Am I being petty?

[Jackytar]

Fine you keep paying those TAs the highest amount possible.They will love you! :) The rest of us will do business with the ones who appreciate our booking and keep more money in our pockets :)

 

My TA is professional about it, and long as they give me their best professional effort at a reasonable cost, I'll keep giving them my business. If they screw up, I'll take my custom elsewhere. I don't need a bottle of wine to know they appreciate my business.

 

As far as entitlement you have no clue who you are talking to ,I bust my hump to be able to cruise. Sixteen hour shifts (third into first) get harder in your mid fifties. I imagine lots of people here do the same.

Have a nice day!

Reader

 

You're right; I have no clue whom I'm talking to. All I know about you is what I see of you here on CC, and frankly you don't impress me that much.

 

You work sixteen-hour shifts? That's nice. I go to sea for five and six months at a time, away from my family. If you expect sympathy because you have to work so hard, guess again; you're not the only one. Both you and I can afford to cruise, which tells me neither of us is exactly living in abject poverty.

 

The OP asked if people thought they were being petty; I happen to think they are. You, apparently, think otherwise. The difference is I didn't jump on you for your opinion.

 

If my reply to you has damaged your delicate little feelings, here's a chit to see the padre.

[LMaxwell]

I love the puffery from people who overpay for things.

[sapete]

I have been using the same travel agent for years each year I have been booking a junior suite. Each year they usually send us a bottle of wine and strawberries. This year nada and I'm a bit upset, am I being Petty? Thinking of changing Travel Agents in the future am I overreacting?

Yes

[TC1957]

The more I think about this I have decided "petty" may be the wrong word. The TA used by the OP had clearly made it a business practice of thanking customers with a gift (at least those who book that level of cabin). Clearly something has changed. Maybe "concerned" would be a better word.

 

Let us examine the reasons why the gift was not received;

 

1) The cruise line lost the order.

2) The cruise line delivered the order to the wrong cabin.

3) The TA stopped giving the gift.

 

If it is either of the first two, the TA may or may not have been charged. Obvously they should not have to pay for something not delivered so the OP should ask the question. I feel fairly confident the TA would want to know.

 

If it is the last reason, I would be concerned. Is the agency having difficulties and are cutting cost that much? In my experience, the last place you cut cost is customer relations. Do they really think the best way to save money is to possibly anger loyal customers?

 

If they aren't having difficulties then do they simply not value my business as much as they have in the past? If that is the case I assure you I can stop being a bother to them. Rest assured another agency will gladly take the business.

 

The last possibility is that the TA simply forgot. While I am not sure how knowing that would make me feel it would be good to know. If they forgot again or didn't even apologize (when they now know it was important to the customer) then I would feel justified in moving the business if it continued to bother me.

[PoppyandNana]

I am glad that you have a TA that fulfills your needs. There are plenty of bad ones out there, so finding a good one IS worth something. But you seem to imply that I accept a lack of service by taking perks. I don't. I only require what I would label as minimal service. Whenever I do have requests or need something handled it is easy; I email my agent and within 24 hours whatever I needed was handled. In the event that I need something handled promptly and my agent is off I call and a manager will do it. I save a great deal of time over dealing direct with the cruise line, and I don't feel I am sacrificing quality of service.

 

This is a big box agency and generally I find service levels acceptable. If I needed something very complex or had a major issue I don't know that they would handle it any better or any worse than another agent would, but they are recommended by the cruise line and I've never had poor service. I do recommend my agent by name when questioned personally, and I know for a fact some of those people have used this agent and been pleased.

 

My point is, it is not necessarily a case of good service OR good perks. It doesn't HAVE to be one or the other. In the case of the OP a relatively trivial thing has made him/her question how good their TA is and in people answering that question have shown OP that in similar circumstances they are not just losing a bottle of cheap wine, they are leaving potentially hundreds of dollars on the table. In that way the TA may have done OP the biggest favor possible.

 

Assuming we are talking about cruising what would be an example of something very complex that only a TA could handle. I have been cruising for 25 years and can't think of anything that complex.

[Reader0108598]

My TA is professional about it, and long as they give me their best professional effort at a reasonable cost, I'll keep giving them my business. If they screw up, I'll take my custom elsewhere. I don't need a bottle of wine to know they appreciate my business.

 

 

 

You're right; I have no clue whom I'm talking to. All I know about you is what I see of you here on CC, and frankly you don't impress me that much.

 

You work sixteen-hour shifts? That's nice. I go to sea for five and six months at a time, away from my family. If you expect sympathy because you have to work so hard, guess again; you're not the only one. Both you and I can afford to cruise, which tells me neither of us is exactly living in abject poverty.

 

The OP asked if people thought they were being petty; I happen to think they are. You, apparently, think otherwise. The difference is I didn't jump on you for your opinion.

 

If my reply to you has damaged your delicate little feelings, here's a chit to see the padre.

 

 

:D:D:D:D:D MY MY Somone has his panties in a bunch!

