Money saving tips - Luxury Cruising

How To Get Cheap Cruises: An Insider Guide! (2024)

March 28, 2025

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Choosing a cruise Cruise Lines Cruise News Cruise Tips Money saving tips

Before I became a full-time blogger, I worked in the marketing department of a well-known specialist cruise travel agency for five years.

In that time, I sat at my desk and watched the price of cruises go up and down, and up again.

I’ve seen cruises priced at £13 per night and cruises that cost over £4,000 per night. I’ve spotted some incredible deals (and booked them), and I’ve also scratched my head at why some cruises are priced so much higher than others.

I like to cruise as often as I can, and to do that, I usually cruise as cheaply as possible.

Cruises aren’t expensive if you know how to find the cheap deals.

Jenni Fielding - cruise expert — Don’t be fooled, my sunglasses are from Primark

How I Afford to Cruise So Often…

I’ll be honest with you. I don’t spend a lot of money on cruises. In fact, the total I spend on multiple cruises for our family of four each year is less than most people spend on leasing a car.

You could also raise the money for up to five family cruises per year by quitting smoking, making a packed lunch each day for work or getting a better deal on your household bills. As long as you know how to find good value cruises, that is!

So, read on to find out how to go on a cruise for cheap, including where to find discount cruises…

Cruising Is Such Good Value!

Cruises offer the best value for money of all holidays. Why? Because so much is included!

When booking any kind of holiday, it’s important not to think about the ticket price, but to think about the total price, after you’ve paid for absolutely everything.

Trust me, I went to Center Parcs last year to see how it compared to a cruise and a cruise is so much cheaper when you factor everything in! You can read about experiment here.

All cruises include:

Accommodation on the ship
Food in the main dining room, buffet and snack bars
Drinks – water, tea, coffee, milk, squash
Entertainment
Activities
Gym, pools and hot tubs

You usually have to pay extra for:

Drinks (drinks packages are available)
Dining in speciality restaurants
Spa services
Casino
Tips/gratuities (these are included by some cruise lines)

Of course, any extras are optional. I usually don’t bother dining in speciality restaurants and I like to take my own drinks on board when I can.

Don’t Forget to Factor in Gratuities

Tips for cruise staff members (also known as gratuities) are an important cost that you’ll need to factor in.

Gratuities are charged per person, per day and added on to your bill for you to pay at the end of your cruise. The fees vary depending on the cruise line but are often around $16-18 per person, per day. When you add those on, a seven-night cruise for a family of four can cost an extra $450, or more.

However, not all cruise lines charge extra for gratuities. Some include gratuities in the ticket price of your cruise.

Cruise lines which don’t charge extra for gratuities (for UK guests) are:

Marella Cruises
MSC Cruises
P&O Cruises

How To Find Cheap Cruises

The first step to finding a cheap cruise is to choose your cruise line wisely.

Some cruise lines offer much cheaper cruises than others. Whilst there may be some differences in the level of service on-board or the quality of the food and entertainment, there are no bad cruise ships in the way that there are bad hotels and resorts.

Whichever cruise ship you choose, it will be spotlessly clean, the staff will look after you and you’ll have a great choice of quality food and entertainment.

The Best Cheap Cruise Lines

Here are the cheapest cruise lines in price order (low to high):

MSC Cruises
Costa Cruises
P&O Cruises

Are you surprised by that list? I wouldn’t expect so – MSC and Costa are well known as being good cruise lines for cheap sailings, and P&O Cruises offers great value too.

However, it’s important to note that this is based on the lead-in price. Once you add on taxes, fees and gratuities, the actual cost of your cruise could be twice as much with some cruise lines. So it’s important to consider exactly what’s included in your cruise.

You also need to consider transport. MSC may offer some cheap Caribbean cruises but a lot of their cheapest cruises will be one-way Europe cruises, so you’d need flights. Same with Costa – it’s not just about how to get a cheap cruise but also how to get cheap flights too, sometimes.

The Best Cheap Cruise Ships

You’ll find some large price differences between different ships in each fleet. Cruising on a newer cruise ship will cost more than a cruise on an older ship.

Why? Well, newer cruise ships are larger with more facilities on-board. People get excited about new ships and don’t mind paying more, especially for the maiden voyages.

Are new cruise ships better? Not always. Cruise ships are thoroughly refurbished every three years, so even on the oldest ships you’ll never find peeling paint or shabby furnishings.

Royal Caribbean charges around $1 more per drink on the newest ships, which doesn’t sound a lot but it can add up. Royal Caribbean drinks packages cost more on the newer ships too.

Rather than looking for the biggest, newest ships, don’t rule out some older ships which will be as good as new once you get on board.

The Best Cheap Cruise Cabins

cheap inside cabin on a cruise — An inside cabin on P&O Britannia

The cheapest cabins are inside cabins with no windows. I almost always choose an inside cabin when I cruise. The only reason I would choose a cabin with a balcony is if I were cruising to a scenic destination like the Norwegian Fjords or Alaska.

Or, if the balcony price wasn’t too dissimilar to the price of the inside cabin.

Other reasons why people pay extra for a balcony include claustrophobia or having a baby who will only take naps in a bed.

Sometimes, you’ll find cruise promotions offering free or cheap upgrades to balcony cabins. However, these are usually only on cold-weather cruises where you wouldn’t want to spend a lot of time on your balcony anyway.

The cheapest inside cabins are called ‘guarantee cabins’. This means that the cruise line chooses your stateroom number for you, and you’re guaranteed a cabin of that type, or better. If you want to, you can pay extra to choose your own cabin number, but in my opinion, this is rarely worth it.

The Best Cheap Cruise Destinations

The cheapest cruise destination for you will usually be not too far from home. If you can drive to the cruise port rather than flying, you’ll save hundreds straight away as you won’t need to pay for a flight or pre-cruise hotel.

If you live in the UK, choose a cruise that departs from a UK port. Southampton is the most popular cruise port in the UK and it handles over 90% of UK departures.

If you live in the US, you’ll find that most cruises depart from the various cruise ports in Florida, although you can also embark in Texas, New York, Louisiana, Alaska, Washington, California and Massachusetts, amongst others.

Be sure to look up your nearest port and see which ships sail from there to see if you can save on airfare.

The Cheapest Time Of Year To Cruise

Certain months are much cheaper than others and this depends very much on the destination and the weather that you can expect at that time of year.

The cheapest time to cruise in Europe and the Mediterranean is December and January (but not Christmas and New Year). This is mainly because the weather is cold.

The cheapest time to cruise in the Caribbean is August, September and October. This is because of hurricane season and the risk that cruises may miss ports or be cancelled altogether due to bad weather.

If your cruise is cancelled due to a hurricane you’ll get about two days’ notice, so hopefully, you won’t have taken your flight, but you’ll probably have packed your bags!

The most expensive time to cruise is always Christmas and New Year when prices will skyrocket to double or triple the normal price. The UK school summer holidays can be pretty expensive too.

The Best Cheap Family Cruises

When you’re cruising as a family, one of the most important things to pay attention to is the child prices.

Sometimes, kids cruise free and sometimes you’ll be charged the full adult fare for each child. Choosing a cruise where kids go free for a family of four will save you up to 50% on your total cruise price straight away.

Here’s how much each cruise line charges for kids:

Carnival – Full adult price
Celebrity Cruises – Full adult price
Costa Cruises – Children under 18 pay only port fees and service fees (approx £150 per week)
Cunard – Full adult price
Disney Cruise Line – Full adult price
MSC Cruises – Children under 18 cruise FREE when booking in the USA and from £119 when booking in the UK
Norwegian Cruise Line – Full adult price except when the Free At Sea promotion is on when kids cruise free
P&O Cruises – Full adult price in the school holidays and £99 per week in term-time
Princess Cruises – Full adult price but look out for £99 kids offers
Royal Caribbean – Full adult price except when the Kids Sail Free promotion is on

Cruise prices for babies vary hugely, depending on the cruise line.

MSC Cruises and Cunard do not charge for children under two years of age. Costa Cruises, P&O Cruises and Disney Cruise Line charge a reduced fare for babies. Most other cruise lines charge the full adult price unless there’s a special promotion on at the time of booking.

Where To Find Cheap Cruise Deals

Now you know which cruise lines offer the cheapest cruises (Costa, MSC, P&O) as well as which ships to choose (older ones), cabins (inside), destinations (no-fly) and the cheapest time of year to cruise (term-time when it’s not sunny).

The next step is to know where to look for the cheapest deals. My one secret to finding cheap cruise deals is…

Don’t go looking for deals, let the deals come to you!

Why? Well, let’s imagine you own a cruise line for a moment… Most of the time you’ll want to sell cruises with as much profit margin as possible, right?

Most of the time, you can rely on a steady income of high-profit sales. People search for your website, find what they want and book it.

However, that strategy doesn’t work when:

a) It’s getting closer to the sailing date but your ships are still half-empty

b) You’ve just released six months’ worths of new itineraries so your ships are completely empty

In these cases, cruise lines will reduce prices and add on free extras to encourage people to BOOK NOW. When they do this, they’re no longer going for a high-profit margin – they’re going for volume of sales.

Now, imagine you work in the marketing department of the cruise line. The prices have dropped and it’s your job to sell as many cruises are possible. How do you get the biggest volume of sales?

