Alaska --2008 - Travel Agent or NCL Direct

[DALLIEDOG]

Next year we are booking our 5th NCL cruise to Alaska, my wife and I are Latitudes members and we intend to go with my daughter /husband and two children for a total of 6 people. What are the advantages and disadvantages to book directly or through an agent. We will book our own air travel and taxis, and what kind of a room(s) would be best !!

[isles1]

From what I have seen, you almost always get a better price from a TA than from NCL direct, unless of course you are entitled to discounts because of your Latitudes status.

 

TAs are also seem more likely to be offering OBC and other perks like coupon books.

 

I guess the disadvantage is that with a TA there is a 3rd party involved, so you will not be able to talk with NCL directly about your reservation.

 

Price is the main factor for me, so unless I got a better deal from NCL, I'll always use a TA of some sort.

[Tideone]

I have now used NCL, a travel agent and a cruise travel site to book my cruises.

I found no advantage to using an NCL personal cruise consultant. By her own admission she said the only thing she could really do for me was answer any questions I might have.

She was not authorized to match lower prices that I found other places and she could not give me any upgrades.

The travel site gave me a free bottle of wine, onboard credit and bonus airline miles.

According to the PCC, NCL does not want to match any of their travel agents prices because they don't want to compete with them.

So if that is the case, I will continue to use someone besides NCL to book my cruises.

[Toyz711]

there are no absolutes...not all TAs will give OBCs or give lower prices. even on NCL websites, you need to add port charges and taxes...same with TAs. always make sure you are getting the complete price, otherwise you may be in for a surprise. NCL won't let TAs lower the price, if you find one offering lower prices they are selling your a cabin at a group rate (they have had some cabins on hold for the group price)...usually. if a TA is competing for your business, they may offer something on their own.

if the price does get lowered, even a TA may not be able to get you a lower rate..especially if it's a "new booking" rate.

last year DH called around, all the prices were real close..he went with the person who he liked over the phone. turned out great, but now that person got promoted and doen't do individual plannig, this time we are going with NCL direct. got a real nice lady..same as with the online TA..all our emails come in a timely manner, all informaton is corret.

most, we do our research so we know what we want and don't let a TA sell us what they want to sell us.

we have never gotten a bottle of wine or anything else from TAs.

[isles1]

...this time we are going with NCL direct. got a real nice lady..same as with the online TA..all our emails come in a timely manner, all informaton is corret...

So is it safe to say that price is not the overriding factor for you?

 

I ask because, using a BE stateroom as an example, for your sailing I found a TA whose price is $185 less p/p, including all fees and taxes. Obviously that may not have been the case at the time you booked, but my assumption for the purpose of my question is that there was a TA out there that could have offered a lower price.

 

I guess I am curious why you or anyone would bother booking direct with NCL unless cost was the same as or a negligible difference between what TAs had to offer?

[isles1]

I found no advantage to using an NCL personal cruise consultant. By her own admission she said the only thing she could really do for me was answer any questions I might have.

She was not authorized to match lower prices that I found other places and she could not give me any upgrades.

So why did you decide to stick with the NCL PCC in the end?

[Toyz711]

anyone who booked this cruise last week would have paid $400 more then the price today. in the last 3 weeks the price has gone from $799 for all balconies, to $729 for a BD and more for the other balconies (even the BE was $70 more then the BDs)..to $1029 the BE, f$1059 for the BD, $1079 for the BC and $1149 for the BAs (no BBs showing) last weekend), to the prices they are now. the prices are jumping all over the place. yes, i got them at the lowest price..timing is everything. if the price ,when we booked, was as high as it was last week, we would be in a inside room. the prices didn't go down (again) until after the final payments were due and cleared.

[isles1]

anyone who booked this cruise last week would have paid $400 more then the price today. in the last 3 weeks the price has gone from $799 for all balconies, to $729 for a BD and more for the other balconies (even the BE was $70 more then the BDs)..to $1029 the BE, f$1059 for the BD, $1079 for the BC and $1149 for the BAs (no BBs showing) last weekend), to the prices they are now. the prices are jumping all over the place. yes, i got them at the lowest price..timing is everything. if the price ,when we booked, was as high as it was last week, we would be in a inside room. the prices didn't go down (again) until after the final payments were due and cleared.

