Today’s Best Cruise Deals: Alaska and Europe From a $25 Deposit, Plus 5 Nights for $349

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Thursday is bucket-list day at Cruise Chaos, and this week the interesting money is not in the Caribbean. Viking’s End of Season Sale closes in under two weeks, Holland America has put a hard deadline on Summer 2027 Alaska and Europe, and Princess is already paying people to book Alaska in 2028.

Every price below was checked on September 17, 2026, directly on each cruise line’s site (Disney’s rates come via the Disney Cruise Line Blog, which tracks them weekly). Fares change constantly, so confirm before you book.

⭐ Deal of the Day: 5 Nights to the Bahamas for $349, Down $75 in Two Days

Royal Caribbean · Freedom of the Seas · 5 nights · Perfect Day at CocoCay & Bahamas · from Miami · sails October 17, 2026

Royal Caribbean lists this sailing from $349 per person, about $70 a night. We have been watching this exact departure all week: it was $424 on Tuesday, so the fare has dropped $75 per person in two days. Same ship, same date, same private-island stop — just cheaper, which is what happens when a sailing four weeks out still has rooms.

Watch for: “starting from” fares are the cheapest cabin category, and taxes, fees and port expenses are added at checkout. See Royal Caribbean’s deals →

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1. Viking: Alaska and Northern Europe on a $25 Deposit, Until September 30

Viking’s End of Season Sale — “Reduced Airfare | Special Fares | $25 Deposit” — expires September 30, 2026. The $25 deposit is the headline: it costs almost nothing to hold a 2027 cabin. Viking quotes itineraries in days, so we have converted to nights (11 days is 10 nights aboard):

• North Pacific Passage, 23 days, Tokyo to Vancouver, from $5,999 per person — about $273 a night across 22 nights, on a line whose fares include a free shore excursion in every port, Wi-Fi, port taxes and wine or beer with meals.
• Alaska & the Inside Passage, 11 days, Vancouver to Seward, from $5,999 — about $600 a night.
• Viking Homelands, 15 days, Stockholm to Bergen via Tallinn, Gdańsk, Berlin, Copenhagen and Oslo, from $9,699 — about $693 a night, with 11 guided tours across six countries.

Watch for: Viking’s own pages disagree. Its Alaska landing page shows Alaska & the Inside Passage from $5,999; the 2027 itinerary page for the same cruise says $6,499. Get the figure confirmed for your departure date before you pay anything.

2. Holland America: Book Summer 2027 Alaska or Europe by November 2

Holland America’s Alaska pages carry a real deadline: “Book your Summer 2027 cruise to Alaska or Europe by November 2, 2026” to get the Have It All Early Booking Bonus. What it includes:

• A shore excursion credit of up to $300 per guest, scaled to cruise length.
• The Elite Beverage Package — up to 15 drinks a day, each valued up to $16 — plus specialty dining at Pinnacle Grill, Canaletto, Tamarind and Sel de Mer.
• Premium Wi-Fi and prepaid crew appreciation — the daily gratuity most lines bill you separately.

Warm-weather sailors get a shorter fuse: “Save on Sunshine: Up to 50% off” plus up to $200 onboard credit on Fall 2026 to Spring 2027 tropical cruises, book by September 23. See Holland America’s deals →

3. Princess: Up to $1,000 of Value for Booking Alaska 2028 Now

Princess is running a 2028 Alaska early booking bonus: up to $500 in instant savings and up to $500 in onboard credit, “plus added perks like early dining reservations, room location upgrades.” Booking two summers out sounds mad, but Alaska is the one market where it pays — the season is short and the good balcony cabins go early. See Princess deals →

4. Celebrity: Double Points on Europe, and a Sale That Ends Monday

Celebrity’s End of Summer Sale is 75% off your second guest’s cruise fare, and its Alaska page adds “up to $650 in onboard credit.” Captain’s Club members earn 2X Points on select Caribbean or Celebrity Infinity Europe sailings departing October 1, 2026 to April 30, 2027, booked September 8 to 21.

Its last-minute page — “Final Rooms at GREAT RATES” — states a cut-off of 11:59 p.m. EST on Monday, September 21, 2026. Celebrity’s listed prices include taxes and fees, so they are easy to compare. Sailings today:

• Celebrity Silhouette, 6 nights, Grand Cayman, Mexico & Bahamas, from Fort Lauderdale, December 13, 2026: $726 per person (about $121 a night, taxes included).
• Celebrity Reflection, 8 nights, Aruba, Bonaire & Curaçao, from Fort Lauderdale, September 4, 2027: $998 per person (about $125 a night).

See Celebrity’s deals →

5. Royal Caribbean: Fall Frenzy, and Two More Fares That Fell This Week

Today’s banner is the Fall Frenzy Sale: “up to $900 off,” “up to $100 off on short getaways” and “3rd and 4th guests sail free.” Crown & Anchor members earn 2X points on select sailings booked September 9 to 21, 2026. Listed today:

• Jewel of the Seas, 4 nights, Perfect Day at CocoCay & Bahamas, from Fort Lauderdale, October 5, 2026: from $307 (about $77 a night) — down from $382 on Tuesday.
• Allure of the Seas, 8 nights, Southern Caribbean & Perfect Day, from Fort Lauderdale, October 17, 2026: from $847 (about $106 a night).
• Star of the Seas, 7 nights, Perfect Day & Caribbean, from Port Canaveral, November 1, 2026: from $1,329 (about $190 a night) — down from $1,417 on Tuesday.

6. Disney: A Panama Canal Transit at $132.75 a Night

Disney rarely discounts, but the Disney Cruise Line Blog counted 141 sail dates with offers as of September 14, 2026. Two are bucket-list repositioning runs (prices per person, per night):

• Canadian residents: Disney Wonder, 5-night Pacific Coast, Vancouver to San Diego, September 28, 2026: $132.30 — roughly $662 per person for the whole cruise.
• Southern California residents: Disney Magic, 14-night eastbound Panama Canal, San Diego to Galveston via Cabo, the canal itself, Cartagena and Grand Cayman, November 6, 2026: $132.75 — about $1,859 per person for 14 nights.

Watch for: these rates need proof of residency at check-in, are capped per sailing, and one-way itineraries mean two flights to book.

When to Book Alaska and Europe (It Is Not Last Minute)

Caribbean fares fall as the sail date approaches — that is why our Deal of the Day dropped $75 this week. Alaska and Europe work the opposite way, and the offers above show why.

1. The season is tiny. Alaska sails roughly May to September, so there is no “next month” inventory to dump. Cabins get scarcer and dearer, not cheaper.
2. The discounts are front-loaded instead. Holland America’s excursion credit and drinks package, and Princess’s $500 plus $500, exist only for early bookers. Wait, and the perks go first.
3. Cheap deposits make early booking nearly free. Viking’s $25 through September 30 and Princess’s $99 deposits hold a cabin for months. Check whether the deposit is refundable, and diarise the final payment date.
4. Flights are the real budget. Anchorage, Vancouver, Reykjavik and Copenhagen are not cheap to reach, and one-way itineraries need two tickets. Price the airfare first.
5. Booking early is not the same as accepting the price forever. If the fare drops before final payment, many lines will reprice or hand you onboard credit — but only if you ask.

One more Europe angle: Norwegian still advertises 50% off all cruises with Free at Sea, 0% APR financing on bookings made by November 4, 2026, and free airfare for the second guest on European sailings. See Norwegian’s deals →

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Prices and offers were checked on September 17, 2026, and can change or sell out at any time. Unless noted, taxes, fees, port expenses and gratuities may be extra. Always confirm the final price on the cruise line’s website before booking. Cruise Chaos does not earn commissions on these deals.

Keep Reading

• Tuesday’s deals: 9 Nights From $639 With Free 3rd and 4th Guests
• Cruising on a Budget: Smart Savings Guide
• Cruise Packing Don’ts Every Traveler Should Know

Sources

• Royal Caribbean: Cruise Deals and Last Minute Cruise Deals
• Celebrity Cruises: Cruise Deals, Last Minute Cruise Deals and Alaska Cruises
• Viking: Alaska Cruises, Alaska & the Inside Passage and Viking Homelands
• Holland America: Cruise Deals, Have It All Early Booking Bonus, Save on Sunshine and Alaska Cruises
• Princess Cruises: Deals & Promotions
• Norwegian Cruise Line: Cruise Deals and Europe Cruises
• Disney Cruise Line Blog: Special Offers as of September 14, 2026