To TA or not to TA?

[thehungryhobbit]

My current travel agent does not book with Virgin and is really hesitant to work with me on this (she keeps pushing me to go for celebrity, but it just doesn't have what I want). Otherwise working with this travel agent has been great and I would use her for other cruise lines. I'm looking for opinions, is it worth trying to find a new travel agent to work with for my virgin cruise or just book it myself directly and work the rest out on my own. I've done it before so it's not daunting, but I do want to hopefully snag the best deal I can...as we all do.

Also, does anyone know when the best time is to hopefully get the best booking deal? We are looking for a cruise late in 2024 so we have time.

[garycarla]

We have booked many cruises direct with cruiseline.

 

All works just fine.

 

Avoids the "call the cruiseline" or call your "TA".

 

[Fogcityca13]

I booked my first cruise with Virgin directly. Not too bad dealing with issues that came up. They can do a lot with emailing them your issues. It would be nice if they provided some sort of update or notification that the issue is resolved.

 

I’ve switched to using a TA and I’m pretty happy so far. It’s some much easier to stack offers with a TA and have them chase down issues. We spent hours on the phone with RCCL last year and it just burned us out. I think it’s well worth the time in finding a TA or convincing your TA to go through Virgin’s First Mates training.

[CineGraphic]

One has to wonder why a TA would not want to book Virgin.....yes, you have to take some courses...but they pay a higher commission than most lines. 16% for starters, plus they get a cut of bar-tabs, excursions, etc.

[CruisingWalter]

16 hours ago, thehungryhobbit said:

My current travel agent does not book with Virgin and is really hesitant to work with me on this (she keeps pushing me to go for celebrity, but it just doesn't have what I want)

 

Find one that does. MANY TAs are working with Virgin because they are among the best to work with for the travel agents. One of the few cruise lines that actually encourages people to book through a travel agent.

 

I've heard stories from friends who have had TAs who 'won't book a specific cruise line for whatever reason. That's not a good travel agent. A travel agent works for YOU to get YOU the vacation you want. Not just the ones they're willing to book. Find another TA who books VV and other things you might be missing out on. 🙂

[cantgetin]

All of the "good" TAs that I know...the one that I book with and a couple others who are friends, book VV.  It is a matter of doing the training, and the best ones will cruise themselves so they know the product from a personal standpoint as well.

[thehungryhobbit]

That is definitely food for thought (regarding several of you pointing out that it's weird that my TA doesn't work with Virgin and should work for me). I have approached her about both Holland America and Virgin. She shot down Holland America because she felt it was too old for us and told us that Virgin is a party/booze cruise. What I've been looking at tells me that Virgin might be our people though.

We are in our 40s.

We are plant based (kind of like vegans but we do it because of a dairy intolerance and I have a condition that makes eating meat and eggs a monumentally painful experience)

We are geeks (boardgames, gaming, movies, learning about cultures are our jam)

We do not drink alcohol

We are a part of the LGBTQ alphabet

We are kid free (we went the stereotypical dog parent route)

Love a good theatrical show.

We are looking for a fun but relaxing time for our 20th wedding anniversary next year.

Everything I've researched so far says Virgin is a match, especially the food. Get my partner a plant burger or tasty not too fancy plant dish and that is a happy happy partner. I'm less picky but a well fed partner makes a happy cruise so it's a priority. 

So, colour me surprised when I found these great options just to be told by the TA that we would hate them and should look at Celebrity, who from what I can see is no where near as accommodating. I could be wrong though, we have only sailed NCL (hated, never going back), Princess (meh), and Oceannia (nice but not much entertainment and a bit difficult to get some to understand that dairy and meat is a no go. they had some great plant based dishes for me but my partner had to fight hard to get that precious plant burger, only available through room service.)

 

From what I'm seeing it doesn't seem like many Canadian agents work with Virgin. Can a Canadian work with an American agent or is it best to go with the limited choices we have?

[Alegeeter]

To me, it sounds like you’d be a perfect match for Virgin. I check a lot of the boxes you listed and had the best time on Virgin. The fact that your TA is so quick to poo poo it shows me either that 1) they have their own interests at heart over yours, 2) they have not done their research and are a bad TA to begin with, or 3) both!

[raphael360]

52 minutes ago, thehungryhobbit said:

We are a part of the LGBTQ alphabet

We are kid free (we went the stereotypical dog parent route)

Love a good theatrical show.

