Transfer to Travel Agent

[CousinEddie20]

First time cruising- Recently booked a celebrity cruise for 6 months or so.   I booked aqua class directly through Celebrity with $300 OBC and classic drink package.  I’d there any advantage of transferring to a travel agent?  I have read about it but do not understand how it works or the pros/cons.    Thanks. 

[Essiesmom]

First, with Celebrity you have to transfer within 60 days of booking.  Otherwise, it would be wise to shop around, asking travel agents what they can give you above what the cruise line has given you.  EM

[CousinEddie20]

Is there any chance of getting additional perk with transferring? 

[RocketMan275]

58 minutes ago, CousinEddie20 said:

Is there any chance of getting additional perk with transferring? 

Absolutely.  The TA can offer any incentive they desire to get your business.  For example, my TA will provide an 8% discount, 8% in OBC, or an 8% rebate.  She doesn't care which you choose.  She also includes any perks offered by the cruise line.  Nor, does she charge any fees for changes or cancellations.  There really isn't any good reason to non use a TA.

 

CC forbids naming TA's so you'll have to do your own research.  Just start calling TA and ask what they will do.  Most cruise lines forbid TA from advertising rates different from what they offer.  You have to call and ask.

 

You can use the internet to generate a list of TA to contact.  You can ask people you meet on a cruise who they use and why.  If you have a relationship with a major organization, all them.  Most big box membership stores offer travel services with discounts or OBC.    

[bonsai3s]

15 hours ago, CousinEddie20 said:

First time cruising- Recently booked a celebrity cruise for 6 months or so.   I booked aqua class directly through Celebrity with $300 OBC and classic drink package.  I’d there any advantage of transferring to a travel agent?  I have read about it but do not understand how it works or the pros/cons.    Thanks. 

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic!

Our cruise this year was aqua class on the Solstice.

We booked it directly with Celebrity.  As stated, we transferred it to our travel agent within the 60 days requirement.  (Note: Travel agents are not allowed to be mentioned here on Cruise Critic.)

We always transfer our booking to our "big box" travel agent because of additional perks and cash backs.  We are very happy...and love those $1.50 hot dog combo. 😁

 

Additional info:  You will find the Aqua Class truly wonderful...access to the Blu dining room (breakfast and dinner...IMHO, better service and food.) and the Persian Gardens (The aromatherapy sauna cleared my nose like Vick's vaporub...and the heated tile loungers often had people happily snoring.)  Our favorite was...the shower in the cabin...huge "rain" type showerhead with 6 additional adjustable showerheads on the wall....nice.  Happy Sailing! 😊

[Hlitner]

8 hours ago, CousinEddie20 said:

Is there any chance of getting additional perk with transferring? 

Maybe yes and maybe no (although the Yes is much more likely).  In a sense you now have a booking which you can shop around.  So do just that.  Shop around among a few reputable high volume cruise agencies.  Be honest and tell then you are shopping an existing booking (they all know the drill) and ask what they can do for you if you transfer the booking.   Unfortunately, for you, neither I nor others here can tell you the agencies that will likely add OBCs of 7-10% of your cruise price on top of what you already have.  But you should look for such a deal.

 

Hank

[Host Kat]

22 hours ago, CousinEddie20 said:

... I’d there any advantage of transferring to a travel agent?  I have read about it but do not understand how it works or the pros/cons.    Thanks. 

 

Howdy CousinEddie20 and welcome to Cruise Critic!

 

Perhaps something in the following Cruise Critic articles will be helpful:

 

Finding a Cruise Travel Agent

What to Expect on a Cruise: Booking a Cruise With a Travel Agent

Secret Agent Deals: How to Find Prices Cruise Lines Don't Offer

5 Booking Hacks That Will Change the Way You Buy a Cruise

14 Tips for Finding Cheap Cruise Deals

 

Glad to have you aboard Cruise Critic!

 

Happy sails,

 

Host Kat

[RSLeesburg]

Hmmm... I must have used the wrong TA’s because I never got squat from the two that I have used in the past.  I found them to be more trouble than they were worth - having to make any changes, book any excursions or dining through them, and then freaking out when final payment rolled around and one forgot to remind me about it.  I had to call him to make sure everything got paid on time.  And one I interviewed beforehand - he knew cruises, and books tons every year for folks in south Florida, but when I emailed him to book my Alaska trip, he took so long to book it that I lost the cabin I wanted and paid more than I saw online.  
 

I will admit that I have never shopped around but may try that when I get back from my Christmas cruise.  It may be too late to shop around our Celebrity South America cruise as it is past 60 days but would have loved to get 8% OBC on that one 😉. That much would pay for all our excursions...lol.   But maybe I can shop around our new Norway cruise that we just booked for 2021.   
 

