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Shoulder season in the Caribbean is May through November, the months just before peak season, which is December through April. This is the time when you'll typically find better deals on pricing, especially in May and September to November. The advantage of traveling in the shoulder season is that you can experience the towns without the summer crowds and with cooler temperatures. Tracking prices allows you to watch the rise and fall of cruise fares over time, so when the fare drops, you'll recognize the price as a deal and be able to pounce on it.
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You’ll want to make sure you read all the fine print of your fare before you buy. For instance, you can learn more about Carnival’s different fares here. Where you can get burned waiting until last-minute is with cabin selection. If you wait until a couple of weeks before the cruise sails, then you’re going to be left with cabins that other passengers didn’t want. This usually means there are no or limited balcony rooms, and the locations of available rooms are often less desirable.
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Frankly, cruise lines are similar to clothing stores in that they are always running sales. Sometimes it might be an incentive to book and receive onboard credit, or a sale where additional passengers sail for a discount, or a percentage off the total cruise. Hurricanes are always of interest to the Caribbean, and hurricane season runs from June through November. For cruise passengers, the risk of being caught in a hurricane on a ship is low.
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You, however, could be lounging on deck sipping a frozen tropical concoction while waiting for your samba class to start. If you don't mind spring break crowds, spring is a wonderful time to cruise. The weather in the Caribbean in March, April and May is idyllic, and the seas are likely to be calm. Plus, escaping the last of winter's wrath at home can be just what the doctor ordered to save your sanity.
That means ships may be below capacity as high season comes into swing later in the summer. Short cruises remain relatively cheap, but prices for weeklong sailings increase -- some into the four-digit range, per person. The late spring and early summer months are great for enjoying the Caribbean at its relative quietest. Hot temperatures make long days near the sea enticing, though you are more likely to encounter a day or two of rain in some parts of the Caribbean in May or June. The Alaska cruise season is a little over six months long, but choosing the best time to cruise Alaska is surprisingly not that simple.
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The cruise season in the Mediterranean usually begins in April and ends in November, with peak season falling between June and September. Whether the winter months are the best time to book a cruise depends on which itinerary you're hoping to book and how popular that sailing is that year. In a year when Alaska cruises are popular, the wave season promotions in January and February might not be especially good because the lines don't need to discount to fill cabins.
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If you want to avoid rain, May is typically the driest month, with plenty of sunshine and highs in the 50s. It's a great month for nature lovers to cruise to Alaska because May is when you'll see much of the wildlife emerging, including migrating gray whales, Dall sheep, moose and migratory birds. Sorry to disappoint you, but the best time to go on a cruise is not a fixed week or month, as you might hope.
Those months coincide with peak season in the Caribbean, though, so crowded ports and beaches plus higher cruise fares are the norm. However, the vast number of cruise lines plying the Caribbean Sea mean you can find a massive spread of cruises for almost every budget. You can often land deals if you travel during the early weeks of December and in the later spring, when weather is still mostly calm and dry.
Best Time To Book A Cruise In 2024
The weather is a major factor because rainfall is often quite heavy in the Caribbean during certain times of the year. It’s the dry season across much of Southeast Asia, when temperatures are comfortably cool and water levels are high enough to make most rivers navigable. Look to the west coast of Thailand, Myanmar’s Ayeyarwady or the Mekong Delta.
It then begins to climb in October and November as weather becomes colder up north and average rainfall begins to lessen. Popular cruise islands such as St. Maarten have average high temperatures rise into the upper 80s Fahrenheit or more than 30 degrees Celsius. As the weather gets warmer, eastern Caribbean cruises start to become a better choice. Many eastern cruises begin in Florida and include the Bahamas as a port of call. The Bahamas and the nearby Turks and Caicos islands are among the coolest in the region during the winter. Each cruise season during the year has a different combination of weather, prices and crowds.
As time goes by the cruise prices go up for Disney Cruise Line because of the limited availability. For cruises, booking with a travel agent will still get you some of the best deals. Keep in mind that July and August means families are taking advantage of school breaks and vacation days. If you're looking for a more low-key Caribbean cruise this time of year, look to the smaller islands of the region. Most Caribbean cruises in March and April run close to $100 per person, per night.
For destinations like Alaska, pre/post hotels are tight in Seattle so booking early is encouraged. Since it is after the holiday season, most people have either finished a holiday vacation and have no intention of booking another one soon. While cruise lines are usually prepared to sail away from storms, it's always a good idea to supplement low fares with travel insurance for incidentals like flight changes. January through March is often the region's busiest season, as the weather is most ideal and offers passengers an escape from colder temperatures throughout the United States.
Image waking up and just hopping on a Caribbean Cruise from your back door. So, I always suggest to my guests to let me know well in advance what cruise they are interested in. And when the sale comes up we can let them know and get them booked relatively quickly. So, if they book far enough in advance, they will have the best opportunity to choose a cabin which suits them rather than a cabin which is the pick of the left-overs. Another advantage of booking in January is you will often find the most availability for the cabins of your choice.
Elizabeth Rhodes is a special projects editor at Travel + Leisure, covering everything from luxury hotels to theme parks to must-pack travel products. Originally from South Carolina, Elizabeth moved to New York City from London, where she started her career as a travel blogger and writer. Evie Carrick is a writer and editor who’s lived in five countries and visited well over 50. She now splits her time between Colorado and Paris, ensuring she doesn't have to live without skiing or L'As du Fallafel.
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