What Is Wave Season? How to Prepare Before the Cruise Deals Begin
Every year, as the holidays wind down and a new year begins, the cruise industry gets very loud.
Your inbox fills with cruise promotions.
There are percentage discounts, onboard credits, reduced deposits, included perks and plenty of reasons why right now is supposedly the perfect moment to book a cruise.
Welcome to Wave Season.
If you've been thinking about taking a cruise, Wave Season can absolutely be worth paying attention to.
But I don't think the smartest way to prepare for it is by trying to predict which cruise line will have the biggest sale.
The best thing you can do before Wave Season is figure out what you actually want.
Because once everyone starts trying to sell you a vacation, it's much easier to make a good decision if you already know what you're shopping for.
What is Wave Season?
Wave Season is the name commonly used for the period early in the year when cruise planning and cruise promotions get a lot of attention.
Cruise lines may introduce special offers designed to encourage travelers to book upcoming vacations, and you'll often see promotions involving things like:
Cruise fare discounts
Onboard credit
Reduced deposits
Included amenities
Cabin upgrades
Offers involving airfare or other components of the vacation
That can make Wave Season an interesting time to shop for a cruise.
But there's an important distinction between finding a promotion and finding the right cruise.
Those are not necessarily the same thing.
When is Wave Season for cruises?
Wave Season traditionally begins around January and extends through the early part of the year.
But I wouldn't get too attached to the calendar.
Cruise lines run promotions throughout the year, and the existence of a Wave Season offer doesn't automatically mean it's the lowest price you'll ever see for a particular cruise.
That's why I don't recommend building your entire cruise-planning strategy around waiting for one specific sale period.
Instead, I want you to be prepared to recognize a worthwhile opportunity whenever it appears.
Are Wave Season cruise deals worth it?
They certainly can be.
If you've already identified a cruise that fits what you want and a Wave Season promotion makes that vacation less expensive or adds something you'll genuinely use, that's exactly the kind of offer I want to see.
The problem comes when the process happens in reverse.
You see a promotion.
The price looks good.
The included perks sound impressive.
And then you start asking whether you actually want the cruise.
That's when the promotion begins making the decision instead of you.
One of my favorite rules for evaluating cruise promotions is:
A sale should accelerate a good decision. It shouldn't create the decision.
Wave Season is no different.
What should you decide before Wave Season?
You do not need to have a specific ship and sailing selected before January.
You don't even need to know which cruise line you want.
But the clearer you are about the vacation you're looking for, the easier it becomes to recognize a cruise that fits.
Here are the six things I'd think about first.
1. Where do you want to go?
Start broad if you need to.
Maybe you're dreaming about Alaska.
Europe.
Japan.
The Caribbean.
The Galápagos.
European Christmas Markets.
You don't necessarily need the exact itinerary yet.
But knowing which part of the world is calling to you gives us somewhere to start.
2. When can you travel?
Your travel window can have an enormous impact on the options available to you.
Are you tied to a school calendar?
Planning around a milestone birthday or anniversary?
Do you have flexibility within a season?
Are there particular dates you absolutely cannot travel?
Sometimes the calendar narrows our choices before the cruise line ever does.
3. Who are you traveling with?
The cruise I'd recommend for a romantic anniversary vacation may be very different from the cruise I'd recommend for a multigenerational family.
The same goes for a girlfriend getaway, a celebration or a journey with teenagers.
There isn't one universally "best" cruise.
There's a cruise that works particularly well for the people taking it.
4. How do you want the cruise to feel?
This is one of my favorite questions.
Forget cruise lines for a minute.
Forget ship names.
Tell me what you're picturing.
Do you want somewhere quiet and intimate?
Do you love having endless entertainment choices?
Would you rather spend your days immersed in the destination?
Do you want exceptional food to be a major part of the experience?
Would you love a small ship where things feel personal?
Do you want expedition-style adventure?
Would you rather have a relaxed yacht-like atmosphere?
You don't have to know the cruise terminology.
Tell me how you want the vacation to feel, and we can work backward from there.
5. What are you comfortable investing in the entire vacation?
Notice I didn't ask:
What's your cruise budget?
I want to know what you're comfortable investing in the vacation.
Those aren't always the same number.
Your cruise fare may be only one part of what you'll spend.
Depending on the vacation and cruise line, you may also need to consider:
Airfare
Hotels
Transportation
Gratuities
Drinks
Wi-Fi
Excursions
Specialty dining
Travel insurance
Pre- or post-cruise travel
Some cruise fares include more of those things than others.
That's why I like looking at what I call the Real Vacation Price: what you'll realistically spend to take the vacation the way you actually want to take it.
A Wave Season promotion matters to me when it meaningfully improves that number, or gives you something you actually value.
6. What are your non-negotiables?
What would make you eliminate an otherwise good cruise?
Maybe you absolutely want a balcony.
Maybe you care deeply about food.
Maybe you want a smaller ship.
Maybe you need a specific date.
Maybe there's one port you refuse to miss.
Maybe you're traveling with teenagers and need enough happening onboard to keep everyone happy.
Your non-negotiables help separate the cruises that look good from the cruises that are actually worth considering.
What should you watch during Wave Season?
Once you have that foundation, then we can look at the offers.
When I'm evaluating Wave Season opportunities for clients, I'm paying attention to five things.
