The 17 Best Websites To Book Cruises at the Cheapest Prices [2026]

Planning a cruise can feel overwhelming, so this guide reviews and compares 17 of the best websites to book cruises in one place.

We break down each platform’s key features, fees, price guarantees, and loyalty programs to help you choose confidently. You will also find a detailed price comparison across sites, while also highlighting any extras.

For a clear, like-for-like breakdown of costs and value, head straight to the dedicated price comparison section.

Quick Overview: Best Websites To Book Cruises

This guide covers a variety of options for booking cruises, spanning general online travel agencies (OTAs) like Expedia, Orbitz, and Priceline alongside cruise specialists such as CruiseDirect, CruisesOnly, and Cruises.com, plus loyalty portals including American Airlines Cruises, Delta SkyMiles Cruises, United Cruises, and Marriott Bonvoy Cruises.

Base cruise fares are typically identical across platforms, with differences arising from perks such as onboard credit, bonus miles, or cash-back. Some sites, including CheapCaribbean and several airline portals, add a $25 processing fee per booking, while many offer 110% best price guarantees within 48 hours.

United Cruises and Marriott Bonvoy Cruises also allow points redemptions, though at a lower value than typical travel uses. Meanwhile, Cruise Critic and TripAdvisor function as metasearch tools, redirecting users to third-party sites to complete bookings.

Best Cruise Booking Sites: At a Glance

1. Cruise Line’s Website

Your first instinct when booking a cruise may be to go directly to the cruise line’s website, especially if you have elite status with a specific cruise line. There are definitely some benefits to this: It’s simple, and there are fewer hassles if you have to make any changes. If you’re sure of the cruise line you want to take, it makes your search a little easier because you’re just looking at 1 specific line.

The big drawback when booking directly on a cruise line’s website is that you can miss out on extra deals that online travel agencies may offer.

Pros and Cons of Booking Directly With the Cruise Line:

Pros:

• Simpler search functions make it easier to locate specific cruises.
• There’s no middleman (another website) to deal with if there is a problem.
• It ensures you earn and redeem loyalty program perks.

Cons:

• You might miss out on extra deals offered by other sites.

Hot Tip:

No matter where you book your cruise, be sure to use the right credit card. Refer to our list of best credit cards for cruises to get you started.

2. CheapCaribbean.com

CheapCaribbean.com is an OTA that specializes in travel to the Caribbean, Mexico, and Central America. It was founded in 2000 and prides itself on offering the best prices and great U.S.-based customer service. The site’s sales agents are available 7 days a week to help you plan your ultimate Caribbean vacation.

Despite the name, you can book cruises to destinations other than the Caribbean through CheapCaribbean.com, including Europe, Canada, Hawaii, and Alaska.

CheapCaribbean.com sometimes offers bonuses, such as additional onboard spending credit. Plus, it offers a 110% best price guarantee. If you find the exact same cruise for a lower price (available to the general public) on another website, CheapCaribbean.com will refund 110% of the price difference.

The not-so-great thing about CheapCaribbean.com is that it charges a $25 processing fee on each booking. It’s lumped into the taxes and fees, so you may not realize it unless you read the fine print.

Pros and Cons of CheapCaribbean.com

Pros:

• Occasional special deals, such as extra onboard credit, may be offered.
• 110% best price guarantee
• Provides the same loyalty and welcome-home offers as the cruise line

Cons:

• There’s a $25 processing fee on each booking.
• You need to sign up for emails or call in to book a cruise to access exclusive deals.

Hot Tip:

Want to save more? CheapCaribbean.com offers exclusive deals to email subscribers and offers unpublished fares and exclusive offers if you call in to book your cruise.

3. Cruise Critic

Cruise Critic is a cruise-focused website that features reviews, tips, and advice for a huge community of cruisers. The Cruise Critic forums provide a place to ask questions, give advice, and get help booking your next cruise.

The site also acts as a metasearch engine for cruises, allowing you to compare prices across many other websites and to view a price history for a particular cruise to see if you’re booking it at its lowest price. You can search for your perfect cruise, and when it’s time to book, Cruise Critic will transfer you to another site to complete your booking.

