Booking directly with Princess or use TA

[riclop]

I no longer have a TA they went south. Do you think I would get the

same deal with Princess, or should I start to look for a TA?

 

Thank you in advance:

 

Just find the right TA and compare.

[Hlitner]

We have never understood why some folks are happy to pay 7-10% more (or even more) for their cruise by booking directly with a cruise line. But as a happy stockholder we encourage everyone to please book direct with the line and spend lots of money for everything...once aboard the ship. But seriously, when we book long cruises we have often saved thousands of dollars by shopping for the best deal among our favored cruise agencies. On shorter cruises our savings might only be a few hundred dollars....but we prefer having that money rather then giving it away to the cruise line.

 

Hank

Edited October 24, 2016 by Hlitner

[GUT2407]

We have never understood why some folks are happy to pay 7-10% more (or even more) for their cruise by booking directly with a cruise line. But as a happy stockholder we encourage everyone to please book direct with the line and spend lots of money for everything...once aboard the ship. But seriously, when we book long cruises we have often saved thousands of dollars by shopping for the best deal among our favored cruise agencies. On shorter cruises our savings might only be a few hundred dollars....but we prefer having that money rather then giving it away to the cruise line.

 

Hank

 

In my case, because no agent here offers a 7-10% discount.

[Grego]

Exactly. My TA is my advocate and has a direct contact at Princess above any Princess rep or PVP. When you book directly, their first loyalty is with the company, not you. Plus, almost none of them have ever been on a ship. It's astonishing and disturbing how much misinformation has been posted on CC by someone quoting their Princess rep or PVP.

 

I guess there is always an exception to the rule. Our PVP has gone to bat for us to get things right and communicates with us frequently before we sail after checking on rate changes or other booking perks. She sails frequently and has recommendations based upon her experience that has proved very helpful. Yeah, maybe we could save money with a TA, but currently we get Casino discount which saves us more than what has been quoted above and I doubt a TA could give us more in addition to that. If we ever lose that discount I will write you privately and check out your TA.

[cruzsnooze]

I don't like a middle man. If I call Princess to take advantage of a price reduction ot change to a better cabin I want them to be able to deal with me. If I get an upsell offer that is not during a TA"s office hours it will be gone by the time they get to me which is the biggest reason to deal direct.

[azbirdmom]

I guess there is always an exception to the rule. Our PVP has gone to bat for us to get things right and communicates with us frequently before we sail after checking on rate changes or other booking perks. She sails frequently and has recommendations based upon her experience that has proved very helpful. Yeah, maybe we could save money with a TA, but currently we get Casino discount which saves us more than what has been quoted above and I doubt a TA could give us more in addition to that. If we ever lose that discount I will write you privately and check out your TA.

 

You will still get the casino discount through the TA in addition to their discounts and OBC that a good one will be able to offer. You might want to price check your next cruise just to ensure you are getting the best deal.

[RocketMan275]

I don't like a middle man. If I call Princess to take advantage of a price reduction ot change to a better cabin I want them to be able to deal with me. If I get an upsell offer that is not during a TA"s office hours it will be gone by the time they get to me which is the biggest reason to deal direct.

 

That's fine but you're giving up a 10-20% discount from the fare you're paying Princess when you book directly. Ten to twenty percent every time you book a cruise. How often do you get a 10-20% price drop?

[rgmacm]

Every time there's a thread about TA vs. PVP, I read it....coming back several times for updates. This is a question I've had for YEARS and never felt like I came upon a definitive answer...perhaps because there isn't one. ?? ;)

Anyway....WHERE are you guys finding these TA's who discount? We are members of a well known Automobile Assoc. that gives discounts to lots of places/travel, etc.. I check with them every time we book a cruise. She's never able to beat the price I've gotten directly with Princess. If the price is the same, I'd rather have the ability to contact the Line myself when I need to (I don't like the middle-man phenomena unless I'm getting a value that makes the headache worth it) We buy our travel insurance through her, but haven't purchased a cruise through her since our first cruise.

However.... I'm not apposed to the idea if I could find a TA offering value with minimal headache...

