What are the benefits and drawbacks of a cruise in the off-peak season?

What are the benefits and drawbacks of a cruise in the off-peak season?

There really aren't drawbacks to taking an off-peak cruise. There can be a weather issue, but it's hard to measure that. In Alaska, for example, weather will be considered to be colder in May or September than in July and August, but who's to know the weather pattern? I've cruised in Alaska in September when the weather was better than in August. But it's a traditional analysis of it. There may be fewer people on the cruise, and some people are very taken to taking off-peak cruising because they figure the ship will not be as packed. If you go the first week of December versus during Christmas, I guarantee you Christmas cruises are all sold out. Completely. But the first week of December, chances are they're not. So there may be fewer people on board, and that may be very appealing to people. Certainly a key issue would be price. Off-peak cruises are going to be slightly less expensive than peak cruises. If you go the first week of December, it's not going to cost as much as going over Christmas holiday.