Can anyone become a TA and save money?

[late seating]

We have heard for years that for a few dollars one will be provided credentials thereby becoming a travel agent. And, one of the benefits of becoming a TA is that cruises can be purchased for a fraction of the cost that the general public pays. Is this just a myth? Can anyone shed some light on the subject. Thanks. Late Seating (Angelo and Connie).

[Kathleen P.]

You can cruise for very little if you are a CLIA agent. The rates are approx 89 per day for agent and 99 per day non agent companion. The only downfall is it is last minute and you really do not get a choice of cabin location. I think on Celebrity the hightst level for TA discount is CC with a balcony - suites are not discounted. If you do choose to book a suite, and pay full price you do get your commission deducted off the total payment due. The commission depends on how much the cruise cost, so it can be a good amount. If you are a TA owner, it is no big deal to tell Celebrity to educt the commission off your total due. If you work for an agency, you have to get permission from the owner, as the commission is split with the house.

 

You can call celebrity's 800 number and you should be able to hear the TA prices, as it is a recorded message and goes by ship/sail date. They will list every cabin caterory available for TA's by ship first...then date, it is usually 3-4 weeks in advance. Not all ships are eligible for TA rates, and you usually do not know your cabin until you get to the pier.

 

I am a TA owner, I prefer to take the commission discount...I do not like surpises, and we love being in a suite.

[Lotsacruising]

I think you forgot to mention some very pertinent things. You can not just say :"I am a travel agent"and get discounts. YOu have to have a ClIA or IATAN card to get the discounts. To get the card you must produce a certain amount of business.

Also, travel agent discounts differ greatly from cruiseline to cruiseline.

At Celebrity they start at $40 per night for an inside cabin.

Hope this helps!:)

[Kathleen P.]

I think you forgot to mention some very pertinent things. You can not just say :"I am a travel agent"and get discounts. YOu have to have a ClIA or IATAN card to get the discounts. To get the card you must produce a certain amount of business.

Also, travel agent discounts differ greatly from cruiseline to cruiseline.

At Celebrity they start at $40 per night for an inside cabin.

Hope this helps!:)

 

 

No not true- I am a TA, I have a CLIA card. The only business I produce is my own. I pay dues to CLIA every year and take an on line exam. I save lots of money on my vacations and cruises, but the only trips I book are my own....Anyone can become a CLIA agent, you just have to go thur the CLIA process. The cruise lines do not care how many cruises you sell, either does CLIA, as long as you pay your yearly membership fee and take a 1 time yearly exam. You will then get your card renewed and there you go ...you are now a CLIA agent. We get wonderful discounts at Universal, Disney, cruises, and a whole list of hotels (Starwood, Hyatt etc...)

 

 

To be an IATAN Agent youhave to produce 20,000 per year to get a card for the same benefits.

[jezzdogg]

Kathleen

Can you send me the infor on the CLIA process so I can get a card. I wound up hunting down prices for the people at work all the time, which I do not mind, but if I can get something in return for it....so much the better....and it reduces the cost of my cruises...that would be great

Thanks

Jezzdogg@aol.com

[txtravelgal]

How much is the yearly membership fee?

[GoVolsTB]

I would also like information on the process to get a CLIA card. I would appreciate it if you could email me the info at volette@earthlink.net. Thanks

[Therapst]

Kathleen,

 

Would you please be so kind as to email us also?

 

Thanks!

[cruising diva]

would you be kind enough to also email me info on the CLIA card.

Thank you

leeg12us@yahoo.com

[Chick's pal]

How does this kind of thing affect pricing for non-travel-agent customers?

 

And assuming that folks who get this credential aren't using travel agents or online agents, so how does that affect those businesses?

 

How does it affect the business of the cruiselines?

[tbelian]

Anything to save a buck or two (or $40).

 

Excellent point(s) Chick's pal.

[Kathleen P.]

There is much more to it than just paying a membership fee. the website is http://www.cruising.org. You will need to set up a company and register the DBA with your town hall, get a fed tax id# and bank account just for the company (this way if you do sell any vacations, the commission check will be in the company name and you will have to deposit it), fax machine, business cards and I think the yearly fee is $400 or so...not sure.

