The Free Cruise Offer: Scam or Legit?

We've seen spokes model Carmen Electra touting free cruises on TV, received the award booklet mailing (with its official-looking stamps of approval from The Islands of the Bahamas, Alamo and Our Lucaya Beach & Golf Resort) and discovered the offer while browsing the Web.

We're told that collecting our free cruise is easy: Call an 800 number, or fill out a form, and it's time for two nights of zero-cost cruising.

Naturally, "scam" might be the first thing that comes to mind with such an offer. And it quickly becomes apparent that the * means it's not actually free.

It'll cost you a minimum of $59 per person for government fees and port taxes. There's nothing necessarily untoward here; the government taxes and fees are clearly stated, and $59 per person for a two-night Bahamas cruise -- which includes accommodations, all meals, entertainment and a call at Grand Bahama Island -- still seems like a decent deal for a quick getaway.

Still, people have had serious complaints when trying to book the offer, ranging from confusion about which company is making the offer (Caribbean Cruise Lines, which sends the deal, or Celebration Cruise Line, which operates the ships) to forced timeshare pitches and misleading pricing.

Cruise Critic did some research, including attempting to book a cruise, to help you determine whether the offer is a scam or a good deal. First, a bit of background:

Who is Caribbean Cruise Line, Anyway?