Tim Conder, a cruise analyst for Wachovia, recently discussed the health of the Alaska cruise market for the rest of 2009.  It’s not a surprise to anyone that the economy is hurting badly right now, and the cruise market has felt the impact.  Bookings were way down in January, and the cruise lines responded by slashing fares to unheard of levels.  But did their Alaska cruise discounts bring in the buyers?

The answer is mixed.  In the short term, especially for Alaska cruises departing in the next two months, bookings have firmed up a bit.  But the rest of the year still looks pretty bad.  The major lines, including Carnival Cruise Lines and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, have been doing their best to prop up prices, but it looks like they won’t be able to do so for much longer.  They have an incredible number of unsold berths staring them in the face, and you can sure bet they’re going to move aggressively to fill them.

The bottom line?  February saw some pretty amazing Alaska cruise deals, but the best may be yet to come.

Source: Travel Pulse

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