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Cruising Without Going Broke!

By: Cyrill Exxonell

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During hard economic times, most people do not even think of taking a cruise when it comes to holiday planning. Don't forget that other consumers are thinking the same while bigger and bigger cruise ships are built !. So what does it mean? It means you have the edge since the cruise companies are really eager to get your business. Keep this in mind as you review the following cost saving guidelines.

Pre-Boarding Considerations:
Here's how to find the lowest fare at the best time.
•Look for bulk buyers
Check out cruise consolidators. They buy large blocks of cabins from the cruise lines at a deep discount. The majority of the offers don't include plane tickets, but the cost savings are significant, and companies such as Cruiseone dot com, CruiseBrothers dot com, and Cruise dot com highlight dozens of bargain basement priced cruises around the world every week.

•Do not forget the 'shoulder season'
The 'shoulder season' is that time in between a destination's high and low seasons. Because of the timing, shoulder season rates are much lower. For example, try sailing to Alaska in mid-May or early September, to the Caribbean in late April or September-October, to Hawaii in late August or late November, or to the Mediterranean in March or November. In addition to better rates, cruise lines tend to offer special packages throughout the shoulder season as well as low season to entice guests to book.

•Check if school is out
This is straightforward, you avoid those times when the kids are off. Think spring breaks or summer vacations. That's when the quantity of unfilled cabins is usually the lowest, and prices for them are highest. Cruises are wildly affordable right after Labor Day and during the week after Thanksgiving, for example.

•All set ? .. Book it!
If your schedule is open, try to book your cruise until the last minute. Almost all cruise lines quietly unload any remaining inventory as the departure date draws closer. Note: 'Last minute' is a relative term. After 9/11, security policy now require cruise lines to close the list of passengers as much as 96 hours before sailing.

Post Boarding Considerations:
Since cruise lines almost try to give away the cabins just to get you on board, they try to make it up later during the cruise. That means you have to keep in mind a few simple things to minimize the impact to your wallet.

Factor in Tipping
Make sure you know if the cruise lines have already factored in the gratuities or if they will leave it up to the passengers. To avoid overtipping or undertipping, go to this website, cruisetip dot tpkeller dot com and they will give you a very good idea, broken down by cruise lines and by the services provided (i.e. waiters, head waiter, chambermaids and so on).

Stick with the Main Dining Room:
More and more cruise ships have specialty-restaurants to give passengers options beyond the cost-included main dining room and midnight buffet. On some cruise lines, for instance, dinner at one of their designer restaurants can run you a minimum of $50 per guest!

Budget for Booze:
Remember that BYOB does not apply to cruise lines. Crusie lines do not like it when you bring your own stuff, so they employ the 'liquor police' to politely get your booze as you come on board. Your booze is returned to you, of course, at the end of the cruise.

Follow these simple tips and you are on your way to getting the best value for your money while enjoying that well deserved cruise vacation!

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Cyrill is a retired teacher living in the middle of the Las Vegas desert. In an effort to relieve boredom, while at the same time make some money on the side, he has gotten into promoting a varied collection of sites such as this one for the aquabot pool cleaner to the equally pricey 'bots like the polaris pool cleaners.

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