Why do people book online?

[seaexplorer11]

I always hear of people booking online, then calling the cruise line to complain when something is wrong or the price drops. Why not book with an ACTUAL PERSON? First off, they will answer all your questions and second, it keeps the economy going. When you book with a real person, jobs are created. If you aren't part of the solution, you're part of the problem.

[JimAOk1945]

I've never had any problems. I have done it both ways.

 

If we are flying to the embarkation point, I use a TA. If we are driving, I book it myself. Personally, I like the feeling of being able to do it either way.

 

Happy cruising!

[Ireallyneedavacation]

I have done it both ways, but what about the people that keep the website up and going? They need jobs too!

[JustCruiseMe]

For several reasons. My sister just got home from her cruise this weekend that I was helping her book and we called because of some obc stuff and military pricing and the cruiseline person couldn't even find what we were looking at as prices..So basically when she said "is there any other questions I can help you with" I said "well you didn't help me with this one so'll we'll just book online". And another reason is if you book yourself you can handle any changes and be SURE of what you have. I will never use a TA.

[MCAT48]

I don't get the question. If you book online you are doing it either on the cruise line website or on a TA website. If you call you are either talking to a representative of the cruise line or a rep of the travel company. Someone was paid to create the website. Someone is paid to maintain the website. There will always be people who call to book things, until it's no longer available.

Booking online is easiest for me because I can see what I'm booking. If there is a price drop I will call and speak to someone.

[seaexplorer11]

Well I guess I can see it from both ways. I have just known people over the years who have worked for cruise companies as booking agents and they depend on making bookings for their paychecks. In my experience all the agents I have booked with have gone above and beyond for me.

[crystalspin]

The OP wasn't comparing booking online with calling to book -- those are just different ways to move electrons.

 

@ seaexplorer11

 

Some people don't go in to a travel agent's office because they live two hours (one way) from the nearest travel agent, much less one that specializes in cruises which might be few and far between in Grand Junction Colorado. I refer to where my family lives and where we will live (or, base our travels!) after my DH retires.

 

Another scenario -- and this one was us, in October -- you go on the website to research and BIG LETTERS say "Special rate expires at midnight tonight". It's late Saturday afternoon! The TA you used last cruise (5 years ago) is not in his office! What to do, what to do??? So you book online; you get a great deal, and a great stateroom location. The next morning, the new deal is the same price with $50 OBC!!!

 

Do you call and complain??? We just laughed and congratulated ourselves on a midship, middeck balcony cabin, that might have been taken if we had waited. Monday I got a phonecall from our assigned PCC and BION, I didn't even ask about the OBC. A deal is a deal.

[Friend100]

The online site I booked through is the web interface of a cruise agency that has people working in it.

[Zach1213]

Because I am 30 and have almost always had the Internet. It's how my life works. I'd rather book it online myself than put another layer in between me and the end product

[Kartgv]

We've booked our last 5 or 6 cruises with 2 different online cruise specialist agencies, but in all cases deal with a real, live person on the phone. The only difference is that the person is employed by the online agency rather than by the cruise line. We find the deals online, have the details IN PRINT, call the agency and talk to a live human to finalize the deal. We've found that these specialists often know more than the cruise line agents (at least according to the complaints we read here on CC) and they have always been able to solve any issue or answer any question that comes up.

 

I would never call the cruise line to complain about an issue that should be resolved by the travel agent. Maybe we've just been lucky, but nothing has come up that needed substantial intervention, other than a price drop. One of our cruises had a very substantial price drop after we had made our final payment a few days early; one phone call (on Thanksgiving weekend no less!) and about 20 minutes later our agent had us a refund. So far, we're very happy with the online agencies' track records and see no reason not to take advantage of the very substantial OBC (as much at 10% of the total cruise price) and other perks that they offer.

Edited January 28, 2014 by Kartgv

[ehfl]

The phone operators are nice, and try their best, but often have less knowledge than I do. They try to be nice by engaging in idle chatter, which just takes up more time.

 

With a few clicks, I can book online and get on with my life. When I call, I have to wait on hold (often for an hour or more) before I get an agent. Then it takes them forever to look up my loyalty record (even when I give them the number directly). Then, they want to read me all the information I just read online. Arghhh!!!

 

It's just a matter of convenience. Like it or not, this is the future, where customers do their own order entry, rather than having an operator do it.

[ehfl]

I have done it both ways, but what about the people that keep the website up and going? They need jobs too!

 

True, and you are supporting high-paying jobs with benefits.

