Booking directly with Princess or use TA

[dianef]

I deal with a TA that gives 14% discount on Princess. I don't know how much commission TA's get,probably the more they book the more they get.

 

I don't think any TA would get 20% commission and giving back 14% of the maybe 16 or 18% is very good.

 

Some people post they get 20% off their rate but don't know how a TA can do that unless I am wrong thinking that a TA cannot get more than 20% commission.

[CPADWJ]

I have most often booked direct with the same Princess consultant. I feel the prices are fair and we almost always get an upgrade. I do feel T/As have the opportunity to give more perks such as OBC and specialty dining credits.

It is just a matter of who you have confidence in.

[iancal]

We never book with the cruise line. We always use an on line TA and we receive discounts in the form of OBC from 8-12 percent. Just booked a Feb. Princess cruise in this manner. Once in a while we even get a complementary shore excursion or take advantage of an agency group booking.

 

How do we protect ourselves? It is quite straightforward.

 

-we pay by credit card ONLY. We would not consider any other method of payment.

 

-we only deal with TA's who do NOT process the payment, ie they have the cruise line process. Big reg flag if the TA processes the payment because of the cost to them

 

-we only deal with a TA that does not charge for re-pricing, for cabin/category changes, and does not charge an agency cancellation fee.

 

Do we control our reservation...do we feel in control of it? Absolutely. And our on line TA agency keeps longer hours than Princess or any B&M agency that we are aware of.

 

Bottom line...deal with whomever you feel comfortable dealing with. In our case we do not need the cruise line booking service nor are we looking for a local B&M TA to become our new best friend.

Edited October 27, 2016 by iancal

[Coral]

I deal with a TA that gives 14% discount on Princess. I don't know how much commission TA's get,probably the more they book the more they get.

 

I don't think any TA would get 20% commission and giving back 14% of the maybe 16 or 18% is very good.

 

Some people post they get 20% off their rate but don't know how a TA can do that unless I am wrong thinking that a TA cannot get more than 20% commission.

 

I think the max commission is 15% or so.

 

There are a few ways they can get maybe get more than 15% (maybe). One would be that a TA acquired group rates below the going rate (they used to do this, not sure if they still do) or even at the going rate. Then, the price goes up quite a bit and people book. They are comparing Princess's current rate to group space acquired previously and TAs can often lock in this rate for awhile. On a popular sailing, it could even be a group rate acquired a week or two before (thinking of the 50th anniversary sailing of Pacific Princess to Mexico or an inaugural transatlantic where the price went up quite a bit). Another way would be they sell "many" on a sailing and have group space and then they divide the "free births" amongst the people in the group.

 

Just some thoughts. I am not a TA but have a few friends who are.

Edited October 27, 2016 by Coral

[Hlitner]

I have most often booked direct with the same Princess consultant. I feel the prices are fair and we almost always get an upgrade. I do feel T/As have the opportunity to give more perks such as OBC and specialty dining credits.

It is just a matter of who you have confidence in.

 

At the risk of being disrespectful, we think the "confidence" issue is a lot of hooey! It is just not an issue when you deal with any of many reputable cruise agencies, big box stores, travel agencies, etc. When we do a booking through one of our cruise agencies. the booking will instantly show on the cruise line's own web site (under our account). We are not talking an hour later, or even 5 minutes later. if we do the booking online, I can immediately log onto the cruise lines site and find my booking. If I do it on the phone with one of my cruise agents I will have a cruise line booking number while still on the phone and can check it on a cruise line site before I even hand up.

 

As to confidence, if something is not right we would rather have a high volume cruise agency (who has some clout) dealing with the issue rather then a cruise line reservations clerk! The cruise agent is working for me (because they want our steady business) while the cruise line employee is working for the cruise line. But putting all this stuff aside, when you book directly with any cruise line you are paying a hefty premium (sometimes in excess of 10%) because you like dealing with the line. In many years we will spend tens of thousands of dollars on cruises...and our savings using decent cruise agencies amount to many thousands of dollars. And to use your words, we have a lot of "confidence" that we can spend those thousands on a more satisfying way...then simply giving it to any cruise line.

 

As to upgrades and upsells, we routinely get them through any agency. Our current booking (we leave on the Regal tomorrow) was a last minute guarantee...and we got a nice upgrade within 2 days. A year ago we also booked a regal cruise with the lowest category balcony guarantee and received one of the highest category (mid ship location) balcony cabin. On HAL, we booked a very expensive 55 day cruise in a basic outside cabin...and in the end got an amazing upsell deal to a large suite! And all this happened through various cruise agencies. To be honest, we have never solved any of the mystery around upgrades and upsells (despite having been on more then 100 cruises). Sometimes the upsell or upgrade fairy comes along...and other times she leaves us alone. But we never book a cabin or category with which we would not be satisfied....so its not a problem.

 

Hank

Edited October 27, 2016 by Hlitner

[Coral]

As to upgrades and upsells, we routinely get them through any agency. Our current booking (we leave on the Regal tomorrow) was a last minute guarantee...and we got a nice upgrade within 2 days. A year ago we also booked a regal cruise with the lowest category balcony guarantee and received one of the highest category (mid ship location) balcony cabin. On HAL, we booked a very expensive 55 day cruise in a basic outside cabin...and in the end got an amazing upsell deal to a large suite! And all this happened through various cruise agencies. To be honest, we have never solved any of the mystery around upgrades and upsells (despite having been on more then 100 cruises). Sometimes the upsell or upgrade fairy comes along...and other times she leaves us alone. But we never book a cabin or category with which we would not be satisfied....so its not a problem.

 

Hank

 

There are enough people here who book with travel agents who get great upgrades and upsells, I am convinced it doesn't matter if you book direct or with an agent, your chances of upgrades and upsells are the same, regardless who you book with.

[iancal]

We usually book a balcony gty inside or very close to the final payment window. Always through our on line TA. We have always been very happy with our cabin assignment. In fact we recently booked a Feb. Crown Princess cruise.

 

LAst time we booked a Princess cruise our on line TA came to us with a move over offer from Princess. We gave up our cruise in return for a complete refund, a payment to cover the cost of cancelling our reward air tickets, and another free 14 day cruise of our choosing...with an upgrade to a mini suite.

 

OUr on line TA handled the details down to setting up a three way call with Princess to confirm and agree the details.

Edited October 27, 2016 by iancal

[more cruises]

Well, I've tried booking with one of the highly recommended discount TAs. The first time it took them 3 days to get back to me. By then I had long since booked the cruise myself. The second time there was no discount - none! The 3rd time I got a 7% discount and a bottle of wine. Big deal. And I had to make final payment by leaving my credit card # on their voice mail. Felt sketchy but they were never available by phone. Sorry, but my peace of mind is worth more than a lousy 7%. They may do amazing things for other posters here but they sure haven't done anything for me.

[Coral]

Well, I've tried booking with one of the highly recommended discount TAs. The first time it took them 3 days to get back to me. By then I had long since booked the cruise myself. The second time there was no discount - none! The 3rd time I got a 7% discount and a bottle of wine. Big deal. And I had to make final payment by leaving my credit card # on their voice mail. Felt sketchy but they were never available by phone. Sorry, but my peace of mind is worth more than a lousy 7%. They may do amazing things for other posters here but they sure haven't done anything for me.

 

I would not be happy with that service either. Sounds like a bad TA.

[iancal]

Terrible service. We had a similar experience with a B&M TA. Never again. I know from experience that it can be challenging to find a good TA who you are comfortable dealing with.

 

We view cruises as a commodity item. We do the ground work. When we call the TA it is simply to process the order. Although occasionally she has made us aware of an attractive offering that we otherwise would not have known about. Often on an entirely different cruise line. A cruise line employee would not do that.

 

We have been extremely pleased with our on line TA, and her agency. Never an issue reaching her, or another agent, or for that matter getting a call back in a timely manner.

 

Look at it this way. IF you can get a ten percent discount that means that you essentially get a free cruise for every ten that you take (taxes omitted). So it is a win win if you can reach out to a good TA who offers good customer service.

Edited October 27, 2016 by iancal

[jasmith52]

Some people post they get 20% off their rate but don't know how a TA can do that unless I am wrong thinking that a TA cannot get more than 20% commission.

 

Sometimes when cruises aren't selling well, the lines will give blocks of rooms or volume based discounts to certain agencies to move them. If you can hook up with them you can (sometimes) get a whopper deal.

 

The big(bigger) discounts are only for certain cruises where one of the agencies is (extra) incentivized to fill those cabins. Your run-of-the-mill TA probably doesn't have access to these deals.

 

Discounts greater than 20% are real. I can attest to that.

Edited October 27, 2016 by jasmith52

[Coral]

The other example when people see huge discounts from Travel Agents are with last minute sales. There are some "flash specials" that are only offered to Travel Agents and not directly from Princess. These are different than the targeted emails that people get.

[mnocket]

Do you use one of the very large on-line TAs or a smaller one? My concern with using a very large on-line TA is my impression (mis-impression?) that they are staffed like call centers.

 

- Do you always interact with the same agent?

- Are they too busy (and incentivized) booking new reservations to pay attention to price drops and upgrade offers on your particular cruise?

- Can you reach them directly by phone?

- Do they reply quickly to email?

Edited October 27, 2016 by mnocket

[iancal]

I would suggest that some agencies get an extra adder when their volume exceeds certain targets. These serve to increase their commissions and hence their ability to discount.

 

Another reason why we never book with the cruise line is that we want a TA who can inform us of good offers on other cruise lines and who can give us impartial feedback on certain ships/cruise lines.

 

We are not loyal to any one cruise line. In the event of issues, our preference is to have a TA who is not an employee of the cruise line and therefore subject to the instructions of that cruise line.

[Coral]

Do you use one of the very large on-line TAs or a smaller one? My concern with using a very large on-line TA is my impression (mis-impression?) that they are staffed like call centers.

 

- Do you always interact with the same agent?

