Cannot get in touch in Travel Agent. Carnival won't allow me to make changes without TA.

[ohshin]

I am unable to get in touch with our travel agent with whom we booked a Carnival cruise.  I need to make some changes to our passengers and tried calling Carnival directly.  Carnival said I cannot make any changes and that I must go through my travel agent.

 

What can be done?  FWIW, the Travel Agent was extremely responsive when booking the cruise but now only responds every 2 weeks at best (I am currently ghosted).

 

Thank you.

[Elaine5715]

27 minutes ago, ohshin said:

I am unable to get in touch with our travel agent with whom we booked a Carnival cruise.  I need to make some changes to our passengers and tried calling Carnival directly.  Carnival said I cannot make any changes and that I must go through my travel agent.

 

What can be done?  FWIW, the Travel Agent was extremely responsive when booking the cruise but now only responds every 2 weeks at best (I am currently ghosted).

 

Thank you.

Call the travel agent owner

[DAllenTCY]

That's how it works.

David

[vwrestler171]

That is the issue with booking with a TA.  They "own" your booking and everything has to go through them.

[Sillyjilly]

Fire your TA

[Cruising_Addict]

Exactly why I don’t book with travel agents. I’m sorry that this is happening to you. It’s unfortunate to have to learn this way. Hopefully they will get back to you soon. Good luck. 

Edited June 14, 2023 by Cruising_Addict

[pe4all]

We only use our TA to book "out of the country" trips - trips that have many pieces that have to be fit together to work. (S. Africa, Galapagos, etc.). Otherwise we use our pvp's for cruises.  We know the TA's sometimes give "perks" for booking - more obc, etc. - but in the long run when you have a problem with a cruise booking the cruise company will not touch the booking.  Hope your TA is just on vacation and will contact you soon.

[teknoge3k]

That's one reason why I would never use a travel agent and stay far away from them. Try calling the company owner to fire them. 

[Homosassa]

11 hours ago, ohshin said:

 

 

What can be done?  FWIW, the Travel Agent was extremely responsive when booking the cruise but now only responds every 2 weeks at best (I am currently ghosted).

 

Thank you.

Curious how many times you called the TA after booking the cruise to ask questions or make other changes?

 

Your post sounds like you may be a frequent caller and your calls are being batched for follow up.

 

[ohshin]

After booking, none.  I only emailed them months later when we needed a passenger change and didn't receive a reply for 2 weeks.  Then my follow up email confirming to go ahead with the changes has received no reply.

 

How do I "fire" the TA?  If I call Carnival and explain the situation, will they release the TA so I can make changes myself?

[Homosassa]

Are you sure the change hasn't been made?

 

Go to the Carnival website, log in (or get an account) and check your cruise.

 

The passengers on the same reservation number as you will show up.

 

If the other passengers have a different reservation number, the passenger owner of the reservation may have to request the change.

[ObstructedView2]

30 minutes ago, ohshin said:

How do I "fire" the TA?  

 

3 hours ago, teknoge3k said:

Try calling the company owner to fire them. 

 

12 hours ago, Elaine5715 said:

Call the travel agent owner

 

 

 

 

🍹

[Elaine5715]

1 hour ago, ohshin said:

After booking, none.  I only emailed them months later when we needed a passenger change and didn't receive a reply for 2 weeks.  Then my follow up email confirming to go ahead with the changes has received no reply.

 

How do I "fire" the TA?  If I call Carnival and explain the situation, will they release the TA so I can make changes myself?

No, a release form needs to be signed.  

[Pyxie]

This is unfortunate and I hate that it gives TA's a bad name. I am one (and I'm really not sure if I'm even allowed to say that, but it isn't for advertising) and definitely don't run my business this way.

 

Most likely, the TA has someone above them who owns the agency (unless they ARE the owner). You should visit the company's website and see if you can figure out how to contact that person for assistance.

[sanger727]

We have had this happen before. You won't get Carnival to help you unless you can show the TA went out of business. If the agent is part of a larger agency, definitely call the main agency number and escalate the situation to another agent or a supervisor.

[DAllenTCY]

Most travel agencies are not open on Sundays or Holidays.

 

Not that it applies to your circumstance, but it has been an issue in the past with others.

 

David

[jimbo5544]

On 6/14/2023 at 11:40 PM, DAllenTCY said:

Most travel agencies are not open on Sundays or Holidays.

 

Not that it applies to your circumstance, but it has been an issue in the past with others.

 

David

Not pot stirring but why is that?

[FTLCruiseGal]

I had the same issue with my travel agent (now former travel agent).  We called another agency (same company) and they told us to keep going up the chain of command at the agency.  If the agency is nearby, I would stop in and speak face-to-face with someone and don’t leave until they accomplish what needs to be done.  If you still don’t get satisfaction, have them type up a release letter (must be in their letterhead) and take it with you.  Send that to Carnival and ask them to take over your booking.

[luvcruzing]

When is the cruise?

[jimbo5544]

4 hours ago, TreyB said:

Always book directly with the cruise lines. Booking with a travel agent is as bad as booking hotels through third party websites. When something goes wrong it’s a nightmare. 

LOL really?

[FTLCruiseGal]

4 hours ago, jimbo5544 said:

LOL really?

He’s not wrong.  If anything goes wrong and you have to leave your hotel early or cancel, it isn’t the hotel that issues the refund, it’s the third party company.  People don’t understand that.  They demand the hotel issue the refund and become upset when told to reach out to whomever they booked the hotel room through.

 

if you were referring to another part of his post, please ignore my response.

[jimbo5544]

2 hours ago, TreyB said:

Book a hotel through a 3rd party, have something go wrong, and try to get the hotel to fix it for you. 
 

Then you will see LOL really. 

If by third party you mean Expedia, orbitz booking do com, I agree.  If you mean TA I disagree,

[Cruisesfun65]

People sure love to bash travel agents on social media. I bet for for each bad experience, there are at minimum 5 success stories when agents stay on the phone for hours fixing stuff, getting the exact cabins you want next to each other, offer extra amenities, etc. But we don't get to hear those.

[Elaine5715]

1 hour ago, Cruisesfun65 said:

People sure love to bash travel agents on social media. I bet for for each bad experience, there are at minimum 5 success stories when agents stay on the phone for hours fixing stuff, getting the exact cabins you want next to each other, offer extra amenities, etc. But we don't get to hear those.

Isn't that their job?

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, Cruisesfun65 said:

People sure love to bash travel agents on social media. I bet for for each bad experience, there are at minimum 5 success stories when agents stay on the phone for hours fixing stuff, getting the exact cabins you want next to each other, offer extra amenities, etc. But we don't get to hear those.

Probably way more than a 5 to 1 ratio, but othewise I agree.