Viking Ocean cruise fare

[holech]

Is the cruise fare shown in the brochure and online at the website the price you pay?  Do some TA offer lower pricing?  Does Viking or TA ever offer OBC?

 

Thanks

[schaitberger]

Viking does not allow TA's to discount anymore I believe, but they can offer you onboard credit. Our agency is giving us $500pp ($1,000) total to use onboard for anything from tips, extra excursions, laundry service and drinks.

[Heidi13]

5 hours ago, holech said:

Is the cruise fare shown in the brochure and online at the website the price you pay?  Do some TA offer lower pricing?  Does Viking or TA ever offer OBC?

 

Thanks

 

Welcome to the Viking Boards. I attach a link to the Viking TA Policy

 

https://www.vikingcruisescanada.com/terms-conditions/advertising-and-commissions-policy.html

 

Basically, TA's cannot sell for less than the advertised Viking price. TA's can provide OBC, but Viking also limit any kick backs TA's provide, based on the length of cruise.

[Clay Clayton]

On 7/30/2021 at 3:40 PM, holech said:

Is the cruise fare shown in the brochure and online at the website the price you pay?  Do some TA offer lower pricing?  Does Viking or TA ever offer OBC?

 

Thanks

As earlier posters have shown you, it’s worth finding a good travel agent who provides the max allowable shipboard credit. 
 

Additionally, if you are flexible, Viking sometimes offer promos closer to sailing-2/3 months has been our experience. Typically, either free or greatly reduced airfare, reduced cruise price and/or category upgrade. 
 

I do suspect it will be awhile before we see many promos given the pent up demand combined with so many who have rebooked their canceled cruises.  But I keep hoping 🤞

[spryder]

On 7/31/2021 at 10:59 PM, Clay Clayton said:

As earlier posters have shown you, it’s worth finding a good travel agent who provides the max allowable shipboard credit. 

 

I keep hearing this said over and over, and yet every time I've contacted a "highly rated" travel agent, they've quoted me prices way over what the cruise lines themselves are advertising.  What's the secret to finding "a good travel agent" who doesn't inflate prices AND can still offer worthwhile OBC?

[Clay Clayton]

19 minutes ago, spryder said:

 

I keep hearing this said over and over, and yet every time I've contacted a "highly rated" travel agent, they've quoted me prices way over what the cruise lines themselves are advertising.  What's the secret to finding "a good travel agent" who doesn't inflate prices AND can still offer worthwhile OBC?

I found mine by emailing someone who had spoken highly of theirs. 

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, spryder said:

 

I keep hearing this said over and over, and yet every time I've contacted a "highly rated" travel agent, they've quoted me prices way over what the cruise lines themselves are advertising.  What's the secret to finding "a good travel agent" who doesn't inflate prices AND can still offer worthwhile OBC?

 

I found a TA the old fashioned way. Walked around town and visited all the local agencies, picking the one that was the best fit for us. No regrets.

[duquephart]

How did you know he'she was the best fit?

[miaf]

We booked an Iceland / DV1 category (list price 3299) and paid 2874.  Some agencies can/do discount. * Includes 200 prior passenger discount.

Edited August 2, 2021 by miaf

[rbslos18]

I think it is also helpful to find an agent whose company has group space. My guess is that is what happened with miaf.

[miaf]

35 minutes ago, rbslos18 said:

My guess is that is what happened with miaf.

Nope

[aungrl]

10 hours ago, Clay Clayton said:

I found mine by emailing someone who had spoken highly of theirs. 

As I recall, so did I...😉

[MikeyB]

The Viking TA policy is very clear.  Heidi13 was kind enough to provide you a link.

You don't need to find a good travel agent to get the maximum allowable shipboard credit.

You just need to find an agent who wishes to stay in business!

[ericosmith]

13 hours ago, Clay Clayton said:

I found mine by emailing someone who had spoken highly of theirs. 

So would you mind emailing me at ericosmith at yahoo.com?

[rbslos18]

13 hours ago, miaf said:

Nope

Heidi13's link and miaf's experience don't seem to agree! When I have priced Viking cruises 3 of 4 quotes will be exactly the same. The fourth is vastly different which makes me a bit nervous. All are reputable agencies.

[Heidi13]

4 hours ago, rbslos18 said:

Heidi13's link and miaf's experience don't seem to agree! When I have priced Viking cruises 3 of 4 quotes will be exactly the same. The fourth is vastly different which makes me a bit nervous. All are reputable agencies.

 

My thoughts exactly. The Viking TA Policy is fairly clear and I highly doubt any reputable TA's, that are currently working, are not aware of it. This type of news normally travels rapidly through an industry.

