Rather than sail the ships without passengers, cruise lines discount these "repositioning" cruises. Cruise ships must discount the fares to make them attractive to passengers who prefer port-intensive cruises. Cruise lines also recognize that most passengers will spend much more money per day in the casino, bars, and shops on a ship at sea than they do when the ship is in port, so are willing to sail with discounted fares to fill up the cabins.
Why are repositioning cruises so popular? As expected, price is one of the major factors. The per diem repositioning cruise price is often much less than for cruises that embark and disembark in the same port. Moreover, these cruises are usually longer than a week and include more sea days, which gives passengers a relaxing cruise vacation, unencumbered by frantic days in port.
What are the negative aspects of repositioning cruises? The downside of repositioning cruises is that many cruisers love those days in port and really don't want to spend most of their precious vacation time only on a cruise ship. In addition, embarking and disembarking from different ports, often thousands of miles apart, can make airfare more expensive. Most cruisers find that since they are on the cruise ship for long periods, they tend to spend more in the casino, shops, or bars. When they get their statement at the end of the cruise, they are astounded to find that they spent much more than anticipated! Finally, many working cruise vacationers can't afford to take 9 to 18 days (or more) off from work at one long stretch.
How do you find a repositioning cruise? Look north to Alaska first. Any ship that spends the summer in Alaska will almost always feature a repositioning cruise in the spring or fall that will include time in Hawaii, the western coast of the Americas, and/or a transit through the Panama Canal. The second place to look for a repositioning cruise is northern Europe or the Mediterranean. Many ships sailing in Europe will cross the Atlantic to the United States or the Caribbean in the fall and return in the spring. Since South America and Asia are becoming more popular cruise destinations, you might also find repositioning cruises from the USA across the Caribbean to South America or across the Indian or Pacific Oceans.
Find a Repositioning Cruise Using Kayak
Pages 2 and 3 list some of the repositioning cruises over the next year or more. This list is not all inclusive, but should give you an idea of the variety of repositioning cruise specials. I cannot think of a better way to visit two continents on one cruise than on a repositioning cruise!
Page 2 > > Repositioning Cruise Schedule for Fall 2009 > >
Page 3 > > Repositioning Cruise Schedule for Spring 2010 > >
