New to cruising, painful learning curve.

[Charles4515]

As long as its not a debit card you are pretty well protected for bogus charges.
 

They aren’t going to charge bogus charges. They might have a cancellation fee though. Some agencies do. Also they may have booked a non refundable deposit.

[Mike45LC]

Until she retired, I had a "cruise-only" TA who was wonderful.  She was NOT a discount TA, and she did not give On-Board Credits, but she took very good care of us.  Her knowledge of the cruise ships was very broad.  She warned us about ships she did not think were suitable (but she had a huge bias in favor of Crystal, with Celebrity a distant second and Princess a far third).  She personally delivered the tickets and papers (in the days when those were still hard-copy).  She also put together groups two or three times a year, which she would led personally, with very good prices.

 

Since she retired, I have not found as good a TA, but I have one (an internet TA) I'm reasonably happy with.  My wife prefers using Princess directly.  So if my wife makes the reservations, it is through Princess.  If I make the reservations, it is through an on-line TA which I've worked with several times.

[Times Prince]

3 hours ago, nukesubsailor said:

I book cruises with a travel agent I have used for dozens of cruises.  But I always book my airfare directly with the airline so I get exactly the type of flight and the seats we want.  I have been told that airlines will not pay commissions to travel agents.   I also book my pre-cruise hotel directly with the hotel's website.  I have found that the hotel rate at my favorite hotel is higher if the reservation is made by a travel agent.

We have a very good TA whose name was given to us by another Cruise Critic member using a private communication.  We have never met her as she lives in a different state in the USA, but have talked with her on the telephone to discuss bookings and preferences.  She and my wife have built up a rapport by phone. So, to the OP, don't be afraid of using a TA who you cannot see personally, but do check to see if he/she is certified by Princess.

 

Even with a good TA, she has let us know that she gets no commission on flights, even through EZair.  What I do is book my own flights, and if they are using Princess EZAir, she can roll up the payment via her agency at no extra charge. 

Edited March 28, 2019 by Times Prince

[OCruisers]

2 hours ago, voljeep said:

again ... does the TA charge cancellation fees with them ?

Depends .... You need to ask in advance.

When our long time TA was still taking new folks, she had a $25 cancellation fee for those who were booking with her for the first time cancelled. 

[OCruisers]

No clue why this came up as a Double Post.   Sorry!  

Edited March 29, 2019 by OCruisers

[getting older slowly]

Book how ever way you are comfortable.

 

Friends always book direct with Princess..... where as we Use our TA she is a gem....

 

She knows and has been on most cruise lines... Also it is the little things like a quick text to wish us bon voyage and welcome home text....

 

Cheers Don 

[turquoisesea]

We have been cruising for over 30 years and have used  big box agents, internet, and the cruise line directly.  I now only book through Princess. It is easy to track the price changes and call them directly to get a price drop ( outside final payment, of course.).  If you are using a TA the process can be delayed and then you could get stuck with your original price.  For the past few cruises we have started using EZ Air - for two reasons. You get to pick you own flights and don’t have to pay for the flight until the final payment is due!  This is a big plus when you are booking a flight 11 months out ( I forget the exact number of days.) and you don’t have to tie up the money- which could be lot!  If you have to change your plans before final payment you can’t cancel you flights and get the money back if you bought the tickets yourself or through thevTA.  With EZ Air you never paid for the flight so you don’t lose anything. Also, you can watch the price of flights and if they drop from your original reservation you can call Princess and make the change. (We have never had our flight prices go down - only up! So we are glad we booked early.) 

I wish you good luck, and like the others I hope you can switch your reservation back to Princess. And be sure to get Insurance!

[CruisinFinsUp]

6 hours ago, SG103 said:

Our first cruise was March 10-17 which I booked directly with cruise line. Now I just finished booking a back to back in December 2019 on Princess Sky with a internet travel agent, it was a nightmare. I will never use a travel agent again. I thought I could leave everything to them, not worry about flights, rooms and they would be able to give me advice. But I ended up with a Stateroom at the very back of the ship and a mess with the travel arrangements, and very time consuming, I spent three days calling and trying to fix things up and still unhappy with the deal. I just gave up, I was surprised.