We are looking for a fun but relaxing time for our 20th wedding anniversary next year.

I think Virgin is perfect for you.  I've been on over 50 cruises/12 cruise lines and they all offer basically the same cruise experience.

 

Virgin is very inclusive and the most fun you will ever find on a cruise ship.

[markkw07]

I used to be one who only booked my own cruises, but I saw the light, and now I would only use a TA.

This was especially helpful during the covid shut down, when things were so chaotic with the cruising industry. Nobody knew what or when anything was going to happen.

 

I had a cruise booked with NCL and by booking through my TA, he had to do all the calling and arranging and the back and forth. Saved me a TON of time, stress, and headache. That cruise had to be rebooked 3 different times. 

 

My TA books VV, so I was super happy when he said, yes, I can do that for you! I booked Scarlet for this August, so I'm really looking forward to that voyage!

 

In short, A TA can pretty much do everything with the exception of payment, haha....its just so easy to call up and say, I need X and X and they take care of it. I send 1 email telling him what cruise, dates, and cabin class, he sends backs prices...we choose/pay, he takes care of the rest. 

 

 

[Fogcityca13]

I wasn’t too crazy about Virgin when I first saw their marketing and concept design. I loved flying on Virgin Airlines when they served the US, and was a bit bummed that I didn’t really fit who they were after. After seeing some vlogs it was pretty clear we were definitely interested. I still think VV should tweak their marketing and include the 40’s plus crowd more. Looking over your post you’ll absolutely enjoy VV. Top notch board game selection on board as well.

[cantgetin]

1 minute ago, Fogcityca13 said:

I wasn’t too crazy about Virgin when I first saw their marketing and concept design. I loved flying on Virgin Airlines when they served the US, and was a bit bummed that I didn’t really fit who they were after. After seeing some vlogs it was pretty clear we were definitely interested. I still think VV should tweak their marketing and include the 40’s plus crowd more. Looking over your post you’ll absolutely enjoy VV. Top notch board game selection on board as well.

Totally agree.  Their average cruiser age at one point was 47 and 50% of sailors were married couples...but you'd never know it from their ads.  They are beginning to show some older people in SOME ads.

[jon81uk]

2 hours ago, Fogcityca13 said:

. I still think VV should tweak their marketing and include the 40’s plus crowd more. .

They already have, the Karma Chameleon advert seems to mainly feature people 30-55 and the couple it opens on look to be 45+, the engagement couple also 40+.

I think that video is pretty reflective of the actual experience on board, just with a lot more choreography! 

[raphael360]

6 hours ago, Fogcityca13 said:

I loved flying on Virgin Airlines when they served the US

I had the very good fortune of flying Virgin America twice before Alaska Air acquired them.  Virgin America actually made flying fun.  That's incredible in of itself.  Now Virgin has turned the 'same ol same ol' cruise experience on its head and made cruising fun and exciting.  If your TA is berating it, find another TA but give Virgin a test dive.  You have nothing to loose 🙂

[Goobaroo]

Wondering what the benefit is for booking through a Travel Agent?

I reached out to one that was recommended on this site.

After some back and forth I was given a quote.

But then was able to find exact same price for the cabin while poking around on the VV website.

TA did mention we would get “onboard credits” booking through him. (Hasn’t provided $ amount of credits yet)

But otherwise not sure the value added by TA?

 

Thank you!

[Goobaroo]

43 minutes ago, Goobaroo said:

Wondering what the benefit is for booking through a Travel Agent?

I reached out to one that was recommended on this site.

After some back and forth I was given a quote.

But then was able to find exact same price for the cabin while poking around on the VV website.

TA did mention we would get “onboard credits” booking through him. (Hasn’t provided $ amount of credits yet)

But otherwise not sure the value added by TA?

Well he offered me $200 onboard credit.  So again, after doing most of the research myself I might “earn” $200 - on a $5000 booking.  I think I’ll just book the cruise directly through VV and skip the middle man.  😏

Edited February 20, 2023 by Goobaroo
New info

[cantgetin]

VV messed up a bunch of stuff on my booking.  First, I contacted my TA who was in the middle of another cruise.  He emailed me how to do it myself and give him the credit if I didn't want to wait till he was available.  Since we needed an accessible room and I didn't know how quickly they would fill, I did it myself.  The computer assigned room did not meet our needs, so I called VV to change it.  TA did give me some good info on who to talk to and how to make things work, and I got a little "loot."

