Gift from your TA?

[shofer]

Our TA has always given us at least a bottle of wine which we upgraded. Our last cruise where there where 8 of us and we received an onboard credit of $50 each cabin.

 

Frankly, I really don't expect anything from her except great service which she does provide and will meet and beat the lowest prices that we find. She is always on target w/airfares and getting the best seats on the plane for us. We are grateful for her knowledge and the time & energy she puts into getting everything right for us and I certainly don't begrudge her the few hundred dollars she makes every time she books a cruise for us.

 

As a registered nurse, I would not like it if the patients I care for expected me to kick back part of my salary in addition to the things I do for them as part of their hospital stay.

[PattyMichael]

We have used the same TA for many years she have never given us a gift in our cabin. This year we will have booked a 7 day, 4 day and 13 night Europe cruise with her. I am started to get a little upset that she has made no small efford to say thanks for our business. I would be happy with a note and a pack of cards, anything, felling left out. We will see after out trip on the Century in Sept. Maybe we will change TA.

[GramaFran]

I have used an online discount travel agency never speaking to a person, just email if I have questions. They have always had a certificate for a bottle of wine for each cabin we reserve. This is our 3rd time booking and I expect the same, plus this time we got free travel insurance too.

Francine

[mencik]

The best gift I ever gave a client was just recently. Three months after booking, Carnival offered a "Resident's Rate" on the same sailing. I noticed that (without having my clients tell me) and saved my clients over $250 per cabin (3 cabins). Note that because the rate was less, my commission is now less, but I'll bet I have them as repeat clients. :)

[idssms]

My TA and I agreed on a percentage of the total refunded to me via a cabin credit.

 

Actual discounting of the fare is not allowed per X rules but cabin credits from TA are perfectly legit.

 

And a good size credit can pay for most everything, tours, excursions, gambling and bar bills. What remains at the end of the cruise is credited to your charge card.

 

A good agent in this competitive market will negotiate a rebate in the form of a cabin credit.

 

Plzz don't email me to ask specifics abt what I get. Thanks

 

Don

[BaltiGator]

Actual discounting of the fare is not allowed per X rules but cabin credits from TA are perfectly legit.

 

How is it that so many TA's discount the cruise price? I've seen lots of discounts right off the bottom line, not as cabin credits.

[Host Walt]

In one instance we were in the air from LAX to ORD on a flight that left about 75 minutes late. Our booked connection to FLL from ORD was 72 minutes. I called her on the airphone on board only to find out that she not only knew about the delay, she had already booked a new flight for us that gave us 30 minutes time to connect. She couldn't change the checked luggage but put in a special request with the airlines to reroute the luggage if possible.

 

It was done.

 

When we arrived in FLL, out popped our bags. When we arrived at our hotel (we always fly in the day before) the desk referred us to the Concierge who knew about our delay en route and who invited us to enjoy a welcome glass of wine at the hotel bar to help us relax from the trip.

 

Those are the gifts I want when I travel. A literal "guardian angel" who makes sure that the trip comes off as successfully as possible.

[rienreiter]

I have been using an online only TA since 2004. It is the agency (name cannot be mentioned) that is strictly online and only communication with them is via email. I am perfectly comfortable with this and have had no problem with them ever. I have always received gifts from them, either wine, OBC, insurance, etc. On my last booking just made last week, we just opted for $100 OBC for each passenger in 3 cabins; there are a total of 10 of us. Have no complaints whatsoever about this company.

 

On a side note, this TA gives you a range of gifts/rewards to choose from. We could have chosen up to a 27" color TV but we opted for OBC for everyone.

 

Question: has this habit of providing gifts/rewards always existed? Did this happen 10 or 15 years ago before the advent of the internet? I have no doubt that this practice creates competition among TA's and loyalty among customers. However, I am just curious how this practice has become so important today if it did not exist before. By the way, I did have a very good TA at a major local agency who I used for years. However, she was never able to meet the low prices offered by other TA's. Her prices were even higher than those shown on Travelocity. I eventually stopped using her when I found out that I could get better prices online and, to top it all of, gifts.

