Airfare thru Cruiseline or on your own?

[TwoWeebles]

I was wondering if there is any difference in price on airfare if you book it along with your cruise through the cruise line or if you book it separately on your own? Can anyone provide some insight?

[paul929207]

i go with whichever is cheaper. If the are about the same, I get my own. That way I have my choice of airline and routing.

[alcpa1]

The way most handle this is to book your cruise with air and then watch for fares yourself. When you use cruise air you are booking a consolidator type ticket. You may use a deviation for a fee and book a specific flight but if it is not in the cruise lines inventory you would pay all additional fees. You may also be suject to a fee to use this service if you do not have priority status with the cruise line.

Typically, cruise air will be the least expensive air the line can book and it may entail at least one connection. As you may be aware connections can lead to missed flights and the only way a cruiseline booked ticket is honored will be on the next available flight on that particular airline. There is no guarantee the next flight will get you to your destination in time to catch the ship either.

The real pros on this board will encourage you to fly in the day before your cruise and I agree. We would have missed our last cruise if we had not, so I agree.

Insurance is also another safety net. It will not get you to the ship on time but it will facilitate any mishaps.

Good luck

[Darkwolfe]

alcpa1 is exactly right about going in the day before. The further away your cruise is from home, the more important it is to go the day before.

 

Since we live in the middle of the continent, going the day before is a given for us. A couple of our friends went on a Carnival cruise last spring and used the cruise air to get there. Well, compliments of a couple of problems, the Carnival rep met them at the airport and said, "You can wait for your luggage and miss the ship, or you can follow me now." This did not set a good tone for the cruise.

 

That's just one little detail, there's a million more. The bad part is that most cruiseline air packages are for the day of the cruise. So you hope your flight is perfect, then you rush from arriving at the airport to your ship. Usually with a fun ride on a crowded bus full of other rushed travelers.

 

I'm going to book my own air travel even when it costs a bit more. That way, I have an excuse for an extra day's vacation. I don't have to worry about my flight being an hour late. I can have a relaxed evening at the port city and I might even get to watch my ship arrive the next morning.

 

All in all, a much better experience. :D

[Globaliser]

I was wondering if there is any difference in price on airfare if you book it along with your cruise through the cruise line or if you book it separately on your own?

There is a sticky thread at the top of this forum which will tell you a lot about air travel booked through the cruise line.

 

Price is not the only consideration. (Why do so many people think that this is the only thing that matters.) There are many other factors which should go into your choice. That thread discusses many of them.

[Lookingforfacts]

Looks like your cruise is February 2009. I'd fly the day before. Even if you're flying from a "warm" city a major winter storm could disrupt aircraft availability.

 

I suspect most people, who look early enough, can probably beat cruise airfare but there are many reasons to pay extra.

[chipmaster]

I was wondering if there is any difference in price on airfare if you book it along with your cruise through the cruise line or if you book it separately on your own? Can anyone provide some insight?

 

Price is only one consideration.

 

I would first consider travel schedule as priority one! I don't care what the price is, but if you are traveling in the winter and have a tight connection on the day of the cruise and miss your ship because of a weather delay, you'll view the few dollars that you saved as a bad decision.

 

Second if you are going someplace far like Europe you might want the flexibility to customize your trip. I'm not sure the cruise lines are as easy to set up something like this.

 

If you do your homework thru Kayak or numerous other internet booking agencies I would be skeptical if you couldn't find a airfare close to a few $$ of what the cruiseline offers. My preception is the cruise line offer one stop shopping and for that you will pay a bit more for that convenience, and with that you lose a bit of flexibility in controlling the details of your flights.

 

I would recommend you research the flights on your own and unless the $$$ amount is simply too large do it yourself.

 

Enjoy your cruise

[Lookingforfacts]

I'm not used to a from that restricts my ability to edit my posts.

 

JMO the major reason to book cruise air might be if you're booking relatively close to the cruise. The cruise line might still have air available but there might not be availability of discounted airfares if you book your own.

[nho9504]

I'm not used to a from that restricts my ability to edit my posts.

 

JMO the major reason to book cruise air might be if you're booking relatively close to the cruise. The cruise line might still have air available but there might not be availability of discounted airfares if you book your own.

 

Agreed. For true last minute sailings, if the cruiseline still have air inventory left, you would generally find that of much better pricing than the published fares. The caveat, of course, is that you would fly weird routing, and arrive on the same day of your cruise.

 

In April this year when we had our Eastbound Transatlantic on Princess, we bumped at couples who booked a month before cruise, and a week or may be 10 days before cruise (I forgot the exact number). They all had to use cruiseair.

 

The couple booked a month before cruise paid 20% less than what we paid for same type of cabin. Their cruiseair though, wasn't much cheaper from what I believe they could get it themselves. They did arrive one day before cruise because they originated from Vancouver, and the flight schedules simply would not allow same day arrival for boarding the ship. Priincess had them in a hotel which I never heard of. They complained about the conditions of the hotel and the location (it was next to a freeway out of nowhere according to them. I have no clue where this Harrison Hotel is located in FLL/MIA area.)

 

The other couple who booked within 10 days of sailing, paid less than 1/2 of what we paid, the cruiseair was their only option due to the price. They originated at DFW, but instead of flying directly to FLL, they had to go thru ATL to get to FLL, on the day of cruise.

 

Sometimes the cruise lines would not have any cruiseair inventory left at last minute. 2 years ago I saw a RCCL Transatlantic last minute sale. I asked if we can get cruiseair for that. The answer was No. RCCL said with such cruise prices, you were on your own to find the air. Needless to say, RCCL did not get our booking.

 

All in all, from what I read and heard, it seems Princess generally would still have cruiseair available at last minute, especially when they asked people to "move over" in Alaska sailings when they were oversold - they seem to always be able to find air for those who have agreed to be "moved over".