Question about booking

[mominkaty]

Am not sure whether to post this here or on First-time cruisers forum, so forgive me if I'm in the wrong place.

 

As mentioned in an earlier posting, DH received gift vouchers towards a future cruise on Carnival. We are looking at dates this summer when teenage son is out of school.

 

The conditions of the voucher state we must book directly through Carnival. Having not done this before, are there any specific questions to ask or things to make sure we tell the person on the other end?

 

DH is over 55 - will they automatically give him the sr. discount or do we have to ask for it?

 

Do residents of TX get any breaks cruising out of Galveston? How about out of NOLA?

 

I am fairly sure we will be booking a balcony. When I look online, it appears we can book early saver and get price protection and choose our room. Is this the way to go?

 

I don't believe we can book online, but have to speak to a real person at Carnival. Any suggestions on who to ask for or should we just take the luck of the draw?

 

Thanks in advance for answers. I really appreciate those of you who have cruised before and offer your advice on these boards.

[KenMo]

They won't always automatically tell you rates that you may qualify for. Make sure you tell them the rates you are interested in...for example, Past Guest, Military, Interline, Over 55, Residency, etc.

 

If you book ES, then you would not be booking under any of the above mentioned rates. However, to get price drops, you need to be checking any of the rates you qualify for. If the other rates are lower than what you booked, then you get a price drop.

 

There is no limit to the number of price drops. You can get them up to 2 business days before sailing.

 

I think ES is the way to go. But may not be for you. There are penalties for canceling, no name changes, etc. Read the fine print carefully.

 

Per CruiseCritic rules, we can not make PVP suggestions, so I guess you'll have to go with the luck of the draw. If you don't have a rapport with the first one, hang up and try again!

 

HTH

[firefly333]

Senior and resident discount vary and usually are up the last minute from what Iv seen, so you need to monitor the prices daily yourself.

 

ES is great if you are sure you will not want to ever downgrade, one person cant go and have to change them out last minute or change the date or just about anything else. They do allow you to upgrade. ES is the most restrictive of the fares.

 

Summer is about the most expensive time to cruise as Im sure you have seen. .. so watch the rates.

 

You cannot combine rates, so you cant get a discount for being a senior and then book ES for a lower price. The prices you see are the prices (well sometimes a TA sneaks in a perk or two etc, but they cant advertise that).