We found 14 day alaska cruise on vacations to go for $599 plus fees makes the trip $42 day on Saphire Princess. This is our favorite cruise line, and we will probably use them exclusively.

Posted By Peg Hoffman on June 27, 2009, 5:56 PM

I completely agree with Peg. Vacationstogo.com has geat deals. We recently booked Carnival Splendor (after the swine flu cancellations) for only $279 plus tax--my parents went the week before us and paid even less) for a one week Canadian cruise. We did RCCL Mariner of the Seas to the Mexican Riviera for $399 plus tax the week after Easter. This is a great time to take a cruise!

Posted By Kirsten Hadzicki on June 29, 2009, 12:19 AM

that is a good deal but a friend in Jan scored a $70/day (that's after taxes, insurance, etc.) on a 10 day to the deep Carribean w/ MSC...very lux boat, great staff and good food (contrary to what soem of the on-line critics say) - itinarary fm Ft Lauderdale to San Juan, St Martin, Antigua, Tortrola and D.R.

Posted By kitty on June 29, 2009, 1:30 PM

Seeking advice on booking shore excursions while doing cruise Seattle to Alaska, Aug. 2009 & return on Norwegian Pearl. Looks like sometimes considerably cheaper to skip ship doing the booking and going directly to providers for same tour. (Ex. flightseeing in Juneau/Skagway.

Posted By Barbara on June 29, 2009, 3:34 PM

We just got back from our Alaskan Cruise on RCI Serenade of the Seas. We only booked one shore excursion through the cruise line...the Yukon railroad trip out of Skagway to the White Horse Pass. Our train was entirely for our cruise ship and we boarded right next to the ship instead of having to walk into town (handy for the older parents traveling with us). We did book a whale watching trip on our own once we arrived in Juneau and was very pleased with the intimacy of the tour...only 16 passengers compared to the 75+ passengers on a trip booked through the ship. Price was a little cheaper but we enjoyed not having to worry about whether we could see out the window or back deck.

As for cruise prices, the couple in the balcony cabin next to ours paid only $800 about a month ago (her cousin is a travel agent and told her about the deal) while we paid $1,700 (booked last year)! Not happy about that but we also had three cabins right next to each other (family trip). Couldn't have done that at the last minute.

Posted By Tina C on June 29, 2009, 11:26 PM

We took a 14 day cruise on Grand Princess from LA to Hawaii and were very disappointed! First, our "upgrade" provided by Princess turned out to be "up" indeed--right in the very front of the ship! The seas were rough, I felt miserable, and we discovered that there was no hope for a cabin change. The itinerary included five stops--we only made 3! There were no plan B's in case the sea conditions made one Hawaiian island inaccessible for the Grand Princess. Result: 11 days out of 14 at sea (with confirmed norovirus cases on board to throw in a little anxiety!) when we had looked forward to a dream vacation in one of the most remote, beautiful areas of the world!

Posted By Linda Cahill on July 16, 2009, 11:00 AM

Any advice for booking a trip in Mediterranean for next summer? Destinations, ships etc.. We will be taking out 16 year old daughter with us. This will be our first cruise.

Posted By Danne on July 16, 2009, 11:48 AM

After reading all the great deals, and working in the travel industry for AAA, It does pay to use a travel agent! For the family that paid the higher amount for the cabins to Alaska, Princess would have reduced the price of the cabin if you had asked or your travel agent would have done that for you. This is the year for Alaska. Deals won't be as great next year since their wont' be as many ships up there. Always check the price before you pay final to see if there is a lower rate..

Posted By toni Snyder on July 16, 2009, 12:42 PM

For Families traveling to Europe and looking for a great cruise, pick a cruise line that caters more to a younger crowd. Example, always read the brochures, look at the photos, what age group do you see. I would recommend Royal Caribbean for you and your family. They have some great itins for the med and different length cruises. You might want to think of a 7 day cruise and extend your vacation in Italy for another week to really enjoy Europe. Cruising is great, but Europe happens at night and the ships leave. That is why I love the 7 night cruises so I can build around the itinerary and have the best of both worlds! Use a reputable travel agent for your first trip to Europe, Make sure they specialize in Europe though, not just a cruise agent. Check out your local AAA office

Posted By toni Snyder on July 16, 2009, 12:49 PM

I scored a cruise at the last min. And by last min I mean I booked on Wednesday & sailed on Friday. A 3-night cruise to the Bahamas out of Miami for $199.00 a person before taxes & tips and that was for a BALCONY!! I received this deal from an email that NCL sent me.

Posted By Jennifer And on July 16, 2009, 1:31 PM

We got a similar good deal for a Holland America cruise last March. One thing we didn't know when we booked the cruise was that Brazil required visas which add almost $600 to the cost of our trip.

Posted By Judy Ball on July 16, 2009, 3:07 PM

We booked a Hawaiian Islands cruise with NCL which was great but decided to book our own shore excursions using Roberts Hawaiian Tours and saved a bunch! They picked us up at the same place the NCL tours did and we saw the same things/places for about half the price! It pays to check out what is available for land tours at your destination before hand.

Posted By J Cotter on July 16, 2009, 3:59 PM

We wanted to take an Eastern Mediterranean cruise on Celebrity Equinox. The best price we could find including Celebrity was $6717 - balconey + air. We could not book shore excursions without a cruise booking number. With no quarantee of shore excursions I would not pay this amount with the possibility of being stuck on board when in ports of Israel and Egypt.

Posted By Ray Hardt on July 17, 2009, 12:13 AM

Hi Maureen,

Don't forget your Brazilian Visa which I think is $300.

Posted By Barbara Baily on July 18, 2009, 12:55 PM

J Cotter was right on! Book Hawaiian shore excursions with Roberts Hawaii! They are great and just half as much as NCL's. Their luau was just half as much and absolutely wonderful! We booked all our shore excursions with them (1 or 2 per island) and when, due to an accident which made us have to detour to Christmas Island so that the passenger could get medical care, we had to skip our day on Maui, they refunded our money without even having to ask. It was automatically returned to our credit card(much to our surprise). Needless to say....I HIGHLY recommend them!!

Posted By Carolyn McCravy on August 31, 2009, 12:30 PM

Kudos to you for using a Travel Agent. You were not only supporting the brick and mortar industry of career professionals - you were supporting your local community. Travel Agents will match "internet" specials - typically they have the same deal but not the funds to advertise. Better yet, like you stated, they will go one better.

Posted By Deborah Mitchell on October 8, 2009, 9:34 AM