Who do you use to book your Royal Caribbean Cruises?

[Seaworthy01]

I am looking to book on the Anthem for an early 2016 sailing, looking for competitive pricing.

[Pedro2400]

i use my TA

[Ken at the beach]

Be aware that some TA's may charge change or cancellation fees.

[KBD1516]

An actual person may give you better service after the sale, for cabin changes or price drops etc.

[bouhunter]

We book direct with RCCL. Some TA's will give you a few bucks in OBC or a bottle of wine or whatever........

 

We figure when spending 3,000+/- on a vacation that isn't a big deal, we'd rather have ability to direct contact with the provider (RCCL). Everyone's opinion will vary, ours is we don't care about a few dollars in benefits we want to be able to talk to RCCL direct if necessary and don't want to have to deal with a third party (TA).

 

As for "competitive pricing", the cruise itself is likely going to be the same either direct with RCCL or with a TA. Only difference is what trinkets the TA may throw in.

 

Of course it you're looking at Anthem, prices will be high no matter what. So booking with a TA for a few little benefits might not be that big a deal anyway.............

Edited February 19, 2015 by bouhunter

[George C]

We also been booking directly with RCCL or whatever cruise lines we sail

[Former Goalie]

We book direct with RCCL. Some TA's will give you a few bucks in OBC or a bottle of wine or whatever........

 

We figure when spending 3,000+/- on a vacation that isn't a big deal, we'd rather have ability to direct contact with the provider (RCCL). Everyone's opinion will vary, ours is we don't care about a few dollars in benefits we want to be able to talk to RCCL direct if necessary and don't want to have to deal with a third party (TA).

 

As for "competitive pricing", the cruise itself is likely going to be the same either direct with RCCL or with a TA. Only difference is what trinkets the TA may throw in.

 

Of course it you're looking at Anthem, prices will be high no matter what. So booking with a TA for a few little benefits might not be that big a deal anyway.............

To each his own, and I'm sure RCCL direct is a fine option. We use one of the big online brokers (but I have a TA there I've used for many years, and talk to her when booking).

I calculated the discount I received from her (final payment on a future cruise) in the form of on board credits and paying gratuities. That discount amounts to 8% of total cruise fare (mind you, that's probably 9%-10% of her "commissionable" cruise fare), hardly a "trinket". Then, because of the WOW sale, we will receive an additional $200 OBC from RCCL. Frequently, her company will throw additional minor add-ons our way - coupon booklets, bottle of wine, etc.

Edited February 19, 2015 by Former Goalie

[CruisingChristine]

I have a travel discount plan through our insurance provider and have used them when booking.

[DonnaK]

I book directly with the cruiseline

[Not-My-Real-Name]

I book either with an online TA that I have used for years, or directly with the cruise line. If the online TA isn't offering any OBC, then I book with the cruise line.

 

Sometimes the OBC the TA offers is significant, sometimes not. Even a little bit of OBC is better than none.

Edited February 19, 2015 by Not-My-Real-Name

[trev71]

I used to book with my TA, But I got rid of her and do all my own booking directly threw Royal. Much easier, If i want to ad a drink package or if there is a price drop i dont have to panic cause my TA takes random days off. Learned my lesson once and like having my own control over my resveration

[Beardface]

Had a TA for our cruise last year, but realized we ended up doing most, if not all of our planning through the RCCL website itself. For our 2016 cruise, we're doing everything through RCCL.

[tomko2]

We did our first cruise through a TA and have booked directly with RCL every since. :)

[WishICouldCruiseMore101]

I recently booked a cruise departing in March and did a lot of extensive searching. Eventually it came down to whether you want to deal with a middle man or straight with RCCL. I ended up getting a better deal through RCCL and service was right away and excellent.

[dcward89]

All of our cruises, RCCL and NCL, have been booked directly with the cruise line. I'm too much of a control freak to give up the ability to make changes, check on things, ask questions directly!

[impatientlywaiting]

I, too, book directly with RCCL. I don't like having to go through a third party to get anything done. :)

[jules815]

All of our cruises, RCCL and NCL, have been booked directly with the cruise line. I'm too much of a control freak to give up the ability to make changes, check on things, ask questions directly!