You could reach out to contact as many potential customers as possible and tell them about the great deals. Or, even better, you get travel agents to do it for you.

The cheapest ways for travel agents to get cruise deals in front of the biggest audiences possible are email marketing, SMS (text messages) and social media. And this is exactly where they head when they have cheap cruise deals to push.

How do customers find these cheapest cruise deals?

Follow cruise travel agents on Facebook and Twitter (and turn on notifications)
Sign up to receive email marketing from cruise travel agents (do this on their website)
Opt in to receive deals by text message

Every Thursday, I send an email with the best cruise deals I’ve found that week.

You can sign up here, and I’ll send it to you too.

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

I’m ALWAYS looking for cruise bargains! These are the best deals I found this week…

Then, you’ve got to be patient. You must accept that you might not book your cruise today, or next week. But, when that perfect cheap cruise deal comes up, you’ll be ready to pounce.

And you do need to act fast! Wait longer than 24 hours and there’s a good chance that the cheapest cabins will sell out and you’ll be left paying an extra £300 for a cabin with a window (eye roll).

Are Cruises Cheaper Through a Travel Agent?

Cruises should always be cheaper through a travel agent. If they’re not, then you need to find yourself a new travel agent!

Most cruise travel agents make money in two ways:

They receive a % commission on every cruise they sell
If they reach monthly, quarterly or yearly sales targets, they get bonuses

The bonuses that travel agents receive for hitting their targets can be huge. So when a sales target deadline is coming up, travel agents may be willing to sell cruises at cost price or even at a loss to earn their big bonus payment.

What’s more, some cruise travel agents use a specific business model whereby they buy up thousands of cabins in bulk for a cheap rate. Once the travel agent owns those cabins, they have to sell them. Even if they make a small loss on some of the cabins, it’s better than the loss that would be made if the cabins remained unsold.

As well as getting the best price on your cruise, there are other advantages to booking your cruise with a travel agent rather than directly with the cruise line. If you’re booking flights and hotels too, a travel agent can get you the best package price, sort everything out for you and take charge if anything goes wrong.

These are the travel agents I have used myself and recommend.

When To Book Your Cruise For The Best Price

The best time to book a cruise is either:

When the sailing is first available to book – 18 to 24 months before departure
Last minute – around 6 to 12 weeks before departure

These are the times when cruise lines will be aiming for a large volume of sales with a lower profit margin.

Do Cruises Get Cheaper Closer to the Sailing Date?

It’s a myth that cruises get cheaper closer to the sailing date. In fact, cruise prices are cheapest when they first go on sale, which is 18 to 24 months before the departure date.

Only if the cruise doesn’t sell out will there be a price drop. This will happen 6 to 12 weeks before departure.

The following graph demonstrates what often happens to cruise prices over time. The red circles are the cheap prices that you want to book!

Should You Hold out for a Last-Minute Cruise Deal?

If you want a cabin for two people and aren’t fussy about where you go, when you go or on which ship, then you can definitely save money by booking your cruise 6 to 12 weeks before departure. Prices are likely to drop at this time because balance payments are due and some passengers drop out.

You can book right up until a few days before the departure date, but I wouldn’t recommend waiting that long on purpose!

If you want a family cabin for three or four passengers, then the sad truth is that you are very unlikely to find a cheap last-minute deal.

Cabins with extra beds are always in short supply. I once went to book a cruise the day after it went on sale (almost two years before departure) and all the inside four-berth cabins were already gone!

Are Cruises Cheaper in ‘Wave Season’?

In the cruise industry, the period from right after Christmas, through to February is known as ‘wave season’ because cruise lines see a big ‘wave’ of bookings around January.

The reason for this wave is that Christmas is out of the way and people start to think about what they want to do in the coming year. Thoughts naturally turn to travel and marketers cash in on this by offering incentives to get people to book cruises.

Is January a good time to book a cruise? Possibly. There are some good deals. But there are also some mediocre deals that are disguised as good deals. Just keep your wits about you and don’t jump to book just because you saw a ‘January Sale’ banner.

How To Book A Cheap Cruise

If you’ve read this far, you should now know some of the tips about how to cruise for cheap. Let’s have a quick recap…

Choose a cheap cruise line – the cheapest ones are Costa, MSC, P&O Cruises and Carnival
Choose a cheaper ship – an older, smaller one
Opt for a guaranteed inside cabin
Depart from your nearest port
Go in term-time or when the weather isn’t perfect
Don’t pay full price for kids – Choose Costa and MSC Cruises at any time or NCL, P&O and Royal Caribbean if there’s a kids sail free offer on
Look out for emails and Facebook offers from cruise travel agents
Book early (or late for only two people if you’re flexible)

Now, if you haven’t already, make sure you get my weekly email where I send you the best cruise deals, including those I’m booking myself!

Get Help Booking Your Family Cruise

Cruise Family are the only UK specialists in cruises for families of 5+ (and smaller ones too!)

Let them find your perfect trip…

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Jenni Fielding is the founder of Cruise Mummy. She has worked in the cruise industry since 2015 and has taken over 30 cruises. Now, she helps over 1 million people per month to plan their perfect cruise holidays.

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NCL Shareholder Benefits Explained

February 24, 2025

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Cruise Lines Cruise News Money saving tips Norwegian Cruise Line

If you decide to become a shareholder in the parent company that owns NCL, you’ll be able to enjoy a bonus perk every time you sail with the cruise line.

The NCL shareholder benefit is available to anyone who invests in sufficient stock of Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, which is the master company that owns NCL along with two other cruise lines.

And the good news is, your shareholder benefit applies to those cruises as well – so you get the Norwegian Cruise Line stock benefits whether you’re sailing with NCL or one of the sister brands.

Let’s learn more about what that benefit is, who it applies to, and how to claim it.

What Is The NCL Shareholder Benefit?

The NCL stock benefits are for anyone who owns 100 shares or more in Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings. You’ll get up to $250 to spend on-board every cruise you take with NCL or a sister cruise line as long as you remain a shareholder. The benefit has to be claimed in advance.

The amount of onboard credit you’ll enjoy depends on the length of your cruise. You will get:

$250 onboard credit to spend per stateroom on sailings of 15 days or more
$100 onboard credit to spend per stateroom on sailings from 7 to 14 days
$50 onboard credit to spend per stateroom on sailings of 6 days or fewer

The benefit also applies to the other cruise lines owned by NCLH – Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises. The amounts are the same, meaning you’ll likely enjoy the benefit from your NCLH stock more on an NCL sailing since that $250 will stretch further.

On a Regent Seven Seas voyage, most things on board are included in your fare anyway – you’ll probably want to spend your credit on either a specialist experience on-board or at the stores on the ship.

While people generally love cruising with NCL, one of the biggest complaints people have is how many of the activities on board cost extra. So with the NCL stock ownership benefit you can at least mitigate that, and enjoy more of your cruise without paying out your own funds.

How To Buy NCL Shares

To buy shares in any company, you’ll typically need to use a stockbroker. This can be either a human being or an online platform. There are various fees involved with this, but an online platform is usually the cheapest and easiest way.

I can’t advise you which is the best, but I personally chose to buy my NCL shares through an investing platform called etoro. I chose this one because it is one of the most popular platforms with 20 million registered users and has great reviews and low fees.

I’ve been very happy with my share-buying experience and found it really easy to do.

(eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.)

Read more: Should you buy shares in NCLH?

How To Claim NCL Shareholder Benefits

You need to claim your Norwegian Cruise Line shareholder benefits every time you sail with NCL, or with Oceania or Regent. It’s not applied automatically, and each time you apply you’re only claiming it for your next cruise.

To claim, you need to fill in an application form at www.nclhltdinvestor.com providing proof of your share ownership. You then need to send your form to the cruise line, either via email or in the mail.

The email address for NCL is [email protected] and the mailing address is:

Norwegian Cruise Line Shareholder Benefit Department
7665 Corporate Center Drive, Miami FL 33126

The cruise line has to receive your application at least 15 days before you are due to sail, otherwise, you won’t be entitled to the credit.

Your form should include your name, address, email and phone number, along with your sailing date and the ship you’re sailing on. The proof you need to provide as a shareholder can either be a photocopy of your shareholder proxy card, or a photocopy of your current brokerage statement.

Things To Know About NCL Stock Benefits

Unline with Carnival shareholder benefits which require 4 weeks of notice to claim, according to the NCLH terms and conditions, you have to apply at least 15 days before your cruise.

You have to own the shares as an individual – stocks owned as part of a mutual fund don’t count.

You can use the credit on the ship for buying drinks, food, shore excursions or items bought at the souvenir stores. You can’t use it towards your cruise balance or for gratuities, and you can’t transfer your credit to another person or another cruise.

The benefit is also available on a ‘per stateroom’ basis. This means you can’t buy 200 shares, put 100 in your name and 100 in your partner’s name, and then share a stateroom and get double the onboard credit.

To Conclude

Whenever you’re investing in anything on the stock market, there is inherent risk. You shouldn’t invest in a cruise line just to get onboard credit – you could lose a lot of money if something bad happened to the market. Just look at how many people took a hit when cruise line stocks fell during the 2020 global shutdown.

