Benefit of booking DCL with a travel agent?

I've heard statements like this before when booking on other cruise lines that have similar pricing policies, but the TA which I booked through is a large, reputable TA, and the pricing was displayed right there on their website. In addition, the agent who I spoke to called Disney directly to request a specific stateroom that I wanted. They are hardly an obscure TA offering reduced pricing secretly or in violation of Disney's policies. If they were, they would've been banned from selling Disney a long time ago as I'm sure I'm not the first or only person taking advantage of the reduced fares.

 

 

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I agree, my TA does the same thing and it is certainly not banned by DCL. They are not discounting the cruise. Everyone pays the same authorized fare, but they ARE sharing their commissions with the customer by providing booking incentives. My TA is a very large TA and the booking benefits are prominently located on their website.

Dear Tink 23 it is against CC rules to provide you email address for the purpose of getting a Travel Agents name. Your posts WILL be removed shortly.

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On another note, I placed a hold on a room we want for a cruise next year. I specifically want that room, but haven't made a payment (placed a 72 hour hold) - normally I would book through a Ta but didn't want to lose the room.

Will a TA be able to pick up the reservation as a new reservation? I can't see how to cancel it online, and I wonder if the room would immediately be avaialable to book again. Thoughts?

On another note, I placed a hold on a room we want for a cruise next year. I specifically want that room, but haven't made a payment (placed a 72 hour hold) - normally I would book through a Ta but didn't want to lose the room.

 

Will a TA be able to pick up the reservation as a new reservation? I can't see how to cancel it online, and I wonder if the room would immediately be avaialable to book again. Thoughts?

Yes, DCL can work it out with the TA. They can actually keep the TA on one line, have you phone DCL to cancel it and immediately switch it to the reservation you are trying to make thru the TA. It is not a "reservation" until you make a payment. Until then, it is a courtesy hold and the regulations are much less strict as to how things are handled.

If you do nothing, you will lose the room at the 72 hour mark. From there, it is luck of the draw whether it is available or not.

The advantage of booking thru an educated agent who has tons of DCL experience is just that--their expertise. And a good agent will want your future business' date=' so will do their very best for you. But not all agents or agencies are created equal, so shop carefully. I would not use an agent who has not personally done the DCL training (there are multiple levels; I'd certainly look for one who has more than the on line level!), who has personally cruised on at least one of the DCL ships, and has appropriate business certifications. An agency can call itself a DCL specialist if only ONE agent in the whole company has training!!![/quote']

 

This is a sincere question:

 

I just booked my first Disney cruise, but have been on several Princess cruises (both self-booked and through a TA). The main benefit I've found from using a TA in the past is that they may give discounts/OBC or other freebies. I'm an avid researcher, so even before our very first cruise with Princess I had read the CC boards (and other sources) front to back and was already clued in to menus, daily schedules, embarkation/debarkation processes, "secret" menu items, hidden spots on the ship, what the best/worst shore excursions (through the cruise and independent), etc. We were well educated and prepared by the time we cruised.

 

And now, I'm doing the same kind of research for our DCL cruise and I already have a lengthy list started. We ended up booking through a TA that offered a sizeable credit. But I didn't need them for booking flights/hotel, insurance, excursions, etc. as I much prefer to handle myself.

 

I wonder what exactly a TA who is knowledgeable about/experienced with DCL could do for us that we couldn't figure out on our own with a little research?

This is a sincere question:

 

I just booked my first Disney cruise, but have been on several Princess cruises (both self-booked and through a TA). The main benefit I've found from using a TA in the past is that they may give discounts/OBC or other freebies. I'm an avid researcher, so even before our very first cruise with Princess I had read the CC boards (and other sources) front to back and was already clued in to menus, daily schedules, embarkation/debarkation processes, "secret" menu items, hidden spots on the ship, what the best/worst shore excursions (through the cruise and independent), etc. We were well educated and prepared by the time we cruised.

 

And now, I'm doing the same kind of research for our DCL cruise and I already have a lengthy list started. We ended up booking through a TA that offered a sizeable credit. But I didn't need them for booking flights/hotel, insurance, excursions, etc. as I much prefer to handle myself.