I was completely turned off TA’s after two bad experiences, but some of these posts give me hope 🤗

[Hlitner]

4 hours ago, RSLeesburg said:

Hmmm... I must have used the wrong TA’s because I never got squat from the two that I have used in the past.  I found them to be more trouble than they were worth - having to make any changes, book any excursions or dining through them, and then freaking out when final payment rolled around and one forgot to remind me about it.  I had to call him to make sure everything got paid on time.  And one I interviewed beforehand - he knew cruises, and books tons every year for folks in south Florida, but when I emailed him to book my Alaska trip, he took so long to book it that I lost the cabin I wanted and paid more than I saw online.  
 

I will admit that I have never shopped around but may try that when I get back from my Christmas cruise.  It may be too late to shop around our Celebrity South America cruise as it is past 60 days but would have loved to get 8% OBC on that one 😉. That much would pay for all our excursions...lol.   But maybe I can shop around our new Norway cruise that we just booked for 2021.   
 

I was completely turned off TA’s after two bad experiences, but some of these posts give me hope 🤗

Yes, you figured it out (you used the wrong TA).  We have 4 cruise agencies on our personal "short list" of favored agencies but primarily use two....one for RCI owned products (RCI, Celebrity and Azamara) and the other for nearly all other cruise lines.  But even though I have used these agencies for several decades I always shop around (before booking each cruise) with several other agencies to make sure that my current favorites are still among the best.  Is this a lot of trouble?  Not really since it is kind of a hobby plus the shopping around probably involves less then an hour of my time (most shopping around can be done online).

 

You are not alone in being turned off by TAs and you can always book direct.  But consider this!  We have actually saved over $3000 on a single booking by simply shopping around and using the right cruise agency.  Those kind of savings can happen on larger bookings (we do a lot of longer cruises).  A basic rule of thumb is that you should save 7-10% on any booking once you factor in OBCs or other amenities received from agencies.  So assuming you book a $2000 cruise you should be able to save $140 - $200.  Sometimes it can be a lot more, but the higher percentage savings are more often found on more expensive bookings.  We understand that many folks could care less about saving a few hundred dollars so for those folks perhaps booking direct with cruise lines is the best answer.  

 

For us, using a cruise agency makes life much easier.  We have 4 longer cruises booked for next year and they are with 3 different cruise lines.  But they are being handled by one cruise agent/agency (they actually had the best deal on each cruise).  When I have a question, want to make a change, reprice, etc. it is a matter of sending a single e-mail which takes me a few seconds.  No time on hold, no long explanations, just a simple e-mail.  When Princess had a recent promotion that looked like a good deal I sent a short e-mail asking her to explore "repricing" two booked cruises.  The following day she e-mailed back all the options and recommendations and we quickly decided to "reprice" both those cruises (very good deals).  If I had tried to do this directly with the cruise line I would have been on hold for who knows how long, would have had to spend a long time going through options, etc.  With a good cruise agent it took me about 30 seconds (to write an e-mail).  Another benefit is that all my instructions, pricing, etc. is in writing. 

 

Hank

 

[RSLeesburg]

Thanks Hank.  We are not doing longer cruises like you, but we are sailing in suites - I think our last two cruises were $24k and $18k respectively, so saving 7-10% would be worth it.  

[ALWAYS CRUZIN]

On 12/26/2019 at 10:45 PM, CousinEddie20 said:

First time cruising- Recently booked a celebrity cruise for 6 months or so.   I booked aqua class directly through Celebrity with $300 OBC and classic drink package.  I’d there any advantage of transferring to a travel agent?  I have read about it but do not understand how it works or the pros/cons.    Thanks. 

A good travel agent will keep tabs on the cruise you booked for additional perks or a reduction in price. Finding a good travel agent is the only catch. We cannot give you any because of the rules on here. After booking several cruise with the same TA you usually get perks or OBC from them when yo book as a returning customer. A TA will get you a better price than the Cruise line if it is available to them. You can check and see what they price and perks are if you would have booked with them. If there price is lower with the same perks or better. You can have that cruise transferred to them and get the better price and perks. Sometimes there price and perks are the same. But the cruise line is finished with you after you book. As I said a good TA will keep a lookout. Mine does that for ma and has actually saved me thousands after booking.

[RocketMan275]

9 hours ago, Hlitner said:

For us, using a cruise agency makes life much easier.  We have 4 longer cruises booked for next year and they are with 3 different cruise lines.  But they are being handled by one cruise agent/agency (they actually had the best deal on each cruise).  When I have a question, want to make a change, reprice, etc. it is a matter of sending a single e-mail which takes me a few seconds.  No time on hold, no long explanations, just a simple e-mail.  When Princess had a recent promotion that looked like a good deal I sent a short e-mail asking her to explore "repricing" two booked cruises.  The following day she e-mailed back all the options and recommendations and we quickly decided to "reprice" both those cruises (very good deals).  If I had tried to do this directly with the cruise line I would have been on hold for who knows how long, would have had to spend a long time going through options, etc.  With a good cruise agent it took me about 30 seconds (to write an e-mail).  Another benefit is that all my instructions, pricing, etc. is in writing. 

 

Hank

 

That's a very good point that many overlook.