However, if you were thinking of investing in a cruise company anyway, the NCL stockholder benefits are a nice bonus, especially since they apply to every cruise line in the group. And as long as you remember to claim every time, you’ll get the benefit for every cruise you book – which could end up being good value if you’re someone who cruises with the same cruise line on a regular basis.

Read more: Should you buy shares in NCLH?

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

Don’t miss the latest NCL offers…

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Princess Cruise Stock Benefits Explained

February 24, 2025

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Cruise Lines Cruise News Cruise Tips Money saving tips Princess Cruises

Did you know that if you’re a shareholder in Princess Cruises, you can enjoy some benefits on every sailing you take?

Technically, you can’t actually be a shareholder in Princess Cruises, I should clarify. Princess Cruises is part of the larger Carnival Corporation, so there’s no such thing as Princess Cruises stock – if you want to get involved, then you’d need to buy shares in the group.

But that means you can enjoy the same perks on any cruise line within that group. What are those perks? And how do you claim them? Let’s take a look…

What Benefits Do You Get With Carnival Shares?

If you own 100 Carnival shares or more, you can enjoy Princess stock benefits of onboard credit every time you sail. The amount that you get is as follows:

$250 (or £150) of onboard credit per stateroom on cruises of 14 days or longer
$100 (or £60) of onboard credit per stateroom on cruises of 7 to 13 days
$50 (or £30) of onboard credit per stateroom on cruises of 6 days or fewer

That ‘per stateroom’ part is key, because if you and your partner were both to invest in Carnival shares, and then you booked a stateroom together, only one of you could claim the Princess Cruises shareholder benefits.

There are a few other terms as well – you can’t use it in combination with any other shipboard offer, and it’s not transferable to anyone else. You also can’t use this free credit in the casino or to pay for gratuities charged to your account.

However, the perk is available on every single sailing you take, and on any cruise line that is a part of the Carnival Group. So you won’t just enjoy this on Princess Cruises sailings, but also if you were to cruise with:

Aida Cruises
Carnival
Costa Cruises
Cunard
Holland America Line
Princess Cruises
P&O Cruises
Seabourn

If you’re sailing on an Australian cruise, you get the same amount as the US dollar values but in Australian dollars. If you book your cruise in the UK, you will get £150, £60 or £30 of credit and finally, if you’re sailing on a European cruise with either Costa or AIDA, you get €200, €75 or €40.

Cruise Line	14+ Days	7-13 Days	Up to 6 Days
US Cruise Line	$250	$100	$50
UK Cruise Line	£150	£60	£30
Australian Cruise Line	$250	$100	$50
European Cruise Line	€200	€75	€40

Since I mentioned the benefits of buying Carnival shares in my weekly email, I’ve had lots of people email me to say that they’ve also bought shares and are happy to receive the free onboard credit. Like this one…

“We took your advice and bought 100 Carnival shares which cost £550. Two Cunard trips gave us £250 each extra onboard spend and another gave us $200 (£175) total £675, also the shares have gone up £175. Best investment I’ve ever made, thankyou, keep up the good work.”

Robert and Veronica Dennehy

How To Buy Carnival Shares

I can’t advise you which is the best, but I personally chose to buy my Carnival shares through an investing platform called etoro. I chose this one because it is one of the most popular platforms with 20 million registered users and has great reviews and low fees.

I’ve been very happy with my share-buying experience and found it really easy to do.

(eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.)

Read more: Should You Invest In Carnival Corp?

How To Claim Carnival Shareholder Benefits On Princess Cruises

In order to claim your Carnival shareholder benefits for a Princess cruise, you need to provide a number of details either to the cruise line, and you have to do so no later than four weeks before you sail.

The details you need to provide are:

Your legal name
Your booking number
Your ship and sailing date
Proof of your stock ownership

If you don’t provide these details in time, your account won’t be credited for your sailing and you miss out.

You can mail your details to the cruise line at Customer Solutions, 24303 Town Center Drive, Suite 200, Santa Clarita CA 91355. Or you can fax them to +1-661-753-0180, or email them to [email protected].

You need to do this for every Princess cruise you book, but that means that as long as you are a shareholder, you get the benefit every single time you cruise.

To claim my onboard credit each time I book a cruise, I simply take a screenshot from etoro that shows that I own 100 shares and send it to Carnival. I then receive an email like the one below to say that my claim has been accepted…

Carnival shareholder benefits confirmation email

To Conclude

Owning shares in a cruise line is not without risk. But if you want to invest your money into your favourite cruise line, or rather their parent company, then you can enjoy free money to spend every time you cruise.

If you’re already an investor in Carnival Group or you’re considering it, make sure you apply for your free spend to get your Princess shareholder benefit. Those extra funds could pay for a meal, or even your entire drinks during your voyage, so it’s worth the effort to provide your details.

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

See the latest Princess Cruises offers…

If you found this interesting, please share!

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Royal Caribbean Shareholder Benefits Explained

February 18, 2025

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Cruise Lines Cruise News Money saving tips Royal Caribbean

The Royal Caribbean Group – the company that owns Royal Caribbean International – is one of the biggest travel companies in the whole world. And you could become a part owner if you decided to invest in shares in the company.

Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas and Harmony of the Seas

You’d then also be able to enjoy Royal Caribbean stockholder benefits whenever you cruised with the company. They’re not really of enough value to justify investing unless you cruise very regularly, but they are a nice bonus to have as a perk of being an owner of stock.

So let’s take a look at what the Royal Caribbean shareholder benefits are, and what you need to do to claim them.

Do Royal Caribbean Stockholders Get Discounts?

Owners of Royal Caribbean stock do not get a direct discount on their cruise fares. Instead, stockholders are able to claim onboard credit for their cruise, which varies depending on the length of the sailing. This could qualify as a discount if it saves you spending your own money on-board.

But to be clear, it doesn’t apply to everyone. You can’t just buy a single share in the company and then start claiming credit – that would hardly be fair. Instead, this offer applies to anyone who owns 100 shares of Royal Caribbean Group stock or more.

The Royal Caribbean stock ownership benefits that you can claim are:

$250 onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 14 nights or more
$100 onboard credit per stateroom on sailings from 6 to 13 nights
$50 onboard credit per stateroom on sailings of 5 nights or fewer

And there’s some more good news as well – because Celebrity Cruises falls under the banner of the Royal Caribbean group, you can claim the same benefit when you book a sailing on that cruise line too.

Strangely though, the offer is not extended to Silversea, the third cruise line owned by the Royal Caribbean Group. Silversea has been 100% owned by Royal Caribbean since 2020 and yet the shareholder benefit has yet to be extended.

It has been acknowledged by Silversea, with the company releasing a statement to confirm they are looking at ways they can partner with Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises more, with shareholder benefits being one of the options they are looking into.

How To Buy Royal Caribbean Shares

I can’t advise you which is the best, but I personally chose to buy my Royal Caribbean shares through an investing platform called etoro. I chose this one because it is one of the most popular platforms with 20 million registered users and has great reviews and low fees.

I’ve been very happy with my share-buying experience and found it really easy to do.

(eToro is a multi-asset investment platform. The value of your investments may go up or down. Your capital is at risk.)

Read more: Should you invest in Royal Caribbean shares?

How To Claim Royal Caribbean Shareholder Benefits

In order to get your Royal Caribbean stock benefits, you need to make a claim before you sail. It’s not automatically applied, so don’t assume that you can get the benefit without asking for it.

It’s handled by a completely separate team to the regular customer service department, so if you forget, don’t assume that Guest Services onboard will be able to rectify it, even if you happen to have your details with you on the ship.

Instead, you need to make a claim by providing a list of your details, including:

Your name
Your address
Your booking confirmation number
Your ship and sailing date for your cruise
Proof of your share ownership in Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd

There are four ways you can send this to the cruise line.

The easiest way is to do it by email or online form, but if you are someone who prefers to send them by mail or fax then those options are still available. You just need to make sure your claim reaches Royal Caribbean no later than 3 weeks before you are due to sail.

Things To Know About Royal Caribbean Stock Benefits

There are a few terms and conditions that you need to be aware of regarding the Royal Caribbean shareholder benefits.

Firstly, it’s available on every cruise you take with Royal Caribbean or Celebrity Cruises, except for any chartered sailings, or cruises to the Galapagos Islands.

The benefit is available ‘per stateroom’. So you aren’t able to buy 200 shares, transfer 100 to your partner, and then both claim the benefit if you’re staying in the same stateroom. However, the good news is that solo travellers only need 100 shares – you don’t need twice as many just because you’re a solo occupant.

The onboard credit isn’t available to any employees of the Royal Caribbean Group, or anyone booking a cruise on a Royal Caribbean Group Friends & Family rate.

The benefit can’t be transferred either. It has to be used by the shareholder, and only on the cruise they claim it for. You can’t claim it and then roll it over to your next cruise.

That covers most things but if you do have other questions, you can get in touch with the dedicated team at [email protected].

To Conclude

It’s always risky buying stocks and shares – there’s no guarantee your stake will retain its value. And cruise might be a huge industry, but just look at how share prices fell during the shutdown. Hopefully, nothing like that will ever happen again, but you need to be prepared to lose some of your funds if you risk buying stock.

