There’s a reason why the default destination is a “Caribbean” cruise. You don’t hear people talking about a European cruise with the same frequency…nor Alaska…nor even Mediterranean.
With weather that is rarely an issue, the Caribbean is home to 40 per cent of the cruise business. That’s why it should surprise nobody that, as reported by the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), a record number of ships visited the Caribbean this year (235). And that the record will last only a year, when it will jump to 239.
There are more ships sailing to the Caribbean from more places. Notably, from Houston, Galveston, New Orleans, New York and New Jersey…joining the traditional Florida ports: 
Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Port Canaveral, Tampa and Jacksonville. Cruise lines have to make these departure decisions a couple of years in advance and then hope their research is right.
Clearly, they couldn’t have seen this coming.
Because, with the plethora of Caribbean cruises comes some good news for cruisers. With 378,256 beds to fill this year come lower prices, some as low as $41 a day from Galveston. Better to have a bargain bed than an empty one.
However, with such deals comes a mini-exodus of cruise ships to other parts of the world. Carnival is dispatching ships to Australia. Royal Caribbean’s newest ship, Quantum of the Seas, arrives to cruise the Caribbean in November…for less than a year before heading to Shanghai. After working the Caribbean year-round since they arrived, Oasis of the Seas (2009) and Allure of the Seas (2010) are going to be spending part of their years in Europe.
When cruise lines react to this apparent saturation by relocating ships, the decisions to bring them back also must be made two years in advance. So once the ratio is right, that will be the end of these sweetheart deals.
Today at portsandbows.com: The latest in cruise news
Pacific Princess
11 nights
September 28, 2014
Honolulu, Nawiliwili, Lahaina, Hilo, Bora Bora, Moorea, Papeete
Inside: $999
Cost per day: $90
www.princess.com