Booking directly with cruiseline

[travellgirl]

We are thinking of booking a cruise for February. Has anyone booked directly with the cruiseline? We have never done that veiled, but with tomorrow bring Christmas, and the cruise coming up quickly,we would like to get it done as soon as possible.

Pros and cons?

Thank you.

[casofilia]

Get yourself a PCC by phoning NCL or by getting them to phone you, I think that that is better. Then use that person in future so you build a rapport. If you don't get on with them in the future phone NCL and change. We had a brilliant one that has now left but the replacement seems almost as good.

[KeithJenner]

We always book direct, mainly because then we don’t have to deal with travel agents. It really is just personal choice.

 

People often get better pricing (usually by way of OBC) if they go through an agent, rather than book direct, so that is a reason for using them. Also others like the assistance that a travel agent can offer.

 

On the other side, I will happily pay a bit more to not have someone else involved. I always book all of our travel myself and just prefer to do it that way.

 

It is certainly easy enough to book direct, and lots of us do it. Just be aware that you may miss out on some perks.

 

 

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[Something fun!]

We are thinking of booking a cruise for February. Has anyone booked directly with the cruiseline? We have never done that veiled, but with tomorrow bring Christmas, and the cruise coming up quickly,we would like to get it done as soon as possible.

Pros and cons?

Thank you.

 

There are plenty of online travel agents available 24/7 that will give you free on board credit...both stated as well as a surprise gift on board. The choice is yours.

[Tatka]

We always book direct, mainly because then we don’t have to deal with travel agents. It really is just personal choice.

 

People often get better pricing (usually by way of OBC) if they go through an agent, rather than book direct, so that is a reason for using them. Also others like the assistance that a travel agent can offer.

 

On the other side, I will happily pay a bit more to not have someone else involved. I always book all of our travel myself and just prefer to do it that way.

 

It is certainly easy enough to book direct, and lots of us do it. Just be aware that you may miss out on some perks.

 

 

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When you say “deal with travel agent” what do you mean? We are on 35th cruise now with most of them booked through online TA and I don’t remember anything difficult about dealing with them.

The only time we ever interact with them after automatic booking is when price drops and we write email request to adjust our remaining amount, or if better cabin becomes available.

 

Sometimes we book directly through cruise company to get their perks and then transferring booking to TA to get better pricing and additional perks.

[tallnthensome]

We are thinking of booking a cruise for February. Has anyone booked directly with the cruiseline? We have never done that veiled, but with tomorrow bring Christmas, and the cruise coming up quickly,we would like to get it done as soon as possible.

Pros and cons?

Thank you.

Why on Earth would you even need a travel agent to go on a cruise? I always book through the cruise lines. Used a travel agent once and it's a waste of time and just unnecessary to have someone else involved with your cruise plans or to have to rely on. To me, they don't do anything you can't do yourself. Sure, once in a while you might get perk or a little OBC or something but isn't worth even getting someone else involved with my trip. If you are incapable of planning your own cruise, then fine. Booking online with the lines takes minutes. Who in the heck wants to drive to a travel agent and sit there and do what you can do yourself on your couch.

[shof515]

I used a big box online TA for my previous cruise. The TA gave me on board credit which was nice. When a glitch happen with my booking, my TA was not available at that time and it caused some unnecessary headaches trying to get everything back to normal quickly. Another thing i do not like about this TA is all billing information have to be done over the phone. A big big inconvenient compare to simply logging into my NCL account and submitting the credit card info my self.

[KeithJenner]

When you say “deal with travel agent” what do you mean? We are on 35th cruise now with most of them booked through online TA and I don’t remember anything difficult about dealing with them.

The only time we ever interact with them after automatic booking is when price drops and we write email request to adjust our remaining amount, or if better cabin becomes available.

 

Sometimes we book directly through cruise company to get their perks and then transferring booking to TA to get better pricing and additional perks.

 

 

Mainly it’s just not adding that extra person into the transaction, but I can honestly say I have never had a conversation with a travel agent that didn’t include them either giving me information that I know to be incorrect, or them trying to tell me that they have a better idea than me as to how I should spend my holiday.

