Tuesday, January 12, 2010

'Tis The Season -- WAVE Season!


USA Today



Add Cunard and Princess to the list of cruise lines rolling out sales for Wave Season -- the period between January and March when many cruisers make their plans for the year.

Princess today is touting a new "Balcony Bonanza" sale in which customers who pay for an ocean-view cabin on select summer 2010 sailings will get an automatic upgrade to a balcony cabin. Sailings in the Caribbean, Alaska and Europe are included in the offer.

Princess also is launching a "Denali on Sale" promotion for Wave Season that includes up to 25% discounts on select Alaska cruisetours (vacation packages that include both a cruise and a land tour). Princess is a longtime leader in Alaska tourism and offers a wide range of 10- to 15-night cruisetours, all of which include at least two nights in the Denali National Park area. With the discounts, Princess' Alaska cruises begin at $1,274 per person for 10 nights.

Both Princess sales will continue through Feb. 28.

Cunard Cruises' Wave Season sale, launching today, will last for just three days. The Three Queens sale, as it's being called, includes savings of up to $1,500 per cabin, onboard credits of up to $300 per person and reduced deposit requirements for 2010 European voyages on the Queen Victoria and trans-Atlantic voyages on the Queen Mary 2.

With the discounts, Cunard's 12-night Ancient Treasures voyages to Italy, Greece and Turkey are available for as little as $1,695 per person, based on double occupancy (for an off-season trip in early November; peak season rates are higher).

The new offers come in the wake of Wave Season sale announcements from Norwegian Cruise Line and Holland America Cruises, and more lines are expected to unveil Wave Season deals in the coming days.