The era of cheap cruises is over. Here's how to find the best deal now.

• In 2024 cruise fares will continue to increase past 2019 levels.
• Demand for cruises has continued to grow.
• Carnival Corp, for example, says it is "well positioned to drive 2024 pricing higher."

Say goodbye to cheap cruises and get ready to dig deeper into your wallets for a 2024 cruise — demand is now driving future cruise fares to pre-COVID-19-pandemic levels.

The average price of an interior cabin — usually the cheapest available — for five-night itineraries in the Caribbean, Bahamas, and Bermuda increased 37% from $537 in December 2022 to $736 in December 2023, according to data from Cruise Critic, Tripadvisor's cruise review site. The cost for these popular itineraries had already been steadily growing from October 2022 and November 2022 compared to the same months in 2023. And in 2024, this gap could widen even further.

From July 2022 through the end of that year, Tynan Smith, founder of cruise aggregator site Cruise Sheet, had found 45 cruises sailing for $50 a day or less. Now, in all of 2024, he says there are only 11 itineraries that fit this criteria.

After the industry faced major COVID-19-related roadblocks over the last few years, cruise fares finally caught up to 2019 levels this summer, Patrick Scholes, an analyst at Truist Securities, told Insider. If you plan on cruising before the end of 2023, your ticket will likely be about 15% more expensive compared to the same time in 2019. For 2024, pricing across the industry will be up about 8% compared to this year and 20% compared to 2019.

There's still one big culprit: pent-up demand

In late September, Carnival Corp reported record booking levels in its third-quarter 2023 earnings report, running almost 20% above what it saw in 2019. And while occupancy has increased, the cruise giant has been "delivering pricing well in excess of 2019 levels," Josh Weinstein, the president and CEO of Carnival, said in the call with investors.

Looking to next year, these fares will ring in even higher:

"We are well positioned to drive 2024 pricing higher with less inventory remaining to sell than the same time last year despite a capacity increase of 5%," David Bernstein, the cruise company's CFO, said in the call.

While growing demand is the primary cause of this, Scholes notes inflation and new ships are also factors.

"Costs have certainly gone up and cruise lines are doing their best to try to pass those through to customers," he said.

And for cruise lines that are rolling out flashy new ships like Royal Caribbean and its upcoming Icon of the Seas, "you're seeing incredible pricing for those."

These new ships with all their "bells and whistles'' are big hits with travelers. Because of this, new vessels "command a superior pricing premium historically between 20% to 50%," Scholes said, noting that he believes "at least 50% if not more for the Icon."

On top of this base fare, travelers will still have to pay extra for comforts like WiFi, fun onboard amusement park-like rides, and premium dining. And if you want to book a stateroom with a balcony, be prepared to splurge even more. Prices for balcony cabins — the most popular category — are looking to be 16% more expensive in 2024 compared to this year, Smith told Insider.

Cruises can still be an economical choice

Despite this, Scholes says cruises are still generally more affordable than traditional hotels, especially as hotel and resort prices have also increased 40% to 50% compared to 2019.

And cruise deals still won't be impossible to find: There are 83 cruises sailing next year for $60 a day or less, Smith said. Customers looking to find those cruises can use an aggregator like CruiseSheet, which lets you sort by price per day.

So if you're planning your 2024 cruise now, be prepared to hunt for a deal or set aside more cash than you might expect, especially if you want to have the cruise vacation of your dreams on a sparkly new ship.