Early saver not through Carnival

[boomonster]

We have always booked through Carnival directly with early saver but we have found a cruise we want to do through an online site cheaper. It is still the early saver rate .With 8 of us going that difference adds up to alot. My question is since it is an online travel site do you have to go through them to submit the form ? And has anyone done this ? Was wondering if it is a hassle or relatively painless? Didn't know if they were basically you're TA and you didnt hold the reservation. Sorry for all the questions. Thanks in advance

[okgirl]

We have always booked through Carnival directly with early saver but we have found a cruise we want to do through an online site cheaper. It is still the early saver rate .With 8 of us going that difference adds up to alot.

 

My question is since it is an online travel site do you have to go through them to submit the form ? Yes you have to go through the TA to submit the form.

 

And has anyone done this ? Yes, I've done it once.

 

Was wondering if it is a hassle or relatively painless? It was relatively painless in my situation but I've read that it's like pulling teeth with some TA's? Didn't know if they were basically you're TA and you didnt hold the reservation. Sorry for all the questions. Thanks in advance

 

Make sure that the TA you are wanting to use is willing to submit the forms for free. Some TA's are giving you what appears to be a lower price because they are giving up part of their commission. So you have to know what your actual cruise fare is (it should be the same as Carnival's) and that's what you price match too. If there is a lower price they may remove their bonus and it could cost you more.

[valeria1025]

Ive done this twice with my upcoming cruise. With my online travel site, it was as easy as submitting a VERY quick form online. They look it over to verify the price difference and within 48hrs got back to me via email. Ive had two price drops since May 1 and I booked ES through them for a Carnival cruise.

 

I will say however, that it took me a good bit of calculating to figure out EXACTLY what numbers I needed to know to compare for a price match. For me it was fare and taxes. I had to learn not to include travelers insurance and pre-paid gratuities.

 

But no one ever gives back money easily.

[Herfnerd]

We use the same TA for all our cruises/travels and she is great about submitting price drops on ES rates but I have heard horror stories from others.

 

Really depends in your case - make sure you ask before you book......

[KrystalWaters]

We have always booked through Carnival directly with early saver but we have found a cruise we want to do through an online site cheaper. It is still the early saver rate .With 8 of us going that difference adds up to alot. My question is since it is an online travel site do you have to go through them to submit the form ? And has anyone done this ? Was wondering if it is a hassle or relatively painless? Didn't know if they were basically you're TA and you didnt hold the reservation. Sorry for all the questions. Thanks in advance

 

To answer your question...yes you have to go through the travel agency for price drops. It could be a pain if the TA is closed. As we all know price drops are very dynamic. You may see a price drop at 10am and at 12pm it could be more expensive.

Another thing is is if you have questions on your booking Carnival will not be able to assist. So don't expect much help from Carnival if you want to check to see if your grats have been paid or your transfers have been added. But if you have a wonderful TA it can be an awesome experience.

[Ours91]

When using a TA , you must submit the form through them. I recently submitted a price drop through my TA with no problems. They have their own online price drop form and send it in for you. :)