Cruise Deals Surface Early With More Travelers Ready to Set Sail

Cruise lines have continued to roll out new ships this year and want to fill staterooms that were long empty during the pandemic. With interest in setting sail returning to pre-Covid levels, cruise lines are using promotions to market their trips and compete with other segments of the travel industry that advertise special offers during the holidays. 

For aspiring passengers, these deals offer opportunities to hunt for savings as cruise prices get more expensive. How long the offers last depends on how quickly spots fill up, and early signs indicate a higher level of interest than this time last year, industry analysts say. 

Discounting is likely to continue throughout the holiday season and into the traditional wave season, says John Padgett, president of

Carnival Corp.

subsidiary Princess Cruises. 

“Many of our guests no longer think of cruise planning and purchasing as a once-a-year event,” Chris Chiames, chief communications officer for

Carnival

Cruise Line, said in an email. While wave season still represents “the cornerstone of the industry’s marketing initiatives,” he said, waiting until then to promote special offers “is not practical or smart when cultural shifts and consumer patterns make shopping a year-round thing.”

Royal Caribbean

‘s sale tied to Black Friday and Cyber Monday is 14 days long, ending on Nov. 30, which is the longest in the company’s history, according to Kara Wallace, chief marketing officer at Royal Caribbean International. As part of the sale, Royal Caribbean was offering up to $600 off a cruise, plus 30% off for each guest. Royal Caribbean’s holiday deal also included the “Kids Sail Free” promotion for children ages 12 and under who are the third guest or higher in a given party.

“Every cruise line out there has a different offer,” Mrs. Wallace says. She adds that, unlike the holiday deals advertised by other cruise lines, Royal Caribbean’s sale didn’t feature bundled offers with add-ons such as free Wi-Fi or drinks packages, though the cruise line does offer discounts on these after a traveler has booked a cruise.

Even with the discounts on offer, many are already finding that a vacation at sea may be significantly costlier next year. After Lisa Ramsey went on a Carnival cruise with her husband and three kids over Veterans Day weekend, she wanted to do another cruise in 2023 with her extended family. The 2023 sailing ended up being much more expensive than the cruise she had just taken—even after factoring in Black Friday deals from Carnival.

“I don’t want us to all go broke trying to enjoy ourselves,” Mrs. Ramsey says. For now, the family has paused plans for a cruise in the hopes that prices come down. They are considering visiting the theme parks at Universal Orlando Resort instead. 

Mr. Chiames said that the cruise line’s pricing reflects market conditions, demand and competitive dynamics.

This year, cruise lines are looking to take advantage of many people’s newfound willingness to return to the high seas.

The industry was among the most adversely affected by Covid. Ships were prohibited from sailing out of U.S. ports for months. Only recently have most cruise lines dropped requirements that passengers be vaccinated against Covid-19 or test before boarding.

With many people unwilling to sail for much of this time, the different companies dropped their rates significantly, even as hotels and airlines hiked prices.

“Cruise lines have not really participated in the leisure-travel recovery, because people were frightened to go on a cruise or you had to be vaccinated,” Truist Securities analyst C. Patrick Scholes says.

But now more cruise aficionados appear ready to return to the seas. In a recent research note, Mr. Scholes predicted that the fourth quarter of 2022 would be the first where pricing would eclipse 2019 levels since the pandemic began. Far fewer passengers are canceling or rebooking cruises, he wrote.

“Every day a customer waits, it’s going to get a little bit more expensive,” Mr. Scholes predicts. 

Despite the expected hike in prices, cruise lines say that a trip at sea is still a bargain compared with a vacation on land, given their all-inclusive design. 

For repeat cruisers, the best deals may not be the ones publicly broadcast by the cruise lines around the holidays or during wave season. Jennifer Szarek, a 38-year-old teacher and travel agent from Brandon, Miss., has plans to go on seven cruises between now and the end of 2023. One of them will be on the Carnival Valor, which she’s set to take in March from New Orleans to Mexico.

Not only were her tickets free, but they came with a $500 credit for onboard spending. Ms. Szarek says she enjoys visiting the casino during cruises, which leads to her getting better offers.

“That was a personal deal that was sent to me in the mail,” she says. “All of the lines are sending out more perks to repeat cruisers.” Carnival declined to provide details on its marketing strategies when asked about targeted offers for repeat customers.

Write to Jacob Passy at jacob.passy@wsj.com