Yet, the Royal Caribbean stock holder benefits for anyone who cruises with Royal Caribbean or Celebrity on a regular basis are a nice bonus to have. If you were to claim on a 2-week cruise every year for a decade, that’s $2500 you’d get in on-board credit for free. So it may be worth it, if you’re thinking of investing anyway.

Read more: Should you invest in Royal Caribbean shares?

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How To Get A Free Cruise (15 Ways To Do It)

February 11, 2025

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Cruise Lines Cruise News Money saving tips

Ever wished that you could cruise for free? Well, I’m pleased to tell you that almost anybody can cruise for free these days! I’m lucky enough to enjoy free cruises from time to time, and I’ve met people on board who are cruising for free for all kinds of reasons.

So, here’s my list of the 15 ways you can cruise for free…

1. Be a teacher

Did you know being a teacher could get you a free cruise? Some cruise lines recognise the hard work that teachers do and offer cruise deals or even free cruises as a sign of appreciation.

For instance, Norwegian Cruise Line has a programme that rewards teachers with free cruises. Since 2019, the Giving Joy program has awarded 250 educators with the trip of a lifetime.

Margaritaville at Sea has a Heroes Sail Free offer where teachers and other people such as military personnel, first responders, law enforcement officers can all cruise for free when accompanied by a paying guest.

Additionally, teachers may be able to join educational tours or workshops as group leaders where they get to cruise for free while providing educational services on the cruise.

2. Be a healthcare worker

In 2021, Royal Caribbean International gave away 999 free cruises to UK residents working in the NHS, social care sector and armed forces. They all cruised together for four nights on board Anthem of the Seas.

Then in 2023, Virgin Voyages gave away 2,023 free cruises to healthcare workers in the US, worth a whopping $5.9 million. They each enjoyed a Caribbean cruise from Miami.

Other cruise lines sometimes have promotions where healthcare workers can cruise for free when accompanied by a paying guest. AmaWaterways offered this last year and Margaritaville at Sea currently also has this promotion.

Another way for healthcare workers to get a free cruise is by offering their professional services on board. Some cruise lines hire healthcare professionals to provide health-related workshops, seminars, or casual talks to their passengers. For example, on a recent cruise on Fred. Olsen’s Bolette, there was a seminar about how to use defibrillators and kids were also given first aid lessons.

3. Be a guest speaker

Being a guest speaker can be your ticket to securing a free cruise. Many cruise lines frequently organise educational and entertainment programs that need a variety of speakers.

A guest of speaker speaking inside the cruise conference center

If you have expertise in a field that could be interesting to the passengers, such as history, art, science, or even cooking, you could potentially be invited on board as a guest speaker.

Guest speakers don’t usually get paid, but in return for sharing your knowledge, you will cruise for free.

4. Be a religious leader

Not every cruise ship offers religious services on board, but when they do, religious leaders will cruise for free. Responsibilities include leading worship services, blessing marriages for weddings at sea, and being on hand to help anyone who is in need of emotional support.

Another strategy for securing a free cruise is to serve as a group leader. If you’re a religious leader, this could involve coordinating travel for your congregation. Whether it’s a family reunion, an anniversary, or a religious retreat, group travel can be a wonderful way to strengthen community bonds while also providing you with an opportunity to enjoy a complimentary cruise.

5. Be a journalist or content creator

Being a journalist or content creator can potentially pave your way towards a free cruise. Journalists often cruise for free in exchange for coverage in the magazines and newspapers that they write for.

The digital age has made it easier for those with exceptional writing or videography skills to gain recognition, even without a formal degree.

However, this doesn’t mean it’s an easy path. It requires dedication, years of hard work, and a certain level of talent to build a following online.

Of course, not all content creators get free cruises and they often pay for their own trips. When press trips are available, you should expect to spend most of your day at sea working

But, it’s certainly a possibility if you create quality content that catches the attention of cruise companies. If you’re passionate about your craft, the reward could be significant.

Take a look at this list of the most popular cruise bloggers for inspiration.

6. Be a travel agent

Becoming a travel agent is another avenue to consider if you’re aiming to sail for free. Travel agents often get the opportunity to experience new cruise ships before they’re available to the public.

Shakedown cruises sail for a few nights before the maiden voyage of each new ship. As well as ironing out any last-minute snags before the paying guests arrive, this is a strategy used by cruise lines to generate buzz and encourage bookings. Although these trips are typically short and more of a business trip than a holiday, they still offer a unique experience.

As a travel agent, you could also score free cruises by building a good history with cruise lines. However, keep in mind that these free trips may not cover additional expenses such as hotel stays and transport to the port. Nonetheless, this can be a rewarding career choice if you love travel.

7. Host events or workshops

Another way to earn a free cruise is by hosting events or workshops. Cruise lines often host various events onboard, such as fitness classes, arts and crafts workshops, bridge classes, dance lessons, or even wine-tasting sessions.

If you have a unique skill or talent, you could propose to host an event or workshop during the cruise. In return for your services, you could be offered a free spot on the cruise.

You may also have to help out with other duties, such as helping out on excursions or pointing guests in the right direction on embarkation day.

Hosting events or workshops on a cruise ship can be an excellent opportunity for networking and promoting your skills or business to a diverse and captive audience. After we returned from a cruise, the bridge teachers sent us emails with details of their bridge-themed events in the UK.

8. Organise a group cruise

Organising a group cruise is another excellent way to secure a free cruise ticket for yourself. Many cruise lines offer group discounts, and in some cases, if you bring along a large enough group, your own cruise could be free.

This could be particularly beneficial if you are part of a large family, social club, or organisation. Planning a group cruise can take some work, but the reward of a free cruise can make it well worth the effort.

As the organiser of the group, you might also be offered a free balcony room. This room upgrade can allow you to enjoy the cruise in a more luxurious setting. However, keep in mind that organising a group cruise requires careful planning and coordination. You will need to manage the bookings, plan the itinerary, and ensure everyone in your group has a memorable experience.

9. Be the 3rd or 4th guest in a cabin

Being the 3rd or 4th guest in a cabin is yet another approach to securing a free or heavily discounted cruise. Cruise lines often offer special deals for additional guests sharing the same cabin, especially outside of the school holidays. The logic is simple: more occupants in a cabin mean more potential customers for onboard services and amenities.

So, if you’re flexible and don’t mind sharing your space, this could be a cost-effective way to enjoy a cruise.

When I cruise with my friends we often take advantage of these deals and have four in a cabin. Rather than some of us cruising for free, we split the fare between us all and cruise for half price.

10. Collect casino points

If you’re a fan of gambling, you might be able to score a free cruise by collecting casino points. Many casinos offer loyalty programs that allow you to earn points for every dollar spent. These points can often be redeemed for rewards like free travel.

The reason for this is simple – cruise lines want the high rollers to cruise so much that they’ll let them cruise for free. They know that these guests are likely to spend way more than the cost of the cruise in the casino – and they’re also likely to spend more than average on drinks, spa treatments, shopping and other onboard purchases.

This method requires you to spend quite a lot before you can earn enough points for a free cruise, so it’s not advisable for those who are worried about gambling too much or are on a budget.

The number of points needed can vary, but it’s worth considering if you’re already a regular casino-goer. Just remember to keep your spending under control while you’re earning points to avoid getting into financial trouble.

11. Collect credit card points

Many credit card companies offer their customers the opportunity to accumulate points that can be exchanged for various incentives, including free cruises. The number of card points required for a free cruise will depend on the specific credit card, but it’s well worth saving them up.

The Carnival Mastercard gives you one Fun Point for every $ you spend. Or if you use it to book a cruise, you get two Fun Points for every $. If you collect 100,000 Fun Points, you can redeem them on a cruise worth $1,500, which is more than enough for two of you to cruise for free.

Remember, the key to using credit card points effectively is to ensure that the value of the rewards you receive outweighs any costs, such as the annual fee.

12. Join a loyalty program

Most cruise lines have loyalty programs that offer a variety of perks. At the highest levels with Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line, you can unlock free sailings.

For example, with Royal Caribbean’s Crown & Anchor Society loyalty scheme, each night you spend at sea earns you points. Typically, it’s one point per night, but select cabin types and special offers can net you more points per night. Once you reach 700 points, you get a free 7-night cruise in a balcony stateroom.

While this method may take a very high level of investment (usually paying for at least 100 cruises), your loyalty to a cruise line can indeed be rewarded with a free trip. Imagine enjoying free drinks from your balcony cabin on a cruise, all because of the points you’ve earned through your loyalty program!

13. Have an awful cruise experience

A less pleasant way to possibly earn a free cruise is if you’re compensated with one as a result of a bad experience. Cruise companies are known to compensate dissatisfied customers with free cruises to make up for their negative experiences. It may not be the most desirable method, but it is a potential route to a free cruise.

Free cruises aren’t given as compensation very often though. Usually, it would only happen if the majority of your cruise has been cancelled while you’re on board, or something else that ruins your entire experience.

If a cruise is cancelled before it departs, you’ll usually be given a refund instead. This is a better option than a free cruise, as you can spend the money on whatever you want and aren’t limited to booking another trip.

14. Marry an officer

One unconventional yet very effective way to earn free cruises is by marrying an officer. The captain and other senior officers on a cruise ship often have the privilege of inviting their spouse and other family members to stay on board for free.

