Last-minute deals for fall and early winter cruises will keep coming, as more and more cruise lines offer short-term discounts to fill unsold cabins.
The latest major travel brand to post fake deals on its website for upcoming trips is MSC Cruisesas of Friday offered entry fares on at least one of its ships for less than $24 per day.
Specifically, the world’s third-largest travel brand on Friday touted a five-night Mediterranean cruise from Marseille, France, in December with prices starting from just $119 – or 23 $.80 per day. The trip is scheduled to start on December 22, which means Christmas Cruise. These tend to be the most expensive, not the cheapest, trips of the year.
Fares of $23.80 per day are lower than what TPG has seen at any major franchise as recently as last week, when we marked Large number of Carnival Cruise Line trips are discounted for only $26 per day. Carnival has offered unusually low fares for rides departing in the fall in recent weeks, as has rival Royal Caribbean. The second line this week is sell some fall travel for under $100.
For more itinerary news, guides and tips, subscribe to TPG’s travel newsletter.
Carnival, Royal Caribbean and MSC Cruises are the three largest cruise lines in the world, accounting for about half of all cruise itineraries worldwide.
The low rates available from MSC Cruises as of Friday were popular. In addition to the $23.80 a day offer above, MSC Cruises also sells five four-night Bahamas sailings in October and November on its website starting at $119 — or $29.75 per day.
Adding some four-night Caribbean and Bahamas cruises on MSC Cruises ships starts at $129 – or $32.25 per day.
Deeply discounted tours include:
Sign up for our daily newsletter
- A three-night MSC Preziosa train from Le Havre, France, to Hamburg, Germany, starts at $109 – about $36 a day. Departure date is November 4.
- Four-night MSC Meraviglia travels to the Bahamas off Port Canaveral, Florida, starting at $119 – about $30 a day. Departures available with that starting price include October 30, November 13, November 27, and December 11.
- A four-night MSC Divina trip to the Bahamas outside of Miami starts at $119 – about $30 a day. Departure date is November 28.
- A 5-night MSC Magnifica train to the Mediterranean from Marseille starts at $119 – about $24 a day. Departure date is December 22.
All the super cheap fares above apply only to the lowest class cabins on each ship, all of which are windowless “interior” compartments. But MSC Cruises is also offering remarkably low rates for sea-view cabins and onboard balconies.
Related: Some travel fares have dropped to as low as $26 a day as lines struggle to fill trains
Ocean-view cabins (i.e. cabins with windows) on MSC Divina’s four-night departure November 28 were listed on the MSC Cruises website Friday for $179 – just over $60 la compared to a cabin with no windows. The balcony cabins on the boat are listed for $239. That works out to just $59.75 a day for a balcony cabin.
All fares are base prices per person including accommodation, meals and entertainment but not port taxes and fees, ranging from $75 to $125. Cruise lines typically advertise their fares as zero. including port taxes and fees but add these to the final invoice at the time of payment.
Related: 6 ways to get a deal on a cruise
As is common with cruise ship prices, per-person fares are “two-person-based,” meaning they are only available to passengers when at least two people are booked in a cabin. Customers who want a cabin of their own will pay extra.
Passengers who book many of the lowest available fares will also have to pay extra for things like Wi-Fi, alcoholic beverages and bonuses for traveling on the cruise. The more expensive fare category at MSC Cruises includes some extras. Also, flights to the yacht, if needed, are not included in the fare. That can be a killer for Americans, especially when keeping an eye out for some cheap European goods.
Related: 11 cruise ship surcharges that will drive you crazy – and what to do about them
However, even with many of the above additional fees included, the cost of travel in the fall is still remarkably low when compared to the cost of staying in a hotel or resort increases rapidly on land. Yacht prices this year have fallen far behind land-based rentals, with some Wall Street analysts who cover the travel industry saying the difference is now in the 30% to 50% range.
Low rates for fall cruises at MSC Cruises and others come as cruise companies struggle more than land-based resorts to return to post-coronavirus normal capacity. COVID-19 pandemic.
Looking for a convenient way to see all your points and mileage in one place? Download Free TPG app!
Planning an excursion? Start with the following stories:
