Booking a Cruise... TA or Princess directly

[TSM AND JP]

Just wondering what most people do. Do you book your cruise through a travel agent or contact Princess directly and why?

[waltd]

We contact both for quotes. We have found on almost every occasion that a travel agent is cheaper and they offer on board credit. You just have to make sure the travel agent is easy to get a hold of and does not charge any cancelation fees if you decide to change or cancel bookings.

[Kamloops50]

Just wondering what most people do. Do you book your cruise through a travel agent or contact Princess directly and why?

 

I find that in Canada it is easier to book direct with Princess . Living in a major city like Toronto , Vancouver or Montreal . You probably can find cheaper fares thru a TA. In smaller communities it's easier to deal with Princess direct.

[TracieABD]

I love my TA!

[Ofmyheart]

Someone please tell me how to find that TA that gives extra OBC?

[Kamloops50]

OP lives in Toronto Canada . Travel agents in Canada do things regarding cruises differently than in the US. We also have different rules regarding TA's in Canada. Some franchised TA's deal with a central booking office for their group. Others can book direct and others do a combination .

We still have many Mom and Pop agency's in business .

I haven't seen many TA's in Canada that give OBC for booking with them.

[Cruise Junky]

Always a TA. Mine's on the other coast in a different country. You don't need to live in a big city you just Internet :)

[debbie35]

We started out booking on our own but I became good friends with a TA and life is better. They have a wonderful relationship with Princess and I've benefited because of this. I'm booked on the Regal for 3/13/16 and I noticed this week that the rates have come way down from when I booked. The TA wasn't able to get me the new fare but was able to get me a deluxe balcony with no extra cost. They also have surprised us with gifts of wine.

[Paula_MacFan]

We always book with our TA. Been using same one for several years/cruises, and always get OBC and way better pricing than Princess.

[mmckm]

I'm also from Canada. Checked out a few TA's years ago and found no advantage then. Things may have changed now but we like being able to call and deal with Princess directly, then having a 3rd party having to relay and more calls and time involved. If its only a couple hundred dollars I would still use Princess. Now if its 500 or more i would think about using a TA. Not for a bottle of wine or free specialty dinner.

[Amtrack Springfield]

We use a TA, but check the Princess website before we book. We get a lower price and OBC from our TA.

[mmckm]

When you say way better pricing, how much are you talking and on what type of cabin. Maybe Canada is different or I need to look around some more and see if things have changed.

[Amtrack Springfield]

I would say 5 to 10% off depending on the cruise.

[Coral]

OP lives in Toronto Canada . Travel agents in Canada do things regarding cruises differently than in the US. We also have different rules regarding TA's in Canada. Some franchised TA's deal with a central booking office for their group. Others can book direct and others do a combination .

We still have many Mom and Pop agency's in business .

I haven't seen many TA's in Canada that give OBC for booking with them.

 

Canadians can use US agents. I know my agent books Canadians all the time.

 

I only book with a TA.

Edited February 11, 2016 by Coral

[Cruise Junky]

When you say way better pricing, how much are you talking and on what type of cabin. Maybe Canada is different or I need to look around some more and see if things have changed.

 

On my latest booking the cruise fare is $2,200 CDN including the non commission fare. My discount was $170 CDN pp so probably 10% once you take out the NCF

 

Same cruise, I just checked a well known Canadian box store with a travel arm. I could pay full price and get $275 US obc

Edited February 11, 2016 by Cruise Junky

[hllwdcruiser]

I actually use both.

 

When I book far in advance I always use a TA. She takes care of price drops and all discrepancies. Princess didn't credit us correctly twice as we were paying off our Alaska Trip and she took care of all the phone calls and setting things right. She also gifts us galore on our trips. On our last trip she gave us a bottle of wine and an Ultimate Balcony Dinner.

 

On last minute cruises, however, I always do better by booking directly with Princess. You may have to kiss a lot of frogs before you get a prince or princess (no pun intended) and call several times to get an accommodating representative. Sometimes the folks at Princess can wrangle a better deal than what is showing on their screens.

 

For example, on our upcoming cruise on the Regal we booked the lowest fare obstructed balcony guarantee, but my new "best friend" at Princess actually reserved an unobstructed guarantee for the same price. My TA and all the internet TA's that I contacted could not beat Princess's price for an unobstructed although they did offer me a small OBC.

 

Same thing happened several years ago on a Western Caribbean cruise on the Ruby. We booked last minute and no TA could beat the price we got directly from Princess.

[Northender]

TA all the way. Sometimes if I come across something on Princess.com and it is a Sunday or late in the evening, I just put a hold on that cruise and then turn it over to my TA.:)

[TSM AND JP]

Thank you all for your responses. It's a learning journey for me. My TA got me a better price than princess, but then princess had better deals, and I felt like I always had to check, follow up with my TA, and didn't end up getting the better perks offered. I guess the key is to shop around, or find an amazing responsive TA. How does one find out if your TA has a good relationship with Princess. ????

[Coral]

Thank you all for your responses. It's a learning journey for me. My TA got me a better price than princess, but then princess had better deals, and I felt like I always had to check, follow up with my TA, and didn't end up getting the better perks offered. I guess the key is to shop around, or find an amazing responsive TA. How does one find out if your TA has a good relationship with Princess. ????

 

Though with Princess direct, you have to check also for price reductions or new promos....

Edited February 12, 2016 by Coral

[RocketMan275]

Someone please tell me how to find that TA that gives extra OBC?

 

It is against the rules to name travel agents. Doing an internet search won't help much. Princess and Holland don't allow TA to advertise their discounts. You have to call and ask for a quote. If a TA doesn't want to play. Thank them, hang up, and call another one.

 

Your next cruise is an excellent opportunity to ask around about TA. People who have good ones will be more than happy to brag about them.

 

One other thing. 10-12% is a good discount or OBC. Finding a good TA may take a bit of work. How much do you usually pay for a cruise. Depending upon how much you are paying the effort may not be worth it.

Edited February 12, 2016 by RocketMan275

[Times Prince]

Someone please tell me how to find that TA that gives extra OBC?

You will have to ask other cruisers from your roll call when you are onboard ship next. We are not allowed to give specific TA references here on Cruise Critic.

 

My TA is in Pennsylvania (I live in Texas) and I have never met her face to face. She is part of a franchise, and has given a modest OBC on many cruises, unless I have found a real bargain to start with. Then she doesn't have enough profit margin to give away some in OBC. She is a "Commodore Certified Travel Agent" on Princess' site, but that doesn't mean anything relative to OBC - another listed agency gave us nothing once (no discounts, no OBC).

[Coral]

Sometimes travel agents discount cruises (price off the cost) and sometimes they give that amount as OBC. Some do neither.

 

Also, some travel agents have group amenities for having group space on the cruise or their agency has group space (amenities can be OBC, wine, specialty dining) on certain cruises. They are not allowed to get them on every cruise, only so many cruises. This is often the OBC that people get. This may be why one agent has it and another one doesn't.

[Colo Cruiser]

I book with a TA but sometimes if I come across a cruise I want to book and its after hours or the TA is unavailable I will book it with Princess and transfer it to the TA later.

[OCruisers]

We use our long time TA who takes care of everything for us. :)

[riclop]

Princess has the higher prices.