- Are they too busy (and incentivized) booking new reservations to pay attention to price drops and upgrade offers on your particular cruise?

- Can you reach them directly by phone?

- Do they reply quickly to email?

 

I use a small office (3 people) who are franchise owners of a large company. I get one of 2 people when I call and can always ask for the other. I am comfortable with both. They are reachable via phone and email back pretty quickly.

 

They will drop prices if you qualify. They don't always see the price reductions but if you bring it to their attention, they are fine with price reductions. Though, I was speaking with a friend who uses the same agent and referred it when they saw the price go down. They obviously don't see all and it is best to always bring it to their attention when you see it. I will not use an agency that charges for refares outside of what the cruise line charges.

[jasmith52]

By far the best part of getting a whopper discount is when you compare with your brother-in-law (Who booked with his own TA) your super low rate.

 

This experience is well beyond money and worth far more than the actual discount you received. A highly recommended experience !

Edited October 28, 2016 by jasmith52

[RocketMan275]

I would suggest that some agencies get an extra adder when their volume exceeds certain targets. These serve to increase their commissions and hence their ability to discount.

 

Another reason why we never book with the cruise line is that we want a TA who can inform us of good offers on other cruise lines and who can give us impartial feedback on certain ships/cruise lines.

 

We are not loyal to any one cruise line. In the event of issues, our preference is to have a TA who is not an employee of the cruise line and therefore subject to the instructions of that cruise line.

 

Absolutely, I've had TA tell me that the more they book with a cruise line, the bigger discounts they can offer.

 

Another reason to use a TA. If you use multiple cruise lines, one TA can handle it all. You deal with one person as opposed to multiple people at different lines.

[CPADWJ]

There are many valid points being made here on this thread. I have used one of the online T/A bidding sites and was happy with the cruise that I booked with the low T/A bidder. The price was competitive and the perk, which was a surprise when we arrived in our cabin, was a bottle of champagne and a plate of chocolate covered strawberries. I confirmed their status with the cruise line before making payment and everything worked great. Does anyone else have an experience with this type of booking that they would like to share?:)

[iancal]

We also send our cruises out to 'tender' at a well known site to ensure that the price we are quoted by our on line TA is reasonable.

 

Most of the agencies that respond are well known and forthright. We have seen some lowball prices from others which, on inquiry, they were unable to satisfy.

 

Overall though, we typically see an 8-12 percent rebate on the fare (not the port tax of course). It adds up over time.

[kruisey]

Think OK for couples to book with a T/A who has block bookings on the under 21 day cruises.Not so good for solo travelers

I usually travel on the over 21 day .I have made inquires but the most was a bottle of wine and $50 .....

I just book with Princess direct,if there is a special which I am entitled to they lower my fare.Also I like to control my own booking were I can pay off on line seeing my account.:)

Lots of folks my age( Very Old ) :D Find it easier to go through a TA and I agree with them because no matter how persuasive one is they say the internet is too complicated for them to use.This is good for T/A's and my age group........:)

Edited November 3, 2016 by kruisey

[iancal]

For only the second time in many cruises we actually booked a cruise with a Canadian TA. Princess had a currency adjusted rate on our cruise so it was considerably less expensive than booking with our usual US on line TA.

 

We booked on line through a big box outlet. Reasonable OBC rebates and excellent service.

 

It does pay to shop around. We booked an Australia/NZ cruise directly through the cruise line's (RCI) Australian office. It was about 30 percent less expensive than booking it with our on line US based TA or booking it in Canada. My sister booked a Baltic cruise through a UK agent. It was about 15 percent less than booking it in North America.

[Pierlesscruisers]

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Edited June 9, 2017 by Pierlesscruisers
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[Denmal]

I always book with my princess vacation planner. She provides discounts that are not published and is always there for questions, problems , etc. Plus if the price drops, I just call her and get a refund. I booked a guarantee MF on a transatlantic cruise, the price has dropped SEVERAL times - and every time, I just call my person, she refunds my card, no questions...

 

Plus she adds us to lists for upgrades and offers, we took an upsell offer for a suite in Alaska and it was totally worth it ..

[Poulsbo Cruisers]

The problem is finding a good T/A we've tried a couple different ones they suck so we book direct and it works for us .

 

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I agree. We've tried a couple different TAs. The price was exactly the same as Princess. We did get some additional OBC, but we decided it wasn't worth it because we got better service using the PVP. Many times we couldn't get hold of the TA and had to explain our situation to a stranger who was filling in. Now if I could find a TA that gave the 10-20% discounts all the other posters here have seemed to find I would use a TA every time. I haven't been so lucky. Until I find such a TA, I will have to review these discounts as urban legend. :')

[octoberdana]

We used a large online travel agency for our first princess cruise. Price was slightly lower than Princess online price but not substantial. We were supposed to get $75 per person OBC. We never got it multiple calls to agent were never returned. Finally got ahold of someone after cruise was over and the travel agent quit while we were on our cruise and there was no "record" of us getting the $150. We never got it and we won't use a TA again.

 

 

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