 

I know that booking online is an option, which would avoid dealing with people, but it still potentially complicates things when there are issues. For example, I’ve had a couple of cruise itineraries altered, or cancelled, in the past and have sorted them by talking directly to NCL. From reading these boards at the time, I’ve had it all resolved very much to my satisfaction whilst other people are still waiting for their TAs to react.

 

It’s the same outside of cruises. I book my flights and hotels direct as well. Last year, we went to Orlando at the same time as a friend. We booked our flights direct and they used an agent. Both of us had flights changed, and I got a really good alternative sorted the same day, by calling the airline, whereas they were left in limbo for a couple of weeks whilst their agent sorted things.

 

Finally, again not cruise related, but booking independently allows more flexible use of perks and miles. It’s years since I’ve flown eastbound across the Atlantic without having a bed in business class (except for the one trip which I won from a hotel chain in a competition I probably wouldn’t even have been entered in if I used a travel agent), and get many free hotels (three nights in Boston this year and three in SAN Francisco booked next year). We probably could still get some of that via a TA, but they aren’t going to get on the phone to an airline early in the morning to grab the award seats before anyone else does.

 

For me, all that lot is far more important than a bit of OBC on a cruise. Many people don’t want to spend the time that I do planning and booking things, but I enjoy it, and certainly don’t need to be told again by a travel agent that my plans involve a bit too much travelling or moving around, and I really should just stay in one place, or that certain hotels at Disney don’t have car parks, or any of the other uninformed rubbish that I’ve heard.

 

Each to their own though.

[Bootman4U]

LOL..why on earth would you? Because of the discounts, the additional OBC, and a few other perks, that's why! We use both routes depending on which gives us the best value

[Deval]

I found a great agent - a female small business owner who I’m happy to support vs a big box company. She’s always available when needed, who proactively monitors my booking and processes price reductions which I only know about after she notifies me of the change. For me the perks and benefits provided when I book through her agency make it a no brained for me. “Shop Small” whenever you can.

 

 

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[elganpat]

We are thinking of booking a cruise for February. Has anyone booked directly with the cruiseline? We have never done that veiled, but with tomorrow bring Christmas, and the cruise coming up quickly,we would like to get it done as soon as possible.

 

Pros and cons?

 

Thank you.

 

 

 

I’ve booked my last two HAL cruises through their website. I see no advantage booking through a travel agent. We leave next week and I got s call from a Hal rep offering her services

 

 

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[The Other Tom]

To me, the advantages of using an agent are a reduced cruise fair and OBC. I do get emails from them advertising excursions that I don't think were good values so I didn't book them. Yes, I plan my own cruise, pick my cabin etc and then call the TA and get a quote. If these things are worth it to you, then use a TA. If not, then don't. Everyone is different and this is your vacation, so do what makes you happy !

[LMaxwell]

Last time I used a TA to book an NCL cruise they had an advertised rate $200 pp less than NCL had if I booked direct. TA also included $125 OBC.

 

I contacted TA for an upgrade and they were able to move me up a full category at no additional charge, but lost some of the OBC, still got $75 OBC.

 

So $400 savings, free upgrade, $75 OBC for using an agent versus booking direct with NCL.

 

If I do book directly with NCL I email 3 travel agents to see who can offer the best perks and then I transfer the booking.

[trivimp]

Lots of good discussion about the pros & cons here. Another thing to mention: If you book online today in the interest of getting it rolling, you can always transfer the reservation to your TA after the holidays.

[Markanddonna]

The more you pay for your cabin, the more a travel agent can help as far as perks. Don't expect much of anything if you are a minimalist (which isn't a bad thing, IMHO.) So, if you book the owner's suite, the TA will have more commission to use for perks. I once went on a 14 day transatlantic for $479. Not much wiggle room there...:D

[LadyBerard]

Why on Earth would you even need a travel agent to go on a cruise? I always book through the cruise lines. Used a travel agent once and it's a waste of time and just unnecessary to have someone else involved with your cruise plans or to have to rely on. To me, they don't do anything you can't do yourself. Sure, once in a while you might get perk or a little OBC or something but isn't worth even getting someone else involved with my trip. If you are incapable of planning your own cruise, then fine. Booking online with the lines takes minutes. Who in the heck wants to drive to a travel agent and sit there and do what you can do yourself on your couch.

