Anyone ever book Royal Caribbean through a travel site?

[lcgvol]

A very popular travel site is offering $200 OBC if you book certain sailings on Royal Caribbean through March. I have always booked direct with the cruise line and am wondering if anyone has any opinions on this. I have used them before for hotels.

[Gonzo70]

Make sure to check their policies on things such as making changes to your reservation or canceling (some agencies assess fees). Also keep in mind you will have to go through the agency for making changes to your stateroom, price drops etc. versus being able to call RCI. If the agency is closed evenings and weekends, you could miss out on a price drop or nicer room you want to change to.

[kcool]

you will receive that OBC if you book through them. i have done it before.

[Dall]

After over a dozen cruises which we have booked on our own, we went with an online TA. We got awesome perks - prepaid gratuities (this is an 11 night cruise), dinner for 2 in specialty restaurant, spa credit, OBC. In our case it seems to be working out (we don't leave until Nov). We booked balcony guarantee and are happy with our cabin. The prices on our cruise have not gone down but up by more than $1000. per couple, so we had no concerns about missing out on any price reductions. We were told up front that if there was a price reduction and we took it that it would prob take away some of the perks. We thought it was worth the risk and so far no problems.

[jellyben]

Just booked through a warehouse store and got a $215 OBC. I feel comfortable booking though them because they have great customer service and their cancellation and price drop policies are in line with Royal's. Hope it works out for me! Super excited!

[Hobiecat01]

I've booked via a 3rd party vendor twice. We got a great price, OBC's, paid tips and even a specialty restaurant comp. However... Both times we had issues with what they said and what we got. The person you talk to on the phone IS NOT the person that actually books your cruise and works your bennies. Therefore I would strongly stress that you follow up a few days after booking to ensure you got what you expected. Otherwise they do a great job.

[dmdicato]

We used a travel agent once, but trying to coordinate our with a friend's reservation on the same cruise was disastrous. Now, we just do our own thing, doing our reservation directly through RCL

[blueclawfan]

A very popular travel site is offering $200 OBC if you book certain sailings on Royal Caribbean through March. I have always booked direct with the cruise line and am wondering if anyone has any opinions on this. I have used them before for hotels.

 

I used to book direct but now use on line travel site. Only drawback is changes wich they charge for and you may have to pay a cancellation fee even if its within the time you wouldn't normally be charged direct. Advantage OBC's and maybe some other perks thru on line. Your personal choice but though once weary of it do it most the time now. Never had a problem with what they said they would give.

[matj2000]

Isn't there another thread on this very subject going on right now??