 

Agree! Checking for price drops is part of my morning routine. Twice I've sailed with friends who booked through a TA, and they both missed out on a big price drop. I saved over $800, they received a bottle of Chardonnay. That said, I know there are many here on CC who have good travel agents that they swear by.

 

To each his own, but I enjoy the challenge of managing our own bookings through RC.

[JasonV1]

You just have to ask yourself if getting ~8% of your fare (not counting port charges) in OBC or other perks (from a TA) is worth giving up some control over your reservation.

 

I use a site to automatically track prices and my TA has always been there when I found a drop to apply. When a major sale impacts my price (or offers better perks from the line) she usually looks it up automatically for me when the sale launches.

 

I've never had issues on a sail date (usually weekend for me), but she checks e-mail several times and usually works in the mornings. She doesn't have a cancellation charge either, which is important to me as I sometimes book multiple overlapping cruises while onboard (maximize perks and get best early pricing where possible) and decide which ones to keep later.

 

Of course, a TA can help you solve issues, possibly getting a better result that you could have. I booked a Celebrity Panama Canal relocation cruise onboard Explorer last month. The Celebrity promo sheet for onboard bookings only excludes transpacific/transatlantic cruises from receiving the full onboard booking promo (OBC plus drinks OR grats), whereas the "usual" promos (such as 123GO) exclude all relocations, including the Panama Canal one. Long story short, the onboard booking promo sheet was wrong and all I was entitled to was the traditional OBC (not the bev package or grats).

 

My TA went back and forth with Celebrity, pointing out their error, and got me additional OBC. Perhaps Celebrity would have given that to me if I argued with them directly, but in this case I didn't have to do anything other than send one e-mail to my TA. I suspect the onboard promo sheets will change as a result to use the exclusion list used by the 123GO sales which excludes all repos.

 

Even being the control freak I am, that OBC enables me to sail in more expensive cabins that I would otherwise (making the upgrade "cost less"), or at least cover a good bit of onboard expenses.

[CruisinCJ]

always book directly with RCCL, which gives me complete access and control of reservation

 

Carol

[fenton04]

We book through RCCL and a year in advance and I make a monthly payment . When November comes my balance is zero. Then I book our excursions . Again easy on the travel budget. Also I found that my TA was missing a few things when I booked through her. Grrrrr.

[Paul65]

I used to book with my TA, But I got rid of her and do all my own booking directly threw Royal. Much easier, If i want to ad a drink package or if there is a price drop i dont have to panic cause my TA takes random days off. Learned my lesson once and like having my own control over my resveration

 

You don't need to book directly in order to be able to do things like add a drink package or schedule other things, like specialty dining or excursions. That can all be done via the RCCL website, whether you booked directly or through a travel agent.

 

It's a valid point for things like price drops, cabin changes, or other changes to your itinerary, though. For those things, a travel agent can sometimes be a benefit (helping you get those things done for you, and in some cases, watching for possible price drops and upgrades) or a problem, if you have a travel agent that's not very responsive or easy to contact.

[bigque]

Direct through the website! :cool:

[Paul65]

I am looking to book on the Anthem for an early 2016 sailing, looking for competitive pricing.

 

Generally, there is no "competitive pricing." The fare will usually be the same, whether you book directly or through a travel agent. As some have already mentioned, many TAs will offer "perks" in the form of gifts, prepaid insurance or gratuities, on-board credit, etc.

[Amtrack Springfield]

We book with a TA. We got a lower price, OBC, and tips. Got the cabin we wanted! They took care of any problems we had on last cruise.

[Goodtime Cruizin]

I book w/ RCCL and then transfer the Reservation. I've done this twice just to lock down a specific cabin.

 

I recognize that some feel more comfortable with being able to contact RCCL direct to handle things that may arise, but to be honest, the fine people at RCCL often are not informed, trained etc. So I enjoy going w/ an experienced agent.

 

OBC, free specialty dinners, etc are nice. Also the selection of your dining time is available through an agent vs RCL as they are pushing everyone into MTD these days.

 

I saved over $1100 on a cruise to the Med by using an agent vs direct through RCCL on a transferred reservation. That's some savings everyone. I have no idea how this occurred but I received the same cabin.

 

I think it's a matter of choice for most, but you can save some vaction money through an agent. The key is finding a good agent. When you find one, hang on to them.