 

So...where are you finding these good TA's?? (Feel free to private message me...)

Edited October 24, 2016 by rgmacm

[RocketMan275]

Every time there's a thread about TA vs. PVP, I read it....coming back several times for updates. This is a question I've had for YEARS and never felt like I came upon a definitive answer...perhaps because there isn't one. ?? ;)

Anyway....WHERE are you guys finding these TA's who discount? We are members of a well known Automobile Assoc. that gives discounts to lots of places/travel, etc.. I check with them every time we book a cruise. She's never able to beat the price I've gotten directly with Princess. If the price is the same, I'd rather have the ability to contact the Line myself when I need to (I don't like the middle-man phenomena unless I'm getting a value that makes the headache worth it) We buy our travel insurance through her, but haven't purchased a cruise through her since our first cruise.

However.... I'm not apposed to the idea if I could find a TA offering value with minimal headache...

 

So...where are you finding these good TA's?? (Feel free to private message me...)

 

I wish I could share that information with you. However, the posting guidelines are very clear:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/faq.php?faq=guidelines#faq_recommendagents

 

You can lose your posting privileges for providing specific recommendations or even for asking for recommendations. BTW, I don't think the PM function works.

 

I can only give you some general suggestions. Ask your friends. Ask people on your next cruise. Watch carefully these topics. Sometimes someone will post that kind of information.

 

Check with the organizations you're affiliated with. Like the Auto Association. Are you a member of a big box discount store?

 

Call various TA. Doing internet searches are useless. Princess forbids travel agents to advertise prices lower than what Princess charges. You'll have to call the TA and ask. Consider it an interview. Ask about their change policies. Do they charge for cancellations or changes to bookings? Do they charge your credit card? Do they offer discounts. If you don't get the right answers, then hang up and call again.

 

Do your home work before you call. Have a specific cruise (date, line, ship) in mind. No what the cruise line will charge you so you can make a realistic decision.

 

I can assure you that you can get 10-20% discounts if you find the right TA.

[Hlitner]

In my case, because no agent here offers a 7-10% discount.

 

Yeah, the situation for Aussies is not good. We have a dear friend from Cairns who cruises many months a year (mostly on HAL) and has learned how to beat the messed-up Aussie system. He uses a Canadian address (he has friends from a previous cruise that live at that house) to do all of his bookings. Hence, he can take advantage of all the deals and benefits of booking in North America. HAL has a specific policy that prohibits Aussies from booking through a US or Canadian agency (not a problem when he uses the Canadian address). If Princess has a similar policy you just need a friend over here :).

 

Hank

[Hlitner]

We would add a few comments to the previous excellent post by Rocketman. The internet is a great tool to find high volume reputable cruise agencies. Develop your own "short list" of agencies (we like to work with 4 agencies) based on what you see online...and after doing some searches for due diligence. And its always a good idea to check out any agency on the Better Business Bureau data base (this is free and fast) which is not perfect...but will often give you an idea if an agency has a bad history. Look for agencies that are CLIA members and there are other designations like IATA (able to deal with International Airlines), ASTA, etc. that tend to mean you are dealing with a real agency :). We also prefer agencies that have good search engines (on their web site) which let us search for various cruises, cruise lines, etc.

 

Once you settle on 1 or more agencies make sure you read their policies (usually online) regarding issues like their business hours, cancellation policies (and possible fees), etc. As Rocketman says, agencies are often prohibited from advertising (even on their own web site) many of their best deals. However, most will allow you to register your e-mail where they can send special deals/offers. If you don't want to get too many e-mails, just set up another free e-mail account with somebody like Google, yahoo, hotmail, etc....and use that for your cruise related e-mails.

 

We book a lot of cruises (103 days on ships in just 2016) so quickly find who we like and agencies which do not ever have good prices or great service. Once an agency gets on our bad side....they are history :). And the opposite is also true. Of the 4 agencies I currently utilize for pricing and bookings, 2 of them have been among my favorites for over fifteen years (one goes back over 25 years).

 

Hank

[Colo Cruiser]

I will take my excellent TA and the 10-20% discount off Princess fares with some OBC thrown in.

