CHOICE AIR PLUS - Do They Really Get You There No Matter What?

[Loracpin2]

We have always booked our own air and gotten to the area of debarkation at least one day prior to sailing. We are now booked on the Equinox for Dec. 27 and realize it would be difficult to leave on the 26th. According to the Choice Air rep, if we book with them, we are guaranteed to get to the ship. For those of you who have used them, what has been your experience? Thanks.

[mrshark]

choice air obviously has no control over the weather. Don't know where you live but don't think choice air would help you in a blizzard. Always wise to go the day before, then if the weather is inclement, you still can get down there the day of the cruise.

 

If the weather is bad the day your ship leaves where you live, you're already there :D, no biggie.

 

Sounds like a false promise to me. They'll make every attempt to get you there, but no way they can guarantee it, especially in the winter.

Edited July 12, 2010 by mrshark

[Fblack]

We always fly in a day early. Especially during months where snow can cause delays. I also read somewhere that they will help you find a new flight etc., but you need insurance as well. They may help you but it may not be free. The web site says:

 

If we purchase ChoiceAir and miss the flight, will you refund our Air or Re-accommodate us?

Subject: ChoiceAir Arrangements

 

We will not refund airline tickets due to a missed flight. While we will work with our guests and airline partners, any additional costs will be the responsibility of the guest. Tickets are subject to the airlines rules and penalties.

[dkjretired]

This is one of the myths of cruising, if you book their air or transfers they guarantee you will make the ship. The cruise line will make every effort to get you there, but in their paperwork you will find there is a clause that reads something like the cruise line provides air fare as a courtesy....

[catgirl398]

A couple of years ago, we were flying to Barcelona from Denver with a stop in New York. The flight from Denver was held up due to mechanical. When it became clear we would not make our connection, ChoiceAir got us booked on other flights and we got to Barcelona a couple hours later, but close to our original time AND they got 3 of our 4 bags on the right flights. The last bag made it to the ship in Mallorca. I will sing the praises of ChoiceAir. It's usually pretty close to the same prices as the airline websites as long as you work in advance.

[Gonzo70]

I would trust this guarantee as much as I would trust a sign at a dive restaurant proclaiming they have the best food in the country.

[garycarla]

They can do lots of things, but if there are no seats available on a plane that gets there before the ship leaves, well, you can figure that out.

[biker1972]

For further information go to the cruise-air board. There is a sticky about consolidator tickets that anyone flying on discount tickets should read. Fare codes are an important factor as to what can be done to get you to your destination. In some cases the tickets can't be assigned to another airline so you are at the mercy of that one airline or your credit card.

[happy cruzer]

A couple of years ago, we were flying to Barcelona from Denver with a stop in New York. The flight from Denver was held up due to mechanical. When it became clear we would not make our connection, ChoiceAir got us booked on other flights and we got to Barcelona a couple hours later, but close to our original time AND they got 3 of our 4 bags on the right flights. The last bag made it to the ship in Mallorca. I will sing the praises of ChoiceAir. It's usually pretty close to the same prices as the airline websites as long as you work in advance.

 

What causes the issues is important, yours was one plane with mechanical problems. The airlines often do a very good job on that one since it's their responsibility. Weather, strikes, big events, are what usually strands people and why they need travel insurance if they want to have rerouting costs covered.

[Grannycb]

Everyone here is thinking about getting to the cruise. We have seen multiple times when a ship has come in late enough for large numbers of people to miss their flights home. The cruise line makes all the changes if booked through them. Just one more thing to think about.

 

Actually, we have been very pleased booking with the new Choice Air. It has saved hundreds of dollars and we have picked our own flights. The new Choice Air doesn't use consolidators tickets. For more info: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1456868

[Gonzo70]

Actually, we have been very pleased booking with the new Choice Air. It has saved hundreds of dollars and we have picked our own flights. The new Choice Air doesn't use consolidators tickets. For more info: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1456868

 

I believe it is a matter of semantics; according to the very knowledgeable and very frequent flyers on the Cruise Air board the tickets are essentially consolidator tickets (in terms of the fare rules/restrictions) even if the cruise line calls them by a different name. If Choice Air will save me a lot of money AND I can fly in at least a day (and preferably two or three) early to my cruise I would consider using them. Otherwise I feel far more comfortable purchasing tickets directly from the airline as I know I will be in a better position to be accommodated if something goes awry.

[boogs]

I believe it is a matter of semantics; according to the very knowledgeable and very frequent flyers on the Cruise Air board the tickets are essentially consolidator tickets (in terms of the fare rules/restrictions) even if the cruise line calls them by a different name. If Choice Air will save me a lot of money AND I can fly in at least a day (and preferably two or three) early to my cruise I would consider using them. Otherwise I feel far more comfortable purchasing tickets directly from the airline as I know I will be in a better position to be accommodated if something goes awry.