While it might seem like an extreme measure, marrying an officer is a surefire way to ensure free cruise trips. However, remember that marriage is a significant life decision and should not be taken lightly.

Choosing to marry an officer on a cruise ship not only provides you with the opportunity for free cruises but also a unique lifestyle. You’ll have the chance to travel the world, meet people from various cultures, and experience life on the sea. However, you’ll want to consider the sacrifices and challenges that come with this life choice, such as long periods away from home and a limited private life.

15. Enter cruise competitions

Securing a spot on a cruise line ship can sometimes be as simple as entering and winning competitions. I’ve won two free cruises myself with this method!

Some cruise companies organise contests as part of their marketing strategies. These contests often involve winning a free balcony room. It’s a win-win situation for both parties. The cruise company attracts potential customers, and the lucky winner enjoys a free cruise.

I list every cruise competition that’s open for UK residents every week and I even give you the answers to any quiz questions you need to answer.

So, if none of the above situations apply to you, and you want to bag yourself a free cruise, then you can enter all of the cruise competitions here in just a few clicks.

1. WiFi

By some distance, WiFi was the cruise extra that was mentioned the most by past cruisers, and I’m not really surprised.

That’s because the WiFi on cruise ships can be very expensive compared to what you’re used to paying on land, but it’s nowhere near as good either.

I think the wifi should be much cheaper in this day and age.

WiFi packages vary by cruise line, but most will make you pay for a package lasting the duration of your cruise, meaning you’re typically locked into paying for it regardless of the quality of the service.

And you can expect to pay as much as £25 per day, sometimes just for one device as well. Cruise lines sometimes have plans that fit families or work for multiple devices but they still aren’t really great value.

Especially when you consider that you can get good-quality broadband on land for £25 for an entire month.

Which is why paying up to £175 for a week of slow, inconsistent WiFi access upsets many people.

Of course, WiFi via satellite is usually more expensive regardless of where you are in the world. And it’s not like cruise ships can drag internet cables around as they sail, like some sort of digital leash.

So there is some justification for higher prices, though they can still leave a sour taste in guests’ mouths.

The best solution is to just not pay for it – try to take a tech break and just enjoy the cruise if you can.

But that’s not always possible. I’m lucky that I take a lot of cruises, but I often have to work during them, even if it’s just an hour a day or so.

Taking advantage of free WiFi in port is one alternative but that depends on you being in port, and not having other plans for the day. A lot of people have to be online and so are forced to pay the high prices, and hope they get a decent speed.

WiFi is improving on cruise ships as more install Starlink satellite internet. This is more consistent with its speeds, and while it’s never going to feel like a fibre connection at home, it’s still perfectly usable most of the time.

But people are still frustrated by the high costs, especially when they have to pay for their entire cruise.

My advice is to only pay for the WiFi if you absolutely need it and you can’t manage with the free WiFi in port.

But if you need it, or you just want it and wouldn’t enjoy the cruise without keeping tabs on socials, then make sure you book it before you sail.

Packages are cheaper when pre-booked so you might as well budget for it early and book it before you board.

2. Drink packages

Drinks packages are a hot topic when it comes to overpriced cruise extras, and honestly, I can see why so many people brought them up.

A promotional banner for MSC Cruises highlights various drink packages with pricing. The options include the Easy Package (€47 per adult/day), Easy Plus Package (€63 per adult/day), Premium Extra Package (€87 per adult/day), Dine & Drink Package (€15 per meal or €9 per meal/day), Alcohol-Free Package (€29 per adult/day), and Minors Package (€20 per child/day). The banner features images of beverages and encourages guests to upgrade their drink packages.

On paper, they sound like a great deal – unlimited drinks for a set daily price. But in reality, the cost can be eye-watering.

Drinks packages ...for us anyway. We wouldnt be tempted at the prices they charge

Depending on the cruise line, a drinks package can set you back anywhere from £25 to well over £100 per person, per day if you want alcohol included.

And here’s the kicker: most lines insist that every adult in the same cabin also buys a package, even if one of you isn’t much of a drinker.

So unless you plan to drink your body weight in cocktails, soft drinks, and speciality coffees every single day, it’s really hard to get your money’s worth.

And that’s before you discover the fine print – many premium drinks aren’t even included in the package, or you’ll have to pay a supplement for them.

I like a beer or cocktail (or five) on a cruise, but I don’t love feeling like I need to drink more just to justify the cost. It takes the fun out of things, doesn’t it?

When there’s a great deal then I’ll absolutely pay for the drinks package to avoid having to think about costs, otherwise I’ll just pay for drinks individually.

Drinks packages can make sense for some people.

If you love having lots of choice without worrying about the bill at the end, or if you’re someone who enjoys sipping on everything from cappuccinos in the morning to wine at dinner, then it might work for you.

Families with older teens who like soft drinks might also find value in a non-alcoholic package.

But always check whether the maths adds up, especially when you factor in port days, where you’re likely drinking off the ship anyway.

My drinks package calculator does all the maths for you. Just enter the drinks you plan to have and it will tell you if the package is worth it on your particular cruise.

And if you do decide to go for it, book it before you sail – just like with WiFi, it’s often cheaper to pre-purchase packages online than to buy them once you’re onboard.

But don’t feel pressured. Plenty of people happily cruise without a drinks package and don’t miss it one bit. You’re not missing out just because you skip the unlimited margaritas.

3. Spa treatments

Spa treatments are one of those cruise luxuries that sound so enticing – a massage overlooking the ocean, a relaxing facial while the ship glides through the water.

But the prices can be staggering, and the general consensus is that they’ve skyrocketed in more recent years.

The spa treatments. I feel like they have doubled in price in recent years.

Treatments onboard are often double or even triple what you’d have paid a few years ago on a cruise, or what you’d pay for something similar at home. It’s very rare that you’ll find a massage for under $150.

It’s not just the treatments themselves, either. Many cruisers report feeling pressured into buying expensive skincare products after their spa session, which adds even more to the final bill.

If you’re set on treating yourself, look out for discounts on port days when the spa tends to be quieter.

On a Costa cruise, I once bought a day pass to the spa on a sea day, only to find that it was so busy that the steam room and sauna was completely full and there were no beds to lay on either. I just stood there feeling silly for wasting my money!

You may choose to save your money and enjoy the hot tubs and relaxation areas that are already included in your fare.

And be prepared to stand your ground when they try to upsell products to you. Because they will, and they can be pushy. A firm no should be enough and if they continue to ask, feel free to let Guest Services know.

4. Photos

Cruise ship photographers are everywhere – snapping your formal night outfits, capturing your family as you board, and even lurking at dinner tables on some occasions.

While the photos are often lovely, the price tag can be shocking. Expect to pay upwards of £25 per photo, with bundles costing even more. P&O charges £250 if you want access to digital versions of all photos taken of you, for example.

Many cruisers feel that these prices are hard to justify, especially when most of us now carry a smartphone capable of taking great pictures.

While it’s tempting to buy a few as keepsakes, the cost adds up quickly.

If you do want professional photos, try to narrow it down to your absolute favourites, or wait until the end of the cruise when there are sometimes bundle deals available.

I love how they do photos on a Disney cruise. When you get your photo taken with the characters, there’ll be two photographers – one with the big camera, and one who will use your own phone or camera to take the picture for you for free.

5. Shore excursions

Shore excursions booked through the cruise line are convenient, but they often come with a hefty markup.

It’s not unusual to see prices of £60–£120 per person for tours that might cost half as much if booked independently.

Excursions are mental expensive, once you get confident to book yourself and see the price differences agree!! I always look outside the cruiseline now. Last year we found one for $40/person for 5-6hrs thst included island tour, beach stop for as long as we wanted and see animals. Through the cruiseline it was $120/person which for a family of 4 adds up fast. As long as I can choose when to go back to ship I'm all over using outside companies with good reputations.

For many, the high prices are simply not worth it, especially when local tour operators offer similar (or even better) experiences at a fraction of the cost.

That said, booking through the cruise line does give peace of mind, as they guarantee the ship won’t leave without you if the tour runs late.

A good compromise is to research your ports in advance. You might find that you can explore independently or book a reputable local guide for much less.

For cruisers who prefer to stick with the ship’s excursions, keep an eye out for discounts when booking multiple tours in advance.

6. Speciality dining

Speciality dining offers a chance to enjoy something a little different from the main dining rooms or buffet, but it often comes at a steep price.

Specialty dining has gotten out of control!!! Yikes

While the food can be excellent, the cost of £30-100 per person for a meal that isn’t significantly better than what’s included in your fare can leave many feeling underwhelmed.

For some, it’s worth it to celebrate a special occasion or try a particular type of cuisine, but for most cruisers, the included dining options are more than good enough.

If you’re tempted, look out for pre-cruise deals or discounted offers once onboard. Sometimes you can book a package that includes speciality dining meals.

Otherwise, just make sure you’ve checked prices in advance where possible, so that if you’ve got a restaurant that you’re dead-set on enjoying, you can budget for it.

7. Private lounges & VIP areas

Private lounges and VIP areas that feature cabanas, exclusive bars or reserved sun loungers are becoming increasingly popular on some cruise lines – but they’re also dividing opinions.