 

As a new cruiser, I suggest you try to find a storefront travel agency that specializes in cruise ships, and an agent who has actually cruised on some Princess ships.   You can go see them face to face, ask your questions and discuss everything in detail then leave them to book it all.    

We use a " bricks and mortar "agency here in Ontario - they are all across Canada - and our agent is quite knowledgeable and helpful.    

Shop around.  Talk to different agents and others to get recommendations of agents.     Good luck!   Enjoy your cruise!

[pris993]

We started cruising in the l980s, then used TAs and brochures ... no internet, no readily available info like to day.   It has been 20 years now since I have used a TA for booking anything.  I do my own cruise, air, hotels, insurance, car service if using one myself.  

 

Booking directly with Princess with future booking credits is a very easy way to go.    Booking hotels directly with the hotel or through an 800 number is also best, you can book early and monitor rates, if they go down you can request the new rate.  The same is true with Princess you can request the new fare if the fare goes down before final booking, you may lose  some booking benefits but you can decided the trade off.    Airlines once you book you are set unless the airline makes changes to your booking, if the changes they make don't work you can request a different booking.    We always book the most direct flight available and try to stay with the same carrier, no code share among airlines.  

 

When we book with Princess we look at the deck plan and request a specific cabin #, looking at what is above and below our cabin, to avoid noise areas of the ship.  

 

There is a lot of advice on travel insurance on this board.  Each travelers needs here are different.   So I will not address that here.    I do believe one can book travel insurance independently as well and better.

 

One more thing booking hotels yourself is better because you get a cheaper rate vs doing it through a cruise line.  

[Lucky TGO]

7 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

You picked the wrong travel agent, that is all. I have done over 50 cruises and all with a travel agent.  I would never book without one. 

 

I totally agree with you Charles4515. 

Tony

[caribill]

10 hours ago, SG103 said:

Our first cruise was March 10-17 which I booked directly with cruise line. Now I just finished booking a back to back in December 2019 on Princess Sky with a internet travel agent, it was a nightmare. I will never use a travel agent again. I thought I could leave everything to them, not worry about flights, rooms and they would be able to give me advice. But I ended up with a Stateroom at the very back of the ship and a mess with the travel arrangements, and very time consuming, I spent three days calling and trying to fix things up and still unhappy with the deal. I just gave up, I was surprised.

 

If you are not happy with the location, look online on the Princess web site and see what other cabins are available in the exact same category on your cruise. If you find one with a location you like better, contact the TA and insist they change you to that other cabin. There will be no charge by Princess to have this done.

[Steelers36]

I realize many folks like the simplicity of booking with the "big box", but I have enough OBC and I would rather have my discount in fare reduction than more OBC.  I am with those who like to use a good TA who gives discount off the fare.  We get same discount percentage whether book Inside, OV, or Balcony.  IDK about Suites because we don't book those.

 

 

[SG103]

11 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

There is no reason to book hotels thru the cruise line except maybe if your cruise is to some exotic place. Definitely not a good TA if they didn’t mention that to you about being charged double. I read that Princess charged double in another thread and I was astounded to read that

She is not an experienced TA. She was as confused as I was about the per person charge on the motel.

The cruise is a back to back Carabbean East West Dec. 7 to 21. I asked if I had to disembark between cruises - didn't know. I asked if I could keep the same stateroom for both legs of the cruise - didn't know. I asked for flight itinerary - still waiting for that.

Someone in this post suggested calling Princess and I'm thinking of doing that.

I plan on doing a lot of cruising in the years to come so I want to get this right. I'm 65, just sold half my business and want to visit Europe, Asia, Middle East, Australia, Africa and I think the best way to do so is on a cruise ship.

Edited March 29, 2019 by SG103

[Colo Cruiser]

11 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

 

They aren’t going to charge bogus charges. They might have a cancellation fee though. Some agencies do. Also they may have booked a non refundable deposit.

 

OP is concerned about this TA having their CC info. Are you familiar with the OP’s TA/company? If so please enlighten me. 

TIA.

[skynight]

Want to address air.

