Airline becomes Travel Agent for cruises

[C 2 C]

I know that we can't promote any cruise agency online but I was surprised this morning by an airline offer. A certain airline located in the midwest was promoting a Celebrity cruise discount and offering worldperks points for bookings. All the cruiselines are available for booking and the number is answered as the "airline" cruises... I am not promoting any TA but am posting this as a point of discussion. Do you think a company in one aspect of the travel business can successfully handle the cruise business as well? It sure would be nice to have flights bundled in a lower overall price.

[lysolqn]

The airlines have been offering land packages (bundled airfare, hotels, transfers, tours, etc.) - both domestic and foreign - for years but I've never come across an airline offering cruise packages. It's usually the other way around with the cruiseline bundling the airfare. I'm curious to see how this new(?) venture works out.

[lysolqn]

Just checked Worldperks - it doesn't look like the airline you refer to - or Worldperks itself - is offering cruise deals. It's just a matter of their website providing a link to another entity through which you can book a cruise for which you'd get points. Lots of businesses form similar alliances which seem to benefit all but none is actually acting as an agent for another.

[dileep]

Thanks for mentioning Worldperks, so I go go check the right airline web page. There is not much that a TA has to do to book your cruise.

 

I checked prices for 2 different sailing on 2 different ships and the prices do seem seem to be deeply discouted $1999 to $1199 and $4600 to $3600!

 

I thought that Celebrity was no longer allowing travel agents to discount cruise prices. this is the first bit of evidence that I have found that contradicts that!

 

I wonder if we will start to see discounted prices from the other non-arile travel agents. I am going call mine later today!

[C 2 C]

When I called the number it answered NW cruises.:confused:

[ocngypz]

Actually, the "Airline"cruises are being booked by a national travel conglomerate (can't use the name), not the airline.

[dileep]

The cruise packages are at http://www.nwa.com/features/cruisebonus/

[Leela]

My airline-of-choice has been co-branding cruises for years. They don't actually sell them, they have another travel agency sell them under the airline's name.

 

I was bitterly dissapointed with my experience booking through my airline-of-choice. The agents at the subcontracted travel agency who actually handled the booking didn't know their right hand from their left and every time I talked to them I got someone new, plus we never got the 5,000 miles per person that we were promised. All the questions and problems I had leading up to the cruise were ultimately solved by people here on Cruise Critic giving me advice and straight answers -- the people here knew things that the subcontracted travel agency had no idea about.

[m steve]

I usually book thru my mileage plus airline and as a Silver Wings member I get double miles for the booking plus equal miles for putting it on their Visa and 1000 miles a day for 10+ days on Celebrity. My Dec cruise will give us abour 32000 miles for using that agency and at a value of 2.5c a mile it's worth around $800. Better than any discount I have found elsewhere.

[CruznTom]

Tha above link seems to be an exact replica of trvlocity including format and exact prices and cabin availability. Coincidence?

[oceanqueen571]

I went to the link and plugged in the ship /date of my next Celebrity cruise and the pricing is exactly the same as on the Celebrity website.

[m steve]

If the reference was to my comments please note I have never used Travelocity!

[julieds]

We booked a RCCL cruise through United a few years ago and were pleased with the service--were able to get a good deal by using up about 140,000 frequent flyer miles (from two separate accounts), and still got senior citizen discounts (sad for DH, who was only 55 at the time but still qualified!) We had a complicated reservation (three cabins, one for DH and myself, one for 16-y-o DD and a friend, and one for my MIL), and the agent was very patient and helpful.

[CruznTom]

M steve - My message was in reference to the link from dileep. Even the airport selection is exactly the same.