The premium VIP areas where you pay over the top to have a guaranteed lounger. If everyone behaved themselves they wouldn’t need those areas.

Prices can vary anywhere between £25 and £100 per person per day, depending on the ship and package.

While some appreciate the exclusivity and guaranteed space, others feel these areas go against the inclusive nature of cruising.

If you’re someone who values peace and quiet, it might be worth splurging for a day, but for most, there are plenty of free spaces to relax without the extra cost.

8. Drinks (especially bottled water)

The price of drinks onboard a cruise will vary greatly depending on who you’re cruising with, and while some are comparable to typical pub/bar prices at home, sometimes you’ll be paying a premium.

Honestly, bottled water seems to be the most egregious issue, sometimes costing as much as £4 for a bottle. If you like bottled water then that can quickly add up, especially on longer cruises.

Cruise Mummy holds a transparent bottle of San Benedetto still water with a Costa Smeralda receipt attached, indicating a recent purchase onboard the cruise, set against a geometrically patterned pastel background.

Consider bringing as many drinks onto the ship as you’re allowed. Again, this varies by cruise line but will help mitigate the costs.

And a reusable water bottle is another great money-saver. You can either use the water fountains in public areas or just use the taps – the tap water on cruise ships is safe to drink (though not always the most pleasant).

As for alcoholic drinks, the same tips on bringing the maximum onboard that you’re permitted applies. And then if you plan on drinking a lot, maybe a package would actually be good value for you.

9. Onboard shopping

There’s something about being on holiday that can put you in the mood to splurge, and cruise ships are very good at encouraging that mindset.

With glittering displays of jewellery, shiny watches, and dramatic art auctions, it’s easy to be swept up in the excitement of treating yourself to something special.

But here’s the reality: many of those purchases, whether it’s a diamond necklace or a new timepiece, could be found for much less back home.

Cruise lines often market these items as duty-free bargains or “exclusive to the ship,” but a quick search online or at your local retailer might reveal that the so-called deals aren’t quite what they seem.

Art auctions, in particular, can catch people off guard. The pieces may look beautiful under the spotlights, and the auctions are presented as unique opportunities, but it’s worth doing your homework before bidding.

An art auctioneer on Royal Caribbean's cruise ship engaging with guests during an art auction, gesturing towards a colorful framed artwork, providing an entertaining and cultured experience at sea.

Many cruisers report finding the same or similar works available for a fraction of the price elsewhere.

If you’re considering a big-ticket item, it’s always worth taking a moment to pause. Snap a picture, do some research, and compare prices when you’re back home.

Final word

Cruises are a fantastic way to relax, explore, and enjoy a bit of luxury, but it’s easy to get caught out by the extras.

From drinks packages to spa treatments, WiFi to shore excursions, these optional add-ons can quickly turn a reasonably priced holiday into a costly one.

The key is to know what’s worth splurging on and what you can skip or find alternatives for.

A little planning and research go a long way – whether it’s bringing your own reusable water bottle, booking excursions independently, or deciding to enjoy the included dining rather than shelling out for speciality restaurants.

Remember, cruising is about enjoying yourself, and that doesn’t have to mean spending more than you’re comfortable with. By keeping an eye on your budget and prioritising the things that matter most to you, you’ll avoid unnecessary costs and make the most of your time at sea.

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Royal Caribbean Drink Package Promotions

February 3, 2025

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Cruise Lines Cruise News Cruise Tips Food and drink Money saving tips Royal Caribbean

When you cruise with Royal Caribbean, a lot is included already – your accommodation, your entertainment, and a lot of the food options are covered in your fare.

Drinks are one of the bigger expenses not covered, though. You’ll need to pay for these separately. And a lot of people prefer to book a drinks package, rather than have to pay for each drink individually.

The drinks package prices can be quite high though. So, how do you take advantage of the best Royal Caribbean drinks package promotions, and how do you save? Let’s take a look.

Me with a drink on a Royal Caribbean cruise

Royal Caribbean Drinks Package Pricing

Royal Caribbean has five drinks packages, and the pricing can be confusing as it will often vary depending on your ship, itinerary, and sailing date. The main drinks package is the Deluxe Beverage Package, which costs anywhere from $50 to $115 per day.

This is the drinks package which includes unlimited alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The other drinks packages are for non-alcoholic drinks only.

Read more: Royal Caribbean Drink Package Guide 2025

Here’s a quick guide:

Package	Includes	Cost
Deluxe Beverage Package	Unlimited alcoholic & non-alcoholic drinks	$50 to $115 (before discount)
Refreshment Package	Unlimited non-alcoholic drinks	$38 per day (before discount)
Classic Soda Package	Unlimited fountain soft drinks	$15 per day (before discount)
Coffee Package	15 speciality coffees	$31
Water Package	12 one-litre water bottles	$39

As you can see, the three packages that offer unlimited drinks don’t always have set pricing, so it can be confusing if you’re a Royal Caribbean newbie.

The Deluxe Beverage Package is different because it doesn’t have a ‘set’ price. The price will change depending on the cruise.

For example, here’s the Deluxe Beverage Package on a 7-night cruise on Enchantment of the Seas, showing that it is $71.99 per day, reduced from $90 per day:

Deluxe Beverage Package Enchantment of the Seas

And here’s the same package for the inaugural cruise on Icon of the Seas, showing the price as $91.99 per day, reduced from $115 per day:

The Refreshment and Classic Soda packages do have set daily prices, but that doesn’t mean you’ll have to pay those, since they can often be included in a promotion.

So, how do you get the best price for your drinks package?

Royal Caribbean Drinks Package Promotions

There are several ways that you can take advantage of the best prices for your Royal Caribbean drinks package. Timing matters, because the best offers will only be available for a short while.

1. Book Before You Cruise

The first tip is always to book your beverage package before you sail – if you book in advance, you can expect to save around 20% of the cost, at least.

If you wait until you board your cruise, you’ll only have the first day in which you can book a drinks package – otherwise, you won’t be able to and you’ll be paying for drinks individually, which could be a lot more expensive depending on how much you drink.

Booking in advance secures the package for you and means you get a decent discount already. But there are better offers available than just 20% off.

2. Look Out For Offers

Every now and then, Royal Caribbean will run promotions to give even bigger discounts on your drinks package.

The sale periods vary – sometimes they’re seasonal, whereas at other times they might be random.

Common Royal Caribbean Drink Package Promo periods include:

Black Friday (and the week leading up to it)
Halloween
4th July

If you’re not based in the US, it’s best just to check in on the cruise planner every couple of weeks, to see if there’s a sale on.

It’s important to note that the offers won’t always be the same. In 2022, for example, the package was reduced by 35% for Halloween but the Black Friday promotion wasn’t as good – and a lot of people were left disappointed.

On very rare occasions, you might be able to secure Royal Caribbean’s 40% off drinks package discount. This isn’t common, so if you see your drinks package discounted by 40%, book it quickly!

35% off is typically the best that most people see, and only during sale periods.

Tip: Don’t rely on just the percentage discounts. Sometimes the full price will be inflated, so a higher percentage discount might actually be a worse deal.

So if you see a good price, you shouldn’t be tempted to wait and try to get it lower – it may be a good plan to snap it up. Especially when you consider this next tip…

3. Purchase & Cancel

One of the best bits of advice from past Royal Caribbean guests is to book your drinks package as soon as you can, and then cancel and re-book if you see a special offer for it.

You can track the offers in the cruise planner for your cruise – just make sure you log in and check periodically. That way, you’ll spot if there is an offer, and you can cancel your existing beverage package and then rebook it immediately for the new price.

There is one important point though – refunds for existing beverage package bookings will take 7-10 days to process, so only cancel your beverage package if you have the funds to rebook it immediately, without the refund.

Otherwise, you might cancel it, wait to get the money back, and then find that the price has gone even higher when you go to book it again.

booking and cancelling the Royal Caribbean drink package

4. Cheat The System

There is a way to cheat the Royal Caribbean system to get the best possible price for the Deluxe Beverage Package. But it is a cheat, and if you are caught, you could end up paying a lot more.

Officially, if you want to book the Deluxe Beverage Package, then all adults sharing your stateroom have to book the same package. You can’t have one adult on the Deluxe package, and one on the Refreshment package. If you book online, it won’t let you do that.

However – you can call Royal Caribbean and ask to have different packages. You’ll need to explain why your partner/roommate doesn’t drink, though don’t expect to have to give a life story, or medical evidence.

Just be prepared for them to ask the reason, and then they should permit you to book different packages in the same stateroom.

Then, you could be the one to go and grab drinks from the bar, and share them with your partner.

If you’re caught though, your drinks package will be voided without a refund – so you’ll have lost your money and you’ll have to pay individually for any more drinks you have on your cruise.

I definitely wouldn’t recommend this strategy, but it is one of the ways that people cheat the Royal Caribbean drink package.

Personally, I wouldn’t risk it. And speaking of risk…

5. Risk Boarding Day Offers

Sometimes, the best offers may not be available before you cruise, but might only be an option when you board. On some cruises, you might be able to get a ‘Buy One, Get One Half Price’ discount when you board your cruise.

