Book direct with cruise line or travel agent

[Cordelia]

Would be interested in how you book your cruises for the best rates, service, upgrades, etc. Cruise line direct or travel agent/booking agency

The one I used this yr. didn't do the job I expected based on other yrs.

Appreciate any suggestions

Hope to cruise more!:confused:

[Alsmez]

I have used a travel agent for every cruise I have booked - they have always been able to get me the same price as the cruise line, but with better perks (usually in the form of OBC). I see no reason to book directly with the cruise line, and plenty of reasons not to.

[fleckle]

Would be interested in how you book your cruises for the best rates, service, upgrades, etc. Cruise line direct or travel agent/booking agency

The one I used this yr. didn't do the job I expected based on other yrs.

Appreciate any suggestions

Hope to cruise more!:confused:

Some like to book direct; some like to us a travel agent; and some of us like to use a combination of both.

 

See a good discussion of this subject in previous thread at

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1583565

 

 

[Fouremco]

I do a lot of research myself, but use a TA for the booking. That's worked well for me so far. If you weren't happy with your TA, hunt for a better one.

 

[iancal]

We do the work ourselves so we only need someone to book it.

 

We use an on line TA, have done for some time. She rebates us back anywhere from 8-12 percent of the commissionable fare in the form of OBC'c.

 

So for us, that is like getting a free cruise for every nine or ten we take. Certainly better than Celebrity's Elite perks!

Edited November 6, 2013 by iancal

[OCruisers]

I do a lot of research myself, but use a TA for the booking. That's worked well for me so far. If you weren't happy with your TA, hunt for a better one.

 

---------------

Same here! I simply tell our long time TA what we want and she books it for us and deals with any issues that may happen.

We do NOT lose control of our cruise. Either she are one of her partners are always available to make any changes for us promptly.

 

While we do get OBC & gifts from her, that's not the reason. We like having her deal with the cruise line. Also, we like the insurance she sets up for us with the same coverage as the cruise line but less expensive.

 

