TA Question

[FourAces]

We are thinking about taking a second cruise in July, this time we will be bringing our 17,15 and 13 year olds.

My question is when we went this year I booked the cruise thru Princess direct, would we be better off to go thru a TA for a better rate?

We will be taking a room with an obstructed view and the kids will get an inside cabin hopefully across the hall from us.

Thanks

Four Aces

[Colo Cruiser]

We are thinking about taking a second cruise in July, this time we will be bringing our 17,15 and 13 year olds.

My question is when we went this year I booked the cruise thru Princess direct, would we be better off to go thru a TA for a better rate?

We will be taking a room with an obstructed view and the kids will get an inside cabin hopefully across the hall from us.

Thanks

Four Aces

 

 

Yes it would be much better.

[cherylandtk]

TA's can discount the rate, whereas Princess does not. So yes, using a TA can get you a better price on the cruise. Just find one that is willing to give you the time you need (lots or a little) to get your questions answered and the details taken care of. You may have to interview several, and you may decide you want to balance the time needed by the TA vs. the cost.

 

There are several current posts from someone who is a second time cruiser, booked directly and did not know (and/or did not read) the terms of the contract. A week before the cruise he discovered he did not have the necessary funds to cover the required deposit. A DAY before the cruise he discovered he did not have the notarized parental permission for his stepdaughter to travel.

 

I'm sure hoping he makes it, but won't be entirely surprised if he does not. Inexperienced cruisers would do well to be very detail oriented and to read all documents and cruise websites, OR use a TA who can and will help navigate through these things. There are many out there, you just have to find them.

[Sapphire723]

At the very least, the rate the TA quotes you should be no more expensive than booking directly with Princess. They may have agency sale or promotion. And many TAs will go out of their way to make your experience special. Plus, they'll help handle any snafus you might have along the way.

[robgvic]

When you book it be sure each of the parents shares a cabin with one or more of the teenagers. There must be at least one person at least 18 in a cabin. Whern you get on board you can go to the purser's desk and change so the adults re together.

[paul929207]

We always find a nice discount when searching the online TAs

[spongerob]

Do a little shopping around on your own. It costs you nothing to look. The effort usually pays off.

[bozemanman]

TA's are not necessarily a lower price than Princess direct. I used to think so and I think maybe things have changed in the last few months. am booked through Pirncess direct for a Cruise in March '11 and princess was/is cheapest for my category. Believe me I check at least 8-10 online agencies, Princess was cheapest this time by $400.00/couple. I was as surprised as anyone. I didn't get the free bottle of wine or the coupon book (had it before - worthless in my mind), but for the $$$ we saved we'll get an extra bottle onboard.:p

[Coral]

My agent always discounts anything Princess offers.

 

If Princess is lower, the agent you are checking with is not checking your past passenger number. The TA must have your Captain Circle number in order to quote you properly. People who check online often don't provide online agents this or their online engine doesn't process it properly.

 

If a TA is higher then Princess, you are definitely checking with the wrong agents or not giving them adequate information to quote you properly.

[bozemanman]

My agent always discounts anything Princess offers.

 

If Princess is lower, the agent you are checking with is not checking your past passenger number. The TA must have your Captain Circle number in order to quote you properly. People who check online often don't provide online agents this or their online engine doesn't process it properly.

 

If a TA is higher then Princess, you are definitely checking with the wrong agents or not giving them adequate information to quote you properly.

 

 

Again...not always true...even called the online one I use the most...they were not cheaper...said they would match, but personally, that's not the way I do business.

[Coral]

Again...not always true...even called the online one I use the most...they were not cheaper...said they would match, but personally, that's not the way I do business.

 

Again - you must not be checking with the right agents.

 

Princess has a contract with their agents that they will not quote a lower price. All agents have access to the same rates that Princess offers. If the agent didn't quote you the same or a lower price, you must not be dealing with an agent who knows what they are doing. There are a lot of crappy agents out there who don't bother to quote people properly and quote as quickly as they can.

 

I know several people who think they got the best rate from Princess and they later transfer the booking to my agent and save more off the cruise fare (that they thought was the best from Princess) plus get OBC and possibly other group amenities. Again, agents who discount, can discount any price that Princess offers.

 

There are some great agents out there and some crappy ones. It sounds like the 10 or so agents you found were not good ones as no agent should quote a higher price compared to Princess. BTW - my agent always beats Princess's price with out me asking them to beat their price. I do purchasing for where I work and I am one of those people who say "give me your best price upfront" as I don't play games and will not play an agent off of another and say "I got this price from this place, can you do better".

[bozemanman]

Well...to the OP...the message here is check around, and it doesn't hurt to check back with a TA as they will prob at least always match whatever Pricess has to offer.

[Coral]

Well...to the OP...the message here is check around, and it doesn't hurt to check back with a TA as they will prob at least always match whatever Pricess has to offer.

 

Heck - if you want to even save more money, you can transfer it to an agent who discounts :) There are many out there.

