Book direct with Tui or agent

[rachiem]

We have never cruised with Marella but don't want to travel long haul next winter and like the look of the Canaries cruise on Explorer.

I'm not sure whether the price is good...it's £919 pp plus £624 to upgrade to a junior suite. Gatwick flights in March.

We will also add 4 nights in a hotel on the end.

Firstly, do you book direct or can you get discount and offers elsewhere and secondly, does the price seem ok? 

We had arranged a P&O Caribbean cruise but have cancelled this and would like to stay a little closer to home as we are flying long haul this Nov.

We've only cruise NCL Haven, Celebrity Aqua and Royal Caribbean so will be really interested to see whether the huge extra costs with these cruise lines warrant the price?

[dronnygirl]

Personally we always book on line for convenience however it's personal choice whether you prefer to book at a Tui shop. They charge  £25 for making the booking although some shops waive this. If you book on line you can go through Cruisedeals which currently gives a £50 discount and passes you straight through to the Tui website.  With regard to prices, they do go up and down so you need to keep an eye on them and book when you feel the price is right.  If comparing with other cruise lines you need to take into account the cost of tips and drinks for a true comparison.  

Explorer is a great ship, give it a go I'm sure you will have a lovely time.

[Tizzy-Jo]

I always book online, mainly for convenience. I look for cruises that I fancy doing and if I am happy with the price, I go ahead and book.

 

[ormy]

Fortunately we have TUI shop nearby and always use them for cruises/holidays, they can always match online price and they do everything for you, if you have any problems they sort it for you, no premium phone calls involved and long waiting times for advisor. I suppose it's different if you have to travel any distance to a TUI shop.

[dronnygirl]

If there's a particular cabin you want then I would definitely book it then sit back and look forward to it😁

[Sheila49]

I believe the shops have stopped charging £30 to price match.

[Pensioncruiser]

We use both, obviously cost dependant, always check online prices then go with that to a TA. We tend to get a good deal with the TA we have used for many years and normally go at the month end as we find they are preperd to deal if they've had a bad sales month typically for our cruise Sept 2020 booked last year we secured a price well under the online price plus some extras 😊

[rachiem]

Thank you for the replies 🙂

[2BACRUISER]

6 hours ago, rachiem said:

We have never cruised with Marella ..........we've only cruise NCL Haven, Celebrity Aqua and Royal Caribbean so will be really interested to see whether the huge extra costs with these cruise lines warrant the price?

Although you will get a good deal and have a great time with Marella you can't compare them with the grades of cruise you've had with the other lines. Marella is more like an AI hotel holiday but on a ship. There are no class/grade distinctions. If you book a suite  theres no separate dining room or lounge for you like on other lines where the more you pay the more perks and exclusivity you get. Marella isn't like that. 

On your other question we generally book online. Hth 

Edited May 2, 2019 by 2BACRUISER

[suekay]

I agree that you can't compare the grades of cruise you've had in the past with Marella otherwise you're setting yourself up for disappointment.  

I booked our Marella cruise online via the Topcashback site

[Pensioncruiser]

Yes I did one through Topcashback two years ago and am still waiting for the approved payment, would never recommend them. 😣

[Hookedoncruising!]

Try Quidco, its great! 👍

[suekay]

46 minutes ago, Pensioncruiser said:

Yes I did one through Topcashback two years ago and am still waiting for the approved payment, would never recommend them. 😣

Did you query it with them?.  I've never had a problem getting the cashback on Tui holidays, in fact it's paid before we go, so I assumed it would be the same with cruises.

[Pensioncruiser]

Yes I have every six weeks and they just keep apologising for the delay think it's because its over a hundred pounds I have investigated them and it appears if its below three figures your OK. 

[Jim The Scot]

I had similar issues with quidco Pensioncruiser.Raised a complaint with them numerous times and got nowhere.The main point is cashback is not guaranteed

[thommoscotland]

If anyone is a racing fan (as in attends) the rewards4racing scheme is superb and Tui pays great cashback towards future racing ticket purchases. I had almost £180 worth this year and the bulk of that came via a Tui booking. It can be used for other purposes but the best value return is on tickets for race meetings. 

[brian1]

When we booked this years cruise on D2 last year,we didn't realise that we couldn't do any transactions online.We have to go to our local TUI shop to make final payment.It's a bit awkward when we live in Italy,but lucky enough we're flying back in a couple of weeks,just in time for the deadline.