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Where should I purchase my cruise from?


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We always book through Carnival directly. No need for any middleman. Plus if we ever have any issues I can go right to the source and deal with them directly without having to have someone else talk for me. Emailing my PVP is much easier than emailing some 3rd party and waiting on the circle to complete to get back to me with an answer which may be right or wrong.

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Welcome to Cruise Critic, Melissa! There are pros and cons to booking with the cruise line and an independent travel agency. You may find that a travel agency (TA) may offer some additional perks that you would not get booking directly with the cruise line. A lot of folks do use TAs and will attest to the value. Others only use the cruise line website or one of their agents to book. Be advised that, if you book through a TA, you will have to get any changes made to your booking through that TA as the cruise line will not speak to you directly. Also, the Cruise Critic rules do not allow us to mention the name of a TA or a cruise line agent, so you are pretty much on your own as far as finding an agent. However, I would advise using one that is primarily a cruise based agency and are easily found if you do a little Googling. Good luck and don't get too frazzled trying to get that cruise booked! ;)

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I'm about to book a cruise for the first time. Do you use the discount sights or is it more trustworthy/reliable to book directly thru the cruise Line?

 

Thanks!

 

Melissa

 

 

 

There's a ton of posts/threads on CC explaining why the "right TA" for certain cruise lines and certain itineraries (particularly "expensive" ones) will be better or worse than direct booking. Of course, some of it is filled with misinformation. Nonetheless, you should use the "search" feature and then judge for yourself which is the best course of action. Here is one of the numerous CC posts I have made regarding use of a TA:

 

How to find a great travel agent?

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2385154

 

Bottom line (from my pro-TA argument) is to remember two things:

1) top producing TAs for your preferred line (who may book more than $1m/yr) will always be better able to fix a disagreement with a cruise line than will be you or a PVP/PCC who is the cruise line's employee.

2) TA provided OBC (both refundable from commission sharing and/or nonrefundable from cruise line incentive or travel consortium funds) can provide you a value ranging from 5-10% of savings beyond what the cruise line itself can provide.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

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I think this depends on how you like to travel. I personally like to have complete control over my booking and will take the time to do extensive research, so I prefer to book direct. However, if you need help/guidance on which cruise line and itinerary to chose, a TA may be very helpful in helping you narrow down choices.

 

We have a cruise scheduled for December where I worked with a TA (because my cousin is getting married and we're in a large group). I had a suite booked, and pricing changes happened. The TA called and re-did my booking, saving me $1200 off my original booking and he did this completely unprompted from me. Had I booked direct, I could have made that same call but I wasn't watching fare rates like he was and wouldn't have known to make the call.

 

On the other hand, I have to make all payments through the TA and find that they are at times slow to get me answers. As someone who likes to maintain control, I find that frustrating. But totally worth it for the $1200 my fare came down due to his proactive phone call.

 

Our upcoming Alaska cruise (19 days and counting!) I've booked direct. I've spent countless hours researching cabins, ports, excursions. The planning part of it is enjoyable for me, but if you don't want to do that searching yourself, a TA would ideally have experience and be able to guide you into what would work best for your travel style and budget.

 

On a non-cruise related note, I planned a 10 day trip to Costa Rica entirely through a local TA. They handled everything from the moment we arrived at the airport until we were dropped off (all travel arrangements, hotels, excursions and meals). It was so wonderfully done and I enjoyed the easy factor with that trip.

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Go to the top of the page where it says find a cruise and go from there.

As you chose a cruise and click on pricing,

there will be a banner with TA's

Many offer onboard credit, "Free Travel Insurance" etc.

 

Always, read the fine print and check their BBB rating. ;)

Edited by janetz
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HAL (Holland America) calls the "inhouse agent" a PCC (Personal Cruise Consultant). Just having been assigned one, and keeping her email, saved me $2400 when I had to cancel a two-stateroom booking on Christmas Eve -- the phones were unexpectedly DEAD! I faxed and e-mailed her, and a supervisor OK'd the refund on Dec. 26 based on the time-stamp of my communications. I don't think that would have happened if I'd had a brick-and-mortar agent, even if they had given me a cell phone and they answered on Xmas Eve -- as they wouldn't have been able to reach HAL either.

