River cruising is becoming very popular, especially in Europe, but also to exotic destinations like Russia, China, India, Vietnam, Cambodia & Egypt. In this week’s article, I let you know how to get the best deals on river cruises.
Beautiful Uniworld Balcony Staterooms
RESERVE EARLY – First of all, you should make your reservations very early. I can’t stress this enough. I’ve had so many clients become disappointed because they thought six months in advance was plenty of time to book the river cruise of their dreams. Most river cruises are sold out by this time, while others may have only one or two of the least desirable staterooms left. Why spend all that money for an inferior room? You should definitely plan well for your maximum enjoyment.
HOW MUCH IN ADVANCE? – I recommend twelve months at least, with eighteen months being preferred. Planning eighteen months in advance will definitely you get the itinerary, stateroom and sailing date of your choice. Sometimes it’s not possible to book quite this far in advance though, especially at the end of the year, but a skilled travel consultant can watch for you and let you know as soon as your preferred date becomes available.
By booking at least twelve months in advance, you’ll also get all of the discounts available; such as 2-for-1 pricing, free or discounted airfare, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises “pay-in-full”, Vikings “long ship”, AmaWaterways “balcony celebration”, pay by check, etc. Please be aware that river cruise promotions change frequently.
Viking Longship
PAY-IN-FULL – By paying in full, you are usually able to get the best discounts. Keep in mind that there are cancellation penalties with most river cruises, so be sure that you can travel. Because of these cancellation penalties, I highly recommend that you purchase the appropriate travel insurance to protect your investment.
BOOK TOGETHER – When you book two or more staterooms with me, I do the extra planning necessary and am usually able to get you more discounts than you could by yourself when you book far in advance. Please be sure to let me know that you will have other friends joining you on your river cruise.
EXAMPLE – A client came to me in December of 2014 who wanted to book two staterooms on a European river cruise for October 2015. This was ten months in advance. Unfortunately, they weren’t able to get the date in early October that they preferred. If they had called me eighteen months in advance as I recommend, they would have been able to choose any date they liked. However, they were able to get their preferred stateroom, which was a full balcony.
Rhine River Cruise
Here’s a breakdown of how much I was able to save each couple:
Original River Cruise Price – $14,398
Less Discounts:
2 for 1 Discount – $7,087
My Multi Stateroom Discount – $250
Cruise Line’s Special Discount – $300
Rebate – $199
Final River Cruise Price – $6,562 (that’s 54% equal to $7,836 savings) per couple!!
BOOK WITH AN EXPERT – On top of this, with my expertise, I was able to save them money on their airfare and on their European hotel, prior to their river cruise departure.
Would you like to book a river cruise? I am here to help you have the best experience AND get you the best value. Give me a call at 800-733-7471 or email me at Sheila@CarefreeRomanticVacations.com to get started!