 

BTW: Please do not flatter yourself you would have to do a lot more than hide behind a key board to hurt my feelings! :)

Edited June 3, 2014 by Reader0108598

[Alaskalovr]

I'm not sure what the proper behavior should have been and my apologies if you feel that you have been treated as a 6 year old. But as I said, I don’t think your question was the big deal, some folks like to get stuff off their chest. I wonder, were you prepared for the “yes you were petty” responses?

 

What I found interesting was that so many forum members agreed that you were not being petty. Let me present your question in a different way. The room steward did a very good job all week accept he never learned my name. Am I being petty by not tipping him for that one disservice?

 

Did the OP get the services they were promised? Is that a different situation? I don’t think so but the next time I read a thread where the responses are to cut the crew a little slack because they work hard, I will think of this thread.

 

Burt

It sounds like you are a little annoyed because your complaint was brushed aside. That really is one of the biggest problems, I think, with cruise critic. People on here are very verbal about their opinions and often start acting like their opinion is the only opinion and if you disagree with them then you are wrong. Sometimes you need to be able to wade through all of the negative comments , listen to anyone who actually makes sense and backs it up with a valid reason and then just decide for yourself what your opinion is. So what if they told you to suck it up when you complained about a drop in food quality. That doesn't mean they are right. Sometimes there is no actual wrong or right just chocolate and vanilla.

As far as this discussion goes, I look at it this way. Many Ta's give perks for returning customers. They "pay" for your loyalty. Yes, it makes it more difficult for small business owners etc. Is it your responsibility to support those smaller companies while you see others getting more perks? That is a decision that each person has to make for themselves. No one is wrong in their choice. Maybe the bigger companies aren't as hands on. So maybe your choice is a smaller company with less perks. That is also your decision. I could say worrying about a bottle of wine is petty. It's just a bottle of wine. Or is it? Maybe it is the principle. If it truly bothered this person enough to ask then maybe it's not petty. The point is that this thread has gotten nasty. I think everyone can voice their opinion without that. I am sorry that people on here blew off your complaint. I think it was a valid one. And that's strictly my opinion.

By the way, just to be clear I am not being sarcastic or mean or attacking.

[Reader0108598]

My apologies for my last post it was beneath me:( I Chalk it up to my first day back to work after a great vacation. I know no excuse.... I own it!

 

Reader

Edited June 3, 2014 by Reader0108598

[SparkleBee]

I don't get anything either... I tell the TA what I want and she books it. I would do it myself but my TA is a friend of mine so I let her handle my bookings. I think it's petty to expect a thank you gift and be pissed off about not getting one.

[LMaxwell]

I don't get anything either... I tell the TA what I want and she books it. I would do it myself but my TA is a friend of mine so I let her handle my bookings. I think it's petty to expect a thank you gift and be pissed off about not getting one.

 

In an industry where it is not uncommon to get $50 OBC for lowliest cabin on 3 night cruise, or 300-400 on a 10 night in any suite category, your friend is sharing nothing with you. Some "friend" indeed. I think it is petty of her not to thank you for your continued patronage.

[deedeetoo]

In an industry where it is not uncommon to get $50 OBC for lowliest cabin on 3 night cruise, or 300-400 on a 10 night in any suite category, your friend is sharing nothing with you. Some "friend" indeed. I think it is petty of her not to thank you for your continued patronage.

 

I agree. I don't think people realize how much money they are giving up. For me it has never been just a bottle of wine. It has been hundreds of $ in OBC. What other purchases do you make where you think that switching providers for hundreds in savings is being petty?

[Reader0108598]

I agree. I don't think people realize how much money they are giving up. For me it has never been just a bottle of wine. It has been hundreds of $ in OBC. What other purchases do you make where you think that switching providers for hundreds in savings is being petty?

 

 

Same here could care less about wine.... but that OBC well that's another story! Received so much OBC this time could use it all ,enough refunded to my CC card to pay for my Next cruise certs :)

Edited June 4, 2014 by Reader0108598

[Beachdude]

So what if they told you to suck it up when you complained about a drop in food quality. That doesn't mean they are right. Sometimes there is no actual wrong or right just chocolate and vanilla.

 

Good point and I think you are correct in this case as well. It wasn't that OPs original statement that motivated me to respond, it was the 2nd where she said that she needed to cool off. If she had just said, "You know, I have enjoyed that little perk, how should I handle it?", I wouldn't have given this thread a second look. But she was heated about it for a whole cruise. Compare that to all the post where cruisers are telling us that it's OK for cruise lines to cut services, well I admit the thread went over the top. I will try to do better.

 

I have seen other discussions where TA's in general were treated as very little respect, and I don't understand that at all. I don't see their work dishonorable. Makes no sense to me.

 

Burt

[Zou Bisou Bisou]

So in the grand scheme of things you will dump a reliable TA over a bottle of wine:rolleyes:

 

Or, in the grand scheme of things you would LOSE a reliable client rather than give them a bottle of wine. Same difference.