Booking With US Sites & US TA's

[dougo in oz]

Quite a few of us Aussies on Star Princess around South America 23rd of February.

 

We´re in Buenos Aires now and so far I must have met at least a dozen other Aussies staying at our hotel and nearly all of them are doing a trip which includes a visit to Antarctica or they´ve already done it and are on their way home.

 

Of the Aussies I´ve met in the hotel in last two days alone, all seven of them are on the Star Princess with us departing this Sunday. And plenty of Aussie accents out and about in the street too.:)

[NSWP]

We´re in Buenos Aires now and so far I must have met at least a dozen other Aussies staying at our hotel and nearly all of them are doing a trip which includes a visit to Antarctica or they´ve already done it and are on their way home.

 

 

Of the Aussies I´ve met in the hotel in last two days alone, all seven of them are on the Star Princess with us departing this Sunday. And plenty of Aussie accents out and about in the street too.:)

Thanks Dougo, have sent you an email, bon voyage.

 

RugbyPopsie, we paid $1800 each for Sydney - Santiago on LAN (Qantas Codeshare, booked directly with Qantas.)

I hear that in the next few months LAN will only fly into Auckland, Jetstar has gone into contract with LAN to take Aussie pax to Auckland to connect with LAN A340 to Santiago and to San Francisco. Don't think it will happen before we leave on 20 Feb.

We return to Sydney from San Francisco.

 

Sorry for thread hijack, not much to do with Booking with US T/A's.

[dougo in oz]

Thanks Les...got it !!

[dougo in oz]

just a quick update from the Star Princess ... making its way to Stanley.

 

We booked our trip to Antarctica on the SP some 18 months ago through a US T/A.

 

We had absolutely no problems at pre-check at the Marriott in Buenos Aires (apart from standing in line for a while) and none at the dock.

 

At no time was there a question, an inference, a look or anything else about where we purchased our fare nor a link to us being Aussies.

 

We are having a great time on this cruise ... the ship is lovely, the crew is great and so is the food and customer service...we couldn't be happier. everyone is really excited to be on this trip, the Star's last voyage to Antarctica. There are lots of Aussies on board but of course I have no idea who they booked their cabins with.

 

So for those who are worried about booking with a non Aussie agent, we certainly had no problems what so ever.

[windsor26]

The best thing about the free australian NZ and UK FCC letters is that they allow for the deposit to be refunded if you have to cancel which these countries to NOT get the option of normally. Therefore always get a few when you are aboard:)

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

Just thought I would let everyone know that Princess is true to their word.

 

We just booked another cruise with our O/S TA. No problem. Showed up on our cruise personaliser almost immediately.

[aussiedisneyfan]

Since I am onboard the Volendam now I haven't read through all the posts. Forgive me if someone else has posted this.

 

We have booked a future cruise onboard and were able to book in USD directly through cruiseline. I can see my booking online already and it even now shows the price, amount paid/owing etc.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Since I am onboard the Volendam now I haven't read through all the posts. Forgive me if someone else has posted this.

 

We have booked a future cruise onboard and were able to book in USD directly through cruiseline. I can see my booking online already and it even now shows the price, amount paid/owing etc.

 

If they all did the Bookings like HAL does there would be no problems.

The website has one price for everyone, in US$.

 

logical really ...Why would HAL want $AU, $NZ $HK, dollars or Russian Rubles for that matter. ?

[aussiedisneyfan]

Forgot to add that we had no problems at all boarding even though we booked through a US t/a.

 

We had the choice to pay our FCC in either AUD or USD. Naturally we chose USD since the AU price was $115 at the stage when our dollar was still above parity.

[SunnyinDubai]

Since I am onboard the Volendam now I haven't read through all the posts. Forgive me if someone else has posted this.

 

We have booked a future cruise onboard and were able to book in USD directly through cruiseline. I can see my booking online already and it even now shows the price, amount paid/owing etc.

 

Which cruise have you booked? We are looking at the NZ cruise sailing 17th Jan - will you be on that cruise too?Would be a deja vu huh? :D:D

[Rancher Dave]

Some of the lines do NOT allow USA based agents to book for other than USA based travelers... Aussies living in the USA could in theory use these agents.