 

I wonder what exactly a TA who is knowledgeable about/experienced with DCL could do for us that we couldn't figure out on our own with a little research?

If everything goes smoothly and you have answered all your own questions prior to booking, it is likely that the only thing you'll get from the TA will be an OBC.

We have 30 cruises on DCL and have cruised multiple times on 3 other lines; needless to say, things have not always gone smoothly due to weather, airline issues, a medical situation, etc. In those situations, yes, I can again do my own research. However, it doesn't hurt to have another person who is "on my side" as opposed to the airline agent at the desk who has no real incentive to meet my needs.

I've also received some nice "little services" from my TA like the time I was on another cruise when my booking window opened--she booked all my desired reservations for me.

So no, there is little in this day of the internet that you NEED an agent for. But why leave that OBC in DCL's pocket when you can use it to pay the tips?

If everything goes smoothly and you have answered all your own questions prior to booking' date=' it is likely that the only thing you'll get from the TA will be an OBC.

 

We have 30 cruises on DCL and have cruised multiple times on 3 other lines; needless to say, things have not always gone smoothly due to weather, airline issues, a medical situation, etc. In those situations, yes, I can again do my own research. However, it doesn't hurt to have another person who is "on my side" as opposed to the airline agent at the desk who has no real incentive to meet my needs.

 

I've also received some nice "little services" from my TA like the time I was on another cruise when my booking window opened--she booked all my desired reservations for me.

 

So no, there is little in this day of the internet that you NEED an agent for. But why leave that OBC in DCL's pocket when you can use it to pay the tips?[/quote']

 

I think my question is more regular TA vs. DCL "expert" TA. Is there anything special that a DCL "expert" TA can provide that a regular TA generally cannot, and that can't be figured out by doing some internet research?

I think my question is more regular TA vs. DCL "expert" TA. Is there anything special that a DCL "expert" TA can provide that a regular TA generally cannot, and that can't be figured out by doing some internet research?

There are a lot of Disney perks (both on the Cruises and resorts) that sound good in the brochures, and which certainly get most of the advertising, but which you probably might not need in practice. (Eg., moms who think that you have to book character breakfasts in order for the kids to meet characters, etc.)

A regular TA would be going by the brochures, and give you what you could probably already find out and book yourself with a little third-party Internet travel research--But if you're making a first DCL/parks trip, a specialist knows the territory, could tailor your options more to what you need and what you don't, and point you to the right online resources (eg. online reservations) that you might not know about if you were going it alone.

Disney trips can be tricky on land or sea if you're not core-fan enough to know what you're doing, but once you get a feel for them, it gets easier after that.

I have booked a few cruises through a high end credit card concierge service that is for members only.

If you don't have that card but have a family member who has such a credit card they can let you use the service and pay them for the cruise after they put it on their card.

This worked very well for us. We were grouped with others going on the same trip and were able to get a lot of OBC and rebates on the fare.

On Princess we got free dinners in the extra cost restaurants and a welcome bottle of champagne.

It was also easy to work with the cruise specialist and she returned calls quickly.

Another advantage is that they are open 24/7 if you have any problems.

Our upcoming cruise is on Carnival and they don't have any kickbacks, so we went through a big box TA and it's been not much help at all. No personal relationship and I have no one to go to when I have follow up questions.

The cruise line recently reduced their fare so I called them and they would not speak to me about whether or not I qualified for a price match. So I called the TA and had them call and they were simply given a flat out no. I think I qualify for the price match but I don't have anything that I can do about it.

So if you are going to use a TA make sure that it's one who you have a personal relationship with and as the others have said have a good working history with the cruise line.

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I think my question is more regular TA vs. DCL "expert" TA. Is there anything special that a DCL "expert" TA can provide that a regular TA generally cannot, and that can't be figured out by doing some internet research?

Well that depends on whether YOU want to do the research, or expect the TA to do it for you doesn't it!

If you have a question for them, are you happy to wait until they find out the answer and call or email you back?

Are you happy to not expect them to know the answers to your questions and have them get back to you at a later date?

Are you happy to find out a lot of tips and tricks from your TA, or have them maybe miss a deadline because they did not know DCL require XYZ by a certain time or date?