[Lerin]

I always hear of people booking online, then calling the cruise line to complain when something is wrong or the price drops. Why not book with an ACTUAL PERSON? First off, they will answer all your questions and second, it keeps the economy going. When you book with a real person, jobs are created. If you aren't part of the solution, you're part of the problem.

Weird logic. :confused:

Booking a cruise isn't exactly a Kum-Bye-Ah-let's-hold-hands-and-save-the-world sort of activity. The president can worry about the economy, I just want to take a vacation.

 

We mostly book online because it is fast and easy. We can book at anytime and anywhere, including in bed while watching TV.

If there is an issue, we can e mail or call. It's really quite simple.

[Dayenu]

I always hear of people booking online, then calling the cruise line to complain when something is wrong or the price drops. Why not book with an ACTUAL PERSON? First off, they will answer all your questions and second, it keeps the economy going. When you book with a real person, jobs are created. If you aren't part of the solution, you're part of the problem.

 

I can speak only for myself. When I book online, I pick a cabin for me. As I get sea sick, this is very important. I've met people on cruises who's "actual persons" made mistakes. I don't want to suffer through my vacation.

 

After booking, I can call an actual person on a cruise line, and he or she will answer all my questions. As for the price drop, I have to keep an eye on it doesn't matter how the booking was done.

 

My father didn't listen to me, went to an "actual person" when we went on the same cruise. He paid more, and got "advices" that horrified me.

 

So pardon me for being selfish and not thinking of "creating jobs". There are people who's job is to create jobs. I am not one of them.

[HeatherC430]

I've booked online and called in the past. I've never used a TA and don't see any reason to do so in the future. I like having full control over my own booking. The few times I've called in I've had a few options I had to change after (like they automatically adding trip insurance without asking me on the phone). I much prefer to book online myself so that I can see all of the options available to me, cabins, etc. As long as you know what you're doing, there's no reason you can't book online if you're comfortable doing so.

[paul929207]

I prefer to use a TA. She saves us about 15% off what I can get either online or thru an agent at the cruise line. Plus we get some OBC.

[RickT]

I could ask the same question about Interac machines and why people purchase products manufactured in a foreign country...:cool:

 

It's all about convenience. I don't mind dealing with a human but in order for me to do that I need to be confident I'll get through in less than 5 mins (I can book a cruise on-line in less time) and also ensure I'm being told the correct information.

 

Some of the offers from Celebrity have been complicated to do on-line so they have required a call (or three).

[paul929207]

Another question on this subject:

 

In which country is the job created?

[spookwife]

I always hear of people booking online, then calling the cruise line to complain when something is wrong or the price drops. Why not book with an ACTUAL PERSON? First off, they will answer all your questions and second, it keeps the economy going. When you book with a real person, jobs are created. If you aren't part of the solution, you're part of the problem.

 

I like to deal directly with the cruise line and quite frankly not a single TA I ever booked with ever gave me anything extra for gracing them with my business. and I have yet to NOT speak to an actual person when calling the cruise line directly. if there are issues you cannot resolve them yourself and you must go through your TA who may be on vacation, or not in the office or whatever.

[ducklite]

If you think that you always get factual info from actual people, you are sadly mistaken. I got so much freaking inaccurate info from the people at RCCL before I cruised with them that it was downright pathetic.

 

 

Autocorrect responsible for most typos...

[Zach1213]

Another question on this subject:

 

In which country is the job created?

 

I suppose that's a good question. There are plenty of companies that use foreign call centers...I've experienced it with both airlines and, almost surprisingly, rental car agencies. I've never called a cruise line so I don't know. But there's always a chance that calling in supports a guy in Kolkata while booking online supports an IT guy in Omaha ;)

 

Kinda like the Honda's built in Ohio and the Ford's built in Mexico. Who's buying "American" now?

 

Annnnnd now we're off topic.

Edited January 28, 2014 by Zach1213

[LrgPizza]

Weird logic. :confused:

Booking a cruise isn't exactly a Kum-Bye-Ah-let's-hold-hands-and-save-the-world sort of activity. The president can worry about the economy, I just want to take a vacation.

 

We mostly book online because it is fast and easy. We can book at anytime and anywhere, including in bed while watching TV.

If there is an issue, we can e mail or call. It's really quite simple.

 

HAhaha!

 

Yeah, all that. We book all our travels online - flights, hotels, cruises, etc., and we have done so for many years. I don't like having a middle man. I want to do my own research and have my own control over things. And yes, I can still easily call if I have questions. I'm a big girl and perfectly capable.

