Cruise Line match Agent's Quote?

[Ahsndpro]

Hello:

 

I booked a cruise with Celebrity earlier this month and was told that if the fare changes, they will adjust accordingly. I have since discovered that travel agents are willing to offer me both a lower fare and OBC. If I show this to Celebrity, will they match? Or do I have to transfer the reservation to the agent?

 

Thanks.

[Cruise Raider]

Hello:

 

I booked a cruise with Celebrity earlier this month and was told that if the fare changes, they will adjust accordingly. I have since discovered that travel agents are willing to offer me both a lower fare and OBC. If I show this to Celebrity, will they match? Or do I have to transfer the reservation to the agent?

 

Thanks.

 

Sometimes they will, sometimes they will not. I called once to transfer my reservation to a travel agent and the guy down at Celebrity asked what he could do for me to keep me from transferring it. He matched everything and was so glad to keep the reservation down at Celebrity....I just felt there was much more flexibility with managing my booking. I have had the exact opposite happen where they have refused to match what a TA would give ... even had one guy hang up on me for asking. That was certainly rude! Only one way to find out ... call up and ask.

There is a limited time you have to transfer the reservation so if you are wanting to do that -- keep this in mind. It is either 30 or 60 days.

[az_tchr]

Hello:

 

I booked a cruise with Celebrity earlier this month and was told that if the fare changes, they will adjust accordingly. I have since discovered that travel agents are willing to offer me both a lower fare and OBC. If I show this to Celebrity, will they match? Or do I have to transfer the reservation to the agent?

 

Thanks.

NO. Celebrity wilL match the fare. Any OBC is out of the AGENTS COMMISSION

[snowmc]

You have 60 days from booking to transfer to a travel agent. Celebrity doesn't care where you book or with whom. They still get the cruise fare and just want you onboard.

[Dunmore2]

You have 60 days from booking to transfer to a travel agent. Celebrity doesn't care where you book or with whom. They still get the cruise fare and just want you onboard.

 

That's exactly what Celebrity said, although it was 10 months after booking.

[FlorenceItaly]

That's exactly what Celebrity said, although it was 10 months after booking.

 

Interesting! Was it the original reservation? I booked a cruise on board, but, later changed the date through Celebrity. I did not transfer original reservation to TA, but, Celebrity let me transfer to TA since it was within 60 days of the changed cruise. I hope this makes sense, lol.

[Dunmore2]

Yes it was. We had booked onboard last April.

[DrivesLikeMario]

You have 60 days from booking to transfer to a travel agent. Celebrity doesn't care where you book or with whom. They still get the cruise fare and just want you onboard.

 

That's not really the case. Celebrity would much rather you book through them because then they don't have to pay out any commission to a travel agent.

 

Just remember that when you book through them, your vacation going off well is not really their number one priority. With a TA, it is. ;)

[ghstudio]

Our experience when we called celebrity to change our fare to the one shown on their own web page (within 60 days of booking and before final payment) as that they said "oh, that's a travel agent only fare". Yup....that's almost a direct quote. Celebrity's own web site was showing a travel agent only fare. They said the price I paid was still the "official price" for the cabin.

 

We don't waste our time now trying to deal directly with Celebrity after that fiasco....we just work with a TA.

[12thAggie]

I would love some pointers on finding a good and reliable agent that specializes in cruises.

[cruisestitch]

We are not allowed to recommend specific travel agencies on Cruise Critic.

 

Some general printers would be to talk to friends and family and to check the BBB in your town to make sure there are no long-term problems with an agency.

[12thAggie]

We are not allowed to recommend specific travel agencies on Cruise Critic.

 

Some general printers would be to talk to friends and family and to check the BBB in your town to make sure there are no long-term problems with an agency.

 

Thanks. I understood that folks couldn't recommend actual agents. I was hoping for things like what to look for..... what questions to ask..... LOL what answers they should have...... what makes one agent good and another not so much. That sort of thing.

[Wine-O]

Thanks. I understood that folks couldn't recommend actual agents. I was hoping for things like what to look for..... what questions to ask..... LOL what answers they should have...... what makes one agent good and another not so much. That sort of thing.

 

Look for one that doesn't charge a cancellation fee. Also, one that will give you OBC or free gratuities equal to about 10% of your cruise fare before taxes & port charges are added. The Celebrity price quoted on their website includes tax, then they add on the port charges. You have to separate the tax from the cruise price to figure out the % of OBC.

 

Find an agent that works on weekends so you can service your reservation if needed.

 

Hope that helps.