 

Regards,

[cruisePRN]

I booked five cabins for RCL on a 7 night night cruise for next year and will be adding another cabin. I asked a travel agent what can i expect if I turn over our bookings to her and she said "great service". I asked if it was her custom to send a bottle of wine or OBC and she said "nothing". I have 5 reservations directly with RCL and will not give it up to a TA who doesn't appreciate my business. These are 3 outside cabins, 1 balcony and 1 inside cabin, not just cheapo gtys.

[idssms]

I booked five cabins for RCL on a 7 night night cruise for next year and will be adding another cabin. I asked a travel agent what can i expect if I turn over our bookings to her and she said "great service". I asked if it was her custom to send a bottle of wine or OBC and she said "nothing". I have 5 reservations directly with RCL and will not give it up to a TA who doesn't appreciate my business. These are 3 outside cabins, 1 balcony and 1 inside cabin, not just cheapo gtys.

 

 

You should have shopped around. I see $500 or more in your cabin account if you got the right TA.

 

Its a shame some agents wont deal.

 

Even Saturn who came out with ,, the sticker is the bottom line now negotiates. Most everything in life is negotiable.

 

Don

[cruisePRN]

You should have shopped around. I see $500 or more in your cabin account if you got the right TA.

 

Its a shame some agents wont deal.

 

Even Saturn who came out with ,, the sticker is the bottom line now negotiates. Most everything in life is negotiable.

 

Don

 

It's not to late to turn these over to a TA, we're not sailing till next year so I will take your advise and shop around. Any TA's here can email me.

KN12345@hotmail.com

[idssms]

I am not an agent but can refer,,

 

idssms@hotmail.com

 

 

i dont make a dime on this either,, just like helping out.

 

d

[rienreiter]

Karyn8:

 

On my last cruise reservation, I booked directly with RCI and then turned over the reservation to my TA. I just did this last week and my cruise is not until July of '07. So you can definitely do the same for you (shop around) and come out ahead.

[B-May]

I'm lucky with my TA as we have a very large corporate account with them (approx. $500,000 Cdn. a year) and since I also send our staff (we have about 20 personnel full-time) to them for all their leisure vacation needs, I get very nice perks. I know my situation is different that those that just cruise - but hey you should get something - agencies are making at least 10% commission on the cruise. Since I'm not a wine drinker I always hint to not send me wine. This time I'm travelling with my parents (who do drink wine) so hopefully they will add wine to the list as well as shipboard credits. I wish X would add to their bon voyage gifts and include a gift certificate for dinner at the specialty restaurant. At $30 US a lot of people would balk at paying for that extra but if it was a perk, they'd gladly use it. I know you can use shipboard for that, but if you specify a certain item the person would probably use it for dining and be glad they went as it would be something they probably wouldn't pay out the extra money for. At least in my opinion.

[m steve]

travel agents. One is local and we have received wine, special room dining certificates and post cruise gift certificates from Amax. I don't know if the agent kicked in or if all of this was amex or cruise line benefits.

We also use United airlines travel desk and when you figure the miles credited at 2.5C per $ and 1000 miles per day for each of us on a 10 day cruise and 3x the cost of the cruise in miles they beat the H--- out of a bottle of wine or a $100 on board credit. We are going to Caribbean again on X and we will get about 30000 miles for it, X will give us the champagne and the TA offered me $50 on board credit. We are thinking about a b2b on Princess in Tahiti and the miles offered are equal to 1st class ticket to Europe. Of course you may have to fly UAL but it's still 1st class.

[SunnyFL]

Hello,

 

We're on the Celebrity Millenium Mediterranean August 18. We've been using one travel agent for about 5 years (cruises and more) and in the last couple years we've gotten perks.

 

This time it's dinner at the Olympic (the premium restaurant on the ship). Another time it was a beautiful wine, cheese basket in our stateroom, and when we went to Hawaii in 2004 (not a cruise), it was an awesome bouquet of tropical flowers delivered to our home when we got back.

 

Aside from the perks, we feel our TA is the greatest! She REALLY knows her business.

 

Rosann

[DonLou]

Our TA once had delivered to our cabin a beautifully wrapped basket of assorted fruits. I can't quite figure that one out because the fruit on the ship is free. I guess it's the thought that counts. :)

[Happy ks]

When Celebrity was "discount it as you like it" there was great pressure based upon price. And when you are selling at rock bottom prices it is difficult to compete with the "My TA gave me a $200 on board credit" when that TA also charged his/her client $300 more for the cruise; actually costing the receipient $100 extra. (Nothing is "free".) So the gifts were limited from the real discounters and flowing from the ones selling closer to full price.