 

I now book all of my HAL cruises through her!

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We simply book all of our cruises (we cruised over 100 days last year) from one of several high volume cruise agencies...depending on which has the best deal on a particular cruise. As a general rule we save 7-10% on every cruise booking (when factoring in on board credits) versus booking direct with a cruise line. On some longer cruises our savings are even greater.....sometimes totally thousands of dollars (saved). Short 7 day cruises would usually get you savings of over $100. Our mantra has always been very simple, "shop around among a few high volume cruise agencies and compare their deals to what is offered by booking direct. On our last 100 or so bookings we have never found any cruise line that was competitive in terms of overall deasl (cruise price plus amenities such as on board credits).

 

Hank

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There's a ton of posts/threads on CC explaining why the "right TA" for certain cruise lines and certain itineraries (particularly "expensive" ones) will be better or worse than direct booking. Of course, some of it is filled with misinformation. Nonetheless, you should use the "search" feature and then judge for yourself which is the best course of action. Here is one of the numerous CC posts I have made regarding use of a TA:

 

How to find a great travel agent?

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2385154

 

Bottom line (from my pro-TA argument) is to remember two things:

1) top producing TAs for your preferred line (who may book more than $1m/yr) will always be better able to fix a disagreement with a cruise line than will be you or a PVP/PCC who is the cruise line's employee.

2) TA provided OBC (both refundable from commission sharing and/or nonrefundable from cruise line incentive or travel consortium funds) can provide you a value ranging from 5-10% of savings beyond what the cruise line itself can provide.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

All TAs can book your cabin at exactly the same rate and with all of the same perks as offered by the cruiseline. And many are willing to share a portion of their commissions by offering you perks in addition to the cruiseline's perks. But in addition, some large online TAs are able to actually get you cheaper prices by placing holds on many cabins to get group rates and passing on the savings to you.

 

Just one caution, if you decide to use a TA, make sure that your TA does not charge a significant extra fee to change or cancel your reservation.

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Do some research online and try and find a good online agency that specializes in cruises.

 

We have used the same online travel agent for the past 10 years and consistently get good rates, perks and considerable on board credit in addition to what the cruise line offers.

 

A good travel agent will respond to your email within a few hours.

 

Jonathan

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I'm about to book a cruise for the first time. Do you use the discount sights or is it more trustworthy/reliable to book directly thru the cruise Line?

Thanks!

Melissa

 

 

When we booked our very first cruise over 20 years ago (Wow! Has it really been that long ago?), there was no internet. There were, and still are, plenty of neighborhood travel agencies to choose from. We chose one that specialized in cruises. For your first time, unless you already know what you want, and have no problem researching cruises on your own on line, you might want to seek out a cruise agent in your area. He / she will try to match you with a cruise that best fits you and your budget. If you're a member of a certain automobile association, that might be a good place to start. However, don't hesitate to go to more than one agency to find what you're looking for. Yes, there are a number of discount sights on line. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find customer reviews on some of those sights, and we're not allowed to mention any sights or cruise agents by name.

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Hi and welcome to the site :)

 

If you know exactly where you want to go, when and on which ship, then whether or not to use a TA might be a moot point. If your mind is boggling at all the choices, you might be better finding a good TA who can help you decide on the right cruise for you.

 

Whatever you decide, I hope you find the perfect cruise for you and have a great time.

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No, we can't mention websites that function as travel agencies, nor bundlers who spam your snail mail box, nor warehouse stores that also have a travel-agency arm. And no specific local travel agents.

 

We're fortunate that Cruise Critic is supported by a number of e-travel-agencies... keeping it free for all of us. It is reasonable that their business is not undercut in members' posts, even if those members are only trying to be helpful.

 

When in doubt, leave it out.

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I said that Cruise Critic is supported by a number of e-travel-agencies... yours must be one of them. If you search for a cruise on CC, each of the supporters offers their bid. One still can't be promoted above the others by being recommended in our posts, probably. Keeping the playing field level.

 

 

I'm glad you got a good deal!

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