Pros and Cons of Cruise Critic

Pros:

• The site offers lots of cruise reviews, plus cruise tips, and a travel forum to help you plan your trip.
• You can view pricing insights from the last 90 days and information on the lowest and highest rates at which the cruise has been offered.

Cons:

• The prices you see are not guaranteed and may be subject to additional fees or restrictions depending on the website they are listed on.
• There’s limited transparency on included extras, such as onboard credit or bonus perks.

4. CruisesOnly

CruisesOnly claims to be the best because each of its call center agents has an average of 5 or more years of experience and professional training.

While that might be helpful if you’re new to cruising or need advice about which cruise line, ship, or destination you should choose, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’re getting the best price (scroll down to the price comparison section to see how CruisesOnly stacks up against other websites).

CruisesOnly also has its own loyalty program, CruisesOnly Rewards. It’s free to join, and rewards can be redeemed for cash-back, onboard credit, or merchandise.

CruisesOnly’s best price guarantee is similar to other sites: a refund of 110% of the price difference if you find a lower price on an identical cruise within 48 hours of booking.

Pros and Cons of CruisesOnly

Pros:

• CruisesOnly Rewards are stacked alongside individual cruise loyalty programs.
• The site offers a 110% best-price guarantee.

Cons:

• The site, like many other online travel agents, can be very busy, making it hard to narrow down the cruise you really want to take.
• Booking with a third party can make changes or cancellations more long-winded.

5. Cruises.com

Cruises.com is a dedicated cruise booking platform that combines competitive pricing with a strong focus on added value. While base fares are typically in line with other sites, it often stands out through perks like onboard credit, bonus amenities, or limited-time promotions. It’s worth noting that these promotions are often limited to specific cruise lines.

The site is easy to navigate, with helpful filters for destinations, cruise lines, and departure dates. Cruises.com also provides access to experienced cruise specialists who can assist with bookings and questions. However, like many third-party agencies, you book through them rather than directly with the cruise line, which can affect how changes or support are handled later.

Cruises.com also has its own loyalty program, Cruises.com Rewards. It’s free to join, and rewards can be redeemed for cash-back, onboard credit, or merchandise. Benefits are identical to those offered through the CruisesOnly loyalty program; however, they are 2 separate programs.

Pros and Cons of Cruises.com

Pros:

• Offers a free loyalty program where you can earn points and redeem them for cash back, onboard credit, or merchandise
• Limited-time promotions with savings or bonuses

Cons:

• Promotions and limited-time offers usually apply to specific cruise lines, not all.
• $25 processing fee per booking (Source: Cruises.com).

6. CruiseDirect

CruiseDirect is a website that specializes only in cruises. The site allows you to quickly search cruises by destination, cruise line, departure port, or last-minute deals. You can find lots of different types of cruises, from budget to luxury and from megaships to riverboats.

With each cruise listing, you should see bonus details clearly on the results page so you can quickly identify offers with added value. Some of these are already reflected in the price, and some are extras like onboard ship credit or discounts on shore excursions.

Pros and Cons of CruiseDirect

Pros:

• Bonuses are offered with each cruise, ranging from shipboard credit to discounts on shore excursions.

Cons:

• The bonuses offered are often from the cruise line and not exclusive to CruiseDirect, so you could get them regardless of where you book.
• The site is cluttered and can be hard to navigate.

7. Priceline

Priceline gained fame from its Name Your Own Price feature, but has since transformed into a more traditional OTA. In addition to hotels, flights, and rental cars, you can use this site to book cruises.

Priceline often offers deals above and beyond those offered by the cruise line. At the time of writing, a few deals offered perks such as onboard credit or free third or fourth guests.

Plus, Priceline offers a 110% best price guarantee. If you find a lower, publicly available price for the exact same cruise within 48 hours of booking, you’re refunded 110% of the price difference.

Pros and Cons of Priceline

Pros:

• Extra deals, such as onboard credit or room upgrades, are sometimes offered.
• The site offers a 110% best price guarantee.

