How to Cruise For Free -

Gather up your friends and family; earn free passage and group benefits

"Cruise for free," you ask? Why, yes, it’s possible; and it’s not as hard as you might think. For ages people have enjoyed traveling together with friends, whether from college, a current or old neighborhood, work buddies or just plain old family members. Talk to "CruiseOne - Your Personal Cruise Consultants" about group cruise ideas; after, many decide to take the bold step and reserve the first group of cabins to the "sunny, warm, Caribbean." You can send fliers with the cruise information to your group friends. Your primary goal is to get as many people as possible to have a great vacation; a second goal is to entice enough friends to book so you can earn free passage under the cruise lines group policy.
"What can happen"? You might be able to cruise for free when 16 people join your group. As the organizer of the group, you can become the designated “tour conductor.” Tour conductors work with us to make all the travel and onboard arrangements; their primary jobs are recruitment and communication. All you really need is a congenial group willing to travel together and an excuse to go. Sign up enough people and you will pay no cruise fare.
Most cruise lines, including Carnival, Celebrity, Disney, Holland America, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean and Princess, ordinarily define a group cruise as a minimum of 16 people occupying eight cabins (third and fourth passengers in a cabin are allowed, but they do not count toward the total). The 16th person (the tour conductor) cruises free. However, free passengers must pay taxes/port charges (and, of course, airfare to the port, if needed).
Getting a free fare is one thing; getting a free cabin is something else altogether. For that you need to book twice as many people and cabins. Sixteen is the magic number, sixteen people means the 16th person cruises free; 16 cabins means the 16th cabin is free. Off-peak sailings sometimes offer more generous terms, with some cruise lines offering groups free fares for every 10th or 14th person. Generally, higher-end cruise lines like Silversea, Regent, Seabourn and Crystal Cruises require fewer paid fares to qualify than do the more mainstream cruise lines.

Sail together, save together

OK, so the group leader can make out like a bandit, but what about the other group travelers? They can benefit, too. For one thing, group rates are sometimes lower than individual rates. For another, the free cruise fare can often be divided evenly among the group members, saving everyone money. Some cruise lines also offer special perks available only to group cruisers. For example, many cruise lines are now awarding “group amenity points” based on the number of people in the group: the more people, the more points, the more perks. Amenities can include such things as cocktail parties, cabin upgrades and shipboard credits.
The details of group-travel offerings vary widely by cruise line, itinerary, time of year — even the nature of the group. Don’t be daunted. CruiseOne specializes in group cruises and can help you find the best sailings and negotiate the best possible deal available. But what if you can’t round up enough friends or family members to get group benefits? All is not lost! CruiseOne holds blocks of cabins and offer deals that are exclusive to the clients of our “inner circle”. It’s a great way for people to take advantage of a group rate without being in a group.
Warning: Being a tour conductor isn’t a breeze. You will have to keep extensive records and have good communication skills to keep the information flowing between your group members and us. Yes, CruiseOne will do most of the work, including making bookings, tracking payments, making stateroom assignments and setting up special onboard events, but you are the one folks will turn to if things go wrong, crying, “Look what you got us into!”
I am sure you and your friends will have a terrific time on your group cruise. It may be a lot of work, but the payoff is great: You can cruise for free. How cool is that? I bet you can’t wait to do it again. In fact, what about having your next "meeting at sea". More from me on that later...