 

A good agent would let the traveler know...for instance if they called, emailed from OZ to book on Princess with the new Princess rules the good agent would explain they aren't allowed to book you unless you are a resident of the USA (her on a Visa whatever status but with a USA address and credit card).

 

RCCL for one points out to agents that they want agents in foreign countries to have an opportunity to make money as well.

 

As for some of the cost difference, laws regarding what is included and how refunds have to be issues when/why... differ between countries and that does to some extent lead to SOME of the price difference.

 

Maybe the agents in OZ get a bigger percentage, only have to sell one cruise month to make a living. Gosh in that case I'd pack my bags and relocat to Perth, or maybe Freemantle. Sorry to all I know on the East Coast of OZ....Perth won me over when I visited there a few years back.

[SunnyinDubai]

Some of the lines do NOT allow USA based agents to book for other than USA based travelers... Aussies living in the USA could in theory use these agents.

 

A good agent would let the traveler know...for instance if they called, emailed from OZ to book on Princess with the new Princess rules the good agent would explain they aren't allowed to book you unless you are a resident of the USA (her on a Visa whatever status but with a USA address and credit card).

 

RCCL for one points out to agents that they want agents in foreign countries to have an opportunity to make money as well.

 

As for some of the cost difference, laws regarding what is included and how refunds have to be issues when/why... differ between countries and that does to some extent lead to SOME of the price difference.

 

Maybe the agents in OZ get a bigger percentage, only have to sell one cruise month to make a living. Gosh in that case I'd pack my bags and relocat to Perth, or maybe Freemantle. Sorry to all I know on the East Coast of OZ....Perth won me over when I visited there a few years back.

 

There are agents in the US who are prepared to take bookings from Aussies...it is just a matter of finding out which ones are ;)

 

As for foreign agents making money - aren't the US agents making money from our bookings - and yet somehow they are cheaper than the agents here. I would happily book with an agent here if I got the same price as what the US agents are offering me. If the difference in the cost was marginal, I would have no problem booking with a local agent here - but when it is over $1K, why would I not want to save that money?

 

As for differences in deposits/refunds - there really is nothing here that says that deposits paid here cannot be refunded in full - in my opinion, it is a question of the agents wanting to guarantee they get something from the passengers irrespective of whether they proceed with the booking. :rolleyes:

[The_Big_M]

The website has one price for everyone, in US$.

 

logical really ...Why would HAL want $AU, $NZ $HK, dollars or Russian Rubles for that matter. ?

 

Not true. I can't speak for NZ, but the website prices in AUD (when it's working as intended!).

[The_Big_M]

As for foreign agents making money - aren't the US agents making money from our bookings - and yet somehow they are cheaper than the agents here.

 

That's because the cruise cost is priced differently in different regions, not because the margins are significantly different.

 

As for differences in deposits/refunds - there really is nothing here that says that deposits paid here cannot be refunded in full - in my opinion, it is a question of the agents wanting to guarantee they get something from the passengers irrespective of whether they proceed with the booking. :rolleyes:

 

Again, there are some differences between lines in terms of the booking and cancellation conditions in different regions. In those cases, it is the cruise line withholding the deposit, not the travel agent (although travel agents also add their own cancellation conditions as well, but that varies between TAs rather than between countries).

[dougo in oz]

We have had no problem getting a FCL from Princess on our current cruise ... we were only asked one question ... "did you book this cruise through a US agent?" to which we answered "yes".

 

We were given a FCL and paid $US100 each and our US T/A has already received an email notifying them of this.

 

We also asked for and received a FCL that we can use around Australia /NZ.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Not true. I can't speak for NZ, but the website prices in AUD (when it's working as intended!).

 

 

I just checked again to make sure, and when I access Holland America.com, the prices come up in $US..

Must be different in Australia.

 

If you take it through to a booking the first thing that comes up is the following, which you have to either accept or decline.......

 

 

THIS IS A LEGAL AGREEMENT between you and Holland America Line. You are agreeing that this is a United States website and all bookings purchased through this website will be subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement and the Website Terms and Conditions. We do not represent that this web site and the terms and policies contained herein are appropriate or compliant with laws outside the United States. Persons who choose to make bookings on this web site from locations outside the United States do so on their own initiative, and understand that local laws will not apply to their bookings. If you are booking from outside of the United States and would like the laws of your home country to apply to your booking, please contact a travel agent in your country. European guests may book travel through Holland America Line's Rotterdam office at 0900 SAIL HAL or our London office at 0845 351 0557.

