How Do Cruise Ships Fill Their Unsold Cabins?

Cruise lines fill unsold cabins in a two-stage process to protect revenue and attract more passengers. Higher category cabins are filled first, offering discounted fares to provide luxury at an affordable price. This helps to reduce food, drink, and merchandise sales. To find deals on unsold cruise cabins, there are several strategies and tips available.

One effective strategy is offering last-minute discounts. As the departure date approaches, cruise lines often have a list of people willing to take cruises on short notice in exchange for a discount. Another tactic is offering upgrades. These can be done by moving passengers from an interior cabin to an ocean view or balcony cabin. If the strategy does not reach its target, cruise lines must offer the cabins at a discounted price. There are two ways to do this: using the bidding process or paying the difference between the booked cabin and the cabin.

Cruise lines fill unsold cabins by changing the way of general sales. Many cruise liners now sell expensive inside cabins, making it difficult for passengers to secure a deal on a sailing that is not selling well. Free upgrades are another option for those looking to secure unsold cabins. By following these strategies, cruise passengers can save money and score a vacation of a lifetime.

What do cruise ships do with the uneaten food?

Traditionally, the leftover food on a cruise ship is ground by food pulpers, then pulverized in a paste or slurry to be stored until the ship reaches land. Once the waste arrives on land, it is transported to a facility for processing. These facilities could be a landfill or an anaerobic digestion plant.

What can cruise ships do about their food waste?. The LFC biodigester is an onsite solution that digests the food waste onboard the ship, leaving behind grey water that can be safely discharged at sea. Alternatively, the waste water can be processed in the ship’s STP (sewage treatment plant) system. The LFC biodigester is a machine that uses natural microorganisms to break down organic material, resulting in a liquid that can be easily discharged. It’s a great solution for cruise ships because it eliminates the need to transport the waste off the ship, reducing the carbon footprint associated with waste disposal.

Furthermore, the LFC biodigester has low utility usage and different models can process up to 6000 kg (13,200 lb) of waste per day, making it a practical and efficient solution for cruise ships. The machines can handle a wide variety of food waste, including meat and dairy products, making it a versatile solution for onboard food waste management.

Where does cruise ship sewage go?

Do Cruise Ships Dump Sewage?. Yes. To get into a few more specifics than above, the U.S. allows cruise ships to dump treated waste into the ocean if they are within three and a half miles from shore. Beyond that point, there are no restrictions for dumping untreated, raw sewage in U.S. ocean waters. There are a few places like Puget Sound, California, and most of New England where no-dumping zones have been created but everywhere else, sewage can be dumped.

How Much Sewage Do Cruise Ships Dump?. More than a billion gallons of sewage are dumped into the ocean annually. This sewage is not only full of human waste, but also chemicals, pharmaceuticals, bacteria, viruses, heavy metals, and hazardous waste. And many cruise ships lack the sewage treatment facilities to adequately filter out toxins.

The increased waste in the ocean adds to the problem of pollution and oxygen depletion in the waters. Added nitrogen and phosphorus allow for algae blooms — which can suffocate coral reefs, manatees, shellfish, and fish.

How do I find out what cabins are available on a cruise?

Our site is well organized and allows you to conveniently compare the offerings from different cruise lines. Our special focus is in showing only up-to-date prices and availabilities. Just click the button Availability on any of the cruise description pages and you will immediately see the available categories on your selected cruise from the cruise line reservation system. With another click, the available cabins will even be displayed in the deck plan!

And should you need personal assistance: Write to us anytime, we will be more than glad to help you!

Independent Advice. By the way: We are not bound to a certain cruise line. That is to your advantage, since we work independently and thus can offer you the cruise that best suits you.

How to tell if a cruise is sold out?

Ask your travel agent. If you made your cruise booking through a travel agent, simply reach out to them and ask them about the availability. This can be a more accurate source of information, as they sometimes have access to rooms that are not published on a cruise line’s website.

Referring back to the Carnival Freedom example, there may be an interior room that’s available through a travel agency. The website, however, says that the category is completely sold out.

In addition to information about your sailing, there are numerous other advantages to booking with a travel agent. They can help you make pre-cruise travel arrangements, give shore excursion suggestions, and make reservations for onboard add-ons, like spa treatments, specialty restaurants, and more.

Can you find out how full a cruise ship is?

Go online and create a mock booking. Before your cruise departs, you can head online and recreate your booking. This will tell you whether certain cabin categories are sold out, as well as a rough estimate of how many rooms are available within each.

Let’s take this sailing onboard Carnival Freedom which departs on November 11, 2023. At the time of writing, the website indicates that all interior and ocean view rooms for this particular sailing are sold out. While this doesn’t reveal how many people will be onboard, there are only two categories of rooms with availability!

Of course, you can also check a third-party website, too, such as Expedia, Cruises.com, or CrusiesOnly.

Can you tell how many rooms are left on a cruise?

Do Mock Bookings for a Sailing You’re Interested In. If you have a specific sailing in mind, you’ll want to be doing mock bookings for that sailing starting the week after final payment is due. During the booking process you’ll be able to see how many cabins in any category are left.