Cons:

• Some offers, including the one for up to $1,000 in onboard credit, can be confusing. Once you read the fine print, you’ll realize you need to spend $20,000 to get the full $1,000 credit.

Hot Tip:

For more information, check out our detailed guide on booking travel with Priceline.

8. Tripadvisor

While you might think of Tripadvisor as just a place to get reviews and photos of hotels, restaurants, and activities, it’s actually much more than that. In addition to reviews and traveler forums, Tripadvisor acts as a metasearch engine, comparing prices across many other websites.

When you’re searching for a cruise, just click the drop-down arrow that shows how many deals there are. Then you can see that cruise’s price on many sites.

Pros and Cons of TripAdvisor

Pros:

• It offers lots of great ship reviews and travel forums.
• It’s a great site for quickly comparing prices across many sites at once.

Cons:

• None of the value-added deals or bonuses are featured on these listings.

Hot Tip:

For more information, check out our detailed guide to booking travel on TripAdvisor.

9. Expedia

Expedia has been around for almost 30 years and is popular for booking flights, hotels, and holidays, but it can also be used to book cruises.

The site is straightforward and easy to use, offering cruises from all the major cruise lines. Though Expedia doesn’t charge any booking fees, information is vague on whether it offers a price guarantee on cruises. Some travelers have reported price guarantees, with credit applied as gift cards or loyalty program credits.

A lot of information is presented when you click through on a deal, including the itinerary, price by room type, bonus offers, deck plans, and more.

Pros and Cons of Expedia

Pros:

• The site sometimes offers extra bonuses, such as onboard credit and discounted guests.
• It’s easy to use and very clear about what’s included in the price.
• Its One Key loyalty program earns points that can be redeemed with Expedia, Hotels.com, or Vrbo.

Cons:

• No price guarantee is offered on cruise holidays.
• It’s poorly reviewed for its customer service (Source: Trustpilot).

Hot Tip:

For more information, check out our complete guide to using Expedia.

10. Orbitz

Orbitz is a typical OTA that offers flights, hotels, car rentals, vacation packages, and cruises. There are no booking fees on cruises, and it offers a price guarantee. However, the price guarantee isn’t as strong as some other sites — you need to find a lower price within 24 hours to receive the difference as a refund (which may be credited as Orbucks, the currency for its loyalty program).

Orbitz and Expedia are owned by the same parent company, so the product information pages are the same.

One of the nice things about Orbitz is that it offers a rewards program, but cruises are not eligible for Orbitz Rewards.

Pros and Cons of Orbitz

Pros:

• It offers a best price guarantee.
• Orbitz doesn’t charge any booking, change, or cancellation fees.

Cons:

• Cruises aren’t eligible for Orbitz Rewards

Hot Tip:

For more information, check out our complete guide to using Orbitz to book travel.

11. American Airlines Cruises

Did you know that you can book a cruise through American Airlines? The best part is that when you do, you earn American Airlines AAdvantage miles for your purchase (in addition to any points or miles you earn from your credit card).

• Earn 1 AAdvantage mile per $1 spent on cruises booked through American Airlines (up to 10,000 miles) (Source: aadvantagecruises.com).
• American Airlines credit cardholders earn 2 AAdvantage miles per $1 spent on cruises booked through American Airlines (up to 20,000 miles).
• AAdvantage members can use miles or a combination of miles and cash to book a cruise.
• Occasionally, AA offers additional bonus points for some cruises.

Hot Tip:

Base miles earned by booking a cruise through American Airlines count as loyalty points that help you earn American Airlines elite status.

American Airlines Cruises also offers a 110% best price guarantee. If you find the exact same cruise priced lower within 48 hours of booking, you’re refunded 110% of the price difference.

The bad news is that you’re charged a $25 processing fee on every booking.

Pros and Cons of American Airlines Cruises

Pros:

• AAdvantage members can earn American Airlines miles and loyalty points.
• The site offers a 110% best-price guarantee.

Cons:

• There is a $25 processing fee on every booking.