 

Things have changed with the "no discount" policy. There are many ways to give some added value to clients. It would be interesting to see what everyone really wants.

 

-Do the flowers do it or is it the bottle of wine?

-Or is insurance a better value?

-Does the OBC seem like more of a hard dollar value, so it feels like more...or less thoughtful?

 

BTW, because of the change in pricing policies, don't be so quick to cut off your old TA because on the old cruises she/he "only" gave you the best price out there!;)

 

 

 

I understand that TAs cannot "give" perks every time to every client, they would probably make no money at all! I'm also aware that the perks probably come from points earned by the TA, rather than out of their own pocket.

 

To answer your question, I'd probably go with the OBC, to spend as I see fit. My second choice would be the travel insurance, to save me out of pocket $. A bottle of wine is nice, but I have to say I've always had to upgrade the wine, we just will not drink White Zinfandel :)

 

We've received a few gifts over the years and I have to say, if it is a logo item, we usually either leave it in the cabin, give it away, or discard it when we get home. I do wish that companies would save their money and not invest in those type of things.

 

All in all, if I were to get a "perk" from any TA, I'd be thinking that I paid too much for the cruise. My favorite thing, so far, has been an email note, wishing me Bon Voyage! Then upon return, an email stating that they hoped I had a good trip.

[CruiserJen]

We used one of those online discounters for the first time on our last booking. We booked 2 separate staterooms and were able to select a gift for each booking. I think I chose a silk scarf and a DVD player. Both arrived approximately 3 weeks after the completion of our cruise.

 

Never had any gifts or incentives before this one. I think I would prefer a shipboard credit.

 

Jen

[spearmint]

After 4 cruises with 2 different TA's, we have never received a thing. However, after our first cruise, our TA asked us if we got the bottle of wine that she had sent us, complimentary. Someone may have enjoyed it, but it was not we who did! :D Personally, I think shipboard credits would be great...

[sharpie13]

First of all I think Host Walt put it best by saying that the greatest gift a TA can give is wonderful service. That is the reason I have repeated with the same TA over and over. We have a great relationship and since then he has rewarded our repeat business as follows:

 

1st Cruise Nothing

2nd Cruise Strawberries on formal night

3rd Cruise Specialty Restaurant for the two of us

4th Cruise Champagne and $40 OBC

5th Cruise...I can't wait to find out!

[Babs-03]

our travel agent(AAA)gave us $100.00/each room and also we received a nice bottle of wine for each room.I thought it was a nice gesture.Try AAA,they were very good!Enjoy your trip!

[LV2KruzCats]

Our TA always provides limo service from home to airport and from airport home. If we have several other couples also cruising with us, she provides same service for them. Much better than a gift on ship that sometimes isn't delivered, or wine we don't like, or flowers that wilt! :D:D

[seagulls]

My TA used to give me a substantial price reduction until Celebrity started dictating price. So instead I get free travel insurance.

[westville]

Gifts from TA : We had a really nice TA from our neighbourhoodbut never competitve pricing. Always higher than the internet pricing. Never received gifts well. So for my next cruise decided to with a so called reputable TA from internet. She came recommended as gives very good pricing and great shipboard credits. At time of booking - best pricing and promised shipboard credits for each cabin 200USD. We booked four cabins and then promised a further 150 USD. Then we had huge issues with the deposit taken from our credit card. Celebrity had charged us three times over and refunded in piecemeal over a period of time. She then gave us a further 100 USD on Celebritys behalf and promised dinner vouchers.

At final payment date the price changed and we originally booked in Sept 2005. Then the TA was ill and not available; she promised shipboard credits which are now not honoured.The booking agency sort of honoured the price without the shipboard credit; All I can say is that there are some TAs out there who make huges promises at time of booking to obtain the bookings and then don't come through...very dissappointing.I posted this info as to fellow cruise passengers beware of 'too nice an offer'!! This TA was awful and really gives TAs a bad name. This TA is now taking bookings under same agency name but using a different booking agency.The sad part of it all is that Celebrity will do nothing as it is the TA we booked with.

 

So about free gifts.....rather go with a trustworthy TA and not one of these promise all and deliver nothing TAs

:mad: westville.