[Luvcrusn]

Hello:

 

I booked a cruise with Celebrity earlier this month and was told that if the fare changes, they will adjust accordingly. I have since discovered that travel agents are willing to offer me both a lower fare and OBC. If I show this to Celebrity, will they match? Or do I have to transfer the reservation to the agent?

 

Thanks.

 

I always check both, and on the occasion that X was more expensive than the TA or offered fewer perks (every time), they told me to book with the TA and so we did and always have gotten what was promised by the TA. It seems that X allows its preferred partners more leeway to offer incentives than it offers itself. Seems backwards to me, but whatever the best deal is, I'm all over it. The way I figure is I'm getting on the same ship, same cabin, same itinerary, so why pay more that the next guest? I'll take the lower fare and more perks thank you very much! And X is still making money as is the TA. Win, Win, Win

[Luvcrusn]

I would love some pointers on finding a good and reliable agent that specializes in cruises.

 

While I know we are not allowed to name TA's we've always used one who often is sponsoring X cruises on the cruise critic website's weekly 25 best cruise deal emails. If you check those out you'll find them. Sometimes they even sponsor the whole email. The one we use is open on Sat., not Sunday, but when you are travelling, they do have contact number for day of travel problems.

[insidecabin]

The cruise lines are not in a position to compete with the travel industry yet.

 

They still need the volume business from 3rd parties that take the consumer heat and problems away from the cruise lines.

 

You might get the odd agent that undercuts a TA but that will be rare and the cruise lines need to be able to dump capacity without broadcasting it all over their own web sites.

 

That why you get packaged deals, deals only through one TA or a separate region(say UK not US) or just a single state.

 

RCCL had the potential to go direct with Azamara cutting out the middle, promoting direct through the X and RCI fleet and and promoting to the loyalty clubs.

 

TWO small ships should have been easy to fill from those sailing other RCCL brands

 

The risk was TA's would have lost some of the big spenders and potentially shun the group.

 

I think it will be a long time before we see the cruise lines competing on the TA turf.

[cruise101]

While I know we are not allowed to name TA's we've always used one who often is sponsoring X cruises on the cruise critic website's weekly 25 best cruise deal emails. If you check those out you'll find them. Sometimes they even sponsor the whole email. The one we use is open on Sat., not Sunday, but when you are travelling, they do have contact number for day of travel problems.

 

I apologise in advance for my ignorance, but can you please guide me as to how one can sign up or where one can find "cruise critic website's weekly 25 best cruise deal emails". Thanks in advance.

[deliver42]

I've had it happrn once where a TA was giving a lower price. While X wouldn't change the price, they did give me $200.00 additional OBC.

[Luvcrusn]

I apologise in advance for my ignorance, but can you please guide me as to how one can sign up or where one can find "cruise critic website's weekly 25 best cruise deal emails". Thanks in advance.

 

Go to the ropes of this page . In the yellow strip where you see user cp, faq... you'll see free e-letter, click on it and sign up.you'll get lots of helpful Info.

[12thAggie]

while i know we are not allowed to name ta's we've always used one who often is sponsoring x cruises on the cruise critic website's weekly 25 best cruise deal emails. If you check those out you'll find them. Sometimes they even sponsor the whole email. The one we use is open on sat., not sunday, but when you are travelling, they do have contact number for day of travel problems.

 

thnak you

[Luvcrusn]

e

thnak you

 

The one we use is based in new Hampshire. They are awesome. Good luck:)

[BosoxI]

Sometimes they will, sometimes they will not. I called once to transfer my reservation to a travel agent and the guy down at Celebrity asked what he could do for me to keep me from transferring it. He matched everything and was so glad to keep the reservation down at Celebrity.

 

That's what happened with me. I was interested in listing directly with Celebrity but asked if I could transfer the booking to an agent who would give me OBCs. He asked how much and could I send him the agent's offer. I did and he came within $25 of matching it. Good enough for me.

[royalcruz]

If you see a lower TA price with some OBC it might be because they have a group cruise on that sailing. Celebrity allows agents to book non-named groups in advance to lock in low rates, with points for perks like OBC.

[bphman]

I used to book directly with the cruise lines until I found out how much I was losing by doing that. I went through a few major on-line agencies and had good luck with two. The latest one I have I love and has always treated me right. Although her company has a cancellation fee, she has never charged me. That is one of the reasons I keep returning to her. And she knows it. Love my Patti.

[Host Walt]

Our guidelines prohibit any TA referrals.

 

For ideas on finding a cruise travel agent, here's a Cruise Critic article that may help:

 

Finding a Cruise Travel Agent