LuLu

~~~~

[phoenix_dream]

We used to always book onboard, but stopped doing that with all the sales that required 'new bookings'. Then we booked online, but saw TA's offering a lot of extra perks. Now we usually use a large online TA but there are disadvantages. Primary are two: An extra cancellation charge if we needed to do that, and most important - the inability of this particular TA to be available on week-ends. Sometimes special prices or rooms come available on the week-end and we want to grab them but have to take a chance and wait until Monday or lose all the extra perks. Very frustrating. Land based TAs are usually available at least on Saturday mornings, but few offer the same kind of deals as the online TA's.

[Zubsin]

I always book directly with the cruiseline and 99.99% of the time on their website. For CCL and RCL I have shares of company stock so can get the OBC on any of their related cruiselines. Once and a while I see a couple more dollars offered by a TA then what I can get but never enough to entice me. I never have had a problem booking directly and can't even imagine the down side.

Edited November 6, 2013 by Zubsin

[RealDeal]

We used to always book onboard, but stopped doing that with all the sales that required 'new bookings'. Then we booked online, but saw TA's offering a lot of extra perks. Now we usually use a large online TA but there are disadvantages. Primary are two: An extra cancellation charge if we needed to do that, and most important - the inability of this particular TA to be available on week-ends. Sometimes special prices or rooms come available on the week-end and we want to grab them but have to take a chance and wait until Monday or lose all the extra perks. Very frustrating. Land based TAs are usually available at least on Saturday mornings, but few offer the same kind of deals as the online TA's.

 

I think I know the agency you're talking about & you might want to shop around. I won't book with them anymore for the reasons you mentioned, particularly the cancellation charge, which I think is $50pp even if before FP. I use an online TA & they have no cancellation charge, have very nice amenity offers, and are open on Saturdays....and it's not a nightmare trying to actually speak with your agent!

[junetraveler2014]

Hi, we always use a local TA. We use the one most informed for cruising. Reason: we cruised on the Zenith to Bermuda from NY Sept 8, 2001. 911 happened, and although we finished our cruise we ended up in Baltimore with no way home. Called our TA from the ship, she made all the arrangements, we were home 6 hours later. Never know, so we want someone that knows us and will work for us and we always get her when we call. Hope this helps.

[Kim in CA]

Is it against Cruise Critic rules to name here specific online Travel Agents that people are happy with? I would be very interested in some recommendations. We just booked directly with Celebrity, and although we got a sale price, we didn't get an OBC or other perks, so I should probably check around a bit.

 

Thanks in advance for any recommendations.

 

Kim

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

It is against Cruise Critic rules to name any specific travel agencies.

 

I use a local agent. I've used her for years and have been very happy with her services. I tell her what I want, including what cabin. She deals with Celebrity when they screw up. I don't have to spend time on the phone with the Captain's Club or whoever. I could probably get a few $$ more OBC by using one of the big online agencies, but I like having someone who knows me and is in my corner.

 

Example: on my upcoming Reflection cruise, unable to access shore excursions or even sign up for the connections party. I rarely book Celebrity shore excursions, but there are several in St. Thomas which ferry you to St. John. Better than taking a cab to and from Red Hook to catch the ferry. According to the roll call, those excursions were filling up fast (obviously before Celebrity decided to launch its "new and improved" website). My TA was able to get us booked. I did not have to spend time on the phone with Celebrity. That's worth a lot in my book.

[Lsimon]

Is it against Cruise Critic rules to name here specific online Travel Agents that people are happy with?...

 

Yes. Cruise Critic is supported by advertising, including a few travel agents, so they generally do not allow TA's to be named in posts and they also do not allow links to web sites of TA's or travel web sites that might be considered as competing with Cruise Critic for travel advertising.

[Kim in CA]

Is it possible to send people private messages like you can on tripadvisor?

[mahdnc]

Would be interested in how you book your cruises for the best rates, service, upgrades, etc. Cruise line direct or travel agent/booking agency

 

We do the research ourselves, but in the end we use a cruise travel agent to do the actual booking for several reasons.

 

First we sometimes get a lower cruise fare (vs booking on-line with Celebrity).

 

Secondly, we get some money back in the form of pre-paid gratuities and/or OBC above and beyond what you can get by booking on-line with Celebrity.

 

Thirdly, after we book, this agent watches for price drops and new promotions and has helped us take advantage of them to save more money.

 

Finally, we have been booking the family cabins and you cannot book them on-line very far in advance--if at all (requires a phone call to Celebrity if you don't want to use an agent to book the FV).

[Lois R]

Is it possible to send people private messages like you can on tripadvisor?

 

Hi Kim, nope it is not possible. The PM feature does not work.

 

My suggestion is to search around your area (city, town) where you

live. Talk to a few travel agencies that you can see live in person. See

how it goes....if you get a good vibe and feel comfortable with them.

It is your $$$....find someone that specializes in cruising.

[attilamom1217]

We use a TA. We can book online or call directly. We not only get OBC from the TA, we also get a discount on our travel insurance. We also get whatever promotions the cruise line is offering - so it is a win-win situation using the TA. We get a good deal and the TA gets a commission!!

 

