Book Princess cruise through Line or TA or website

[M&T]

Is there a best place to book a Princess cruise? This will be our second Princess.

[Keith1010]

You should find a TA. They can match the price and also give you back some additional perks including possibly ship board credit.

 

Keith

[CruiserBruce]

My choice, in order, would be: 1. Local TA, 2. Cruise Line itself, 3. Online TA.

 

Remember, per board rules, we can't mention TAs by name or recommend them.

[M&T]

Thanks. Marlyne

[Putterdude]

Princess allows discounting of their fares so a TA generally will have the best pricing. Check the cruise line site, the online TA sites, newspaper ads and then go see a good TA most will match the best price you can find or will have a better price.

[Wormy53]

My preference would be a little different. I would choose 1) Online "discount" TA 2) Princess 3) Local TA . I have found a huge difference in price if you want a mini-suite or suite with TA's, but not so much when booking inside or OV. In that case I might just go with Princess and fore go the middle-man. My local TA's just haven't come through for me. I have done all three of these things and this works best for me.

[Toto2Kansas]

First check the Princess pricing on any category you are interested in for comparison. Then start your search for a good discount TA. If you find a good one, they should be able to save you at least 10% over Princess pricing, and many times add shipboard credit on top of that. Just make sure that whoever you decide to book with doesn't charge change or cancellation fees, as some do and some don't. We have sailed on over 25 Princess cruises over the years, and I have not booked direct once, and always found great discounts through travel agents. Good luck on your search! :)

[firefly333]

My choice, in order, would be: 1. Local TA, 2. Cruise Line itself, 3. Online TA.

 

Remember, per board rules, we can't mention TAs by name or recommend them.

 

A local TA would be my last choice, because they are smaller and can discount less. Im not going to pay to subsidize them.

[jewopaho]

We use two online TA's pretty regularly. Princess is the only mass-market cruise line that still permits discounting, so savings can quite often (although not always) be significant. Real-time example: our upcoming Alaska cruise aboard the Golden Princess (5/21). We saved $170/pp over Princess' "rack rate." As noted above, check the Princess website for the going price, then proceed from there. Good advice to inquire as to whether the online TA charges cancellation or change fees ... none voluntariuly disclose this information. Happy hunting ... it's almost as exciting as the cruise itself.

[dpump]

I'm actually in the process of finding a cruise to go on and have ended up choosing a TA to work with. I usually do everything myself online, hunting and looking for the best price, but there are just too many variables with a cruise. My agent (specializes in cruises) has been great. NOW, if I was booking a cruise leaving from Seattle where I didn't have to figure out air, transports, etc., I'd think about doing it myself.