Next cruise, I paid off my booking and VV billed my credit card twice.  I was contacted my TA who got in touch with VV.  They insisted it hadn't happened, so I screen shotted the  card statement and sent to the TA.  VV said it would take up to 10 days--resolved in less than 48 hours.    Also, this TA got me a lot more loot.

No, they can't get you a reduced fare.  They CAN get you the currently best deal and track your reservation and get a price reduction if anything better comes out.  For instance, she saved me $130 on an upcoming cruise by doing a rebooking when there was a price drop.  So, is $130 a huge deal?  No.  But add up the additional couple hundred in loot, the $130 saved off the fare, and the benefit of shooting her an email or text message if there is a problem, and TA IS worth it to me.  Also, she did one of the VV zoom conferences a couple nights ago, so if I wanted to book another cruise within the next 10 days, that would be more loot.

 

[Wildcatllamas]

On 2/19/2023 at 6:00 PM, Goobaroo said:

Well he offered me $200 onboard credit.  So again, after doing most of the research myself I might “earn” $200 - on a $5000 booking.  I think I’ll just book the cruise directly through VV and skip the middle man.  😏

So having an extra $200 isn't worth it? So here is a scenario - you have a major problem with your cruise. It is taking repeated calls to the cruise line and still not resolved. At times you may be on hold for an hour or more. Or you let your TA do it. But if you book it yourself don't bother to call the TA you spoke with to fix any problems. That would just be rude. 

[cantgetin]

If every is smooth with your booking, then booking on your own may not be worth $200 to you.  But I have yet to have a V V booking go smoothly.  There is something wrong between their people who determine loot, people who do the accounting, and the way they make things show up in the app.  My loot is always wrong on line, but on the last cruise straightened out after boarding.  But when they screw up my final payment, that's NOT ok.  I'd rather spend 5 minutes texting or PMing my TA than hours waiting for a VV rep to put me on hold and go back and forth between me and their "back office."  VV has a great product on their ship but some of their shoreside stuff just isn't together yet.

[LoveIs10Grand]

Contact a lot of travel agents until you find one that seems knowledgeable and gives you something more than if you booked direct. It's worth the trouble. And once you find a good one, you're set for a long time.

[cantgetin]

58 minutes ago, LoveIs10Grand said:

Contact a lot of travel agents until you find one that seems knowledgeable and gives you something more than if you booked direct. It's worth the trouble. And once you find a good one, you're set for a long time.

Exactly.....when my local agency closed, I moved to an on line group...had a great phone conversation with one of the agents.  This was a small family owned agency.  I continued to use that person until she  retired although others at the office were available to help.  Used them for every cruise 2009-2022 (haven't cruised in 2023 yet, but it is booked!)

[cantgetin]

Any person can purchase up to 8 onboard booking deals each time they cruise and they ARE transferrable.  So yes, I have a TA who always purchases 8.  She will typically use one or two for herself and sell the others to clients at cost....and, as you said, often throw in a little extra to sweeten the mix.  Besides, when VV screws up something  (which they do on a regular basis), she gets to straighten it out.  

[hotsauce126]

Travel agents are crawling all over these travel sites and will tell you that a TA is a must, but the one time I added a travel agent to my booking for a little bit of bar tab I severely regretted it. Cruises are probably the easiest type of trip to book without a TA

[MisterBill99]

5 hours ago, hotsauce126 said:

Travel agents are crawling all over these travel sites and will tell you that a TA is a must, but the one time I added a travel agent to my booking for a little bit of bar tab I severely regretted it. Cruises are probably the easiest type of trip to book without a TA

 

It should have been Sailor Loot (aka OBC) that you got from the TA. The bar tab comes from the booking promotion and status match (or Deep Blue Extras, if you already qualified from sailing on VV). As has been said, the big win for using a TA for VV is if they have a(n) MNVV certificate to sell you (and you don't have one of your own). That gets you $600 Sailor Loot, which DEFINITELY makes it worth using a TA. Also, my VV TA called and got my status match processed and 10% credit applied.

 

My regular TA's that I have used give me up to 10% of OBC when I sail lines like Celebrity. They were only offering 5% for VV, but did not have MNVV to sell me. That makes it worth booking with a TA. If I'd had my own MNVV, I could have used the 5% back TA.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Too many offers to give TA info offline, so this thread is locked...