If you can go on a cruise in the first two weeks of November or December, there are some seriously good fares available.
Royal Caribbean routinely puts out a weekly offer with last-minute cruise deals out to its travel agent partners, but this week's offers include some really deep discounts.
Some sailings on 2- or 3-night cruises are coming in at just $89 or $99 per person based on double occupancy, which is pretty much the cheapest cruise fare you will find offered by Royal Caribbean.
Listed under the Going, Going, Gone rates, there are dozens of fares listed, with prices ranging in value.
Best of this week's cruise deals
I've gone through all the prices listed to find the lowest deals.
Keep in mind these prices are valid October 5 & 6, 2022, but could easily sell out at the rates listed. There's no way to know if it's still available until you go ahead and price out the cruise.
- Freedom of the Seas 2-night Perfect Day Getaway Cruise from Miami on December 5, 2022: $89 per person
- Independence of the Seas 3-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on December 5, 2022: $99 per person
- Liberty of the Seas 3-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 1, 2022: $99 per person
- Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 7, 2022: $129 per person
- Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 14, 2022: $129 per person
- Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 7, 2022: $129 per person
- Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on November 28, 2022: $129 per person
- Liberty of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Fort Lauderdale on December 5, 2022: $129 per person
- Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on October 24, 2022: $149 per person
- Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on October 31, 2022: $149 per person
- Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on November 7, 2022: $149 per person
- Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on November 14, 2022: $149 per person
- Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on November 28, 2022: $149 per person
- Freedom of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Miami on December 12, 2022: $149 per person
- Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on October 24, 2022: $149 per person
- Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on October 31, 2022: $149 per person
- Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on November 7, 2022: $149 per person
- Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on November 14, 2022: $149 per person
- Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on November 28, 2022: $149 per person
- Independence of the Seas 4-night Bahamas & Perfect Day Cruise from Port Canaveral on December 12, 2022: $149 per person
Prices are per person, cruise only, based on double occupancy.
Prices listed are not combinable with any promotional offers or discounts with the exception of Crown & Anchor benefits and NextCruise Onboard Booking Bonus.
Governmental departure taxes and fees are additional.
Why are these cruises so cheap?
Are you wondering why these prices are so inexpensive?
Cruise prices vary depending on the ship and time of year, but if you look at the dates listed, there's a common thread among them. They're all right around very popular times for vacations in Thanksgiving and Christmas, but in weeks before or after these major holidays.
Typically the first two weeks of November and first two weeks of December have much less demand for cruises than nearly any other time of the year. This is because most people get built-in time off from school and work over Thanksgiving or Christmas, so fewer people are able or willing to take time off just before or after these holidays.
And of course, these are all 3- and 4-night cruises. Short cruises will almost always have a lower total price since there are less nights.
4-night cruises are always harder to fill because they begin on a Monday and end on a Friday. Arguably, you could take the same amount of days off of work and get a 7-night cruise for the same investment in time off when counting weekends.
With less people willing or able to cruise these times of year, you can find great deals.
The catch: taxes and fees
While the cruise prices are cheap, there is a catch when you get to the final price.
When you price out the cruise, you may find yourself paying more in taxes and fees than the cruise fare itself. These are fees charged by local governments for each passenger.
These come in the form of government taxes, fees, or surcharges that may be assessed by any governmental agencies, as well as third party fees and charges arising from a vessel’s presence in a harbor or port.
If you care to break it down, cruise taxes essentially cover these services and charges:
- Tolls
- Ship inspections
- Local harbor pilots
- Air, hotel, or VAT taxes incurred as part of a land excursion
- Immigration and naturalization costs
- Internal Revenue Service charges
- Baggage handling at embarkation and disembarkation ports
- Security services
In case you were thinking about it, there's no way to avoid paying government taxes and port charges.
The other catch: getting to the cruise
If you live in Florida and can drive to these cruises, then the prices might just be a wonderful deal. But others may find the value foiled by extra costs.
The cost of airfare to fly down for this cruise could negate the low prices, especially with how high airfare can be in the final weeks before the trip. Then there's the food, parking, and hotel costs that come along with it.
There's no doubt these deals are primarily aimed at people with a lot of free time that can drive to the cruise ships easily.
Just like any cruise, alcoholic drinks, internet access, and shore excursions will all cost you extra.