 

 

I booked the 14 night Caribbean cruise, round trip out of Boston sailing Oct. 26, 2018, through a TA. I booked an inside cabin, chose the UBP, and because they had a group on this trip, one of THEIR perks was that the gratuities for the UBP were included. We did NOT have to pay for it.

[fabnfortysomething]

I've booked cruises several ways-both via travel agents and Ncl direct-I have a US based PCC and a UK based one

 

I no longer use a travel agent for several reasons [this is my experience with UK ones]

getting quotes from several sources price has been the same as direct with NCL

OBC rarely offered over and above that in NCL promotions

final payment date usually a month earlier than required by NCL

In UK cant benefit from price drops before final payment-if you cancel you lose your deposit

often they require an additional deposit over and above cruise next certificate

 

and as stated by KeithJenner it can be very frustrating when they give you wrong information and you have to correct them

[TruckerDave]

Lots of good discussion about the pros & cons here. Another thing to mention: If you book online today in the interest of getting it rolling, you can always transfer the reservation to your TA after the holidays.

 

 

actually it is the exact same points/counter points that come up EVERY time this topic comes up. There are probably 1820 different threads (this year alone) about this same exact topic on this website. ;)

[shof515]

Lots of good discussion about the pros & cons here. Another thing to mention: If you book online today in the interest of getting it rolling, you can always transfer the reservation to your TA after the holidays.

you only have about 30-60 days to transfer it to ta after you make the deposit. make sure you do it asap!!

[TruckerDave]

To answer your first question..Yes. Many people (including myself) book directly with the cruise line using their websites.

 

Your second part about pros and cons.....well, there are literally hundreds if not thousands of threads on this very topic here on this message board. You can check out the various cruise line sections and search long enough you will find this topic and the answers will always be the same. The T./A people are in their bunkers and the DIY folks are in theirs as well. You can find a thread from a few years ago or one form last tuesday and nothing has changed. It is just the same talking points from both sides. Only you can determine which is the way for you to go. I am personally a DIY person who sees no value in having someone else do what i can do for myself. But to each his/her own.

[Laszlo]

Why on Earth would you even need a travel agent to go on a cruise?

 

Maybe its just me but I like saving money. Using a TA to book a cruise has always saved us money.

[EggsyH]

I have booked with the cruiseline in the past. On the cruise I have booked now I was originally booked direct but decided to try a website that has travel agents compete for your booking. I saved $1100 on an H6 on the Escape. I will definitely be trying this again.

[garycarla]

To answer your first question..Yes. Many people (including myself) book directly with the cruise line using their websites.

 

Your second part about pros and cons.....well, there are literally hundreds if not thousands of threads on this very topic here on this message board. You can check out the various cruise line sections and search long enough you will find this topic and the answers will always be the same. The T./A people are in their bunkers and the DIY folks are in theirs as well. You can find a thread from a few years ago or one form last tuesday and nothing has changed. It is just the same talking points from both sides. Only you can determine which is the way for you to go. I am personally a DIY person who sees no value in having someone else do what i can do for myself. But to each his/her own.

 

 

Well said Dave.

Lots of people do

a) Through NCL on the phone

b) Through NCL on the web

c) Through various online travel agencies

d) Visit to a real TA office

e) Online via some other site.

 

They all work. Up to what makes sense to you.

[Barb Nahoumi]

We call our NCL PCC over the phone. Why, because we prefer to speak with a human being, if we have any questions or concerns.

 

Booking online may save time, but not that much.

[Got Tequila?]

We book directly with Norwegian, via a Personal Cruise Consultant. We've had issues using travel agencies in the past, that ended up costing money to get rid of them and move the bookings directly to Norwegian. We could do the bookings ourselves on the website or by calling in to Norwegian, but enjoy the assistance of the Personal Cruise Consultant, and they can be very helpful if there are any issues along the way.