The cruises we already like
If we've already identified a sailing that fits, I'm very interested when something changes.
Did the fare decrease?
Did an inclusion appear?
Did another cabin category become more attractive?
Did the Real Vacation Price improve?
That's useful information because we're applying a promotion to a vacation we already wanted.
Availability
Price isn't the only variable that can change.
So can availability.
The particular sailing date you want may matter.
The cabin category may matter.
The location of the cabin may matter.
If you're traveling with other people, having several appropriate cabins available may matter.
And on smaller ships, there may simply be less inventory to begin with.
That doesn't mean you should panic-book a cruise because you're afraid everything will disappear.
It means waiting for a hypothetical future offer has tradeoffs too.
What the promotion actually changes
Don't stop at:
40% OFF!
Ask:
40% off what—and what does that make my actual price?
The same applies to other offers.
If you receive onboard credit, what will you use it for?
If drinks are included, were you planning to buy a beverage package?
If the deposit is reduced, did the total vacation price actually change or are you simply paying less today?
If airfare is part of the promotion, does the offer work for the flights and itinerary you need?
Don't evaluate the headline. Evaluate what the offer changes for you.
Your Real Vacation Price
A promotion might look enormous while making a surprisingly small difference to the vacation you're actually planning.
Another offer might sound less exciting but include something you were already going to purchase.
This is why comparing cruise fares alone can be misleading.
Ask:
Which cruise includes more of what I would actually pay for?
An inclusion only has value if it has value to you.
The experience
And finally, after we've analyzed every dollar, perk and promotion:
Is this still the vacation you wanted?
Don't lose the answer to that question in the excitement of finding a deal.
Should you wait until Wave Season to book a cruise?
Not necessarily.
If you've already found the right cruise at a price you're comfortable paying, waiting specifically for Wave Season means accepting that other variables, including pricing and availability, can change in the meantime.
On the other hand, if you're still researching and Wave Season is approaching, it can be useful to get clear about what you're looking for so you're prepared to evaluate the offers that appear.
The goal isn't to perfectly predict when a cruise will reach its lowest possible price.
The goal is to make a good decision about a vacation you'll actually enjoy.
How do you know whether a Wave Season offer is a good deal?
Here's the same filter I use when thinking about Black Friday cruise promotions:
1. Would I want this cruise if it weren't on sale?
2. What does the offer actually change?
3. Do I value what I'm getting?
4. What's my Real Vacation Price after the promotion?
5. Am I choosing this because it fits, or because I'm afraid of missing the deal?
If you can answer those questions, you're in a much better position to judge the offer.
Because the biggest promotion isn't automatically the best value.
Price tells us what something costs. Value requires knowing the person buying it.
Ready versus rushed
Imagine two travelers receive exactly the same Wave Season promotion.
One opens the email and thinks:
Is this good? Should we book it? Do we like this ship? Where does it go? What's included? When does the sale end?
The other thinks:
That's one of the cruises I've been considering. Let's see what this offer changes.
Same promotion.
Completely different decision-making experience.
One is reacting.
One is evaluating.
That's what preparation gives you.
You don't need to know everything.
You just need enough clarity that the promotion becomes another piece of information, not the thing choosing your vacation.
What if you don't know what kind of cruise you want?
Start there.
You don't need to become a cruise expert before you plan a cruise.
That's my job.
You need to know yourself.
Think about the way you like to travel, what you want your days to feel like, how much activity you enjoy, how important the destination is, what you value onboard and who will be traveling with you.
Then we can start matching those preferences to the right cruise style, ship and itinerary.
Not sure which cruise style fits you best? Take my quick Cruise Match Quiz to discover the cruise experience that best matches the way you want to travel.
The smartest way to approach Wave Season
Wave Season can create opportunities.
But Wave Season itself isn't a cruise-planning strategy.
Knowing what you want is.
Know the experience you're looking for.
Know what matters to you.
Understand what the vacation will realistically cost.
Then evaluate the offer.
The internet can show you what's on sale.
My job is to understand what you want and recognize when a promotion makes one of those options more attractive.
If you're thinking about a cruise and you're ready to start looking at actual options, let's talk about the journey you're imagining.
Because when the right opportunity appears, I don't want you scrambling to figure out whether you want it.
I want you ready to recognize it.
Wave Season FAQ's
What is Wave Season for cruises?
Wave Season is the period early in the year traditionally associated with increased cruise planning and cruise-line promotions.
When is Wave Season?
Wave Season traditionally begins around January and continues through the early part of the year, although cruise lines offer promotions throughout the year.
Are Wave Season cruise deals worth it?
They can be, particularly when an offer improves the price or value of a cruise that already fits what you want. Evaluate the actual fare, inclusions and Real Vacation Price rather than relying on the advertised promotion alone.
Should I wait until Wave Season to book a cruise?
Not necessarily. Cruise pricing and availability can change, so waiting for a future promotion involves tradeoffs. If you've already found a cruise that fits your priorities at a price you're comfortable paying, compare the benefit of waiting against what could change.
Is Wave Season the cheapest time to book a cruise?
Not necessarily. Cruise prices vary by sailing, ship, cabin, demand, availability and promotion. Wave Season can bring useful offers, but it doesn't guarantee that a particular cruise will reach its lowest price during that period.
Comments