Any advantage to using TA to book Viking River?

[longterm]

Any advantage to using TA to book Viking River? I know this is an ocean forum, but there is no Viking river forum for this question.

 

I don’t normally use travel agents, except when we do Safari trips to South Africa. We just booked another river cruise, but I would be open to transferring it to a TA if there is any financial advantage.

Edited May 12, 2022 by longterm

[PRH]

For OBC!

[longterm]

30 minutes ago, PRH said:

For OBC!

I didn't know that there were OBCs to be had for river cruises; has anyone on here actually received OBCs from a TA for a river cruise?

[Ontario/AZ]

50 minutes ago, longterm said:

I didn't know that there were OBCs to be had for river cruises; has anyone on here actually received OBCs from a TA for a river cruise?

There are OBC offered by TAs.  Viking will only allow so much for each cruise.  Our agent on a 7 night river cruise will offer $100 each.  On Ocean 19 day we got $300 each.  These can be used for pre-paid gratuities, spirit pkg and excursions.  Must be used by end of cruise. (And that certainly isn't hard to do lol)  Some agencies may give more but in Canada I don't think they do. 

[longterm]

3 hours ago, Ontario/AZ said:

There are OBC offered by TAs.  Viking will only allow so much for each cruise.  Our agent on a 7 night river cruise will offer $100 each.  On Ocean 19 day we got $300 each.  These can be used for pre-paid gratuities, spirit pkg and excursions.  Must be used by end of cruise. (And that certainly isn't hard to do lol)  Some agencies may give more but in Canada I don't think they do. 

I thought I'd heard that OBCs weren't offered for river; I think that's the case when you book a cruise on board a Viking ship. We booked a trip for 2024 on-board when we were in Italy in March, and got on-board credits, but we just yesterday decided to add a river cruise for next spring, so we didn't try to do that when we were on board. 

I may call a TA here and see what they say about an OBC for a river cruise; will report back what they tell us.

[longterm]

15 hours ago, longterm said:

I thought I'd heard that OBCs weren't offered for river; I think that's the case when you book a cruise on board a Viking ship. We booked a trip for 2024 on-board when we were in Italy in March, and got on-board credits, but we just yesterday decided to add a river cruise for next spring, so we didn't try to do that when we were on board. 

I may call a TA here and see what they say about an OBC for a river cruise; will report back what they tell us.

Well... maybe I got a lousy TA.

I called a local travel agent, told her we were interested in booking the Grand European for October 2023; she sent me a quote a few minutes later. It included travel insurance, so it was a bit more than what we paid, but even when I removed that, it was still higher than what Viking charges on the website. I wrote back and politely thanked her, said the price wasn't any better than the website.

She wrote back, telling me that she was local, could keep me informed about flight changes, etc., which has no value to me since Viking always keeps me informed of any schedule changes, as do the airlines. She never mentioned an OBC, but when I had spoken to her, I got the distinct impression that she didn't know much about Viking, because she mentioned discounts based on groups--something we all know doesn't happen.

Perhaps a more Viking-savvy TA would have been able to do better...

[Baron Barracuda]

For our upcoming Grand European tour our TA is giving us a $700/cabin loyalty credit.  Did same for our last VO cruise.  They send it as a check post-cruise.

 

Are you aware of the VR 25th anniversary sale?  Substantial price discounts on the Grand European and they're throwing in the Silver Spirits bev pkg.  Here's the link.

 

https://www.viking.com/promotions/us/river/ANV25/20220404/grand-european-tour.html?fbclid=IwAR25DH_Vw8ZVwlUOiPB-9P3M79wYQcJd2YLzcJ9izsLzq8ae1cDPP5AI4W4#

[longterm]

1 hour ago, Baron Barracuda said:

For our upcoming Grand European tour our TA is giving us a $700/cabin loyalty credit.  Did same for our last VO cruise.  They send it as a check post-cruise.

 

Are you aware of the VR 25th anniversary sale?  Substantial price discounts on the Grand European and they're throwing in the Silver Spirits bev pkg.  Here's the link.

