Before I transfer my booking to a TA.........

[phoenix1181]

I want to make sure I don't lose anything. I booked our next cruise while on our recent Explorer cruise. I received a balcony discount & OBC. Will

I lose either of those if I transfer the reservation?

[Familygoboston]

Yup! You can keep it all! And if the TA is any good you'll get stuff from them too. I didn't though, but she promises to check for price drops and sent me a free Celebrity brochure:rolleyes:

[phoenix1181]

Yup! You can keep it all! And if the TA is any good you'll get stuff from them too. I didn't though, but she promises to check for price drops and sent me a free Celebrity brochure:rolleyes:

 

 

Thanks! That's why I want to transfer the booking but needed to make sure I added perks, not subtracted them!

[Sue L]

Thanks! That's why I want to transfer the booking but needed to make sure I added perks, not subtracted them!

 

I assume you have already had a discussion with the TA about what perks you will get?

[reallyitsmema]

Thanks! That's why I want to transfer the booking but needed to make sure I added perks, not subtracted them!

I would ask the TA is they charge any fees though before you transfer to them. Some will charge you a fee if you cancel your cruise or will reduce your perks if you get a price drop. Better to know up front.

[phoenix1181]

I assume you have already had a discussion with the TA about what perks you will get?

 

Yes, with the TA being fully aware of the balcony discount but no mention was mad about the OBC.

 

I would ask the TA is they charge any fees though before you transfer to them. Some will charge you a fee if you cancel your cruise or will reduce your perks if you get a price drop. Better to know up front.

 

I've got that covered too! I know what I needed to ask the TA but I was afraid I might have missed something as far as the OBC was concerned.

[patseacruiser]

and it's within 60 days of booking.

[phoenix1181]

and it's within 60 days of booking.

 

Plenty of time. I booked 5/12

[Pumbaamd]

Found a cabin available Sunday afternoon that we really loved. It most likely would not be available on Monday after the TA opens. We changed cabins on line instantly. Also, cruising friends wanted to change dinner times, not a problem for us. Changed dinner times on line. We booked this cruise on line with RCCL and are able to change things on line. No amount of goodies from a TA can = what we can do on line with RCCL.

Rick and Deirdra

[Karter]

Found a cabin available Sunday afternoon that we really loved. It most likely would not be available on Monday after the TA opens. We changed cabins on line instantly. Also, cruising friends wanted to change dinner times, not a problem for us. Changed dinner times on line. We booked this cruise on line with RCCL and are able to change things on line. No amount of goodies from a TA can = what we can do on line with RCCL.

Rick and Deirdra

 

Even if they offer free gratuities, $150 OBC, 10% off final payment and a $50 gift card for a future cruise?

[Pumbaamd]

Even if they offer free gratuities, $150 OBC, 10% off final payment and a $50 gift card for a future cruise?

Yes. $$$ isn't everything. We love the better cabins we often get with a few clicks on line, even on Sunday or late at night. We don't mind changing dinner times, at will, to be able to dine with friends. And when something goes wrong, it easy to fix with RCCL, vs. "Call your TA". Been there, done that with TA's.

R&D

[cruzincurt]

Even if they offer free gratuities, $150 OBC, 10% off final payment and a $50 gift card for a future cruise?

That is until they discover their commission is reduced because you have a C&A balcony discount and they withdraw their perks.

[phoenix1181]

Found a cabin available Sunday afternoon that we really loved. It most likely would not be available on Monday after the TA opens. We changed cabins on line instantly. Also, cruising friends wanted to change dinner times, not a problem for us. Changed dinner times on line. We booked this cruise on line with RCCL and are able to change things on line. No amount of goodies from a TA can = what we can do on line with RCCL.

Rick and Deirdra

 

Yes, those things can be a problem but we love MTD & it's highly unlikely we'll be changing cabins so we're willing to take the chance.

 

That is until they discover their commission is reduced because you have a C&A balcony discount and they withdraw their perks.

 

Which is why a TA should always be given this information up front. They can't be expected to give you a quote when you've given them incorrect or incomplete information..........

[Karter]

That is until they discover their commission is reduced because you have a C&A balcony discount and they withdraw their perks.

 

They allow combining their discounts with the C&A balcony discount and next cruise OBC.

[cruzincurt]

They allow combining their discounts with the C&A balcony discount and next cruise OBC.

Not the case with some recent cruise shopping I just did. As soon as I mentioned my C&A balcony discount to one large online TA offering prepaid gratituities, they pulled their offer saying they couldn't afford offering that perk to me if my fare was reduced. The agent came flat out and told me they were not offering perks to C&A members who were getting crusieline reductions on fares. Check first, maybe a smaller TA is willing to work with you to keep your business.

 

They basically discriminated against me because I was a C&A member.

[Rick-n-Lisa]

I was going to switch mine to an online agency that offered $100 OBC, $100 Spa credit and Dinner for 2 at Specialty. I booked thru the WOW sale (mainly because of reduced deposit). When I told them this, the offer came down to gratutities for 2 of the 3 in our cabin. Then I asked if they would be able to do price drops if they occurred and they said any reduction in price will result in reduction of my gratutites as well. They did not ask up front if I booked a WOW or Tuesday special or anything like that when I asked them about transferring, only told me what they could do. Then I mentioned the WOW sale to make sure it didn't change things and they quickly changed the offer. I understand why but I want to make sure others new to this thinking of switching make sure they tell all the details of their reservation like the OP did so they don't find this out after they switch if they are mainly looking to get perks.

[cruisinfanatic]

Not the case with some recent cruise shopping I just did. As soon as I mentioned my C&A balcony discount to one large online TA offering prepaid gratituities, they pulled their offer saying they couldn't afford offering that perk to me if my fare was reduced. The agent came flat out and told me they were not offering perks to C&A members who were getting crusieline reductions on fares. Check first, maybe a smaller TA is willing to work with you to keep your business.

 

They basically discriminated against me because I was a C&A member.

Not usually the case. Try elsewhere.

The gratuities are a fixed amount so if the TA isn't getting enough commission, they obviously can't offer it. Many TA's will simply give you a percentage of OBC based on the base fare of the cruise minus your balcony discount.

Regardless of what kind of cabin you have

[cruisinfanatic]

I was going to switch mine to an online agency that offered $100 OBC, $100 Spa credit and Dinner for 2 at Specialty. I booked thru the WOW sale (mainly because of reduced deposit). When I told them this, the offer came down to gratutities for 2 of the 3 in our cabin. Then I asked if they would be able to do price drops if they occurred and they said any reduction in price will result in reduction of my gratutites as well. They did not ask up front if I booked a WOW or Tuesday special or anything like that when I asked them about transferring, only told me what they could do. Then I mentioned the WOW sale to make sure it didn't change things and they quickly changed the offer. I understand why but I want to make sure others new to this thinking of switching make sure they tell all the details of their reservation like the OP did so they don't find this out after they switch if they are mainly looking to get perks.

The wow sale shouldn't make any difference. TA's don't make less commission for a cruise booked that way.

Don't you think if you got a price reduction, your TA perk would change? You can't expect it to stay the same