Booking a Cruise with TA vs Carnival Direct

[loveJake]

I had a good one also, before the new rules went into effect. Booked different cruise line with her as well. Will never use again. Last year when the new rules went into effect she got mad because there were price drops and she had to submit the form. Said if I call anymore she will charge me $50 a person to fill out the form. Luckly for her there were no more price drops. There is nowhere in their rules about $50 for changes, and I was never charged before when making changes for previous cruises.

[KruznKel]

What service would be lacking:confused:

 

the comps.. with lower price..

[KruznKel]

I think I have had 6 PVP's since joining Carnival... do they do any better for me dont think so.. I have had 2 TA's... one is this sites reference and the other my friend... whom will I provide my business to my friend.. I don't gain anymore from any of the others.. I prefer to give to someone that atually deserves it!!

[Tapi]

I also feel that TAs are very helpful because they have unbiased (or less biased) information..

 

I've actually found that some TA's are more biased, either because their agency is a "preferred agency" for a specific cruise line, or because they are making a larger commission by booking a specific cruise line.

 

A few years back, I was trying to book specifically a Carnival sailing which was on sale, but the travel agent kept saying "but you'll have much more fun on this Royal Caribbean sailing" which happened to be sailing on the same day, but to completely different destinations, and which also cost almost twice as much. I ended up hanging up on her. She wouldn't even quote prices on the Carnival sailing that I wanted!

[AlwaysReadyToSail]

I've actually found that some TA's are more biased, either because their agency is a "preferred agency" for a specific cruise line, or because they are making a larger commission by booking a specific cruise line.

 

A few years back, I was trying to book specifically a Carnival sailing which was on sale, but the travel agent kept saying "but you'll have much more fun on this Royal Caribbean sailing" which happened to be sailing on the same day, but to completely different destinations, and which also cost almost twice as much. I ended up hanging up on her. She wouldn't even quote prices on the Carnival sailing that I wanted!

 

 

I don't blame you for hanging up on her....yeah you will run across the one or few who push something for them to receive some type of kickback, but in that instance they aren't a good TA....a good TA will do as you ask, and try to meet YOUR needs and not take offense or question your personal choices.....sad that TA's such as you mentioned give a lot of hard working TAs a bad image. I probably should have clarified that in no way would I use a bad TA just to give a TA business....but then again I have no problem searching out a good TA and/or getting rid of a bad one.

[Kurbanfan]

the comps.. with lower price..

 

We have never asked for a lower price while booking a cruise......we are satisfied with the price matching but we are always compt with obc, or free drink tickets, tips paid for etc......which in the long run comes out to being a cheaper cruise......

 

We also don't book early saver to save a couple of bucks while they hold my deposit hostage......buying insurance to cover the non refundable deposit washes out the savings lol......we normally book a few months out with the best deals.......and watch the prices go up until we board.

 

While we can compare good pvp's and good TA's there can also be something said about good and bad clients........I have friends I would NEVER refer to my TA because they are out to get the best deal down to the penny.......and get quote after quote and then use someone else because they were 50 cents cheaper......only to come back and do it all over again..........good clients (like us:)) use our TA for all our cruises and land vacations and refer alot of people.......maybe that's why she treats us so well:) Never once has she tried to sell us something we didn't want....what she does do is gives us a heads up on other cruislines sales. (like the Mariner for example which at the time was waay cheaper then the Splendor and the Crown Princess which we paid the same price as the Valor).......

And I would never use an online TA.......might as well use a PVP IMO......

[capndinghy]

We have been fortunate and used the same PVP for about 7 or 8 years now. He has always done an excellent job for us. In fact we may get to meet him on the Magic Trans Atlantic Crossing in 2011.

[Synthetic]

Well my shopping patterns have become far easier now that Carnival has initiated the 'no one lower than Carnival' rule. Allow me to explain:

 

Yes - I do actually do my booking through my PVP at Carnival. The difference comes when actually deciding when and where to cruise.

 

Yes - I always go to Travelocity.com to search for cruises due to their user-friendly 'cruise finder' tool that has the ability to allow me to search by the key drivers I am looking for.

 

The other thing I enjoy about Travelocity is their prices are always EXACTLY what Carnival quotes me through my PVP. Its just this way I can do a full spectrum comparison of the different itineraries and ports from the privacy of my own home at my leisure.

 

Once I narrow my choices down to 4 or 5 cruises I call Amanda at Carnival and we discuss. She gives me insight on the different cabins (especially ships I haven't been on or categories I haven't been in on a particular ship).

 

Once settled, I book and rest assured that all is taken care of.

 

Just my $.02

[zqvol]

The perks for me booking thru my TA is when I am looking at a specific itinerary she has the knowledge of all cruiselines and will give me the best deal on all lines not just Carnival......she has first hand knowledge of all sales.....

If for some reason our ship comes in late or we are rerouted to another port to disembark (like what happened in Galveston) she will handle all our travel details with one phone call such as changing flights, set up a rental car, hotel etc......If we need to desembark for any emergency she handles all the details etc......just saves alot of headaches. She even handles our insurance...

Her company has an allowance of what they can give for perks so none of it comes out of her commission. And by booking with her I am helping my community in this god forbidden econonmy. She is not the middle man she is the man:D She even prints out our fun passes and boarding tags and mails them to us.......we do absolutely nothing.....

 

More power to you. I have NEVER found a TA with as much knowledge of the cruises that are available when I want to travel as I find on the Internet. As far as finding one to help with travel rerouting, etc. I have learned the hard way that those things NEVER seem to happen when the TA is working so I have to do it all myself anyway, IF the travel provider will even discuss it with me.