[Casey12]

TA's are not necessarily a lower price than Princess direct. I used to think so and I think maybe things have changed in the last few months. am booked through Pirncess direct for a Cruise in March '11 and princess was/is cheapest for my category. Believe me I check at least 8-10 online agencies, Princess was cheapest this time by $400.00/couple. I was as surprised as anyone. I didn't get the free bottle of wine or the coupon book (had it before - worthless in my mind), but for the $$$ we saved we'll get an extra bottle onboard.:p

 

Man - you are paying too much if you are booking direct. This is the most expensive way to book.

[Toto2Kansas]

I totally agree with Coral on this one. If a TA is quoting you the same price as Princess, you aren't booking through a discount TA. Keep looking as you can save approximately 10% through a good discount TA, and receive a better price. Yes, it takes some research to find one that delivers both discounted pricing and good service, but they are out there. I have never been quoted the same price through a discount TA as Princess. Good Luck!

[TracieABD]

Finally found a great TA. She not only discounts the lowest price possible (including my teacher's discount on HAL), but she offers OBC. She is fast, competant, and thorough. I doubt I will ever book with the cruiseline again!

[caribill]

Inexperienced cruisers would do well to be very detail oriented and to read all documents and cruise websites.

 

As cruise lines, including Princess, move more and more to Internet only information and no longer mail out hard copies of such material as the "Cruise Answer Book," you will find that less and less people will be properly prepared for cruising.

 

When was the last time that you downloaded the "Cruise Answer Book," printed it out, and family members cruising read it at leisure before the cruise?

[TracieABD]

When was the last time that you downloaded the "Cruise Answer Book," printed it out, and family members cruising read it at leisure before the cruise?

 

I just did about 3 days ago!:)

[geoherb]

Booking direct can be the most expensive way to book, but we did our last cruise directly with Princess because I could not reach the two travel agents I tried. I was glad I did, since the price went up the next day before my TA could call me back. (He was on a cruise.) It was a special after the final payment date, so I had to pay in full and could not transfer the booking to him.

 

But I booked another cruise while on that one. I had done my research beforehand, and had him give me a quote based on the price. He was able to give me a better price plus onboard credit. A couple of days after booking with the future cruise consultant, the price went down. I had booked it directly with Princess just for this type of event--so I could have the future cruise consultant get us the new price. When I got home, I let him know the new price and asked my TA what his price would be. It wasn't as much of a discount (but of course his commission was also going to be less because of the price reduction), but he was still able to do better on the price and give us an onboard credit.

 

The crazy thing was when researching this cruise, I tried a website that lets travel agencies compete for your business. I told them the price Princess was quoting me and gave them my Captain's Circle number. Some of them came back with quotes that were a lot higher than Princess.

[paul929207]

I have a list of online TA's that I have built over the years. Each time someone says they got a great deal, I ask for the TA (not on CC, but either on a cruise or around town) and add it to my list. When I plan a cruise I go to everyone and get a quote. A few are usually more than Princess, a number are about the same and some are less. I take the lowest quote and my local TA matches it.

[Coral]

 

The crazy thing was when researching this cruise, I tried a website that lets travel agencies compete for your business. I told them the price Princess was quoting me and gave them my Captain's Circle number. Some of them came back with quotes that were a lot higher than Princess.

 

I think a lot of those agents who compete are inexperienced agents who are trying to get clients (thus, they don't know how to properly quote or just quickly quoted). As I said, there are a lot of bad ones out there.

 

For example, I tried that site once when my agent was out of town to get a feel for a price on a line that I haven't sailed a lot. They quoted me $600 for a cruise that was really $7000. Of course, they didn't honor the price. Not sure if that was a really bad typo or a really bad agent.

[Loonbeam]

Personally, I prefer not to deal with Online TAs, even with the discounts, but I do think they are a good option for people for whom cruising makes up the majority of their vacationing or who cruise very frequently.

 

We work with a small TA office that is part of a larger network, because I like the appeal of having a dedicated person. Since she is more of a generalist, we don't get the discounts that a volume seller might get, but service is more important to us. As an example, when my flights change, I am usually notified and re-booked before the airline contacts me. And since she knows my flight preferences, the rebookings are handled accordingly as far as connecting airports.

 

I guess my point is don't choose a TA based entirely on who can give you the cheapest price, unless that is your prime motivator. I interviewed 6 TAs before the one I use was referred to me by a friend.

[Lynda90]

Again...not always true...even called the online one I use the most...they were not cheaper...said they would match, but personally, that's not the way I do business.

You are definitely not contacting the right ta's! I would not use a ta who can only be contacted online, but there are those who are both online and very reachable by phone and email.

[Coral]

Personally, I prefer not to deal with Online TAs, even with the discounts, but I do think they are a good option for people for whom cruising makes up the majority of their vacationing or who cruise very frequently.

.

 

I don't like dealing with online agents either. I found one who lives across the country but is easily accessible via phone or email.

[Toto2Kansas]

Again, I agree. All online agents are not just the large cruise sites where you are just a number to them. There are many smaller agents that have personal service as well as discounted pricing. These are usually top sellers of the cruise lines so they deal in volume and you can find the better pricing as well as personalized service. ;)