We found it is much easier to book your cruise. We do use a T.A., but you could do it direct through Princess. After the cruise is booked you can then go to the cruise personlizer and search EZ Air flights, routes and fares. The fares may change frequently. You can compare them to other airline sites and direct airline fares. If you use EZ Air you book it yourself, no need for a T.A. Flexible fares can be changed without penalty up to 45 days before the flight. Many flexible fares are lower. EZ Air payment for flexible fares is due at the time you pay for your cruise.

[billco]

16 hours ago, gotta cruise again said:

SG103: you mentioned your cabin is “at the very back of the ship”. Is this an aft-facing balcony? If so, that’s very desirable. If you post a bit more about the location (not necessarily the exact cabin number but deck plus which side of ship), folks could give you more information that may be encouraging.

 

If your back-to-back (B2B) happens to be over Christmas and/or New Years, there are a couple of Roll Calls (RC) on which you might want to participate. I started one for the New Years 7-day and you are welcome to join it if you are onboard that week: it’s still too early to talk specifics of RC activities, but hopefully we’ll have several that week!

Aft facing cabins on Royal class may not be for everyone. For example, it might be on Emerald Deck with no overhang so everyone above can look down on you, have a layer of soot that you have to deal with, and noise from the Vista Lounge. But, if you don't use elevators you will get lots of exercise going up to the pool, gym, or buffet.

[Charles4515]

OP is concerned about this TA having their CC info. Are you familiar with the OP’s TA/company? If so please enlighten me. 
TIA.

If a charge is bogus you dispute it. That is all in your favor.

[Colo Cruiser]

13 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

 

If a charge is bogus you dispute it. That is all in your favor.

 

That’s what I said in my first post!   🤔🤔

[Charles4515]

She is not an experienced TA. She was as confused as I was about the per person charge on the motel.
The cruise is a back to back Carabbean East West Dec. 7 to 21. I asked if I had to disembark between cruises - didn't know. I asked if I could keep the same stateroom for both legs of the cruise - didn't know. I asked for flight itinerary - still waiting for that.
Someone in this post suggested calling Princess and I'm thinking of doing that.
I plan on doing a lot of cruising in the years to come so I want to get this right. I'm 65, just sold half my business and want to visit Europe, Asia, Middle East, Australia, Africa and I think the best way to do so is on a cruise ship.

I know someone will jump on me but some places you mention are great to visit on a cruise ship, others are best on a land trip. I do both and often combine land with a cruise.

On back to backs I try to book the same room but if not available the cabin steward will help you move your stuff.

The ones I have been on we met at a designated time and place onboard where they had our new cruise cards for the next sailing and a crew member walked us off to immigration/customs and back. All we needed was show our passports. You leave your stuff onboard. The exact procedure depends on the port and ship so no TA would likely have the exact details. If you had booked direct thru Princess their person wouldn’t know either.

[2theship]

Nothing beats doing your own research. And no one will do a better job of monitoring price drops or cabin availability than you. We have used the same local TA since we started cruising in the mid 90's. When I call or email him, I already know what I want and he takes care of it. Additionally, he covers a portion of the cruise cost and throws in some OBC.

 

We also manage our own flights and hotels but with the great deals currently on EZAir, we almost always book flights through Princess.

 

Last year, we took our first river cruise and Viking requires that everything be done through the TA. We sat down with him and talked about what we wanted and he made sure we got exactly what we asked for, sometimes against what Viking was telling him. While we were on the cruise, we were shocked by how many people just took what was offered by the cruise line without question.

[skynight]

2 hours ago, SG103 said:

She is not an experienced TA. She was as confused as I was about the per person charge on the motel.

The cruise is a back to back Carabbean East West Dec. 7 to 21. I asked if I had to disembark between cruises - didn't know. I asked if I could keep the same stateroom for both legs of the cruise - didn't know. I asked for flight itinerary - still waiting for that.

Someone in this post suggested calling Princess and I'm thinking of doing that.

I plan on doing a lot of cruising in the years to come so I want to get this right. I'm 65, just sold half my business and want to visit Europe, Asia, Middle East, Australia, Africa and I think the best way to do so is on a cruise ship.

b2b's - some information

When your b2b is from Ft. Lauderdale then yes, you must report and go through immigration on turn around day. No option. It is a U.S. immigration requirement, no way around it. You will receive detailed instruction once on board. Follow them exactly.