 

In this day, with the savvy traveler having access to the Internet, the traveler is at least as empowered as the TA, and often more so. If you find a TA that takes care of you that is great, but most of the time it is easier to do it yourself, and there is rarely any monetary advantage to using a TA for a cruise vacation on the mass market lines. (In fact using the TA may cost you extra if they charge for booking your air.)

[golfadj]

Well my shopping patterns have become far easier now that Carnival has initiated the 'no one lower than Carnival' rule. Allow me to explain:

 

Yes - I do actually do my booking through my PVP at Carnival. The difference comes when actually deciding when and where to cruise.

 

Yes - I always go to Travelocity.com to search for cruises due to their user-friendly 'cruise finder' tool that has the ability to allow me to search by the key drivers I am looking for.

 

The other thing I enjoy about Travelocity is their prices are always EXACTLY what Carnival quotes me through my PVP. Its just this way I can do a full spectrum comparison of the different itineraries and ports from the privacy of my own home at my leisure.

 

Once I narrow my choices down to 4 or 5 cruises I call Amanda at Carnival and we discuss. She gives me insight on the different cabins (especially ships I haven't been on or categories I haven't been in on a particular ship).

 

Once settled, I book and rest assured that all is taken care of.

 

Just my $.02

 

You are not supposed to mention the name of your online TA on here.

 

I use another online TA to do the same thing before contacting our pvp.

[Fourseventeen]

I have been using the same PVP for about 5 years now and couldnt be happier with his service. He knows what I like and dislike which is a big help plus the service is much more personable.

[cpabobby]

 

In the long run, you'll be greatful to be dealing with someone who can provide the better service, instead of the one offering you a free cheap bottle of wine.

 

Ok - but just to be clear......which one can I get the cheap bottle of wine from??

[Kurbanfan]

More power to you. I have NEVER found a TA with as much knowledge of the cruises that are available when I want to travel as I find on the Internet. As far as finding one to help with travel rerouting, etc. I have learned the hard way that those things NEVER seem to happen when the TA is working so I have to do it all myself anyway, IF the travel provider will even discuss it with me.

 

In this day, with the savvy traveler have access to the Internet, the travelr is at least as empowered as the TA and often more so. If you find a TA that takes care of you that is great, but most of the time it is easier to do it yourself, and there is no monetary advantage to using a TA for a cruise vacation. (In fact using the TA may cost you extra if they charge for booking your air.)

 

I already posted the monetary advantages we get with our TA;) We have had to change travel plans due to unforseened circumstance and it saved alot of headaches for us to have someone else take care of all the details while we were busy taking care of more important things. We even had an issue with RCCL on one cruise and she was all over it.

It is just as easy to e-mail my agent to book as it is to book on line directly with Carnival....so it's a win win for my TA and me:)

I do book my own air because it is cheaper......everyone needs to do what is best for them......but that was my answer to the op;)

[PenguinLife]

I just wanted to say not all TA's are the same, not all are there to save people money, they provide other services. I have an aunt that ran an upscale travel agency for many years, and I can tell you there is a place for the gold plated TA service. Without mentioning names, a number of her clients were houshold names, one even ran for president of the U.S. a few years back.

[CoachT]

I am a TA and I do not sell Carnival at all. They have done so many things in recent months against their "Travel Partners" that I and many will not sell them even if a customer claims they know exactly what they want.

 

Since I will not sell Carnival and am in no way soliciting your business, I will say there are so many of you who do not know what a travel agent does. One person posted that there was a wealth of knowledge on the internet, and I am here to tell you that there is a lot of informationon the internet. Information is a lot different that knowledge.

 

You absolutely can do everything that a TA can do, but in many cases it will take you a lot longer. You can also change your own oil, check you in to your cruise, and serve yourself food. You can also learn how to do brain surgery on the internet, that doesn't mean you will be able to do it well or have the knowledge to be successful. More and more agencies are now being paid by their clients because that is who they work for. Yes the cruise lines them a commission, but most agencies are not just selling the cruise! By the way the cruise lines pay a commission for all of the things that a TA does for that cruise line. A client can actually save money on their trip by using a TA. And quite honestly, a client is more likely to remember a fantastic experience than what they paid for it!

 

People who balk at the idea of paying a TA miss the fact that they will pay far more for a massage on the ship and a good TA's knowledge and contacts are worth far more than the price of a massage on a ship. A TA can help a client make the right choices, save you time, and keep his or her best interests in mind. TA's across the country showed their worth on 9-11 and have again and again on countless occasions. Civil unrest? Volcanoes, H1N1, fog in three ports along the Gulf last fall?

 

Are there bad TA's sure there are, there are also bad clients too.

[Guienevere_Arianette]

I have done both. Today I decided to book with a TA instead of through Carnival because for the exact same price, down to the penny, the agency matched the Carnival website total AND threw in 100.00 OBC, so it worked out well :)

 

Balcony on the Carnival Dream in 22 days! Whoot Whoot!

[raymond673]

The perks for me booking thru my TA is when I am looking at a specific itinerary she has the knowledge of all cruiselines and will give me the best deal on all lines not just Carnival......she has first hand knowledge of all sales.....

If for some reason our ship comes in late or we are rerouted to another port to disembark (like what happened in Galveston) she will handle all our travel details with one phone call such as changing flights, set up a rental car, hotel etc......If we need to desembark for any emergency she handles all the details etc......just saves alot of headaches. She even handles our insurance...

Her company has an allowance of what they can give for perks so none of it comes out of her commission. And by booking with her I am helping my community in this god forbidden econonmy. She is not the middle man she is the man:D She even prints out our fun passes and boarding tags and mails them to us.......we do absolutely nothing.....

 

Who is your Travel Agent? Would like to talk to her.

 

Thanks

 

Ray