If you’re already booked on that cruise and see that there are open higher-category rooms than what you’ve got booked, contact the line or your travel agent to see if there are any upgrade offers open.

It’s more difficult if you’re not already booked. If you see lots of empty cruise cabins, you can try contacting the line to see if a sales rep or a travel agency will offer you a good deal. Chances are high, however, that if no sale is advertised on the website, you won’t be offered a discount.

If this is the case, keep checking in. If cabins don’t start filling up as the sail date gets closer, the chances of a sale popping up increase.

Do cruise ship workers have to pay room and board?

Do cruise ship employees live on the ship?. To complete their responsibilities, cruise ships require their employees to live on the boat. Most cruise lines offer their staff free room and board throughout the duration of their contracts. They often cover the costs of basic living expenses, such as water and electricity bills. This allows employees to travel wherever the ship goes, frequently visiting new countries during their free time. Each employee in the crew quarters may have one to three roommates.

Do cruise ship employees get free food?. A majority of cruise ship lines offer their employees free food throughout the duration of their contracts. There’s typically a special kitchen on the boat that prepares food for staff members. Employees may eat in separate dining areas, depending on their classifications. For example, there might be different mess halls for the ship’s officers, employees and crew.Related: How To Become a Cabin Crew Member in 7 Steps.

Do cruise ship employees work normal hours?. Depending on their roles, cruise ship employees may work unusual hours. Staff members often expect to work around 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Some employees may work early in the morning, like those who prepare food, while others work late into the night, like bartenders and entertainers. Your work schedule might depend on the specific cruise line and your position.Related: How To Write a Cruise Ship CV (With Template and Example)

How do cruise ships fill up unsold cabins?

Cruise lines fill unsold cabins in a two-stage process, in order to protect as much revenue as possible.Higher Category Cabins Filled First. … Exclusive Sales. … Subscribe to Mailing Lists. … Do Mock Bookings for a Sailing You’re Interested In. … Not All Empty Cabins Will Be Filled.

The last thing cruise lines want is too many empty cruise ship cabins on any given sailing. Unsold cruise cabins mean fewer passengers to spend money on drinks, excursions, in the spa and at alternative restaurants.

With a goal of more than 100 percent occupancy on every sailing (meaning the number of passengers onboard is equal to or higher than the double-occupancy capacity of the ship), cruise lines have a variety of tactics for filling empty cabins most of which can result in deep savings for cruisers in the know.

But getting a deal on a cruise sailing that’s not selling well requires some effort and usually a lot of flexibility. Because cruise lines will not start discounting until they have to (usually after final payment is due for that sailing), you’ll need to be ready to travel within one to two months (or less) to take advantage of the low prices triggered by unsold cruise cabins.

Can you take food back to your room on a cruise?

Is it okay to bring food into my cabin on a cruise ship?. On most cruises, nobody will object if you take food from the buffet or another casual restaurant and bring it back to your room. However, you can always ask your server to plate up your meal to take with you or if you need to sit down at a specialty venue early for some reasons or leave the main dining room.

Can I bring outside food on the ship?. Yes, you can bring your own food on board, including snacks and products purchased in ports. Additionally, unless you’re finicky or have a dietary limitation, there are affluent options onboard.

Can I get food with my dietary restrictions on a ship?. In short, the answer is yes. On most cruises, vegetarian meals are readily available in cruise ship restaurants. At the same time, low-salt, gluten-free, low-carb, and vegan dishes are accessible, or you can mention them in advance. Additionally, Kosher food is often prepared ahead of time and frozen for use during the cruise, but you must notify the cruise line in advance. Hence, it’s better to inform your cruise line in advance if you have a tight diet or an allergy; otherwise, you can contact your travel agent or a cruise line’s special needs department.

Do cruise ships dump food into the ocean?

Can cruise ships dump waste at sea?. Yes. It’s quite legal to dump sewage and food waste into the sea. U.S. law requires cruise ships to treat waste within about 3.5 miles of shore—but beyond that, there are no restrictions on dumping polluted sewage and graywater. Researchers have estimated that over a billion gallons of sludge made from excrement and food scraps are released into the ocean every year by cruise lines.

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The sewage is not just human waste, but also contains chemicals, pharmaceuticals, bacteria, viruses, and heavy metals that are not naturally present in the ocean. Cruise ships don’t have the resources or the facilities to filter out many of these toxic substances. They end up in the habitats of many coastal animals from otters to dolphins to whales, leading to reproductive problems, illness and population decline.

Do they have jails on cruise ships?

…and a jail. There are no police officers on cruise ships, but most vessels have small jails known as the brig, and unruly passengers could find themselves locked up if the ship’s security team determines that they have violated the cruise line’s code of conduct.

The brig, usually a bare-bones room with a bed and bathroom facilities, does not have iron bars like a traditional jail cell. It is used to detain guests who commit serious crimes like assault or possession of illegal substances. Drunk and disorderly passengers may be put under “cabin arrest,” meaning they cannot leave their cabin without a security escort.

Depending on the circumstances, most passengers put in the brig will stay there until they can be handed over to law enforcement officials.