 

They are not consolidator tickets. The fare code is the same as I would have if I bought them myself. For our next trip we purchased fully refundable tickets for less than even the airline was selling non-refundable tickets. These are applicable to the rules of the airlines just as if we had purchased them ourselves. With ChoiceAir, there is a window of 14 days total for arrival several days early and/or several days later. In our case, we saved about $100 total on the tickets (true, not a large sum compared to the full cost of the tickets), were able to chose our flights and seats, and are flying in three days early and coming home three days later.

 

Keep in mind that the ChoiceAir program has been upgraded in recent years, so some of the doubters could be talking about the old program.

Edited April 16, 2012 by boogs

[ORV]

They are not consolidator tickets. The fare code is the same as I would have if I bought them myself. For our next trip we purchased fully refundable tickets for less than even the airline was selling non-refundable tickets. These are applicable to the rules of the airlines just as if we had purchased them ourselves. With ChoiceAir, there is a window of 14 days total for arrival several days early and/or several days later. In our case, we saved about $100 total on the tickets (true, not a large sum compared to the full cost of the tickets), were able to chose our flights and seats, and are flying in three days early and coming home three days later.

 

Keep in mind that the ChoiceAir program has been upgraded in recent years, so some of the doubters could be talking about the old program.

 

Also note there is not a deviation fee to change your arrival or departure dates as there is with most cruiseline air.

[Gonzo70]

They are not consolidator tickets. The fare code is the same as I would have if I bought them myself. For our next trip we purchased fully refundable tickets for less than even the airline was selling non-refundable tickets. These are applicable to the rules of the airlines just as if we had purchased them ourselves. With ChoiceAir, there is a window of 14 days total for arrival several days early and/or several days later. In our case, we saved about $100 total on the tickets (true, not a large sum compared to the full cost of the tickets), were able to chose our flights and seats, and are flying in three days early and coming home three days later.

 

Keep in mind that the ChoiceAir program has been upgraded in recent years, so some of the doubters could be talking about the old program.

 

Of course fully refundable tickets are not consolidator tickets. Most people using Choice Air are not buying such tickets though.

[PatriciaF]

We are new to Celebrity and try to use FF miles to fly to our cruise embarkation and disembarkation ports. This trip we had to buy our airfare :eek:. I checked out choice air before making the decision and found the airfare to be cheaper than what I found on line using kayak and going to the carrier's own web site. It gives you a choice of day of departure from home and day of departure of return. It also gives you lots of flights so you can fly your favorite carrier--or if flying an international one that usually doesn't charge for alcoholic beverages like a US carrier would if you are back in economy with us. For our upcoming Eastern Med cruise, I elected Choice Air.

 

You don't need to be booked to look at the options. Check it out at choiceair.com

 

Also--if you buy insurance through Celebrity and the airfare through Choice Air, the airline fare is covered at no additional cost. After falling and breaking my wrist in Feb, just two days before our Princess cruise, I was glad I bought the travel insurance. I only bought it because my dad is 94 years old and worried about him and his health. He is just fine! Note that insurance through Celebrity is less expensive than Princess insurance--a little less coverage on some things, but sufficient IMHO.

Edited April 16, 2012 by PatriciaF

[richsea]

Of course fully refundable tickets are not consolidator tickets. Most people using Choice Air are not buying such tickets though.

 

We must be lucky. We've used Choice Air twice & both times the fares were refundable. They were booked through choice air & were the same flights that could be purchased on the airline's site, & were hundreds of dollars less expensive than booking direct, including the $50 fee charged by Choice Air. In fact, our first time was a one way flight off of a transatlantic on American non stop to NY & cost us about $525 pp while American was charging over $2000 PP for the same flight one way through their site.

Generally, we book on our own for domestic flights,but find we can save on international flights by using Choice Air.

Fortunately, we have not had to find out how much support we would get from the Choice Air dsk in case of a problem.

[jsargent34]

Cruise Line Airfare

 

False Security Blanket Period

 

 

Aside from the likely reality that you will no doubt find better pricing on your own, the reality is just plain simple that they cannot guarantee you anything. The biggest mis-nomer is that "travel agents" or agencies (of which Celebrity would be acting as booking your airfare) work with the airlines. With rare exception, the airlines shed almost all of their relationships with travel agencies years ago.

 

Just this one person's first hand experience....

[boogs]

Of course fully refundable tickets are not consolidator tickets. Most people using Choice Air are not buying such tickets though.

 

Not sure why not. When I logged into the ChoiceAir web site, plugged in my dates and flight preferences, I was given several choices, including a refundable and a non-refundable choice for the same flight. The refundable was only $4 more. Seems like the way to go to me! if people can't bear to spend that extra $4, that's their decision.

