As cruise lines slash prices in an aggressive attempt to fill ships for winter sailings, The Sunday Times has learnt that their striking headline prices often conceal hidden extras that can add hundreds of pounds to the cost of a trip.

The latest shot fired in the maritime price war was by Norwegian Cruise Line - a four-night trip from Miami to the Bahamas for just £56pp. That price includes food, lodging and entertainment, but not flights.

Royal Caribbean is offering seven-day Caribbean cruises from £293pp, full-board, excluding flights; and, at the luxury end of the market, Seabourn has cut its sevennight Caribbean Gems trip from £2,230pp to £1,297pp.

Finding a real bargain, however, Kevin Griffin, of the trade association Leading Cruise Agents, referring to the days of the “1p flight” adverts, before airlines agreed to publish total fares.

“You see deals like NCL’s Bahamas cruise, but what they don’t tell you is that with port fees, taxes and fuel surcharges the real cost is more than £113.” Similarly, Royal Caribbean’s £293 bargain rises to £401 after the hidden charges have been added.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is concluding an eight-month inquiry into allegedly misleading price information in newspaper advertisements by an Essex-based travel agent, Reader Offers.

The ASA says that its investigation follows complaints that the value of savings offered is being exaggerated because the discounts are based on irrelevant full brochure prices. Last year the ASA upheld two similar complaints against Reader Offers, saying the company had “exaggerated the savings consumers were likely to make by booking with them instead of booking directly”. is trickier than it looks.

The industry has started using the dynamic pricing models employed by no-frills airlines to raise or lower fares according to demand, with many operators guaranteeing prices only for the duration of a phone call. Brochure prices are rarely paid, with discounts of up to 45% commonplace, and the price you see on the website doesn’t include fuel supplements, port fees, taxes or prepaid gratuities. see is the fare you pay.”

“Cruise fares are becoming more like airline pricing used to be,” says Peter Beadles, of Reader Offers, countered: “The price we sell at is the price set by the cruise line. Our prices are transparent: the fare you

Times recommends

• Oasis of the Seas: the Times review
• The 20 best new year party places to stay
• Green Spaces 2009: are you the winning writer?