Holland America Start Your Journey Sale, Up To 30% Off

Published on Dec 23, 2025, 1:25 pm CST

6 min read

Key points

Holland America Line launched its Start Your Journey sale covering select summer 2026 through winter and spring 2027 cruises and Alaska Cruisetours
The deal includes up to 30 percent off fares, a 50 percent reduced deposit for the first and second guests, and eligible stateroom category upgrades
Guests ages 18 and under can sail with free fares as third or fourth guests on select sailings, with taxes, fees, and port expenses still due
Bookings made by January 31, 2026 qualify for per person onboard credit that scales by cruise length and Legendary Voyages
2026 Alaska cruise and Cruisetour bookings can add up to $200 in shore excursion credit per stateroom with promo code #1ALASKA26 when eligible

Impact

Best Booking Window: The sale runs for new bookings made from December 18, 2025 through February 26, 2026, with extra onboard credit tied to booking by January 31, 2026
Cabin Upgrade Leverage: The free upgrade mechanic can shift the best value toward sailings where ocean view and verandah inventory remains open in adjacent categories
Family Trip Economics: Free kids fares as third or fourth guests reduce the base fare, but families should still budget for taxes, fees, port expenses, and flights
Alaska Planning Advantage: Eligible 2026 Alaska sailings can pair an upgrade with up to $200 in shore excursion credit per stateroom when the correct promo code is used at checkout
Decision Risk: Because upgrades and inventory are capacity controlled, waiting can remove the upgrade option even if the fare discount remains available

Holland America Line has opened its Holland America Start Your Journey sale, a Wave Season promotion that bundles fare discounts with upgrades and onboard spending credits across select sailings in summer 2026 through winter and spring 2027. The offer matters most to travelers who are booking Alaska, the Caribbean, and Europe cruises early, plus anyone comparing cabin categories where an upgrade can change the real trip experience. The next step is to price the same sailing in both the standard fare and the Have It All premium fare, then decide quickly if the upgrade category you want is still available before inventory tightens.

The change is that Holland America is packaging several popular Wave Season levers into one booking window: up to 30 percent off eligible fares, a reduced deposit for the first and second guests, and a stateroom upgrade path where available, such as a verandah priced like an ocean view. For travelers, that can shift the value conversation away from the headline fare and toward what you actually get onboard and on shore, especially on longer itineraries where credits can meaningfully offset dining, spa, or excursions.

Holland America's published terms list the booking period as December 18, 2025 through February 26, 2026, with the sale excluding Grand Voyages and cruises of five days or fewer. The line also flags that upgrades are subject to availability and capacity controls, which is the core reason this type of deal can feel better on paper than in late January when the most popular sailings and cabin ladders begin to compress.

Who Is Affected

Travelers shopping summer 2026 through spring 2027 Holland America itineraries are the primary audience, particularly those targeting Alaska and Alaska Cruisetours where excursion planning is a large part of the trip value. Holland America says eligible Alaska 2026 bookings made by January 31 include an additional shore excursion credit, up to $200.00 (USD) per stateroom, when a specific promo code is used at checkout, which can matter for glacier day add ons, wildlife viewing, and Denali linked land components.

Families are also in the center of this offer because the free kids fare mechanic applies to guests ages 18 and under when they are the third or fourth guest in a stateroom on select sailings, with taxes, fees, and port expenses still applying. In practice, the family value is highest when you can still secure a cabin configuration that sleeps three or four comfortably, and when the itinerary is one where you would otherwise pay for multiple high demand shore days, such as Alaska or a port dense Europe route.

Travelers who care most about onboard inclusions, rather than the base fare, should pay close attention to how the sale stacks with the Have It All premium fare. Holland America describes Have It All as including shore excursions based on cruise duration, a Signature Beverage Package, specialty dining based on cruise duration, and a Wi Fi Surf Package, then notes that the Start Your Journey sale adds the upgrade, reduced deposit, kids fare offer, and onboard credit on top when applicable. That stack can change the "true cost" math for travelers who would otherwise buy drinks, Wi Fi, and specialty dining a la carte.

What Travelers Should Do

Start by checking whether the extra onboard credit deadline applies to your sailing and your timeline. Holland America ties the onboard credit to booking by January 31, with published per person amounts that scale by trip length, including $100.00 (USD) for six to nine day cruises, $150.00 (USD) for Alaska Cruisetours and 10 to 20 day cruises, $200.00 (USD) for 21 days or longer, and $250.00 (USD) for Legendary Voyages. If you are already within your preferred travel window, locking the booking before January 31 can preserve both inventory and the credit, then you can use the time until final payment to refine flights, hotels, and excursions.

Use a simple decision threshold for rebooking versus waiting, because the upgrade component is the most perishable part of the offer. If the sailing you want has limited inventory in the next higher category, or if your trip hinges on getting a verandah without paying the normal premium, treat that as the gating factor and book sooner, or move to a nearby date where the upgrade ladder still exists. If you do not care about the upgrade and you are mostly price sensitive, you can compare a few sailings across the same region, then choose the one with the best total value once taxes, fees, and the credits you will actually use are included.

Over the next 24 to 72 hours, monitor three items that commonly change outcomes during Wave Season. First, watch cabin category availability for your sailing, because that determines whether the upgrade path is still real. Second, confirm that your booking flow shows the correct promo elements, especially if you are targeting Alaska and need the #1ALASKA26 code for the shore excursion credit rules. Third, decide whether Have It All matches your spending pattern, since it can be a better fit on longer itineraries where drinks, Wi Fi, and dining would otherwise be purchased anyway.

How It Works

Wave Season cruise promotions work by pulling multiple demand levers at once, then using capacity controls to steer bookings toward sailings and cabin categories the line wants to fill early. The first order effect shows up at the source, cabin inventory and cash flow, where a reduced deposit lowers the upfront cost while still placing a traveler into a specific sailing and cabin ladder.

Second order ripples then propagate across at least two other layers of the travel system. On the air and hotel side, early booking pushes travelers to start pricing flights and pre cruise stays far ahead of schedule, even though airline timetables and award space for 2026 and 2027 can still shift, which raises the importance of refundable rates and realistic buffer nights. On the shore side, credits and bundled inclusions tend to concentrate demand into popular excursion categories, which can make limited capacity experiences sell out earlier, especially in Alaska where wildlife and small group wilderness products have hard caps.

The Alaska Cruisetour angle adds another layer because it blends a cruise with overland components that have their own inventory constraints, such as specific hotels, rail segments, and timed park access. When a cruise line attaches extra shore excursion credit to a booking deadline, it effectively nudges travelers to commit earlier to an itinerary that is harder to rebuild later, which can be good for securing a preferred routing, but risky if a traveler has not yet validated time off, flight options, or the real cost of add ons. Travelers comparing 2027 forward season inventory across multiple brands can use A&K - Crystal 2027 Cruise Dates for Europe, New York as a reference point for how far ahead premium cruise products are already publishing dates and building early booking clocks into their pricing strategy.