Edited April 16, 2012 by boogs

[Gonzo70]

We must be lucky. We've used Choice Air twice & both times the fares were refundable. They were booked through choice air & were the same flights that could be purchased on the airline's site, & were hundreds of dollars less expensive than booking direct, including the $50 fee charged by Choice Air. In fact, our first time was a one way flight off of a transatlantic on American non stop to NY & cost us about $525 pp while American was charging over $2000 PP for the same flight one way through their site.

Generally, we book on our own for domestic flights,but find we can save on international flights by using Choice Air.

Fortunately, we have not had to find out how much support we would get from the Choice Air dsk in case of a problem.

 

You paid $525 for a $2,000 ticket and you do not think you received a consolidator type fare? :rolleyes:

[Gonzo70]

Not sure why not. When I logged into the ChoiceAir web site, plugged in my dates and flight preferences, I was given several choices, including a refundable and a non-refundable choice for the same flight. The refundable was only $4 more. Seems like the way to go to me! if people can't bear to spend that extra $4, that's their decision.

 

Before you said "fully refundable." Are you claiming you can cancel your airfare and receive a full refund with no charges or penalties for just $4 more than a regular ticket? If so I might hire you to start booking my travel. If you take a closer look there are probably significant charges associated with canceling the ticket.

[kettlitz]

I just booked with choice air for next Christmas from Toronto to Santiago, back from BA to Toronto in business class. Their airfare was 3500 dollars cheaper than airfares published on delta and air Canada's sites, and about 1500 cheaper than the fare on LAN Chile's website. The fare is held and guaranteed until final payment day which is another advantage vs buying with airlines.

 

There are no guarantees in life, but they would help you reroute at not cost if there are issues with your routing.

 

The on,y incremental cost was signing up for Choice Air Plus, which I think was something like 75 to 95 dollars per passenger.

 

All in all, a good deal.

NK

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[Christine Frances]

Just test booked some flights to the Med on Choice Air and the Refundable tickets had a $175 fee to cover Airline cancellation fees and processing. On a very expensive international flight I think I would be more than happy to pay that if I had to cancel.

[boogs]

Before you said "fully refundable." Are you claiming you can cancel your airfare and receive a full refund with no charges or penalties for just $4 more than a regular ticket? If so I might hire you to start booking my travel. If you take a closer look there are probably significant charges associated with canceling the ticket.

 

Well, semantics might be in play again. Round trip tickets cost me about $2,200 each. The are refundable, yes, but for a fee of $175 - a bit less than 8% of the original price. So, are they fully refundable? Perhaps. The entire cost of the ticket will be refunded, but I have to pay a fee to get that refund. So, maybe "fully refundable" is not the best wording, but they are refundable - every penny of it, with a fee to do so. Typically, the fee would be deducted from the total cost of the tickets. That works in most cases. But the way this has worked for me in the past when it was business related, the fee can be paid separately for accounting purposes, with the FULL refund paid back to the original credit card it was paid against and a separate charge to another account to pay the fee.

 

Potato - potahto. Either way, you are correct - you got to pay at least something :D

Edited April 16, 2012 by boogs

[dandylion]

Last October our flight (booked on choice air )to Rome was delayed for over 5 hours due to mechanical issues. Normally we arrive a day ahead, but didn't plan it that way this time.When we arrived in Rome at 4 pm, we were advised by the celebrity ground staff that the ship was adhering to it's 5pm departure schedule and they were not going to delay for us. We were surprised as there were over 30 of us, but understood that the port was over an hour away on the best of days. Most people had also purchased celebrity transfers and/ or celebrity insurance... we had not, and were initially led to believe that we would not receive the same level of assistance that everyone else was going to get. This turned out not to be the case; celebrity ground staff eventually paid for an overnight at the Rome Hilton, arranged and paid for air to our next port (Palermo) and provided transfers to the ship at no cost to us. Our only out of pocket expenses were dinner at the Hilton, and extra baggage fees on our Palermo flight. Except for some minor confusion and misinformation by the ground staff, Celebrity and choice air handled this unfortunate incident very well.

[CathyCruises]

Otherwise I feel far more comfortable purchasing tickets directly from the airline as I know I will be in a better position to be accommodated if something goes awry.

 

With ChoiceAir, there is a window of 14 days total for arrival several days early and/or several days later. In our case, we saved about $100 total on the tickets (true, not a large sum compared to the full cost of the tickets), were able to chose our flights and seats, and are flying in three days early and coming home three days later.

 

Keep in mind that the ChoiceAir program has been upgraded in recent years, so some of the doubters could be talking about the old program.

 

We booked on Choice Air to return from a TA, London to San Francisco. However, we are returning 26 days after the ship docks--so the 14 days quoted above is not correct.

 

Also, as soon as I had a confirmation number, I went into the Delta site, found our booking, put in our FF #'s, upgraded our seats on both legs, put in OUR contact info--in other words, it was JUST like booking directly with the airline, except we paid $595/pp; and Delta was charging 1194 POUNDS/pp!!!

 

They made a believer out of me on this flight, that's for sure.