If you've been holding off on booking a cruise hoping for a last-minute discount, Royal Caribbean Group has some news worth hearing before you wait any longer. The company's CEO, Jason Liberty, told investors during the second quarter 2026 earnings call that the cruise line is now raising prices as departure dates approach — not slashing them the way it once did.
Liberty noted that close-in bookings have come in stronger than expected for three or four consecutive years. The shift isn't being driven by deal-seekers, though. He explained that today's travelers are simply keeping their options open longer, often deciding just weeks before departure whether they'll take a trip at all — and weighing factors like higher airfare costs and geopolitical uncertainty when they do. "They haven't decided whether they're going to go away in two weeks or six weeks," Liberty said.
That sustained late demand has given Royal Caribbean the pricing power to do something it couldn't a decade ago. "If you followed our business ten years ago... we would typically have to discount for close-in demand," Liberty told investors. "Today, for close-in demand, we're able to increase our pricing."
Last-minute deals haven't vanished entirely — the company's pricing algorithm can still trigger a cut on a specific cabin that isn't moving. But Royal Caribbean says that's now the exception rather than the rule. For most sailings, strong overall demand means prices trend upward the closer you get to the departure date.
The takeaway for Florida cruisers: if locking in a lower fare is the goal, booking earlier in the process is increasingly the smarter play. This report is based on coverage from Royal Caribbean Blog.
