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BOOK EARLY FOR CRUISE DISCOUNTS
By Jillian Kasky

(MONEY Magazine) – With more than 100,000 berths to be filled in 1994, cruise lines are offering discounts of up to 30% to vacationers who book early. "Demand is strong," reports Larry Fishkin of the Cruise Line, a Miami wholesaler (800-777-0707), "but with so many ships, the lines need to offer incentives." Cruise-only travel agents, who book in volume, can also provide sizable discounts -- up to 50%. Here are this season's top six cruise trips. Packages are per person, double occupancy, and include air fare from New York City for early-winter sailings. Cruise-line discount prices are followed by cruise-agent discounts: Romantic. A seven-day trip to French Polynesia aboard the Wind Song, a 148- passenger, automated sail ship, is one way to go. Year round; WindStar Cruises; $3,955 ($2,885). Family. This seven-day package includes four days aboard the 2,600-passenger Fantasy, activities for kids, three nights at a Disney resort, three passes to a Disney theme park and a rental car. Year round; Carnival Cruise Lines; for family of four, $3,806 ($3,600). Discovery. The 798-passenger S.S. Independence runs seven-day environmental sails, such as whale watching. Departs from Honolulu to four Hawaiian islands. Year round; American Hawaii Cruises; $2,058 ($1,728). Off the beaten path. The 729-passenger Regent Sea sails from Montego Bay for a week, stopping at Belize, Guatemala and Honduras. January through mid-April; Regency Cruises; April 16 sailing: $1,424 ($970). Sports. The 1,000-square-foot health club and the NFL player on board every seven-day, 1,246-passenger Dreamward sail cures Monday night withdrawal pangs. Departs Fort Lauderdale for Grand Cayman, Cancun and Cozumel; January through April; Norwegian Cruise Line; Feb. 20 sailing: $1,569 ($1,399). Transatlantic. Repositioning cruises, which shift ships to another ocean for the season, last longer, call at fewer ports and can offer unbeatable deals. Example: the 13-day, 1,200-passenger Royal Princess from New York to London on April 18. Princess Cruises; $2,150 ($1,687).