American agents for UK customers

[newparents]

I am hearing about UK passengers getting fab rates from US travel agents so my question is how do u find these agents, I have no clue where to start :confused:

I input all my details into a US travel website but could not go any further as I didn't have a zip code.

I know you cant recommend an agent but can you tell me how you found yours if its a US agent, thanks everyone :)

[setsail]

LOOK up top under find a cruise

http://www.cruisecritic.com/cruiseto/?src=nav

 

Then over to the right under angencies

[loubetti]

Did you look to see if they listed a phone number, and then called them up?

 

Don't you Brits have postal codes? Different than ours, but still..... Yeah, probably would not work!

 

As to finding one, well apparently you already did! Otherwise, go to Google and type in: cruise travel agent, and go through more than the first page of results. Put in different search criteria.

 

Here, I just found this, and it is from this web site!

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=62

 

Cheers! :)

[Guest maddycat]

You might get some help from your fellow Brits if you post on the CC UK board.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=682

[dadroy]

Supposedly, one of the drawbacks of booking with a U.S. company is you lose all the benefits of the travel laws of the EU.

 

For example, if you book flights, hotels and the cruise together, and your flight is delayed to where you miss the cruise, under U.S. laws you are out of luck. Under EU laws, ALL of your money would be refunded plus all charges, like the week of a hotel in Miami, plus food, would be paid for. You give up some rights when you book with a US company.

 

Now, if you want to risk it, you could contact a company like Post Office etc and rent a mailbox in the US. Use this as your mailing address for your reservation and DO NOT give a phone number. You can now book your cruise with a US address. You get more flexibility than booking through the UK site, but remember you give up certain protections.

 

In some cases, like when the volcano eruptions in Iceland stopped ALL international travel for a few days, you would lose your vacation with no money back if booked in the US. With a UK purchase, ALL YOUR MONEY would have been refunded.

 

As Clint Eastwood said, do you feel lucky?, Do you?:D

[abo]

Supposedly, one of the drawbacks of booking with a U.S. company is you lose all the benefits of the travel laws of the EU.

 

For example, if you book flights, hotels and the cruise together, and your flight is delayed to where you miss the cruise, under U.S. laws you are out of luck. Under EU laws, ALL of your money would be refunded plus all charges, like the week of a hotel in Miami, plus food, would be paid for. You give up some rights when you book with a US company.

 

Now, if you want to risk it, you could contact a company like Post Office etc and rent a mailbox in the US. Use this as your mailing address for your reservation and DO NOT give a phone number. You can now book your cruise with a US address. You get more flexibility than booking through the UK site, but remember you give up certain protections.

 

In some cases, like when the volcano eruptions in Iceland stopped ALL international travel for a few days, you would lose your vacation with no money back if booked in the US. With a UK purchase, ALL YOUR MONEY would have been refunded.

 

As Clint Eastwood said, do you feel lucky?, Do you?:D

 

 

I think there's a big misconception regarding this protection. Virtually all Brits booking through a US agent will be booking on a credit card and take travel insurance. (There's a popular misconception over here that travel insurance is compulsory, this hasn't been the case for many years, but taking insurance is still very much recommended here and the norm). Decent travel insurance will cover all the eventualities for delay, cancellation, etc (the cheapest policies will probably have too many gaps in cover). Your credit card protection will cover the travel company (i.e. RCI or the TA) going bust, which travel insurance often doesn't cover. Finally, even if you book your cruise through the US, booking your flights in the UK will usually give you ATOL cover, which was the cover that stepped in during the ash cloud fiasco, though not usually ABTA - just check you have ATOL cover when booking the flight.

 

So, if you do sensible research, and take reasonable precautions (make sure no hidden fees, monies are paid direct to RCI, etc) and the usual 'if something looks too good to be true it probably is' booking a holiday via a US agent should not be a case of 'feeling lucky'.

 

The biggest risk I see right now is the exchange rate, which is in the UK's favour currently. This is helping to make holidays priced in USD look good value, but will that still be the case when it comes to final payment?

 

In terms of finding a USTA I would suggest Google will bring up the usual suspects and there is a well know cruise price bidding web site that can act as an introducer. Find a few, ring them, email them work out which are offering good value and are responsive to your requests. You'll know when you've found the right one. There are plenty out there who will work with us Brits without a US address! If all else fails, next cruise you go on, ask fellow passengers. Those getting good service and value will always be happy to share their experience!

[Jeannie333333]

I think there's a big misconception regarding this protection. Virtually all Brits booking through a US agent will be booking on a credit card and take travel insurance. (There's a popular misconception over here that travel insurance is compulsory, this hasn't been the case for many years, but taking insurance is still very much recommended here and the norm). Decent travel insurance will cover all the eventualities for delay, cancellation, etc (the cheapest policies will probably have too many gaps in cover). Your credit card protection will cover the travel company (i.e. RCI or the TA) going bust, which travel insurance often doesn't cover. Finally, even if you book your cruise through the US, booking your flights in the UK will usually give you ATOL cover, which was the cover that stepped in during the ash cloud fiasco, though not usually ABTA - just check you have ATOL cover when booking the flight.

 

So, if you do sensible research, and take reasonable precautions (make sure no hidden fees, monies are paid direct to RCI, etc) and the usual 'if something looks too good to be true it probably is' booking a holiday via a US agent should not be a case of 'feeling lucky'.

 

The biggest risk I see right now is the exchange rate, which is in the UK's favour currently. This is helping to make holidays priced in USD look good value, but will that still be the case when it comes to final payment?

 

In terms of finding a USTA I would suggest Google will bring up the usual suspects and there is a well know cruise price bidding web site that can act as an introducer. Find a few, ring them, email them work out which are offering good value and are responsive to your requests. You'll know when you've found the right one. There are plenty out there who will work with us Brits without a US address! If all else fails, next cruise you go on, ask fellow passengers. Those getting good service and value will always be happy to share their experience!

 

 

Thank you - what you have written is correct and there is a misconception we get all our money back whatever the circs - which is just not correct.

I have for the first time booked a cruise through a US travel agent, and it feels so much more comfortable booking 18 months ahead knowing that if circumstances change we can cancel without loosing the deposit, will benefit from price drops etc....

To us the main concern is the fluctuation in exchange rates - but for the benefits its a minor worry :)

 

Jean

[Soulfish]

Another Brit that's using a US travel agent. We've actually booked around $100k worth of cabins for our group booking through a US travel agent, and benefiting from price drops and getting some very decent levels of OBC has been great.

 

As others have said, just make sure to use a credit card (Nationwide or Halifax CC are great as they have no foreign currency loading - check moneysavingexpert.com for others) so that the CC also becomes liable and you can recover money should the agent or cruise company go bust. Also make sure you have standard travel insurance and you should be good to go :)

[newparents]

Thankyou for all ur replies folks, defo something I I am going to look into :)