[Happy2cruise]

Disregard, my suggestion already given by someone

Edited October 24, 2016 by Happy2cruise

[cruzsnooze]

Several years ago a TA my folks booked with went out of business after final payment and had not paid the cruise line. You can loose your money with a TA so check make sure they are insured.

[Coral]

Several years ago a TA my folks booked with went out of business after final payment and had not paid the cruise line. You can loose your money with a TA so check make sure they are insured.

 

I don't worry about this as my TA runs the credit card charges through the cruise line. My credit card statements say "Princess cruises" and not "Travel Agent Name".

 

Sorry about your folks experience.

[Hlitner]

Several years ago a TA my folks booked with went out of business after final payment and had not paid the cruise line. You can loose your money with a TA so check make sure they are insured.

 

Total baloney! And we know first hand. Most folks (unless they are fools) pay for cruises with a major credit card. When Regency Cruise Lines went bankrupt with nearly $4000 of my money, I heard about it on the radio while sitting at my desk at work. I simply picked up my phone and called my credit card company (AMEX) who immediately credited back all of my money (I later signed a release so they could try to recover their loses in bankruptcy court). It made no difference whether it was booked with a TA or the cruise line as the cruise line went belly up. And if an agency went bankrupt with our money (unlikely since our payments to agencies flow through to the cruise lines within seconds) we would simply "dispute" the charge with our credit card company (and it works with any major credit card company per US federal law) and the money would immediately be credited back to my account.

 

 

Hank

Edited October 25, 2016 by Hlitner

[RocketMan275]

Total baloney! And we know first hand. Most folks (unless they are fools) pay for cruises with a major credit card. When Regency Cruise Lines went bankrupt with nearly $4000 of my money, I heard about it on the radio while sitting at my desk at work. I simply picked up my phone and called my credit card company (AMEX) who immediately credited back all of my money (I later signed a release so they could try to recover their loses in bankruptcy court). It made no difference whether it was booked with a TA or the cruise line as the cruise line went belly up. And if an agency went bankrupt with our money (unlikely since our payments to agencies flow through to the cruise lines within seconds) we would simply "dispute" the charge with our credit card company (and it works with any major credit card company per US federal law) and the money would immediately be credited back to my account.

 

 

Hank

 

Baloney is probably too strong a term. Perhaps they didn't use a credit card but paid the TA with a check? I know, not a good idea but if this was an older couple several years ago dealing with a local agent? It could happen.

[Hlitner]

Baloney is probably too strong a term. Perhaps they didn't use a credit card but paid the TA with a check? I know, not a good idea but if this was an older couple several years ago dealing with a local agent? It could happen.

 

If they paid with cash then they got what they deserve! Don't get me wrong because we have been known to do even crazier things (like paying for a 1 week apartment rental in France via Western Union)...but we understand the ramifications and are willing to accept the risk. But we happen to live in a country where our government actually did something right (and it is a very rare thing when that happens) which is put the risk on major credit card companies. If folks do not avail themselves of that very inexpensive insurance (i.e. use a major credit card) then yes, they should book directly with a cruise line...and pay more money! And if the cruise line goes bankrupt (like Regency, Renaissance and others) they will still lose their cash! And if the cruise line does fine (they usually do) then our friends will be out the money they would have saved using a decent cruise/travel agent. On the other hand, if they are parting with their money that easily...perhaps they cannot even get a credit card :).

 

Hank

Edited October 25, 2016 by Hlitner

[Krozulo]

I booked through a big box retail TA. I didn't save any money on the cruise, but they offered a bunch of OBC so I'll save that eventually. I did all the work - figured out the specific cabins I wanted, called them on the phone to book and walked them through how to book it (for some reason you couldn't select the deck, but you could type in the cabin number), but they still couldn't figure it out so I booked online anyway as there was no advantage to talking to them on the phone. I don't feel like I gave up any "control" as I did everything myself. I guess I'll find out what happens if there's a price drop worth switching to later.