Now, that half price will be half the full price you pay, so it’s not as good a deal as it sounds, but it is still better than saving just 20% on two people.

Here’s an example:

Say the price quoted for your cruise is $115 per person, per day for 7 days
If you book in advance, you’ll save 20% each – so you’ll pay $92 per person, per day
For the total cruise, that’s $92 x 2 people x 7 days = $1,288
If you wait til you board and there is a buy-one-get-one-half-price offer, you’ll pay $115 x 7 for one person, and then $57.5 x 7 for the second person
That’s a total cost of $805 for guest one, and $402.5 for guest two – a total of $1,207.50
You’d save $80.50 this way, but the offer might not be available, so it’s a big risk
If the offer isn’t available, you’d have to pay full price – $1,610 for the week

It’s up to you, but personally, I would play it safer and book before you cruise – the $80 saving isn’t worth risking over $300 if the promotion isn’t available.

Final Thoughts

It can be tricky getting the best promotion prices for your Royal Caribbean drinks package. But just make sure you check the cruise planner every now and then, and you’ll see if there are any amazing offers that are worth cancelling your existing package and rebooking.

But also consider firstly, do you need the drinks package? Or would you save by buying drinks individually anyway? After all, the package is often more expensive than the cruise itself…

If you’re not sure, I suggest grabbing a copy of my drink package calculator to work out how much the drink package is worth based on what you plan to drink.

And make sure you know exactly what’s included in each package, and which drinks are free on Royal Caribbean.

I have a full guide for you here: Royal Caribbean Drink Package Guide.

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Are Babies Free on Cruises?

December 31, 2024

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Baby & toddler Choosing a cruise Cruise Lines Cruise News Cruise Tips Money saving tips

Babies can be expensive little things, can’t they? However, one of the upsides of travelling with a baby is that they get in pretty much everywhere for free.

But do babies cruise for free?

Baby Adam on the bed — My baby on his first cruise

On holiday you wouldn’t expect to pay for a baby to stay in your hotel room, visit tourist attractions with you or eat bits of your plate in a restaurant.

So, you might think that your baby would also travel for free on a cruise, right?

Do You Have to Pay For a Baby On a Cruise?

Babies typically aren’t free on a cruise. MSC Cruises and Cunard don’t charge for babies, but any other cruise lines that accept them will charge, though it will often be a reduced fare.

Many cruise lines charge the FULL ADULT PRICE for babies on-board.

Shocking! So does that mean that your cruising days are over once your little bundle of joy arrives? Or that you suddenly need to pay for a whole extra person when you add a baby to your booking?

Thankfully, no. Read on to find out how you can take your baby on a cruise for a reduced rate, or even for free…

Cruise Lines Where Babies Sail For Free

If you want to get the best value for money when taking your baby on a cruise, you’ll want to know about these two cruise lines that don’t charge for infants…

MSC Cruises

The baby facilities on-board MSC Sinfonia — The baby facilities on board MSC Sinfonia

If you want to take your baby on a cruise for free, one of the best cruise lines to choose is MSC Cruises as children under two sail free of charge.

Cruises from the UK are available, or, if you need to take a flight to start your cruise, you’ll just have to pay a very small amount to your airline to have the babysitting on your knee. The exact amount depends on the airline, but it won’t be much.

Not only do babies sail for free with MSC Cruises, but there are loads of facilities for them on-board too. In fact, MSC Cruises have partnered with the Observatorio Chicco Baby Research Center in order to create holidays that are ‘tailormade for babies’.

They even now offer babysitting services for kids as young as six months old, as of summer 2024. So you can drop them off for a nap, and go explore. There is the option to have your baby supervised in your cabin but that’ll cost extra.

I took my six-month-old son on his first-ever cruise with MSC Cruises on MSC Preziosa and we had a fantastic time – I would highly recommend this cruise line.

Cunard

Under-twos sail for free on board Cunard cruise ships, but you will still need to pay Cunard’s daily gratuities for them.

Whilst traditional cruise line Cunard isn’t the first cruise line that comes to mind for most families, it is actually really good for babies.

Unlike MSC Cruises, which has a limited choice of sailings from the UK, Cunard has plenty. However, you won’t find the same level of facilities for them on-board.

One great thing about Cunard cruises that MSC Cruises doesn’t offer, however, is the complimentary night nursery.

Open from 6 pm until 11 pm, under-twos can be left to sleep under the supervision of professional staff whilst you enjoy dinner, a show, or a trip to the onboard casino.

Cruise Lines Where Babies Sail For a Reduced Rate

The following cruise lines are also certainly worth considering if you’re looking for a cheap cruise with a baby…

Costa
Cruises

Not only will you find Peppa Pig on board, but Costa Cruises doesn’t charge any cruise fare for children under the age of 18 years. Rejoice!

However, they do charge port fees and taxes for children of all ages, including babies. Port charges are what the cruise line must pay to the local authority of each port that the ship calls at, and taxes are what they have to pay to the government.

The cost of port charges and taxes varies depending on the ports that you call at but is usually around 10-20% of the adult cruise fare. This means that you’re still making a great saving when you take your children on a Costa cruise compared to other cruise lines.

P&O Cruises

On P&O Cruises, infants under two years old travel at a ‘reduced rate’ which varies by cruise. P&O Cruises doesn’t publish details of what the rate is, but as it varies by cruise, this is likely to be based on port taxes and charges, as well as possibly some other factors.

Passengers have reported paying anywhere from £50 to £300 to bring their baby on-board, which is always a great reduction on the adult fare.

What’s more, P&O Cruises regularly have promotions which offer child places for as little as £1 outside of the school holidays. So if you can travel then, and book at the right time, you can make great savings.

The complimentary night nursery is open from 6 pm until 2 am, which means that you can spend each evening child-free, should you wish.

Disney Cruise Line

On Disney cruises, under-threes pay half of the child fare. The child fare varies and isn’t a set % of the adult fare.

Disney’s pricing is a bit different than other cruise lines in that they don’t display a ‘per person’ price, just the overall price for your group. This makes it a bit tricky to see how much you’re paying for the kids, but it won’t be a great deal extra to add on a baby.

What might be worth noting, is that Disney Cruise Line is one of the few cruise lines to provide cabins that sleep five people.

On other cruise lines, you’ll be forced to book two cabins, or a family suite, for the five of you, whereas with Disney you can all fit in one room, which is generally cheaper.

Suggested read: The best cruises for a family of 5

Cruise Lines That Charge Full Price For a Baby

Most other family-friendly cruise lines such as Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line don’t make any reductions in pricing for children or babies.

This means that, in theory, your baby could be charged up to the full adult fare for your bundle of joy.

Royal Caribbean's baby facilities — Royal Caribbean’s baby facilities

However, it’s important to note that almost all cruise lines DO have reductions for the third and fourth passengers in a cabin – which applies whether they are babies, children, or even adults.

The reductions for the third and fourth passengers varies. It can be just a 10-20% reduction, or it can be much more, depending on your choice of the cruise line, sailing, whether it is in the school holidays or not, and any promotions which are currently running.

Does Royal Caribbean Charge For Infants?

Royal Caribbean charges the standard cruise fare for babies – there is no discounted Royal Caribbean infant price. However, if your baby is the third or fourth passenger in a cabin, you will often pay a reduced rate for them. Infants are also charged the full gratuity rate per day.

How to Decide Which Cruise Line is the Cheapest For a Baby

To decide which cruise has the best price, you need to work out the price of the entire cruise holiday, not just the price for the baby.

Whilst babies might get a highly reduced rate on a Disney cruise yet no discount on a Carnival cruise, the Disney cruise could still cost you three times as much.

You also need to add in the cost of other added extras such as gratuities. Some cruise lines will add up to $15 per person, per day to your bill at the end of your cruise to cover tips for the staff. Often, the gratuity charge applies to all passengers, even babies.

On a seven-night cruise for two adults and a baby, gratuities could add up to an extra £250.

If you’re not expecting it, this can be an unwelcome surprise at the end of your cruise. But if you choose a cruise line that doesn’t charge any gratuities, such as P&O Cruises or MSC Cruises, you won’t need to worry about it.

Babies tend to be free of charge (or only have a very small fee) on most airlines.

Of course, if you decide to fly, you’ll have airline luggage restrictions to think about because let’s face it, babies tend to need a lot of stuff! One of the great things about cruising from your nearest post is that you don’t have any limits on how much luggage you can bring.

Here’s a handy list of what you need if you choose a fly-cruise: Flying with a Baby Checklist

Finally, remember, that the cheapest cruise isn’t always the best. When you’re travelling with a baby, you’ll want to be really mindful of things like awkward flight times, long coach journeys in each port and whether the cruise has like-minded passengers who will be happy to see families joining them on-board.

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

Don’t miss these hot cruise offers…

Have you cruised with a baby? Did you get a good deal?

And if you need a little more help, why not sign up for my baby cruise packing list?

And if you fancy bagging yourself a free cruise for the whole family, check out this article next: How To Get A Free Cruise.

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Cruiser Shares Shocking Details Of His Onboard Medical Bill

December 2, 2024

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Cruise Lines Cruise News Money saving tips

Cruising is often a time for relaxation, but for Tony from the popular YouTube channel La Lido Loca, his recent trip on Norwegian Cruise Line’s Bliss took an expensive turn after a medical visit.