[Billy and Charlie's Mum]

We have had no problem getting a FCL from Princess on our current cruise ... we were only asked one question ... "did you book this cruise through a US agent?" to which we answered "yes".

 

We were given a FCL and paid $US100 each and our US T/A has already received an email notifying them of this.

 

We also asked for and received a FCL that we can use around Australia /NZ.

 

That is soooo good to know, thanks Dougo. We will be sure to get both sorts when we are on the Dawn and Diamond in the coming months. :D:D

[NSWP]

I just checked again to make sure, and when I access Holland America.com, the prices come up in $US..

Must be different in Australia.

 

If you take it through to a booking the first thing that comes up is the following, which you have to either accept or decline.......

 

 

THIS IS A LEGAL AGREEMENT between you and Holland America Line. You are agreeing that this is a United States website and all bookings purchased through this website will be subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement and the Website Terms and Conditions. We do not represent that this web site and the terms and policies contained herein are appropriate or compliant with laws outside the United States. Persons who choose to make bookings on this web site from locations outside the United States do so on their own initiative, and understand that local laws will not apply to their bookings. If you are booking from outside of the United States and would like the laws of your home country to apply to your booking, please contact a travel agent in your country. European guests may book travel through Holland America Line's Rotterdam office at 0900 SAIL HAL or our London office at 0845 351 0557.

David, I have a Westerdam cruise with HAL and my booking on their site shows up in AUD. I booked with HAL'S Australian agent. Also when I go into their specials etc on the HAL site, for me it is all in AUD.

[The_Big_M]

I just checked again to make sure, and when I access Holland America.com, the prices come up in $US..

Must be different in Australia.

 

For Holland America, they have a single site, but they check your location then display the site in your local pricing if they have separate pricing in place for where you are (otherwise you get the USD default). Thus, if you visit from say Fiji or New Zealand where they don’t have the volume to justify separate pricing, you’ll see USD. But if you visit from Australia or England, you’ll have pricing displayed at whatever the local pricing is.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Thats interesting.....

Our market must not have the volume for them to worry about.

 

Princess show all their prices here in local currency, but I rather like the HAL system as it is .......at the moment.

 

As far as I can gather, HAL has a master agency here who handle the bookings , as they have been in touch re one booking, reminding us to update the Personalizer Information , so the e ticket could be issued.

[cruiselover53]

Forgive my ignorance but what exactly does a future cruise letter entitle one to as opposed to just booking a cruise and paying a deposit. :confused:

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Forgive my ignorance but what exactly does a future cruise letter entitle one to as opposed to just booking a cruise and paying a deposit. :confused:

 

You get a lower deposit, that is fully refundable, and you get an OBC (On Board Credit).

It worth it just to get the OBC.

[rkmw]

Forgive my ignorance but what exactly does a future cruise letter entitle one to as opposed to just booking a cruise and paying a deposit. :confused:

 

on AU Princess ships you dont pay any money and you pay a reduced deposit under 28 days and you receive OBC depending on the length of the cruise and what cabin category and you are allowed to cancel out without being penalised as long as it done before final payment.....also the letter lasts for 4 years so you dont have to book a cruise straightaway

 

on the US ships you have to pay $100 and thats your deposit and i think the condtions are the same then

[cruiselover53]

Forgive my ignorance but what exactly does a future cruise letter entitle one to as opposed to just booking a cruise and paying a deposit. :confused:

 

thank you, now I don't feel quite as ignorant :)

[dougo in oz]

Sorry I can't use quotes so that poster know whom I'm replying to, but at 62 deg latitude, just coming out of the antarctic region, the satellite coverage is a little slow to say the least.

 

Just further to what others have said about the Future Cruise Letters, the OBC is provided by the cruise line ... in the case of my FCL, Princess.

 

So if and when I decide to book again, and if my agent or the cruise line offers additional OBC or other amenities, then I would get that too in addition to the OBC in the FCL. For example, for the cruise we're on now, together we ended up with $US 375 OBC plus a voucher for a bottle of wine.

 

Just make sure you get your FCL in the names of all passengers on the sailing. Princess changed their rules in Nov 2009 so the FCL is not per cabin but per passenger whose name is on the FCL.