Booking questions

[NickCarraway]

I have used a travel agent for booking ocean cruises, both for convenience and because agents often offer onboard credits. We are considering a river cruise and am curious whether folks generally book direct or through a travel agent. Are there advantages or disadvantages for either?

 

Second, as a rule, how far in advance does one have to book a river cruise? Specifically, we are thinking of a Danube cruise with AmaWaterways in the fall of 2017.

 

Thanks for any insights.

[Roz]

I book my river cruises thru a TA whose agency does a lot of business with certain lines. As a result, I get some discounts I wouldn't get by booking direct with the river cruise line. I also have her book my air and pre-cruise stay, as I'm not comfortable doing this on my own for travel to Europe.

 

I'm still working full time, so big trips like a European river cruise have to be thought out and approved way ahead of time. I need to plan at least 6 months in advance and preferably 12.

 

You'll love river cruising.

 

Roz

[Lois R]

If you know when you want to go? Book it. River Cruiseships are small....

so book it when you know what you want.

[Marlster]

I have used a travel agent for booking ocean cruises, both for convenience and because agents often offer onboard credits. We are considering a river cruise and am curious whether folks generally book direct or through a travel agent. Are there advantages or disadvantages for either?

 

Second, as a rule, how far in advance does one have to book a river cruise? Specifically, we are thinking of a Danube cruise with AmaWaterways in the fall of 2017.

 

Thanks for any insights.

 

I booked our river cruise with Scenic through a travel agent and was done 1 year ahead of time when they were offering free air, a few months after booking Scenic was no longer offering free air, so to me it was worth booking way ahead of time.

Marlster

[Host Jazzbeau]

Reminder: no naming of Travel Agents!

 

To the OP: it used to be the case that you had to book river cruises well in advance because the more desirable dates and cabins sold out quickly. But due to the increasing number of river ships, plus increasing worries among Americans about travel to Europe in general, the situation has changed and you will now often see big discounts available to those who wait. If you are boxed in on the time [e.g. narrow constraints on getting time off from work], it's probably best to book early and be sure of your trip. But if you are flexible, it can work out very well to sign up for several river cruise lines' email lists and wait until the offers come to you.

[amd1234]

We have a TA that gives us an excellent discount. We have taken five River cruises and with different cruise companies. We have booked a two week river cruise for next August with Uniworld. We booked after seeing a good deal and we love Uniworld..last year we cruised with Avalon and loved it. We are repeat clients with Uniworld so we have a few perks included. This cruise we booked our airfare through Uniworld another special deal..great price and connections. Advice do your homework!

[Capt_BJ]

last time we booked thru a TA 3 months out

 

talking to folks on board, many had booked after us.

[NickCarraway]

Thanks everyone. Great information.

[nsbcpa]

Even though my prior post was deleted I'll share the following.

 

We used a national organization TA and had an issue where our payment ($13k) was charged twice on separate credit cards. When I was unable to reach our TA, Viking would not help us since we had booked thru a TA. Fortunately, we were able to work thru another TA at the national organization, and received a refund for the duplicate payment.

 

We'll probably book directly in the future.

[Carol From California]

We have a travel agent who gives discounts on the various cruise lines (including river cruises). It pays to look around if you want to save money.

[Shmoo here]

Also, be aware that not all river cruise lines work with TAs. For example - Vantage, you can only book direct with them.

[Roz]

Good point, Schmoo. Also, I use a different TA for river cruises than I do for ocean cruises. My river cruise TA has taken some herself, and is more knowledgeable about the ins and outs of them and travel in Europe in general.

 

Roz

[Cary Cruiser]

Also, be aware that not all river cruise lines work with TAs. For example - Vantage, you can only book direct with them.

 

Also Grand Circle does not work through TA's, but does offer discounts sometimes. Last month we got free air when we booked our "Cruising Burgundy & Provence to the Cote d'Azur" for next April. 3 years ago when we booked our Viking cruise we worked through a TA and got a $500 discount. If you are particular about exactly which cruise, and what dates and cabin class you want, I would book 12 months out to have a good chance of getting what you desire.

[Roz]

For those of you who book within a few months of cruising, how do you deal with the overseas airfare? Isn't last minute airfare expensive?

 

Roz