12. Delta SkyMiles Cruises

In addition to flights, you can book cruises through Delta Air Lines’ SkyMiles Cruises and earn Delta SkyMiles at the same time.

Currently, you earn 2 SkyMiles per $1 spent on a cruise, excluding the taxes, fees, and port charges. Using a Delta SkyMiles credit card can earn an additional 3 miles per $1 on Delta purchases. At the time of writing, Delta was offering a limited-time bonus of 1 MQD per $5 spent on selected sailings.

SkyMiles Cruises also offers a 110% best price guarantee. If you find the exact same cruise priced lower within 48 hours of booking, you’re refunded 110% of the price difference.

Pros and Cons of Delta SkyMiles Cruises

Pros:

• Earn extra Delta SkyMiles in addition to cruise promotions.
• 110% best price guarantee
• Possible to earn MQDs with cruise bookings

Cons:

• There is a $25 processing fee on every booking.

Hot Tip:

Miles used toward a cruise are applied as a cash discount rather than an award booking that earns MQDs. You still need to pay certain portions in cash, including taxes, fees, and additional extras.

13. United Cruises

When you book a cruise with United Cruises, you can choose to either earn United MileagePlus miles for your purchase or use MileagePlus miles to pay for your cruise.

United Cruises offers different ways to earn miles on your next cruise:

• Earn 2 MileagePlus miles per $1 spent on an interior or oceanview stateroom (Source: cruises.united.com).
• Earn 4 MileagePlus miles per $1 spent on a balcony stateroom or suite.
• Any United MileagePlus credit cardholder earns 4 MileagePlus miles per $1 spent on an interior or oceanview stateroom.
• Any United MileagePlus credit cardholder earns 7 MileagePlus miles per $1 spent on a balcony or suite stateroom.

Additionally, there are sometimes opportunities to earn even more miles with time-limited promotions.

United Cruises offers a 110% best price guarantee. If you find the exact same cruise priced lower within 48 hours of booking, you’re refunded 110% of the price difference.

United Cruises charges a $25 processing fee on every booking.

Bonuses for United Premier Members

If you have any Premier status with United Airlines, you also receive onboard extras with some cruise lines:

• Norwegian Cruise Line
  • A bottle of wine and chocolate-covered strawberries in your stateroom
  • $100 spa credit
• Oceania Cruises
  • $200 onboard credit
• Regent Seven Seas Cruises
  • $250 onboard credit

Use United MileagePlus Miles To Pay for Your Cruise

Paying for your cruise with miles can be convenient, but you lose out on some value if you do so.

When you book a cruise using United Miles, you get about 0.7 cents per mile in value. United miles are generally worth around 1.3 cents per mile (or more if you’re booking business or first class flights), so you’re getting less value than you could using your miles for a flight.

However, if you have a bundle of United miles and prefer cruising to flying, it might be a good redemption for you.

Pros and Cons of United Cruises

Pros:

• MileagePlus members have the ability to earn extra miles.
• United Premier members receive extra perks with Norwegian, Oceania, and Regent Seven Seas Cruise Lines.
• The site offers a 110% best-price guarantee.

Cons:

• There is a $25 processing fee on every booking.

Bottom Line:

When you book your cruise through United Cruises, you can either earn United MileagePlus miles on your purchase or pay for your cruise using your United MileagePlus miles.

14. Marriott Bonvoy Cruises

Marriott Bonvoy Cruises allows you to earn Marriott Bonvoy points on your cruise, or you can pay for your cruise with Marriott Bonvoy points.

When you book a cruise through Marriott, you earn up to 3 points per $1 spent. Chase Marriott Bonvoy credit cardholders earn an extra 2 Marriott Bonvoy points per $1 spent on a cruise booked through Marriott Bonvoy Cruises.

Marriott Bonvoy also offers a 110% best price guarantee. If you find the exact same cruise priced lower within 48 hours of booking, you’re refunded 110% of the price difference.

If you book a cruise through Marriott Bonvoy, you’re charged a nonrefundable processing fee of $25. That’s a pretty hefty fee considering many other sites don’t charge any fees at all.