For the future when turn around day is in Europe then it is treated just like any other port day. 

Stateroom. You really have to do this homework yourself. You can search your cruises on line and select a stateroom that is available for both legs. Then  you have to request this stateroom and have your booking marked "No Upgrade." This is the best way to assure you can stay in the same cabin. T.A.'s many times book guarantee cabins which allows the cruise line to place you in any category cabin you booked or a higher category. Another way to stay in the same cabin is to book the b2b as a single cruise, one booking number.

If you call Princess they probably will not help you. They will refer you to the T.A.

For flights it is best to book them yourself, not through the T.A. You can do this by going into the cruise personlizer on the Princess web site and using EZ Air or through other airline sites. It's just easier, better and you get what you want, not what some other person decides.

There is a learning curve to booking cruises. In my opinion the first thing to learn, is know what you want in detail before you contact a T.A.. If your T.A. can't do what you want find another one. Do lots of the work yourself. It's pretty simple on line.

Hope this information helps for now and the future.

[Steelers36]

12 hours ago, cruisintoddler said:

 

As a new cruiser, I suggest you try to find a storefront travel agency that specializes in cruise ships, and an agent who has actually cruised on some Princess ships.   You can go see them face to face, ask your questions and discuss everything in detail then leave them to book it all.    

We use a " bricks and mortar "agency here in Ontario - they are all across Canada - and our agent is quite knowledgeable and helpful.    

Shop around.  Talk to different agents and others to get recommendations of agents.     Good luck!   Enjoy your cruise!

Hi.  Does your "B&M" TA charge you any different pricing than the Princess quoted fares in CAD?  I agree that there are many knowledgeable TA's in "B&M" agencies in Ontario, but they just seem to quote Princess pricing.  Just wondering if you see anything different in current times.  

 

Otherwise, what you suggest makes sense for a "newbie" who doesn't have an expert friend to ask, etc.  Once a person has some base knowledge, it is easier to branch out on their own and, with some research and self-service, find the discounts.

 

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, SG103 said:

She is not an experienced TA. She was as confused as I was about the per person charge on the motel.

The cruise is a back to back Carabbean East West Dec. 7 to 21. I asked if I had to disembark between cruises - didn't know. I asked if I could keep the same stateroom for both legs of the cruise - didn't know. I asked for flight itinerary - still waiting for that.

Someone in this post suggested calling Princess and I'm thinking of doing that.

I plan on doing a lot of cruising in the years to come so I want to get this right. I'm 65, just sold half my business and want to visit Europe, Asia, Middle East, Australia, Africa and I think the best way to do so is on a cruise ship.

An in experienced TA is pretty worthless as you may as well be doing own thing or just book with Princess. 

 

Anyway, I saw your location and I wish I could tell you about a great TA who works out of NB for a US agency.

 

[fluffybunny22]

I usually book directly with the cruise line but just discovered a TA that gave me a huge OBC. I don't expect the TA to give me any information. I do all my own research. I don't work and my husband considers one of my wifely duties is to plan his vacations. He picks the itinerary and pays for it and shows up and I do all of the rest.

[OhioJourneys]

19 hours ago, SG103 said:

Our first cruise was March 10-17 which I booked directly with cruise line. Now I just finished booking a back to back in December 2019 on Princess Sky with a internet travel agent, it was a nightmare. I will never use a travel agent again. I thought I could leave everything to them, not worry about flights, rooms and they would be able to give me advice. But I ended up with a Stateroom at the very back of the ship and a mess with the travel arrangements, and very time consuming, I spent three days calling and trying to fix things up and still unhappy with the deal. I just gave up, I was surprised.

As one who retired from the travel industry after more than 20 years, hearing you say you'll never use a travel agent again breaks my heart.  An agent can be a valuable asset.  However, these days, anyone can claim that title and begin an online business.  I recommend you talk to people in your community for a local recommendation.  Look for some one who is certified (things like "member of ASTA", IATA certified, CTC or CTA designations are all good).  Like any professional, your travel agent has valuable experience and insight to things you may never have even considered.  I promise, "try it, you'll like it" with the right agent!