Booking completely on line

[CaliforniaAC]

I am considering booking through an on line agency without the help of a live person. I have booked once thru ______ Auto Club, twice with an internet agency, and once directly with HAL, with little or no problems. It's a really good deal, haven't found anything that can touch it, so it makes me a little leary. Any advise???

[Nliedel]

I did it and I am darn happy I did. I will book the entire trip online by the time all is said and done and that includes the Disney portion.

 

I book all my races online now too. A few years ago I would only mail entries in.. my how everything has changed!

[Bonnie&Rob]

I ventured into the on-line booking with my last cruise and couldn't be happier I did. Do your homework first and always PAY BY CREDIT CARD (don't use a debit card) to be sure you have recourse through the bank if something should go wrong.

 

I booked a cruise this weekend through an on-line agency, although I had to call to use my future booking credit. I was given my confirmation number at the booking, and was able to see my reservation on the cruise line site the following day.

[ChrisB123]

Only taken 3 crusies. One was with a TA and was disappointed. Twice thru an on line provider and couldn't be happier. Both times we were given free upgrades and $100 ship board credit. Go for it, but ask for the extras.

[Happy ks]

Out of 7 cruises, I have booked 6 online.

 

Only had a problem with one, it wasn't a booking problem, just a personality difference between the TA and I when he had to call me for additional info. Funny thing was, the additional info he needed was because he had misplaced what I already had given him, so, not my fault. Since I don't feel any real need to speak with a TA, it has always been a great way for me to book.

 

For someone with lots of questions, a live TA would be the way to go. The one time I used a TA for a cruise, I was quite happy with her, got a great rate. She tried to help with airfare and I ended up getting a much better deal on my own. It was nice to have someone to talk to and share the excitement with. Unfortunately, she is now gone from that agency.

[candydane]

I've used online TAs for all my recent and future cruises, including a TA that only communicated with e-mail. So far I've been generally satisfied, although I've been willing to change TAs if the circumstances warranted it.

 

I feel it's my job to do my research and know what I want before I book or if I want to make later changes. It's the TAs job to help me make the changes I want or need. Fortunately this CC message board helps me to do my research before I make decisions, which is a good thing.

 

Of course there can be problems with online TAs, just as there can be problems with brick-&-mortar TAs and also the cruise lines themselves. The important thing to remember is that I need to be able to convey my needs and be willing to follow-up to be sure they are met.

 

Anyone (or agency) can make a mistake -- the good people/agencies correct their mistakes like professionals!

[mrg0433]

Just remember that starting next year all cruise fares will be set by the cruise companies, so there will be no extra savings booking online as with any other travel agency. Find an agency who treats you well, and there is nothing to complain about. I did have a problem reaching a person with questions after booking online. Now I have a local travel agent with online bookings. I can call her number and speak to her anytime. With the large internet agency, I had problems getting somebody to call me back and answer my questions.

[love2vacation]

I have booked my air on line and hotels. I also booked our May 05 AI Jamaica vacation on line and did not have any problems. We have taken 2 cruises and booked our third. I have used the same local Travel Agency for two of the cruises and a major dept. store on line web site for one of the cruises mainly because they had a great special going for that particular cruise plus up grades. With that site you do get a "real" person to contact but so it eased my mind. All these sites are well known and have been in business for a while. It is the unknown companies that I would be cautious about. I will have to say that the only time I had any problems with anything was the Miami hotel I booked via phone. Someone charged something to my CC and I know they had to have gotten my number from that reservation. :mad: Sometimes I think the encrypted sites are safer.

[cruisinqt]

Just remember that starting next year all cruise fares will be set by the cruise companies, so there will be no extra savings booking online as with any other travel agency. Find an agency who treats you well, and there is nothing to complain about. I did have a problem reaching a person with questions after booking online. Now I have a local travel agent with online bookings. I can call her number and speak to her anytime. With the large internet agency, I had problems getting somebody to call me back and answer my questions.

 

"Starting next year all cruise fares will be set by the cruise companies, so there will be no extra savings by booking online?!?!" Where did you hear this? Is there someplace I can go to look this up and confirm this?:confused:

 

I've done a lot of research and from what I can see, each cruise line has different rules about cruise fares. RCI used to let the internet agences undercut their prices but they recently changed their rules and they don't anymore so there is really no price difference between RCI and the internet agencies. Carnival recently instituted a new rule that says no agency, internet or otherwise, can advertise a cruise for a cheaper price than what's on the Carnival website. The key word here is "advertise." If you CALL the internet agencies, they can give you a cheaper price over the phone. If you ask for a quote online they can e-mail you a cheaper price. The only thing they can't do is ADVERTISE a cheaper price. As far as Princess and NCL, the internet agencies can and do have cheaper prices.:)

 

So far, I have not heard a single word on any of the boards here at CC about the "cruise fares being set by the cruise companies so there will be no extra savings by booking online" as of next year. If this were really going to happen, it would be a very hot topic on the boards with a lot of complaints going around. I remember when RCI changed their policy there were a lot of heated discussions about it on the RCI board. Most cruisers were very irate about not getting the good deals on the internet anymore and many vowed to not cruise on RCI anymore.:eek:

 

When Carnival changed their rules, it wasn't really a big problem since you could still get good deals, you just had to work a little harder.:rolleyes: Overall, from what I understand, each cruise line has different rules. With some cruise lines you can get great internet prices, with others like RCI, there's no difference in price either way you go.