Use Marriott Bonvoy Points To Pay for Your Cruise

It can be great to be able to pay for your cruise with points, and Marriott Bonvoy makes it possible. However, it’s not the best way to use your Marriott Bonvoy points.

When booking a cruise with Marriott Bonvoy points, you only get around 0.4 cents per point in value. Since Marriott Bonvoy points are generally worth about 0.7 cents each, that means you’re missing out on value. So you might want to look into other ways to redeem your Marriott Bonvoy points for hotels or flights.

Pros and Cons of Marriott Bonvoy Cruises

Pros:

• Members can earn extra Marriott Bonvoy points.
• You can pay for your cruise with Marriott Bonvoy points.
• The site offers a 110% best price guarantee.

Cons:

• You’re charged a nonrefundable processing fee of $25 per reservation.
• Marriott cruises can only be booked with Marriott Bonvoy points over the phone.

Hot Tip:

American Airlines Cruises, Delta SkyMiles Cruises, United Cruises, and Marriott Bonvoy Cruises all offer the same cruise fares and perks from the cruise lines, so the main difference comes down to which loyalty points or miles you prefer to earn.

15. Costco Travel

Costco Travel is an in-house travel agency that’s only available to Costco members. Costco offers 2 membership levels: Gold Star for $65 per year and Executive for $130 per year. Executive membership comes with a valuable extra perk for travelers, 2% back on your purchases through Costco Travel (up to $1,250).

Another great thing about Costco Travel is that you sometimes find deals that offer extra shipboard credit or a Costco shop card as a bonus.

Costco Travel is easy to use and offers all the search and filter functions found on other websites.

Pros and Cons of Costco Travel

Pros:

• Executive members receive 2% back on purchases through Costco Travel.
• Costco shop cards or onboard credit are sometimes offered as a bonus.

Cons:

• Costco Travel is for members only.

Hot Tip:

For more information, check out our detailed post on using Costco Travel.

16. Cruise.com

Cruise.com is a cluttered website and can be overwhelming when you’re searching for a cruise (especially if you’re a first-time cruiser and not quite sure how everything works). It offers lots of deals and discounts, but many of those are actually offered through the cruise line, so it can be hard to tell which bonuses are actually coming from Cruise.com.

Pros and Cons of Cruise.com

Pros:

• Many deals for a variety of cruise lines are available.

Cons:

• The website is busy and cluttered.
• No price guarantee is offered.
• You may be contacted by cruise.com after searching for a cruise on the site.

Hot Tip:

Don’t be confused: Cruise.com and Cruises.com are 2 separate websites.

17. Travelocity

Travelocity is a website that many travelers use to book flights, hotels, rental cars, and cruises. The simple interface and the fact that there are no booking fees make this a good choice for many travelers.

Travelocity doesn’t advertise as many deals and savings as other sites, but the price still comes out about the same as on other websites.

Pros and Cons of Travelocity

Pros:

• There are no booking fees.
• It’s simple to use.

Cons:

• No rewards program or extra bonus points

Hot Tip:

For more information, check out our complete guide to booking travel with Travelocity.

Price Comparisons

We priced out a 7-night Caribbean cruise from Miami on Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas. Prices are for 2 adults in a balcony room. Prices were last checked in May 2026.

As you can see, most websites offer the same price. The difference comes in extras like onboard credit, free specialty dinners, free gratuities, and bonus miles.

The exception in this example was CheapCaribbean.com, which offered an additional $125 onboard credit. However, some of the extras offered by other sites, such as loyalty miles or cash-back, could be worth more than that, so it’s always a good idea to price your cruise on multiple websites before booking.

Bottom Line:

The base cost of a cruise is generally the same across most websites. The big difference lies in the extras, like onboard credit, cash back, and bonus miles.

Final Thoughts

Booking a cruise is less about finding a cheaper fare and more about maximizing value. Prices are usually consistent across websites, but perks like onboard credit and bonus extras can differ. Always check for processing fees in the fine print. Compare a few sites before booking to make sure you’re getting the best overall deal.