 

There have been travel agents getting discounts since the dawn of time--so what? There are so many people on this board that do not wish to do thier own booking as it does take work and they think a travel agent gets them a great deal or something...some do...some don't.

 

Before I became a TA, I used one for everything and thought she was the travel god...turns out I could have done everything she did myself...It just takes a bit of research. That is why travel agencies are not doing so well...I do not book for people, just myself. I like being in control of my own bookings where I can call the curise lines and or resorts myself without having to play telephone with anyone. And the 10 to 15% off doesn't hurt either:)

[BB5953]

Chicks Pal - In the long run it is probably a benefit to the company being that people are able to purchase more cruises due to discounted prices - after you board the ship, drinks etc are all still priced the same.

 

It is similar to convenient stores not charging an ATM fee- they do that so more people come in their stores and possibly purchase items.

[Joe Beach]

the cruise line is filling empty berths with TA's on space available, so the tipped employees like it as does the company because these people tip better than an empty seat.

 

However, I'd like to know how Kathleen gets around or will eventually have to get around when a cruiseline District Sales Manager calls on her home/address (they don't like those entities) to meet her. They get the listings of the CLIA members, and they certainly get it when you book for an agent discount with their company. tick-tock, tick-tock.

 

And, Kathleen, I think you owe these people a better answer than "I think the fee is $400", don't you know, do you have so much money that it isn't a clear memory?

 

And probably more cost and work--From the CLIA site--

Effective for the 2004 ID card season, all agents renewing a CLIA ID card, must provide proof of completing a CLIA training event in the preceding year. All CLIA training seminars and online programs qualify, including those completed in conjunction with the CLIA INSTITUTE or any travel industry conference or event.

[Trixsea]

Well said Joe.

[Chick's pal]

...How this affects pricing for a "regular" passenger?

 

In the example given of the convenience store, customers still have choices about how much they pay for, say, a quart of oil, by going to another store. And they have a choice as to whether or not they pay ATM fees by going to their own bank for cash.

 

But a cruise passenger who doesn't have much choice about the price they pay for a trip if the fares go up to compensate for non paying passengers or super discounted fares. Thoughts on this?

[Danno]

Actually Tatka...you are on the X board :D .

[Tatka]

Actually Tatka...you are on the X board :D .

Ooops... ( Thats what happens when you have 4 windows opened ;) )

[bob278]

Ooops... ( Thats what happens when you have 4 windows opened ;) )

And obviously, more than one is on Cruise Critic. Now THAT's addicted! :eek:

[Danno]

You are not winning the battle on restraining yourself are you Danno?

 

ps, my comment was tongue in cheek, I hope you got that?

:D :D Everyday when I come to this board I learn so much from other cruisers. I try to answer any questions I think I can help with. I try to have a bit of fun...it helps take some of the stress out of my day. Then I stumble on a post authored by people who think like this...where do people who think like this come from?? Is there a place where cheating is OK? Where kids are raised to think that only THEY count and to he11 with what's right or wrong??

 

Just watch, I'll catch more flack for this than the apprentice fraud artist who started this thread!!

[chessbriar]

On top of all that, for membership into CLIA one of the requirements is to do 5 ship inspections. But due to security reasons, ship inspections are few and far between. The other option to the ship inspections is to book 10 cruises and if you are not part of an agency it's a little tougher to book those cruises.

[BB5953]

...How this affects pricing for a "regular" passenger?

 

I would say it helps keep your fares down. It has been noted that TA's can only get this discounted prices a few weeks before the sailing. Therefore, the cruise line has 1 of 2 options

 

1: the cabin sails empty = no revenue for the cruise line. The less revenue the cruise line makes the more the prices go up for "regular" passengers to make up for the lost revenue

 

2: sell the cabin to a TA at a dicounted price and still bring in revenue

 

I think the answer is obvious it has a positive impact for "regual passengers" wouldn't you agree?

[Therapst]

Danno, I've always enjoyed reading your posts here on CC. In the main, they're informative and frequently humorous. In this case, though, I think it's a bit out of line to use terms like "fraud", "misrepresent", and "cheating" with regard to Kathleen's posts (or to whomever you're directing your responses).

 

How many clients do you have to represent to be a "cruise agent"? Five, ten, fifty, one hundred? If the poster meets the requirements established by CLIA, including the payment of fees and continuing education, is she really guilty of fraud and misrepresentation?

 

Just a thought (let there be flames.....)

 

Randy

[Kathleen P.]

the cruise line is filling empty berths with TA's on space available, so the tipped employees like it as does the company because these people tip better than an empty seat.

 

However, I'd like to know how Kathleen gets around or will eventually have to get around when a cruiseline District Sales Manager calls on her home/address (they don't like those entities) to meet her. They get the listings of the CLIA members, and they certainly get it when you book for an agent discount with their company. tick-tock, tick-tock.

 

And, Kathleen, I think you owe these people a better answer than "I think the fee is $400", don't you know, do you have so much money that it isn't a clear memory?

 

And probably more cost and work--From the CLIA site--

Effective for the 2004 ID card season, all agents renewing a CLIA ID card, must provide proof of completing a CLIA training event in the preceding year. All CLIA training seminars and online programs qualify, including those completed in conjunction with the CLIA INSTITUTE or any travel industry conference or event.

 

 

 

Are you for real?????

 

No I don't exactly remember how much it costs...I paid it last November. If you cannot go to the website I provided to figure that out, well then you are not as smart as you think you are.

 

Like I stated in my post, on-line training or 1 seminar counts as TRAINING.

 

FYI...I have a home office with a business phone number (some people have more than 1 phone line in their house)...District Sales managers do not call they E-mail me...I get over 60 Emails a day...long gone are the days of the sales managers knocking on your door (unless you are a huge Travel Agency with lots of agents, it is easier for them to make a visit so they give a mini seminar to all employees). Have you ever heard of a home based Travel Agency- It has been big business for years now (tick tock tick tock!!!) and CLIA recognizes that and so do District sales managers - Hellloooo where have you been- you are actually allowed to have a small home based travel business in your home !!! Where do you get off being the judge and jury anyway? I am a legitimite business, registered with my state, with all the specs in order. If I decide NOT to have clients, that is my business, not yours. If I decide to use my membership for my own vacations that is my business...it is not illegal, that is what the card is for! I am not getting a bootleg ID card...I pay for it and I take a training class every year.

 

CLIA is not a non profit organization...they charge for everything...CLIA is a business...if you have a tax ID number, and everything else they require and you pay for everything...they really do not care what you do with your card.

 

And NO you do not HAVE to do ship inspections for an ID Card...it's is you want to be an accredited cruise specialist. You do not have to be a specialist in order to get your ID card, you just have to complete 1 class.

 

 

Geeze...everyone here is a genius..you have it all figured out. I'm so sorry I answered the post for the people who really wanted an answer. I did not answer it to get flamed by the likes of you. If you can't figure out how to start up your own home based business...go back to high school...they have been teaching that course forever...maybe you missed it??

 

 

FYI...I stay in a suite, so they actually keep the commission they would have paid out. Also being a TA getting the 59 dollar a day rate (or what ever the spacial rate is)- is to fill up the empty cabins on the ship as a filled ship makes more money than an one that is 3/4 full. Not every ship has TA rates, they do not allow it on the popular sailings/ships.

 

 

So where is your problem???

 

If any of you wishg to lay out money to set up a little business for yourself...by all means. It is not fraud, I do not obtain my card in any way which is illegal. What is fraud is on line agencies who sell senior discounted rates to people in their 40's and the clients know it - FRAUD!!

 

I do not have any clients, so how am I misrepesenting myself???

[wv4891]

Kathleen,

 

 

Wow, step back and take a deep breathe now. This is just a public forum and at times people will disagree and throw in their two cents. Abeit that was a rather strong flame from that person. All shared information is good.