Book through cruise line or TA?

[tarababy18]

i'm looking to book another cruise and i'm leaning towards carnival again. i've read that there are bigger rooms and again i'm starting to like another itinerary i came across. I'm looking at Legend, Southern Caribbean.

 

Is it better to book through carnival directly or a travel agent? Last year we book through carnival, because it was more convienent for us, but this year we have more time. Any pros or cons for both, or even advice would be greatly appreciated. :)

[kmtjones803]

I booked through a TA once and with Carnival directly 2x. Both went fine, but I loved being able to contact them directly. There wasn't the "middle man" to deal with, IYKWIM!

 

Either way would be fine, im sure. A TA would do all teh work for you, but if youre like me, I LOVE to plan and figure out everything for my vacation! It gets me so excited! :D

[tarababy18]

I booked through a TA once and with Carnival directly 2x. Both went fine, but I loved being able to contact them directly. There wasn't the "middle man" to deal with, IYKWIM!

 

Either way would be fine, im sure. A TA would do all teh work for you, but if youre like me, I LOVE to plan and figure out everything for my vacation! It gets me so excited! :D

 

i definitely liked being about to talk to them directly...

 

whats iykwim?

[VentureMan_2000]

I prefer to book thru Carnival directly. I like 7x24 service. And I haven't seen a lower price.

[jleq]

Web cruise agencies come in three basic sizes.

 

 

Mega-travel Sites like Travelocity

The largest travel agencies online for airfare or hotels are not necessarily the best for cruises. They handle a lot of transactions every day and only a small minority of them are cruises. Almost all of their transactions are done electronically, but if you have a problem before or during your cruise, you will be better off with the name and phone number of a real cruise expert to help you out. It is nearly impossible to establish a personal relationship with the non-cruise specialty mega-travel web sites, and just because they are the biggest it does not mean their prices are the lowest. Often they are not.

 

 

The Neighborhood Travel Agent

You certainly can use your local agent, and many people feel more comfortable having an actual face to face exchange when it comes to handing over large sums of money. These days some cruise like Royal Caribbean offer "flat pricing" and so small agents can offer you the same cruise fare as the deep discounters, however, there are other ways to compete. For other cruise lines your local travel agent rarely will be able to beat the price of an online agency because they don't sell the same amount of volume. For "flat pricing" cruise lines chances are you will not get the benefits of group pricing, or add-on enticements like free insurance, a free gift or an add-on stay.

 

 

The Larger Cruise-Only Agencies

I believe the best places to buy a cruise are the cruise-only agencies online who offer both 1-800 telephone and online booking engine options. They know how to buy and sell cruises at the best prices, and their years of experience mean you get the best customer service possible. There are several of these agencies online. These agencies have generally been in the cruise only business for over 20 years - well before the Internet, and used to advertise in travel publications and Sunday papers.

 

The phone connection is good for establishing an initial relationship and contacting them for special requirements. But in many cases, the booking engine offers you an additional savings over booking the cruise with a live person. You get the best of both worlds; expert assistance at self-service prices.

[tarababy18]

thanks for all the info :)

 

i was just looking at the dates for Legend's southern caribbean cruises and i can't do any of those dates. any other suggestions?

 

what are you're favorite itineraries and/or ships?

[Kathy555]

My second cruise was on the RC Serenade Southern Cruise. It was absolutely wonderful. Great itinerary but smaller rooms. WE had 4 in a room and I was ready to divorce my family. If you can do it with 2 or 4 neat people - go for it. It is a beautiful ship.

[berryberry]

book thru whoever has the lowest price (and that isn't always Carnival directly). Some crusie agents buy blocks and sell at a discount, some compete by cutting their commissions, etc - and Carnival can't / won't match those

 

So shop around, and go the cheapest route - its still the exact same product

[Cruising89143]

I think that it depends on ones TA. I have a great TA that gives me good service and prices. I do not jump around from one agency to the next for a dollar or two. I booked several cruises through Carnival and wound up transferring my last one to the agent that I now have. Got a great price, on board credit when the price dropped and upgraded to a category twelve cabin. A good TA and PVP can be hard to find. When you do stick with them.