We did have a problem on one our cruises in the past. Those who used a TA were able to get a nice coupon for a future cruise (we got $200/person); while friends of ours who booked through the cruise line got only $50/person. Our TA was able to bundle the letters of complaint and forward them to the cruise line - the old adage - safety in numbers! Too many unhappy cruisers is not good for business.

[Sailawaytoday]

We always leave the ship with a reservation for our next cruise. We are able to get the "best pricing" at the time of booking, deposits are often less, and we get an onboard credit. The reservation is automatically switched to our travel agent (a brick and mortar agent not in our geographic area who has a large online presense) , who rebates part of the commission as OBC, gratuities or some other amenity depending on the value of the booking.

 

We monitor the pricing up to final payment, and if something better comes along, we switch. Sometimes we lose our Celebrity credit, sometimes not. We've never lost our cabin selection.

 

There is never any harm by booking onboard as a starting point. I'd say the times we've reworked our reservation after the fact is more than 50-50, but we've only been helped by the initial booking.

[Anubi]

We always use a travel agent. I'll book the air, hotels, transfers, etc., myself but I prefer to have a travel agent between me and the cruise line.

However, that being said, when I mentioned to her that we were looking for a hotel for the night before our early morning flight, she was able to get us a great hotel for the night with 16 days of parking included for FAR less than what the parking alone would have cost. That kind of service is why we use a travel agent. :)

[varoo]

It is a matter of tradeoffs.

 

You lose control of your reservation when you give it to a travel agent and must rely on the TA to make changes and payments for you as you are no longer able do it yourself.

 

Your payment information even disappears from your own Celebrity account because the TA essentially "owns" the reservation.

 

 

I was just comparing two cruises that we have booked:

- one that we booked ourselves and did not transfer to a TA,

- the other one where we are using a TA.

 

Looking at the reservation that we control ourselves, it displays

our payment summary as well as the payment details.

We can see all our payment information, as well as the timetable and charges for cancellations.

 

We can make a payment or cancel the reservation.

We can add or update guests and change our dining preferences.

We can edit Family and Friends to link reservations.

 

 

On the reservation booked through the TA, we can't do any of these things.

 

We can't even see our own payment information on our account.

We must contact the TA each time and ask the TA to make the changes or payments for us.

If the TA is not immediately available, it means leaving voice mail messages or sending emails back and forth.

 

So if you are wondering why we even bother to use a TA, it is for the perks we get from the TA that we would not get otherwise.

 

When a TA does not offer significant perks (as sometimes happens with the last minute deeply discounted closeout prices), we don't bother to use a TA at all.

But when booking the higher priced cabins, or multiple cabins, we find that they make it very worthwhile to give them our business.

 

Still, it always pays to check because sometimes they will offer nice perks even on the last minute discounts, or offer discounted prices that do not show up on the cruise line's own site.

 

[SPacificbound]

We never use a travel agent regardless of the length of the trip, be it land or sea. The planning is half the fun, plus we have control, not a travel agent.

Edited November 8, 2013 by SPacificbound

[publicpersona]

I recommend to those who have never cruised to use a brick and mortar travel agency who can listen to your particular desires and choose the right cruise line/ship/itinerary for them.

 

We about to take cruise #40, so we know more about the cruises appropriate for us than any travel agent could possibly know. We book through an online agency to get a few $$$ OBC. The bottom line cruise price is all I care about.

[happycat Bainbridge Is]

I always look at all the websites that give pricing information and then call a TA -- I have always ended up getting the same price as the best website or online deal, but I also have gotten some nice other perks, like OBC, paid gratuities -- and most recently, a heads up on the 1-2-3 perk about to be offered -- she re-booked and got us the free drink packages and the same great price. It was a pretty great deal.

[chisoxfan]

I have been very dissapointed in the quality of info and service from the three or four travel agents I have tried. One in particular was a locally well known 'high end' TA who specialized in cruises. The info available on this forum simply trumps that of most agents and oftentimes the cruise reps themselves who are often uniformed. That said we have booked our last four cruises using a well known warehouse club. There prices are excellent and transparent, service is good, and a little known but huge benefit is the super competitive and flexible insurance they offer. If I was booking a cruise far out I would probably book with the cruiseline getting OBC and cabin I preffered and transfer to warehouse club closer to cruise. We did this on our last cruise and had 625 in OBC and saved approx. 500 on the base cruise fare upon transfer. JMHO as I know there is no 'right' answer to this question.

[ghstudio]

I have been very dissapointed in the quality of info and service from the three or four travel agents I have tried. One in particular was a locally well known 'high end' TA who specialized in cruises. The info available on this forum simply trumps that of most agents and oftentimes the cruise reps themselves who are often uniformed. That said we have booked our last four cruises using a well known warehouse club. There prices are excellent and transparent, service is good, and a little known but huge benefit is the super competitive and flexible insurance they offer. If I was booking a cruise far out I would probably book with the cruiseline getting OBC and cabin I preffered and transfer to warehouse club closer to cruise. We did this on our last cruise and had 625 in OBC and saved approx. 500 on the base cruise fare upon transfer. JMHO as I know there is no 'right' answer to this question.

 

Celebrity only allows you to transfer a booking for 60 days after you book.