few weeks after the holidays and serves as a gauge of how the cruiselines will fare for the year. So it would presumably apply to all types of cruises, including Alaska.

xxx

Are travel shows good places to book cruises? Would I obtain a better price there?

Parrot Mom

No, I am no expert and Paul can verify that..You must put a deposit down..and I believe if you read the fine print that you can cancel so many days before the cruise.. After firing my travel agent of more than ten years My husband searched on the internet and 1-800 numbers found in cruise magazine and phone book and found a cruise only agent that called us back immediately (Our RCI cruise) and quoted us not only what we felt was a good price, but added a balcony and a location that was suitable (near an elevator-midship)..Normally I do all this research, but he was determined to get rid of our other agent...lol for further info you can write me but I'm not about to publicize in this forum the cruise agent I used...it's not fair to Paul or other agents on this forum.

xxx

Paul is an agent, what is the website of his company??