 

Unless the price reduction was approved and sanctioned by Viking, I assume the TA used an unauthorised price reduction to assist in attaining the booking. This would lead me to question the TA's business practices. If they cut corners just to get the business, what other corners are they prepared to cut?

 

We use a TA for more than receiving a few hundred dollars in OBC, they are the experts and provide valuable advice and while I do all my own research, calendarise milestones, etc. it is good to know that our TA also does the same and ensures I have forgotten anything.

[Clay Clayton]

13 hours ago, ericosmith said:

So would you mind emailing me at ericosmith at yahoo.com?

Sent. If you don’t receive drop me a line at BigNCBear@aol.com 

[Clay Clayton]

19 hours ago, rbslos18 said:

I think it is also helpful to find an agent whose company has group space. My guess is that is what happened with miaf.

Agreed. We used to use an online agency that always had better prices. While not recognizable as a group once onboard, they were in fact group rates. Rather than using the rooms for the group leaders as us usually the case with group bookings, they had a huge “group” -100 rooms or more, and then “sold”’the comped rooms as all the others at a significant discount. 

[zalusky]

I think beyond the simple process of booking cruises and strong affiliation with what ever lines, it seems it would be important to find a good travel agent who can deal with non cruise stuff such as:

 

Insurance

Custom pre/post cruise stays: Hotels/Trains/private tours

Visas

 

And of course helping you out when things go bad like getting cruise credits or rescheduling.

 

I had a cruise on another non viking line last year that we cancelled on the day the cruise line announced a worry free type cancellation policy.  The problem was that they required 48 hours notice and this was the day before sailing.  We eventually got a doctors note to give us credits but they weren't the same credits announced in their policy.  We applied them to an Australia cruise this last march which of course did not happen and she had to do a lot of work to get the credits back which we have applied to a Caribbean sailing next March (If that happens).

 

[rbslos18]

2 hours ago, Clay Clayton said:

Agreed. We used to use an online agency that always had better prices. While not recognizable as a group once onboard, they were in fact group rates. Rather than using the rooms for the group leaders as us usually the case with group bookings, they had a huge “group” -100 rooms or more, and then “sold”’the comped rooms as all the others at a significant discount. 

Exactly Clay! That is the way to get the lowest possible price. The parent company buys a bunch of rooms and then agents nationwide sell them at a discount. I am pretty sure Viking allows this.

[rbslos18]

35 minutes ago, zalusky said:

I think beyond the simple process of booking cruises and strong affiliation with what ever lines, it seems it would be important to find a good travel agent who can deal with non cruise stuff such as:

 

Insurance

Custom pre/post cruise stays: Hotels/Trains/private tours

Visas

 

And of course helping you out when things go bad like getting cruise credits or rescheduling.

 

I had a cruise on another non viking line last year that we cancelled on the day the cruise line announced a worry free type cancellation policy.  The problem was that they required 48 hours notice and this was the day before sailing.  We eventually got a doctors note to give us credits but they weren't the same credits announced in their policy.  We applied them to an Australia cruise this last march which of course did not happen and she had to do a lot of work to get the credits back which we have applied to a Caribbean sailing next March (If that happens).

 

I have found travel agents tend to not be as informed of insurance nuancesvas travel insurance brokers. It is a specialty that requires a certain level of expertise ESPECIALLY during a pandemic.

[Clay Clayton]

17 hours ago, rbslos18 said:

Exactly Clay! That is the way to get the lowest possible price. The parent company buys a bunch of rooms and then agents nationwide sell them at a discount. I am pretty sure Viking allows this.

However, I haven’t found an agent who does this and the OP (on this issue) didn’t say what if any other amenities they received other than the lower price so it could have all been close to a wash. 
 

For now, happy with our TA and their perks. 😊

[taylorbun1]

On 8/3/2021 at 3:53 PM, rbslos18 said:

Exactly Clay! That is the way to get the lowest possible price. The parent company buys a bunch of rooms and then agents nationwide sell them at a discount. I am pretty sure Viking allows this.

So are you saying dont book over the phone with Viking?  Also, re another post you said something about a metal disco ball??  And what would you use a magnetic hook for?  TIA

[rbslos18]

4 hours ago, taylorbun1 said:

So are you saying dont book over the phone with Viking?  Also, re another post you said something about a metal disco ball??  And what would you use a magnetic hook for?  TIA

Sorry. I don’t know anything about a metal disco ball!

[WanderingBrit]

We received $450 discount each for booking our next cruise while onboard, plus a $200 OBC. We used the credit because we wanted to buy some sweaters, but it otherwise would have gone to waste. The discounts were straight cash in the bank 😀