In a candid video, Tony broke down the unexpected $812 medical bill he incurred onboard and the surprising reason it could have been avoided.

Tony with his medical bill (YouTube / La Lido Loca)

A Knee Injury That Snowballed

Tony’s medical troubles began on a previous cruise aboard Holland America Line’s MS Eurodam.

While getting out of bed one morning, he heard a “popping sound” in his left knee, followed by significant pain and tightness. Despite the discomfort, Tony continued his daily activities, hoping the soreness would pass.

Fast forward to his NCL Bliss cruise – a trip where Tony was hired to create videos for the cruise line.

His knee initially seemed to improve, but during a tender ride in Cabo San Lucas, disaster struck.

As Tony described, “I took one step up… and my knee just popped again, worse than before. The pain shot up so much I thought I was going to pass out.”

Stubborn Determination

Despite the worsening pain, Tony chose not to notify NCL immediately, opting instead to push through his commitments. “I’m a super stubborn person,” Tony admitted. “I didn’t reach out to my contact at NCL because I didn’t want them to tell me not to do the work.”

After struggling to walk and realising the injury might worsen, Tony decided to seek medical attention onboard.

However, his initial visit to the ship’s medical center was delayed because it wasn’t an emergency, and the facility only offered non-emergency services during designated hours.

NCL Medical Centre (YouTube / La Lido Loca)

The Cost Breakdown

Once the medical center opened, Tony received a thorough evaluation, including x-rays, blood tests, and a knee brace.

Here’s how the charges stacked up:

Professional Services: $149 for a new patient doctor visit.
Tests and Procedures: $43 for blood extraction, $153 for laboratory tests, $153 for x-rays, and more.
Supplies: $74 for items like a knee brace, bandages, and a catheter.

Tony’s medical bill (YouTube / La Lido Loca)

The total came to a staggering $812.

The Costly Question

One moment during the medical intake process could have potentially saved Tony the entire bill. The nurse handed him an “accident occurrence form,” asking if his injury resulted from an accident.

Initially, Tony started filling it out but realised his situation didn’t qualify as an accident.

“I wasn’t in an accident,” he explained. “My knee was already kind of jacked up… I didn’t feel comfortable claiming something that wasn’t true.”

By refusing to classify his injury as an accident, Tony missed the chance for his medical expenses to be potentially covered under the cruise line’s accident policies. Instead, he opted to pay out of pocket and rely on his travel insurance to seek reimbursement.

Tony's injured knee in a support bandage — Tony’s injured knee in a support bandage (YouTube / La Lido Loca)

Lessons Learned

Tony’s story is a cautionary tale for cruisers. He emphasised the importance of travel insurance, stating, “Even if you’re going on a short cruise or a long cruise, make sure you’ve got that travel insurance, or you could be paying hundreds of dollars.”

As for how he handled the situation, Tony stands by his decision. “If it’s not an accident, I’m not going to say it’s an accident. I don’t believe in rolling like that. If you sow the seeds of dishonesty, then bad things are going to happen to you.”

What Do You Think?

Would you have filled out the accident form or paid out of pocket like Tony? Have you ever faced a medical bill while cruising? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

For more cruise insights and stories, check out Tony’s channel, La Lido Loca.

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Black Friday Deals 2024

November 19, 2024

by Luxury Cruising Editorial Cruise Lines Cruise News Money saving tips

Black Friday is now firmly established as one of the best times of the year to book a cruise, with most major cruise lines running some form of promotion over the period.

I’ve taken a look at every cruise line – including ocean cruises, luxury cruises, and river cruises – to collate this list of the best Black Friday deals you can book right now.

Many cruise lines push their Black Friday promo live early, so I’ll keep updating this page as new deals are launched on the run-up to the day itself.

Enjoy!

Black Friday Cruise Deals

1. Norwegian Cruise Line – Up To 50% Off All Cruises!

Plus exclusive to Cruise118, get More at Sea free! That means free drinks, free WiFi, up to 5 speciality dining meals and shore excursion credit!

2. MSC Cruises – Up To 45% Off

With flights also available from just £99pp!

3. Virgin Voyages Black Friday Preview – 80% Off Second Sailor

Get 80% off second sailor fares plus up to $300 to spend on drinks!

Luxury Black Friday Deals

1. Explora Journeys – Save Up To 50%

Limited time only sale with Panache Cruises – get the best prices on these ultra-luxury cruises now!

2. Oceania Ultimate Black Friday Sale – Quadruple Suite Upgrades!

Plus with Panache get either unlimited beer, wine and spirits onboard OR $1,000 shipboard credit!

3. Silversea Sale Away – Save Up To £4,800

Silversea’s most generous Black Friday offer ever, with up to £4,800 off across 550 sailings when you book by 2nd December.

4. Seabourn Black Friday Sail – Double Upgrades

Enjoy two-category upgrades on select Ultra-Luxury voyages with Seabourn – book by 3rd December!

5. Regent Seven Seas – Save Over 45%

Plus get up to $500 shipboard credit on select sailings

6. Emerald Yacht Cruises – Save 25% Plus Drinks Included

And get half-price Balcony Suite upgrades on select 2024 and 2025 cruises!

7. Hurtigruten – Save Up To 25%

Big savings on select Norway voyages with Panache Cruises

8. Scenic Ocean Cruises – Save 25%

Plus free Suite upgrades on select 2024 and 2025 cruises

9. Atlas Ocean Voyages – Save Up To 20%

Plus get up to $600 onboard credit on select Antarctica cruises – ends 7th December

10. Crystal Cruises – Exclusive Panache Cruise Fares (Ultimate Black Friday Sale)

Enjoy ultra-luxury cruising with Crystal and enjoy exclusive fares including fine wines, champagnes and spirits onboard and more!

River Cruise Black Friday Deals

1. Uniworld Boutique River Cruises – Up To 30% Off

Cruise in ultra-luxury from £1,899pp when you book by 27th November

2. APT – Save Up To £200pp

Additional savings on top of discounts already up to 25%!

3. Emerald River Cruises – Free Premium Drinks Package

Plus get an extra £200pp off select 2025 sailings – cruise from £1,545pp

4. Scenic Luxury River Cruises – Free Premium Drinks Package

Plus an extra £200pp off select 2025 sailings – cruise from £1,795pp

Travel Agent Black Friday Deals

Some travel agents may be offering extra deals on top of the cruise line’s promotions too, so it’s worth keeping an eye on those.

1. Cruise118 Black Friday Crash

Up to 50% off cruises, low deposits and free all-inclusive upgrades – plus a case of wine (6 bottles) when you book!

2. Panache Cruises’ Ultimate Black Friday Sale – Luxury Deals

Save up to £4,800 per suite, free upgrades and free onboard credit – plus a free Harrods hamper worth up to £285 when you book!

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How I Afford to Cruise So Often…

Cruising Is Such Good Value!

Don’t Forget to Factor in Gratuities

How To Find Cheap Cruises

The Best Cheap Cruise Lines

The Best Cheap Cruise Ships

The Best Cheap Cruise Cabins

The Best Cheap Cruise Destinations

The Cheapest Time Of Year To Cruise

The Best Cheap Family Cruises

Where To Find Cheap Cruise Deals

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

Are Cruises Cheaper Through a Travel Agent?

When To Book Your Cruise For The Best Price

Do Cruises Get Cheaper Closer to the Sailing Date?

Should You Hold out for a Last-Minute Cruise Deal?

Are Cruises Cheaper in ‘Wave Season’?

How To Book A Cheap Cruise

Get Help Booking Your Family Cruise

Related Posts:

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What Is The NCL Shareholder Benefit?

How To Buy NCL Shares

How To Claim NCL Shareholder Benefits

Things To Know About NCL Stock Benefits

To Conclude

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

Related Posts:

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What Benefits Do You Get With Carnival Shares?

How To Buy Carnival Shares

How To Claim Carnival Shareholder Benefits On Princess Cruises

To Conclude

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

Related Posts:

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Do Royal Caribbean Stockholders Get Discounts?

How To Buy Royal Caribbean Shares

How To Claim Royal Caribbean Shareholder Benefits

Things To Know About Royal Caribbean Stock Benefits

To Conclude

NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!

Related Posts:

If you found this interesting, please share!

1. Be a teacher

2. Be a healthcare worker

3. Be a guest speaker

4. Be a religious leader

5. Be a journalist or content creator

6. Be a travel agent

7. Host events or workshops

8. Organise a group cruise

9. Be the 3rd or 4th guest in a cabin

10. Collect casino points

11. Collect credit card points

12. Join a loyalty program

13. Have an awful cruise experience

14. Marry an officer

15. Enter cruise competitions

Related Topics

If you found this interesting, please share!

1. WiFi

2. Drink packages

3. Spa treatments

4. Photos

5. Shore excursions

6. Speciality dining

7. Private lounges & VIP areas

8. Drinks (especially bottled water)

9. Onboard shopping

Final word

Related posts

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Royal Caribbean Drinks Package Pricing

Royal Caribbean Drinks Package Promotions

1. Book Before You Cruise

2. Look Out For Offers

3. Purchase & Cancel

4. Cheat The System

5. Risk Boarding Day Offers

Costa
Cruises