Travel agent for Alaska

[kelship]

Hi all,

Just curious, what benefits have you experienced when booking through a travel agent? 

 

Am considering using a TA and am trying to guage my expectations. 

 

For example, if I book thru a TA and my cruise gets cheaper, would/should they notice and notify me and possibly get the cheaper price for me? Or would that be up to me?

 

Happy cruising!

[lv2cruisgrl]

In my experience with my TA I get more free benefits depending on what the company is offering at the time ( like OBC). You will most likely have to watch for price reductions yourself and then have him/her get the price changed.  I have always used a TA.

Edited July 14 by lv2cruisgrl

[Mr. Click]

We have an Iceland cruise coming up that I booked through an online TA that I know and trust.  I get extra OBC for booking with them and when I needed to change the date of the cruise it was seamless AND the price of the new cruise was much lower so I saved a lot of money.  A month later the price of the new cruise dropped again and I contacted the TA again.  No problems, here in an invoice for the new, lower pricing.  The downside of the price drops are less OBC from the TA because that is based on their commission. If the cruise fare goes down, the commission goes down so the OBC goes down but I gave up $300 or so in OBC to save over $3400 in cruise fare.

[Travel-and-See]

I'm a solo traveler but I've visited / cruised Alaska several times without using a TA and don't know what the benefit of having one would be.  I got OBC for my Celebrity cruises booking directly.

[cruisetonowhere10]

I got some onboard credit booking Alaska direct but have since decided to use a travel agent for future cruise travel.  They give some OBC and they monitor price drops (so far my other two booked cruises have only gone up.) That being said, one was a Galapagos cruise on Celebrity and they sold the boat and the travel agent handled the calls/changes and very much to our satisfaction.  So, I definitely place some value on that as I wouldn’t have, at that time, had the time to spend on the phone sorting it all out.

[Georgia_Peaches]

1 hour ago, Travel-and-See said:

cruised Alaska several times without using a TA and don't know what the benefit of having one would be.

Often the OBC offered by a TA is significantly more than what the cruise line is offering.  TA's can also make other arrangements such as hotel and air...although I usually do those things myself.  I like that a TA has a direct line of communication with the cruise line and will often be able to more quickly resolve issues than I could on my own waiting on endless hold.  Dealing with the cruise line for booking questions and issues is better with some lines than others.  For example, if I sail on MSC I will only book via a travel agent...period.  And finally, often times TA's have group rates that include certain packages like the classic drinks package and/or wifi...and their group rates can sometimes be cheaper than the listed rate...but this is often because the OBC they give is refundable so it's like getting a discount...only after the fact.

[bigbenboys]

I've used the same TA for over 20 years. I booked an Alaska cruise in a Celebrity Suite out of Vancouver BC. It was booked over a year ago. Earlier this year I called my TA. I said I'm paying to much for the CS. What can we do. 1st 3way phone call got us nowhere. TA called another source and call me the next day. We are now booked in a Royal Suite and saved $3000 off our original cost.

At that time Celebrity have many RS available and not any CS.

[Jim_Iain]

I often book myself with Celebrity or book on-board and then transfer it to an agent for additional OBC than what I received from Celebrity.   Many times I simply e-mail some agents I deal with and ask what they would offer for the transfer of a booking. 

 

On average I would expect an additional 7-9% Refundable OBC on top of I had already received from Celebrity.

 

I can honestly say the agents that offer discounts like this aren't the best at checking your cruises for price changes and I have to do that myself and then e-mail a request to price match.  

 

[Jeremiah1212]

1. Additional onboard credit

2. Potential for group rates that are significantly cheaper than booking direct

3. Other less valuable novelties like a bottle of wine, specialty dinner, etc. 

 

The high volume agencies that can get you the best deals are very unlikely to monitor price drops for you. They have thousands of reservations to manage. 

[CCRUZER]

On 7/15/2024 at 12:04 PM, Jim_Iain said:

I often book myself with Celebrity or book on-board and then transfer it to an agent for additional OBC than what I received from Celebrity.   Many times I simply e-mail some agents I deal with and ask what they would offer for the transfer of a booking. 

 

On average I would expect an additional 7-9% Refundable OBC on top of I had already received from Celebrity.

 

I can honestly say the agents that offer discounts like this aren't the best at checking your cruises for price changes and I have to do that myself and then e-mail a request to price match.  

 

I booked my upcoming Celebrity cruise through an online TA back in May. Yesterday I did a dummy booking for the same category cabin (actually the one next to mine) and it was $135 cheaper. I relayed this information to the TA yesterday and got an email response this morning stating that because it is a promotion and a new booking, the new price cannot be honored,is this true? I would appreciate your valuable input. Thanks...

[Jim_Iain]

2 minutes ago, CCRUZER said:

I booked my upcoming Celebrity cruise through an online TA back in May. Yesterday I did a dummy booking for the same category cabin (actually the one next to mine) and it was $135 cheaper. I relayed this information to the TA yesterday and got an email response this morning stating that because it is a promotion and a new booking, the new price cannot be honored,is this true? I would appreciate your valuable input. Thanks...

 

I have seen Celebrity offer New Bookings Only rates and have been denied a match.   If you happened to book with a refundable you could potentially cancel and re-book.

[CCRUZER]

3 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

I have seen Celebrity offer New Bookings Only rates and have been denied a match.   If you happened to book with a refundable you could potentially cancel and re-book.

Thank you for your prompt response. Since the cruise isn't until next April, I'll continue to track prices.

[peanut head]

Like Jim, I scout itineraries and pricing and book my own cruise.  Then, I will transfer it to my big box store (begins with "C") TA.  I get an amazing shop card amount and an occasional group discount in the form of OBC.  I also get a percentage in the money back for my end of the year renewal.  It is inherent upon me to continue to monitor price drops and promotions.  

 

On another note, when using a big box store, I am unable to apply for a move-up bid.