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Position, Position, Position: A Cruise Lover's Guide to Repositioning Cruises

By Mandy Karlik

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 10Aug2007 Word count: 669 Viewed: 500 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

Every now and then you may come across a cruise deal on something called a "repositioning" cruise. Are these really the great deals they seem to be?

A repositioning cruise is a cruise that occurs while the cruise line is actually taking a ship from one home port to another. Most cruise ships have a home base and make their cruises in and out of that port. That's why most cruise packages let you set sail and return to the same place.

But sometimes the cruise line will want to maneuver its fleet a bit differently. It may be time to change up the schedule. At any rate, they need to move a cruise ship from the old home port to a new home port.

Cruise lines are savvy enough to sell passage on these voyages, but they aren't your typical destination cruise. In fact, a repositioning cruise may not even offer any ports of call.

The focus of a repositioning cruise is getting from Port A to Port B. However, a repositioning cruise will offer you the usual cruise amenities. The crew will give you the same level of service as on a conventional cruise, you will get to dine and see shows. The only thing is that the cruise is not following the usual "route" with the standard ports of call.

As a result, repositioning cruises are often good bargains. However, you need to be a particular type of passenger to really make this work out for you.

First, you need to be a cruise passenger who enjoys "ship time" more than "port time." You have to be content to spend days at sea. You'll have access to the full facilities of the ship, so you can soak in the sun, go swimming, work out, see shows, get spa treatments, and take advantage of everything else on your ship. (Ask about what is offered on board before you book any repositioning cruise.) If you like long lazy days of eating and relaxing and soaking in the scenery from the deck, this is a perfect vacation for you.

Second, you need to be able to deal with the "to and from" of the repositioning cruise. You'll be leaving from one port but coming back at another. That means your airfare may be a bit more complicated and even pricier. You won't be able to book a round-trip airfare; instead if you need plane tickets, you'll be getting two one-way fares.

As with any cruise, you can tack on airfare to your total cruise package or book airfare yourself. Asking which is the better deal is like asking how much a cruise costs. It depends! You may want to do some online shopping to see what fares cost versus what the airline can package for you.

If you live near a cruise port, a repositioning cruise involving that port can be an outstanding value since you'll only need one airline ticket.

You can learn about repositioning cruises from most cruise line websites as well as from travel websites. They are usually listed in among the regular offerings but they should be flagged as repositioning cruise.

Some cruises that work a regular route do start and stop from different ports. This happens, for instance, in Alaska, where a cruise ship may work a route north to south one trip, then south to north the next. This is not a repositioning cruise.

The advantages of a repositioning cruise are mainly financial. It usually does not offer any new sights or destinations than the standard cruise packages and it creates a bit of a passenger inconvenience by starting and stopping at different places. However, it is often offered at a definite discount.

If you love to cruise, spend long days and seas, and can manage to start and stop your trip from different points, repositioning cruises (when they are offered-they're a bit rare) can be an excellent deal for the money.

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