 

We have done a number of cruises including NCL, RCI, Carnival, and we are going on our first Princess cruise this December. We have booked every single cruise online and always will. I think booking online is perfectly okay as long as you do your homework and make sure they are a reputable company. Checking with the Better Business Bureau online to see if there have been any complaints lodged against the online company you are looking at is a very good idea.;)

[10X]

I have an excellent travel agent and wouldn't book without her. Online, you pay your money and, generally, that's it. If the price drops you might not get the lower price, unless you can find someone to contact who will help you. My travel agent once saved me $1400 on a price drop because she regularly monitors prices and checks to see if her clients can benefit. I don't even have to check for the lower rate, or ask for the lower rate because she's already one step ahead.

 

Earlier this year we did the Tahitian Princess and booked through her. A friend touted the benefits of me booking online and told me which site he used. I went online with him at my side and showed him where I was saving $600 by using my travel agent. We were using my confirmed booking sheet from my TA and the online prices on the screen. He was dumbfounded that he'd been paying too much and didn't know it.

 

Next year we're doing a cruise but taking an inside cabin so the savings isn't near as much. It is in the $100-$200 range though.

 

However, it took me about 6-8 cruises before finding a great travel agent.

[Happy ks]

Well, 10X, I wish I could find a TA like yours. Every time I check with a local TA, the price is always much higher than the online quotes I get.

[Chucksta63]

Do it right here!!!!!

Come join a Group Cruise and get Great Rates and Amenitys!!!!

We have the best prices!!!!

[rstep]

I have an excellent travel agent and wouldn't book without her. Online, you pay your money and, generally, that's it. If the price drops you might not get the lower price, unless you can find someone to contact who will help you. My travel agent once saved me $1400 on a price drop because she regularly monitors prices and checks to see if her clients can benefit. I don't even have to check for the lower rate, or ask for the lower rate because she's already one step ahead.

 

Earlier this year we did the Tahitian Princess and booked through her. A friend touted the benefits of me booking online and told me which site he used. I went online with him at my side and showed him where I was saving $600 by using my travel agent. We were using my confirmed booking sheet from my TA and the online prices on the screen. He was dumbfounded that he'd been paying too much and didn't know it.

 

Next year we're doing a cruise but taking an inside cabin so the savings isn't near as much. It is in the $100-$200 range though.

 

However, it took me about 6-8 cruises before finding a great travel agent.

Could you please e-mail me the name and number of your T/A? rstep@swbell.net

Thanks

[cruiser77]

Used an online travel agent 3 times and have had no problems!:)

[CaliforniaAC]

I am considering booking through an on line agency without the help of a live person. I have booked once thru ______ Auto Club, twice with an internet agency, and once directly with HAL, with little or no problems. It's a really good deal, haven't found anything that can touch it, so it makes me a little leary. Any advise???

Thank you to everyone for all your replies. We booked completely internet-no TA. We are going back to back 7 day EC and 7 day WC on the Zuiderdam in October over our birthdays. We checked with HAL immediately afterward on line, and our reservations were there. So far, so good. Now we're just keeping our fingers crossed that the hurricanes will have blown themselves out by then!

[pupidda11103]

My boyfriend and I are departing tomorrow morning for our Western Caribbean Glory cruise and we booked everything from the cruise, to the flight, to the post-hotel online. We booked the cruise from a popular online travel website. I then called Carnival to confirm that the reservation showed up in their sytem and was assigned a personal TA for any future questions I might have which was very useful. We booked our Jet Blue flights online and our post-cruise hotel stay in Orlando online as well. It was very convenient and I think i saved more $$$ than going to a travel agent.

[CruznPrnces]

I booked our first cruise online. After I booked it, I realized there was a problem. I called the number from the website, and was able to fix the problem without any hassle. And while we were fixing the problem, they upgraded our cabin at no extra cost to us! However, when we take cruises with other people, we do call in that reservation. We want to make sure that we will be seated at the same table for dinner and have rooms near each other, that sort of thing. [i'm not confident that when booking online with a large group (because each family books their own cruise so they can pay for it) the cruise line knows we are together to seat us together]. Either way, we have not had a problem.

[cruise memories]

I have a wonderful TA and I am so glad that I can call her if I have any questions. She returns my calls as soon a she gets my message if she isn't there. I also have her e-mail address both at the agency and at her home. She also gave me her cell phone number. I am very lucky to have found her.

[danyelle]

Hi,

 

I saw the cruise I wanted on an agency website and was going to book entirely online since the price was so great....I called, just to be sure the rate was correct....turns out the online rate was higher than the one the agent was able to give me! I saved about $200!

Sometimes it pays to speak to a human despite the all-online convenience.

 

D

[Bequia]

"Starting next year all cruise fares will be set by the cruise companies, so there will be no extra savings by booking online?!?!"

 

I can't seem to find any information about this anywhere, all cruise fares, care to share your source with us? :rolleyes:

[cruisinqt]

Bequia I had the exact same sentiments as you did when Mrg0433 made that statement. I posted a reply asking the same question but got no response. More than likely he or she is a travel agent trying to get cruisers to not book through the internet anymore.:rolleyes: