Probably been asked before...but..

[bubbles1209]

This has probably been asked before, but I'm gonna ask now. Did a search, didn't find anything. Is it better/cheaper, to use a ta, or book directly with carnival? We used a ta for our last cruise, and for many reasons we will not use her again. Should I pick a different ta, or book directly with ccl? I want someone that's gonna get us the lowest they can go:rolleyes: (who doesn't) and that will work with us during price drops, etc. What are your thoughts, and thanks for the help:)

[veryhotred]

We have only booked one cruise and we used a TA and she was very nice and we got a great room, etc., BUT she knew nothing of Carnival's military discount. I had to call her after reading about it and tell/ask her to call Carnival and have her inquire about it. I would think that TA's would know of this but perhaps I am just expecting a lot. We ended up saving over $100 per person thanks to my reading!! :p I know someone here will tell you exactly what to do, I love this place!!! :)

[joepeka]

I am sure you will get a lot of varying responses depending on people's personal experiences with TA's, Carnival PVP's and internet online booking sites. As to price of each, I can't speak to online sites or PVP's but I can say our TA (who we've used for all our cruises) does an adequate job but like veryhotred, I was disappointed that our TA did not know about the military discount until I called her and asked her to look into it. It saved us a little over $500 on our last cruise and am disappointed she didn't know about it when we initially booked. The prices she has quoted over the years were very close to those quoted on CCL's web site, with the one exception being a fantastic airfare deal on our Elation cruise 4 years ago. Otherwise, her prices were nothing special but we did appreciate knowing she would handle any issue (no matter how trivial) on our behalf... including letting us in on how to get the dinner seating we wanted even when the cruise line said the seating was full.

[Wennfred]

This has probably been asked before, but I'm gonna ask now. Did a search, didn't find anything. Is it better/cheaper, to use a ta, or book directly with carnival? We used a ta for our last cruise, and for many reasons we will not use her again. Should I pick a different ta, or book directly with ccl? I want someone that's gonna get us the lowest they can go:rolleyes: (who doesn't) and that will work with us during price drops, etc. What are your thoughts, and thanks for the help:)

 

We always book directly with Carnival, main reason is that if something came up, I can call Carnival directly and get things done ASAP. If you book with a TA, Carnival can not assist you. There are more reasons why I prefer to book directly with Carnival and one is the one you posted above, sometimes you end up with a TA that once they have your money they are hard to get intouch with.

 

I rather pay a few dollars more to deal directly with the Source and not have to wait days for an answer.

 

Fred

[hstrybuf]

Some people prefer to use a Carnival PVP. I prefer to use my TA. The trick is to find one who is knowledgeable and will work to find you good deals. Mine found a past passenger promotion on my next cruise which saved us some $$.

[saintsfan777]

The past couple of cruises that I have been on, I have gone through a website called *****.com and gotten some pretty amazing deals. You just put the cruise ship and date in and what kind of cabin you are looking for and the travel agents compete for your business. I have gotten far better deals than I ever would by going through Carnival directly.

[popsec]

We booked our Sept cruise with my PVP (he's great to deal with and we got the military discount). Our final payment was due July 12th. Anyway, I got an email from a well known online travel agency that they were having a big one day sale today and were offering double bonuses on transferred bookings. I called them and found that I'd save another $98 if we transferred the booking to them today and paid the balance due. We did and got our guaranteed balcony room incredibly cheap! You can always transfer your booking before final payment is due to cash in on a TA's special offers.

[crazidude1400]

I prefer a TA, since I can get a better deal, usually. I have to find the right person, and it can take a few weeks, but if you put your mind to it, you can save hundereds of dollars.

[Cotton]

We always book directly with Carnival.........

I rather pay a few dollars more to deal directly with the Source and not have to wait days for an answer.

 

Fred

 

Fred, why would you say you pay 'more' to deal with the cruiseline? That's just not true at all.:rolleyes:

[chrly]

I've used the same TA for all my cruises...anytime I call she is there to answer questions or concerns that I may have...since we booked as a group we are getting a great deal. The price that we are paying for our cruise includes transportation from our area to BWI airport(1 1/2 hr drive), roundtrip airfair, transportation from SJU to pier, and cruise as well as everything in reverse. Inside cabins start at 1300.00 pp and balcony's start at 1700.00 pp. All in all not a bad deal....especially since we have someone to handle all the details. By the way this is for a southern caribbean cruise (Destiny) in 2008. The nice thing is we are now locked into our prices...if there is a price drop all I need to do is call the TA and she will give it to everybody that is booked in the group. We now have 47 people signed up to go with us on this trip.

[rellersi]

Travel agents/ online agencies are no longer suppossed to discount the fare quoted to them by Carnival. I no longer trust those that do unless they state how they are doing so as there are ways for them to get around that directive, such as free insurance, on-board credits, future savings, etc.

If you use a travel agent or Carnival direct(PVP) you should ask them about any possible discounts available including military, residency, past guest, senior citizen, although based upon the information you give them, these should be shown to them when they make your reservation. If the travel agent does not book thru Carnivals computerized system, then they will be talking to a representative at Carnival who can find those fares, as long as they are provided with the appropriate info.