[Hlitner]

As one who books nearly all his cruises online (and we cruise more then 70 days a year) we can try to answer the OPs question. We book online because it usually saves us a money (sometimes thousands of dollars), it is fast, convenient, and also playing into our habit of shopping around (among several of our favorite agencies) for the best deal. One particular agency we use actually charges more money for bookings done over the phone they do online. Also, when we do our own online bookings we can check and double check to make sure there are no errors. A recent experience with Celebrity Choice Air, where they booked our return air (from Rome) on a day that our ship was still at sea, is a reason we prefer the online experience (where we can print out screen shots). Although Celebrity Choice Air insisted that our air had to be done on the phone, and they ensure that only flights that meet critiera for being at the airport on time are utilized, they managed to transpose 2 numbers in the date. I only caught their error after I reviewed (online) our airline reservation at the airline's own web site.

 

We also agree with one of the other comments that the folks you talk to on the phone (especially at the cruise lines) often have little clue as to what they say. Many times these people are reading scripts (which can be incorrect) or are just wrong! Some telephone folks are very good (especially those at the so-called "World Desk" of HAL) but they are the exception. We could fill a long post with stories about on the phone errors and inaccuracies. In fact, we know one cruise agency employee (who personally handles dozens of bookings a day) that can have you in "stitches" with the stores of incorrect info she hears from her telephone contacts at various cruise lines.

 

One of my own classic stories has to do with a call I made to Celebrity to get an understanding of how bookings in "Blu" work. This call was when Aqua Class and Blu were relatively new and there was some confusion about booking open seating (which is actually the only real option) vs booking a fixed time (you can still do this today...but it really does not exist). The lady at Celebrity was so confused by my simple question that she asked her supervisor who was also unsure. They finally transferred my call...but rather then kick it up to a higher authority at Celebrity they sent my call over the RCI (who of course had no clue).

 

Hank

 

Hank

[Roadtripster]

My very first cruise, I booked with a TA. I am sure that I paid wayyyyyyyyyyy more than I should have, I didn't get any special offers, etc... I had to keep going back and forth to her office which wasn't convenient for me.

 

Ever since, I have done it online. I have several places to surf and see what they have to offer and choose the best one for me. I book all my excursions and actually know what there is to do. Unlike the first cruise.

 

In fact, I couldn't even tell you how I would go about finding a TA right now. I don't know any around.

[Hlitner]

Local travel agencies are going the way of travelers checks. As more and more folks learn how to use the internet and their smart phones, the need to go to an actual TA becomes moot. A local TA must pay rent, taxes, hire staff, pay insurance and staff their office for long hours. An online agency may or may not have a real storefront, but many of their staff can work from their homes and on a commission or contractual basis avoiding many tax and insurance problems for the agency. These large online agencies (and many smaller ones) can minimize their overhead, but provide amazing customer service (even 24 hours a day 7 days a week). Any arrangement you make online can immediately be verified in writing and stored (or printed out) for future reference. If I want to search for a particular cruise based on specific critieria (such as ports, length, etc) there are some wonderful search engines (owned by online TAs) that can quickly give me my answers without any bias. Times are quickly changing and many folks are being dragged (sometimes kicking and screaming) into the 21st Century when just about any kind of service will be accomplished digitally. We deal with several large online TAs for our cruises (we simply buy from whoever gives us the best overall deal) and one of the humans at a certain agency (a man we have known for years) actually splits his time between his Florida and NJ homes. But no matter where he goes he still works because all he needs is his Smart Phone and computer. His agency does not have to be concerned with paying his "Obamacare," "Social Security," workmans comp, unemployment comp, or paying for his desk/cubicle. As for him, he does not have to deal with commuting to an office, paying for gas to get to and from work, etc. He can be working around his home while still making a decent living selling cruises (and other forms of travel). If his grandchildren want to pop over after school, he is there waiting for them. The time spent commuting (which can be hours a day in some parts of the country) are now his time. Not sure this is all a bad thing.

 

And it even gets worse for those that feel they must have the handholding of a TA. Two of the best (and most popular) airlines in the USA (Southwest and JetBlue) do not even work with TAs or contract with cruise line air operations. If you now want to book with most airlines it is sometimes only possible online. We recently (on Jan 3) had an issue with our Delta Airline reservations and made the mistake of trying to call their toll-free number. The recording said "your expected hold time is at least 3 hours." Online we could make changes in less then a minute. While later sitting at the airport waiting for a late flight, we actually got updates on our flight situation over our phone before the Delta employee (at the gate) was notified. The Delta employee actually thought that was funny and admitted that he was often the last to find out about changes.

 

Hank

Edited January 28, 2014 by Hlitner