My question was whether NCL was offering the lowest price as between NCL and TAs at the time you booked with NCL. I am aware prices fluctuate all the time, especially after final payments have become due.

[Toyz711]

i check 6 places, mostly online..all prices were equal. last year, DH called over 8 different places...none made any special offers..all prices were equal. at the time we booked, no one we checked had any special offers.

plus, i never totally believe any special offers until we get down to where i, personally, ask them the total price for the cruise. seems that what they offer as a come-on is never available on the room i want, or the dates i want. after i book, i don't care...can't go back in time or get more grey hairs worrying 'bout some things.

i get a fair price on the cabin of choice, the dates i want and the ports i want..out the embarkation location i was looking for. if you get a better price, good for you. but to be honest, i don't care..i am still in my budget with all my excursions booked, and i am not in a inside room like i thought i would be. a win/win as far as we are concerned.

[isles1]

i check 6 places, mostly online..all prices were equal. last year, DH called over 8 different places...none made any special offers..all prices were equal. at the time we booked, no one we checked had any special offers.

plus, i never totally believe any special offers until we get down to where i, personally, ask them the total price for the cruise. seems that what they offer as a come-on is never available on the room i want, or the dates i want. after i book, i don't care...can't go back in time or get more grey hairs worrying 'bout some things.

i get a fair price on the cabin of choice, the dates i want and the ports i want..out the embarkation location i was looking for. if you get a better price, good for you. but to be honest, i don't care..i am still in my budget with all my excursions booked, and i am not in a inside room like i thought i would be. a win/win as far as we are concerned.

Calm down. The OP asked about the advantages and disadvantages of booking direct or with a TA. Since this interests me as well, I was just building on that question by inquiring as to whether you based your decision to go with NCL on price or something else. I am not questioning whether you got a good deal or implying that you did not.

[Toyz711]

and all i was saying is that people can't keep worrying about the deals. no one pays the same price for the same cabin. last year, on the star, 2 of the roll callers were in mini-suites just a few feet from each other, one paid $500 more for the 2 of them in the same level of cabin as the other. they,both, got the same enjoyment...and, thank goodness, it didn't matter to either of them. you book when you are ready and should be happy with your deal. that's why i say i don't care if anyone gets a better deal then i did. in the end, this cruise will be free for us...DH won it at work, but we are getting more for the boss's money then he did when he first looked into this contest. i don't get upset if someone else gets a better deal and i don't want anyone get mad at me for getting to go for free.

[rsinj]

i check 6 places, mostly online..all prices were equal. last year, DH called over 8 different places...none made any special offers..all prices were equal. at the time we booked, no one we checked had any special offers.

plus, i never totally believe any special offers until we get down to where i, personally, ask them the total price for the cruise. seems that what they offer as a come-on is never available on the room i want, or the dates i want.

 

Well, then I have to say that you and DH are not looking in the right places.

 

I booked our NCL cruise/cabin three weeks ago with the online agent we've used previously, and the price for our AB suite was $700 less than NCL. That is after port charges, taxes, and everything. Oh yeah - and we were given a $100 on-board credit on top of that. You think that was a group rate? I don't.

 

Please don't tell me that nobody prices lower than NCL, because that's simply not true.

 

Howard

[isles1]

and all i was saying is that people can't keep worrying about the deals. no one pays the same price for the same cabin. last year, on the star, 2 of the roll callers were in mini-suites just a few feet from each other, one paid $500 more for the 2 of them in the same level of cabin as the other. they,both, got the same enjoyment...and, thank goodness, it didn't matter to either of them. you book when you are ready and should be happy with your deal. that's why i say i don't care if anyone gets a better deal then i did. in the end, this cruise will be free for us...DH won it at work, but we are getting more for the boss's money then he did when he first looked into this contest. i don't get upset if someone else gets a better deal and i don't want anyone get mad at me for getting to go for free.

So if you were not worrying about the deal, why did you go with NCL over a TA, since presumably NCL or a TA could have gotten your particular cabin.

 

No one here is making the "deal" an issue except you. If money was not the issue (since you state that all the prices you found were the same and your husband's company paid for it) what is it that made you choose NCL over a TA?

 

Feel free to answer the question or continue to argue a different point entirely :)