Cruise lines slash rates to keep re-routed Mexico cruises on West Coast full

mercedes · May 1, 2009

Anybody want to visit San Francisco, Seattle and Victoria, B.C., next week?

If you're a California resident, a week-long cruise to the three cities from Los Angeles can be yours for just $199 -- and we're not talking per day.

That's how low Carnival has had to slash fares today for Sunday's departure of the Carnival Splendor -- its newest, most state-of-the-art ship -- as the line struggles to keep the vessel full in the wake of the swine flu scare. That price, morever, includes port charges of $159. Carnival's cut: $40.

The 3,006-passenger Carnival Splendor is just one of several California-based ships that normally sail weekly down to Mexico that have had to complete revamp their schedules over the past 48 hours due to the outbreak of swine flu -- a development that apparently has prompted some previously booked passengers to call off their voyages and reschedule for a later date.

"I have never seen close-in pricing like this," says Carrie Bajak, president of Cruise Holidays of Mission Viejo and a specialist in California cruises. "I can only guess that it is because of swine flu."

Even if you're not a California resident, the Carnival Splendor sailing is available for $399, says Bajak. And it's not the only ship on last-minute super sale. Also available for $399 is this Sunday's sailing of Royal Caribbean's 3,114-passenger Mariner of the Seas, another ship that has had to switch course drastically this week due to the swine flu scare.

Instead of three warm-weather Mexican ports, the Los Angeles-based Mariner also will spend next week sailing to San Francisco, Seattle and Victoria, BC.