[Happy2cruise]

I don't worry about this as my TA runs the credit card charges through the cruise line. My credit card statements say "Princess cruises" and not "Travel Agent Name".

 

Sorry about your folks experience.

Our does the same thing. I would ask about this before booking with any TA you have not done business with yet;)

[Msail]

The problem is finding a good T/A we've tried a couple different ones they suck so we book direct and it works for us .

 

Sent from my SM-G928V using Forums mobile app

[pris993]

The problem is finding a good T/A we've tried a couple different ones they suck so we book direct and it works for us .

 

Sent from my SM-G928V using Forums mobile app

 

I agree, finding a good ta is not easy. We used TAs for years...live near San Francisco... in bay area.. there are lots of TAs but most don't do very much for travelers today...at least the ones we have used in the past. So we have started booking ourselves and are very happy doing so.

 

Ref the comment about folks losing money, when we first started cruising in l980s cruise lines did not take credit cards and we did book with TAs paying cash....was happy when we could used a credit card.... the internet has made it easy to be ones own TA... I research cruises, hotels, air - insurance you name it -- if you have time you can do it all yourself fairly easily. After 30 years of travel and cruising we know what we want and can find it.

[4cats4me]

Total baloney! And we know first hand. Most folks (unless they are fools) pay for cruises with a major credit card. When Regency Cruise Lines went bankrupt with nearly $4000 of my money, I heard about it on the radio while sitting at my desk at work. I simply picked up my phone and called my credit card company (AMEX) who immediately credited back all of my money (I later signed a release so they could try to recover their loses in bankruptcy court). It made no difference whether it was booked with a TA or the cruise line as the cruise line went belly up. And if an agency went bankrupt with our money (unlikely since our payments to agencies flow through to the cruise lines within seconds) we would simply "dispute" the charge with our credit card company (and it works with any major credit card company per US federal law) and the money would immediately be credited back to my account.

 

 

Hank

 

 

 

Respectfully, and sadly, this happened a lot back in the 1990s. I worked on several travel agency cases in court where unwitting people had tendered payment, in good faith, to the local travel agencies involved, trusted that the agents had deposited the money into the proper repositories, and many, many times some of the smaller agencies that were on the fence would use some people's money to cover other things. Back in the 1990s many of us wrote checks for deposits, ET cet, my parents, myself included.

We were never scammed but I learned a lot working in court and met many dozens of people who had lost money

The agencies were not distributing funds appropriately.

In my town a "reputable" longtime agency ended up with its doors chained and the owners had disappeared .... That was around 1997-98

We are all smarter now and realize the importance of securing everything with s credit card, and thanks to the Internet we can also check to make sure that funds have been deposited properly.

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[jasmith52]

That's fine but you're giving up a 10-20% discount from the fare you're paying Princess when you book directly. Ten to twenty percent every time you book a cruise. How often do you get a 10-20% price drop?

 

Sometimes when cruises aren't selling well, the lines will give blocks of rooms or volume based discounts to certain agencies to move them. If you can hook up with them you can (sometimes) get a whopper deal.

 

In those cases the discounts can be much much larger than your 10-20%. And all the while the cruise-line can have their normal prices.

Edited October 26, 2016 by jasmith52

[RocketMan275]

Sometimes when cruises aren't selling well, the lines will give blocks of rooms or volume based discounts to certain agencies to move them. If you can hook up with them you can (sometimes) get a whopper deal.

 

In those cases the discounts can be much much larger than your 10-20%. And all the while the cruise-line can have their normal prices.

 

Absolutely, but you're at the mercy of the cruise line trying to unload an unpopular cruise. Find a good discounting TA, and you'll get the 10-20% discount on all the cruises including the popular ones too.

 

BTW, it has sometimes been claimed that if you do get a discount at initial booking, it is very difficult to go back to the TA when there is a price drop. Yesterday, I noticed a price drop on my Holland cruise (which I had received a 10% discount at initial booking). I emailed the TA. She called me back to tell me that there was a price drop which would reduce my fare by another 14% from my initial booking. So, I got a 10% drop initially and then another 14% drop. This TA discounts both Holland and Princess at least 10%.