[zqvol]

i'm looking to book another cruise and i'm leaning towards carnival again. i've read that there are bigger rooms and again i'm starting to like another itinerary i came across. I'm looking at Legend, Southern Caribbean.

 

Is it better to book through carnival directly or a travel agent? Last year we book through carnival, because it was more convienent for us, but this year we have more time. Any pros or cons for both, or even advice would be greatly appreciated. :)

Sometimes a travel agent will give you some onboard credits, a sail away gift or something like that but other than that not much difference.

 

I like to do the work myself so I tend to handle my own arrangements.

[salty dingo]

I have used one of the online "mega-sites" (not a cruise-only site) in the past. Always very pleased, especially with the 24 x 7 customer service. Often, they had to put me on hold and call Carnival, so I wonder if it would not be better to book direct with Carnival.

 

My impression of the local travel agents are that they are a dwindling species, and the customer service is not 24 x 7, and they may tend to steer you where they want you to go. But if you are not familiar with cruises that may be OK. If you do your own research and know what you want, I'd go for the customer service, since that is what you are likely to need most.

 

I just booked my first cruise direct w/ Carnival due to a one-day sale. Got a ridiculously low rate w/ guarantee room, smack dab in the middle of hurricane season. Woo hoo! :D Rolling the dice with the weather.

[tarababy18]

I have used one of the online "mega-sites" (not a cruise-only site) in the past. Always very pleased, especially with the 24 x 7 customer service. Often, they had to put me on hold and call Carnival, so I wonder if it would not be better to book direct with Carnival.

 

My impression of the local travel agents are that they are a dwindling species, and the customer service is not 24 x 7, and they may tend to steer you where they want you to go. But if you are not familiar with cruises that may be OK. If you do your own research and know what you want, I'd go for the customer service, since that is what you are likely to need most.

 

I just booked my first cruise direct w/ Carnival due to a one-day sale. Got a ridiculously low rate w/ guarantee room, smack dab in the middle of hurricane season. Woo hoo! :D Rolling the dice with the weather.

 

there aren't many travel agents around here anymore and the one that is really close is kinda sketchy... if booking during hurricane season, should we purchase insurance?

 

also, does anyone know about aaa discounts?

[jleq]

if booking during hurricane season, should we purchase insurance?

 

 

Whenever any covered cost [evacation/cancellation/et cetera] becomes more than I can comfortably afford, I buy 3rd party [TravelGuard/Travelex/et cetera] insurance

[caprcorn28]

I have heard rave reviews from both camps! I have booked with a TA several times and this time I booked directly with Carnival. There was a couple of factors in that. First, pricing. Second, the TA wasn't giving me the information that I requested, so I felt like I was pulling teeth to get the information that I was looking for. I can call Carnival any time with any question and they have always been really friendly and very helpful. Third, like other people have mentioned, I love the planning part of the trip!! I do not mind watching for price drops, getting my own airfare to fit my schedule, etc!!

I think if you have a fabulous TA, that is a good way to go. They can make a lot of good things happen. I am also finding that booking directly is really a great way to go too!!

Just call around, see what kind of pricing you get for the itineraries that you are interested in. But make sure that you are comparing apples to apples. Some places give you their price...but before taxes and port charges. That will change things significantly. I always ask for what the total price is going to be...what is my credit card going to be charged!?? I want taxes, port charges all included!! (There is an agency in our area that always has these unbelievable prices to everywhere...well, when you call them, geesh, there are all these 'hidden' fees/taxes etc that aren't included in that price in the ad! I don't like that. Tell me what it is, straight up.)

[Oliver Sudden]

If you have a good travel agent, it's the only way to go.

 

Should you run into a glitch, a good agent will sort it out.

 

Carnival ran a "special" $329 for a Bahamas cruise. I received information by Email from Carnival on this.

 

We called our travel agent, and she got a price of $220. Of course both prices were plus port charges and taxes.

[Legend]

Oliver just a little FYI Carnival NEVER sends out any emails with rates that do NOT include port charges so if that's what your travel agent told you she/he is giving you a line. Port charges for a 3 day Bahamas cruise are $89 and for a 4 day Bahamas cruise they're $99 so pretty close and if not less, directly through Carnival.