Once booked, you should keep checking online for fare reductions and if you see any contact your TA or PVP, remember, they are only one person and most likely can not check every booking they are handling every day, but if you or they find a reduction they can usually get Carnival to either reduce if final payment not made, upgrade, or give you an onboard credit.

 

As for what seems like a great rate from a particular travel agent, you either caught them on a day when Carnival was offering specials, or that particular agency has a group blocked, where they have reserved a number of cabins on a specific cruise at a discounted rate (the only way they are supposed to discount the Carnival available rate), and they are selling the cabins within that group. If this is the case, do not expect to get any fare reduction if published fares go down.

 

Bottom line is the method of booking is a personal preference, some advantages and dis-advantages to each.

[GoinCruisin]

Travel agents/ online agencies are no longer suppossed to discount the fare quoted to them by Carnival. I no longer trust those that do unless they state how they are doing so as there are ways for them to get around that directive, such as free insurance, on-board credits, future savings, etc.

 

They are allowed to discount, they are not allowed to ADVERTISE a price lower than Carnival's price however. It's RCL that doesn't allow TA's to discount or advertise. It seems that most TA's are not discounting because now they don't have to... I don't blame them.

[FriscoLady]

I do A LOT of research before I ever book a trip and I've always gotten better perks by going directly through Carnival. Even Cruise Compete has not been able to compete. On this last trip they could save me about $5 pp but Carnival put me on the Promenade at the Riviera price. I'll pay the 20 bucks and avoid steerage everytime!:D

[dan40]

Cotton, I know you love your PVP and you know I love my TA. But to clear up your post above. A really good knowledgeable TA will always, without fail, everytime, no exceptions, beat Carnival's pricing. They just can't advertise a lower price.

If Carnival has a sale price+plus a past pax discount+a military discount, a good TA can match all that thru Carnival. THEN they can discount some of their commish as well. Carnival can't/won't do that.

So it has to be a phone call, just looking at a website won't get the good price.

All that said---You have a good PVP, I have a good TA. For a newbie to find either one for themselves is the big problem.

 

Dan

[rellersi]

They are allowed to discount, they are not allowed to ADVERTISE a price lower than Carnival's price however. It's RCL that doesn't allow TA's to discount or advertise. It seems that most TA's are not discounting because now they don't have to... I don't blame them.

 

Thanks for correcting me. I thought they were both the same.

 

BTW - looks like we are neighbors

[45014]

We just booked a 8 day cruise on the Legend, and we got a MUCH better price dealing directly with Carnival. The TA always seemed to "forget" about us until the tickets arrived. Only a personal obsrvation.

[GoinCruisin]

Just remember.... cheaper is not always better, especially when you are talking about forking out bucks for a vacation. I would rather spend a little more and deal with someone reputable, that I can reach by phone, that has a backup plan in place if they are out of the office, etc... than get a rock bottom price... ANY DAY OF THE WEEK. If you are going to book the cheapest price you find, just don't be upset when the service matches :p

[dan40]

Just remember.... cheaper is not always better, especially when you are talking about forking out bucks for a vacation. I would rather spend a little more and deal with someone reputable, that I can reach by phone, that has a backup plan in place if they are out of the office, etc... than get a rock bottom price... ANY DAY OF THE WEEK. If you are going to book the cheapest price you find, just don't be upset when the service matches :p

 

 

While I totally agree with your post, in today's market paying more is no guarantee of quality. In more than 30 [maybe 40] bookings, no one has beaten her price by more than a few dollars[less than $25.] and only rarely has anyone done that or even matched her price. Yet I get fast, accurate info, from anyone in her office. Quick return of calls by her. Timely docs delivery. I have her 800 # programed in my cell and could call even at check in [never had a need] and have always had gifts in our room. [wine, choco-strawberry's, etc.] Plus I can always hear the smile in her voice in our phone calls [we've never met]. How did I get started with her? Read good things on another board, called her about a cruise I already had booked with my local full service TA. Had an OV booked, ended up with a corner aft balcony[top deck] for $200 pp less than the locals OV price. A total diff of about $1000. pp in value.

 

The problem for newbies is that anyone could promise as much and deliver nothing. I was very leery at first but decided to take a flyer on her. Of course a con artist would be even more reassuring than an honest TA so I got lucky. Since we can't make recommendations on this board and there are some here that do not like my TA [can't understand that] I don't know what to tell a new cruiser. "When you have 15 or 20 cruises under your [ever-widening] belt, you'll understand how its done." doesn't seem to be much help.

 

Dan

[Wennfred]

Fred, why would you say you pay 'more' to deal with the cruiseline? That's just not true at all.:rolleyes:

 

Thats true, CCL does match what ever price I find out there, Im just trying to make a statement here, meaning so what if CCL charges me 10 dollars more then a Dot.com company.

 

An example would be, that person that went to *****.com where you enter the info and people bid for your cruise... Some offer free insurance, some a free bottle of wine or Onboard Credit, all those perks dont steer me in their direction because when the POOP hits the fan, where will they be???