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17.01.2025 - 15:19 / cntraveler.com / queen Elizabeth
It's officially wave season, which means some of the industry's best cruise deals for 2025 are now on sale. This is the best time of year for cruise lovers who are looking to score major savings on every type of voyage possible—river, ocean, yacht, or expedition. Whether you're a seasoned sailor or novice passenger, there's a deal and destination out there for you.
This year's wave season is no exception, with the world's best cruise operators offering steep discounts worth thousands of dollars, free upgrades for staterooms and suites, and onboard credits that can be spent however you wish. All for highly sought-after destinations like the Mediterranean, Antartica, the Caribbean, and Northern Europe.
There deals are flexible with dates, too. Wave Season is an annual affair that lasts from January through March—with deals that can be applied to 2025, 2026, and even 2027 sailings in some cases. Read on to see the best 25 best cruise deals 2025 has to offer.
The Atlas Ocean Voyages World Navigator docked near Half Moon Island.
From now until February 3, 2025 save up to 30% off and up to $600 in onboard credit on select expeditions. To book, call your preferred travel advisor or an Atlas voyage specialist at 1-844-44-ATLAS (28527).
From now until March 31, 2025, travelers will receive savings of up to $6,500 per person on 2025 and 2026 Aurora Expeditions' cruises to some of the most remote corners of the world. This is an ideal cruise line for travelers who are dreaming of witnessing breathtaking wildlife, exploring towering glaciers, or immersing themselves in the world’s quietest destinations.
Until February 28, Azamara is offering up to $1,000 in onboard credit per stateroom on select 2025 sailings, plus more than $4,500 in added value, including complimentary amenities.
Cunard's Queen Anne.
During Cunard's Treat Yourself, On Us sale, travelers who book by March 26, 2025 receive up to $800 in onboard credit per stateroom, available on itineraries to Alaska, Australia, Asia, and beyond. Those who book a Grills Suite will also receive a drinks package, plus included hotel and dining service charge (worth $18 per person per day).
This Wave Season, Cunard has a second promotion that cruisers can use to score more savings—the Enjoy It All sale is available for select stateroom categories on Alaska, Caribbean, and Panama Canal cruises aboard Queen Elizabeth from June 2025 to September 2026. The offer includes up to $400 in onboard credit per stateroom, along with unlimited Wi-Fi, a drinks package, and alternative dining or Champagne afternoon tea for $60 per person, per day. This offer also ends on March 26, 2025.
During Celebrity's semi-annual sale, passengers can save between 50% and 75% off a second
Travel in Europe is getting more complicated to navigate for tourists. Some cities now charge a daily tourist tax that you have to pay on arrival.
Warm weather destinations like the Caribbean are proving popular, in part because of the freezing winter temperature in parts of the US. (Source: Nicole Edenedo)
Antarctica is truly a bucket-list destination, as the beautiful continent can be difficult and expensive to get to.
If you want affordable cruise fares and enough onboard credit to indulge in a spa day, consider wave season your vacation-at-sea Black Friday.
Jan 26, 2025 • 6 min read
Africa, cradle of humankind, is home to a quarter of all mammal species and the world’s largest surviving populations of terrestrial megafauna. For many, the chance to experience an African safari is simply an unforgettable vacation—empty-nesters looking to feel like honeymooners; solo travelers on a mental detox; families making intergenerational memories. But for others, entering the continent’s primal wilderness sparks spiritual connection, a preternatural sense of coming home. As Dereck Joubert, wildlife documentary maker and co-founder of Great Plains Conservation, puts it: “These species have evolved with us for thousands of years. When you look into the eyes of an elephant, there is a tangible sense of commonality. This connection, this recognition of a shared sense of ancient wisdom, is without equal.” No matter which camp you fall into, these are the most exciting new safari openings to know in the continent’s best game-viewing regions.
Welcome back to the TravelPulse Podcast!
The holidays, along with Black Friday and Cyber Monday, are over. But for cruisers, the Wave season has just begun. As holiday travel ends, cruise sales begin and last until the end of March.
In November 2022, Johan and Sabine Bogaerts packed up their lives and moved from the Netherlands to Koh Lanta, an island off the west coast of Thailand, with their two sons.
It was the summer of 2022 when my family of four descended, via bus and train, from the relatively temperate and isolated peaks of Switzerland into a hot, crowded, Italian summer. My Pacific Northwest children, then 7 and 9, were not built to handle heat. When I pulled out my camera on a crowded ferry my daughter let her head loll back and moaned, "Document my misery!"
The new year brings new resolutions and the chance to plan my travel and loyalty goals.