Your question is very much based around you trusting your TA to do the right thing for you, when they might not know what the right thing is when it specifically is related to a DCL cruise because they have no experience of one, or many.

ex techie

I also would love to know the amount of people that sign up to CC, and post questions like newbies to DCL who actually are TA's selling a cruise they in reality know nothing about, and have been asked a question by their client!

I'm sure it is a fairly high number of the one hit wonder posts!

ex techie

Disney trips can be tricky on land or sea if you're not core-fan enough to know what you're doing, but once you get a feel for them, it gets easier after that.

Eric, are you not a first time DCL cruiser next month?

My last biggest fear--having gotten over Nassau plans--is the first day Muster lifeboat drill:

The safety video (watched it ahead of time on YouTube) says that "trained staff" can help with wheelchair-access guests, since the elevators will be off for the emergency drills.

 

Has any other mobility-access passenger gotten through the drill, and what should I expect to do, esp. if solo? (I'm getting from the Deck 7 stateroom and the stations will likely be on Deck 4.)

I don't expect a real emergency, but I like knowing ahead of time that I can move efficiently.

Thanks--Being a total landlubber chicken, I was worried about the REAL emergencies, but I don't mind drills if they're "to comply with International Maritime Law".

And just so long as they're not in the middle of the night, like always happened at the college dorms. :mad:

It sounds like you are posting with experience and knowledge, but also asking many basic questions someone who has cruised DCL before would know?

ex techie

Eric, are you not a first time DCL cruiser next month?

I was referring to the land Disney parks trips as well (which I do know), and...yeah. They can be a little complicated for first timers, if you're not used to the company's own internal hotel-perks and transportation system, but rewarding once you finally get through one.

It sounds like you are posting with experience and knowledge, but also asking many basic questions someone who has cruised DCL before would know

I'm trying to follow information sources I'm told I am supposed to look up as a first-timer (like DCL's passenger information, and the info disclaimers on their websites), and not waste experienced folks' time with.

And if I need first-time forum help, it's usually for some expert firsthand advice I could use some help on from those who've already been there, like "Is this excursion worth doing?", etc. It's probably the same for most first-timers, and some don't do as much looking around before asking.

(It was bad enough asking about the movies and activities schedules without looking up Scott's blog first.)

I was referring to the land Disney parks trips as well (which I do know), and...yeah. They can be a little complicated for first timers, if you're not used to the company's own internal hotel-perks and transportation system, but rewarding once you finally get through one.

 

I'm trying to follow information sources I'm told I am supposed to look up as a first-timer (like DCL's passenger information, and the info disclaimers on their websites), and not waste experienced folks' time with.

And if I need first-time forum help, it's usually for some expert firsthand advice I could use some help on from those who've already been there, like "Is this excursion worth doing?", etc. It's probably the same for most first-timers, and some don't do as much looking around before asking.

 

(It was bad enough asking about the movies and activities schedules without looking up Scott's blog first.)

From CC guidelines:

The fundamental concept is that you should NOT totally rely upon the information or opinions you read. Rather, you should use what you read here as starting points for doing independent research on cruise lines, ships, hotels, shore excursions and bargain-hunting techniques. Then judge for yourself the merits of the material that has been shared in our forum.

Cruise Critic doesn't take a position on any cruise line, negative or positive so members are allowed to freely discuss what they like and don't like about any cruise experience.

If you're looking for DCL cheerleaders, they're here as are the DCL objective critics and a few DCL haters for whatever reason. We're not going to moderate out criticisms.

The only thing that we require is that every post complies with the Guidelines linked at the top of every Community page. The relevant part to this discussion is that you're free to criticize lines, ships, crew, entertainers, ports, tours, etc., you MAY NOT attack another member.

Sail on.

I'm glad you've managed to draw on experience and find your answers to the unanswerable.

And you appear to have taken onboard that CC is for everyone to express their opinion of a cruise line, regardless of whether they are a "core-fan" of Disney and their movies, like yourself.

Knowledgeable, honest, and accurate posting also goes a long way into encouraging good, honest and accurate replies.

Even if those replies are not what one wishes to hear.

ex techie