Tip: Now’s the time for river cruise deals (especially for air)

Here’s the thing about river cruising — you need to think ahead. In a segment of the market that continues to benefit from strong demand, everything in river cruising happens on an earlier schedule than in other travel segments. Ship launches are announced earlier, new itineraries are unveiled earlier, brochures are released earlier and, perhaps most importantly, the good deals are rolled out earlier too — as in, right now.

Yep, that’s right. While January is the traditional high promotional and selling season for summer vacations, most notably in the packaged travel and ocean cruise markets, September and October tend to be the months when river cruise lines roll out some aggressive promos in an effort to encourage early bookings and steadily fill their inventory.

And this year is no exception. Currently, most of the major river cruise lines are running some notable cruise-and-air deals. Amawaterways has a free airfare offer going on select 2016 Tulip Time, France, Danube and Rhine sailings when booked by Sept. 30.

And Uniworld is offering couples up to $5,000 off on business class air, or up to $3,000 off economy class on 14 European river cruise itineraries with departures in March through August 2016, as well as on select Mekong River departures from Dec. 30, 2015, through March 2016, when booked before Oct. 31.

Emerald Waterways has a fly-free offer when customers book a grand balcony stateroom or owner’s suite as well as a $495 air offer for all other cabin categories for 2016 Europe river cruises booked by Sept. 30. And Emerald’s sister company Scenic currently has a free international air promotion running from U.S. and Canada gateways for its 11- and 12-day Bordeaux cruises if booked by Oct. 31.

Avalon Waterways’ approach is to offer a guaranteed airfare price to early river cruise bookers that will lock in a competitive airfare for 2016 Europe river cruises, and will match lower fares if those crop up too.

And Viking River Cruises is offering free business-class air to passengers who book the sprawling 445-square-foot Explorer Suite on the Longship vessels in Europe on select departures, as well as additional airfare savings on other cabin categories, when booked by Sept. 31.

In other words, for travel sellers looking to nab some deals for their first-time and returning river cruise clients, or for whom airfare is often a hurdle when trying to sell river cruises, now’s the time to shop around.