Cruise seasons

Photo: Dago Wiedamann

What is the best time for cruise? You can get answer to this question only knowing exactly the cruise area. Southern or Northern, Western or Eastern hemisphere, Alaska or the Canary Islands have its high seasons and low periods.

Types of cruise seasons

There levels are used in determining the quality of cruise season:

- high ("high season")

- medium ("shoulder season")

- low ("low season")

Cruise seasons and destinations

Every region has its own features of the cruise season duration and the high period. On the US East Coast and in New England cruises are particularly in demand in autumn. High season for the Cruises to the Norwegian fjords is the period from May to August and the Christmas holidays. Cruises in the Caribbean have several high seasons such as summer, Christmas and period from February to April.

Cruises: summer is the peak

As for the global trend, today when cruises have become a mass tourism product, they began to act under the classical law of the high season single for the global recreation industry. The highest prices on cruises are in summer. And for the ports of Europe, the USA and some Asian countries the summer season is a period from May to August, while for such areas as Argentina, Australia and New Zealand - from November to March.

Cruises all year-round

More and more areas and ports open year-round cruise seasons. In Europe the most striking example of the all year round region is the Canary Islands. Throughout the year local ports receive cruise ships of the leading world companies. Cruises on the Panama Canal direction also deny the term "out of season". Here the highest prices are from November to April. Among the regions year-round cruise regions are also Hawaii and Mexican Riviera.

Low season - cruises follow the sun

Today the term “low season” is coming to nought. Now this niche is being actively developed by small cruise companies with small and middle-sized liners, which offer educational cruises at attractive prices. Due to the greater mobility such companies can implement special cruise programs throughout the year and afford to "follow the sun and clients".

Season dates

The date of cruise departure is the factor that determines its price. Cruises on ships of the same class with the same type of cabins and set of services can vary significantly because of the fact that the date of departure, for example, falls on beginning of the school holidays. At the same time cruise that departs a week earlier or a week later can be much cheaper.