Cruise customers should haggle for a bargain

Holidaymakers hoping to set sail on a bargain cruise break this year should try haggling for a better price, one industry expert has advised.

According to Hotels.com, there are real opportunities for bargains in 2009 and holidaymakers should not be shy about negotiating prices along the way, in order to have a cheaper holiday.

The website’s comments follow a piece of research it published in February 2009 on this matter, which found that Brits are already saving £1.7 billion each year by haggling on holidays.

Furthermore, 76 per cent admitted that they brokered a bargain on their last break, with the average traveller saving themselves £32.20 per holiday.

Another 23 per cent have haggled over prices at home in the UK and 76 per cent said they regularly haggle over prices whilst on holiday.

Cordy Griffiths, PR manager at Hotels.com, said: "When you travel as a tourist, you gravitate towards places which may have a tourist premium.

"It makes a lot of sense to avoid the tourist traps and look for places where the locals go so you get charged local prices. That's always definitely a good tip if you are making your budget go further."

Recent research has also revealed that cruise customers and other holidaymakers are cutting back on everyday luxuries in order to have the spare cash to splash out on a summer break.

According to research from Visit London and VisitBritain, entitled 'The UK's Recession Stress Buster: Brits Spend Less On Food Costs To Save For Holiday', published in December 2008, 90 per cent of the population claim they are cutting down on spending, for this reason.

Another 45 per cent are planning to cut back on holidays, breaks or day trips, while Britons are planning to reduce the amount spent on purchases such as food (80 per cent), fuel (74 per cent), clothes (67 per cent) and entertainment or 'little luxuries' (67 per cent).

Cordy explained: "2009 is all about making your money go further and people are still wanting to go on holiday.

"At Hotels.com, research has shown that people are seeing their holidays as a necessity rather than a luxury. People work very hard and they definitely want their holiday every year."

He concluded that negotiating on the price of a cruise or holiday is the best way for a traveller to ensure value for money in the current economic climate.