 

https://www.viking.com/promotions/us/river/ANV25/20220404/grand-european-tour.html?fbclid=IwAR25DH_Vw8ZVwlUOiPB-9P3M79wYQcJd2YLzcJ9izsLzq8ae1cDPP5AI4W4#

Thanks for the link. I looked at it, and just 2 days later, all the Veranda staterooms are booked--glad that my wife and I, and my brother and his wife, grabbed our Veranda A staterooms. 

The prices from this link match what's on the website, except for the drink package, which isn't something we would even use.

 

Your OBC of $700 is really nice though; is it because you've used this TA previously? We have 2 Viking cruises coming up (one is 29 days), so I'm wondering if I should transfer these to the TA you use. Mind sharing their name? 🙂

Edited May 13, 2022 by longterm

[longterm]

29 minutes ago, longterm said:

Thanks for the link. I looked at it, and just 2 days later, all the Veranda staterooms are booked--glad that my wife and I, and my brother and his wife, grabbed our Veranda A staterooms. 

The prices from this link match what's on the website, except for the drink package, which isn't something we would even use.

 

Your OBC of $700 is really nice though; is it because you've used this TA previously? We have 2 Viking cruises coming up (one is 29 days), so I'm wondering if I should transfer these to the TA you use. Mind sharing their name? 🙂

So, I decided to call Viking and see, since we just booked our cruise 2 days ago, if we could be given the promotional deal and get the Silver Seas package. I was told we'd have to cancel our existing bookings and then re-book, with a $100 rebooking charge EACH. 

Which means we'd get the drink package at a little better than half price. No thanks. Not worth the hassle. 

I wasn't pleased with Viking's customer service on this.

[longterm]

48 minutes ago, longterm said:

So, I decided to call Viking and see, since we just booked our cruise 2 days ago, if we could be given the promotional deal and get the Silver Seas package. I was told we'd have to cancel our existing bookings and then re-book, with a $100 rebooking charge EACH. 

Which means we'd get the drink package at a little better than half price. No thanks. Not worth the hassle. 

I wasn't pleased with Viking's customer service on this.

Well, as it turns out, it didn’t matter. I spoke to another Viking rep, who I will use for everything in the future; he told me that the special was only for 2022 sailings. Being the skeptic that I am, I went online and tried to book a 2023 sailing, and was prompted that the special didn’t apply to the sailing I chose. 
 

This is not the first time I have gotten better response from a different Viking rep on the phone; from now on, I will always use this same guy, who said he could have given me the drink package if it were applicable for a 2023 sailing.

[duquephart]

The rule with Viking reps is if you want five different answers talk to five reps.

[longterm]

16 minutes ago, duquephart said:

The rule with Viking reps is if you want five different answers talk to five reps.

That's for sure!

I had an issue with a move-over offer they made back in 2020, then canceled us because of Covid, then didn't want to give us the same upgrade deal for which we'd postponed our trip. I spoke to 3 different reps over almost an hour, with no luck, until the 3rd one suggested I contact their "move-over" division (which makes upgrade offers when they oversell a cruise); that rep immediately honored our upgrade, which we did get and enjoyed.

I've made a note of the guy I spoke to a few minutes ago and will always reach out to him in the future.

[duquephart]

5 minutes ago, longterm said:

That's for sure!

I had an issue with a move-over offer they made back in 2020, then canceled us because of Covid, then didn't want to give us the same upgrade deal for which we'd postponed our trip. I spoke to 3 different reps over almost an hour, with no luck, until the 3rd one suggested I contact their "move-over" division (which makes upgrade offers when they oversell a cruise); that rep immediately honored our upgrade, which we did get and enjoyed.

I've made a note of the guy I spoke to a few minutes ago and will always reach out to him in the future.

 

Problem is the next one in line might be even better.

[FetaCheese]

My online TA gives OBC for V river and ocean.  Amount is either $300, 600 or 1000 per cabin.  Amont increases by # of nites, (not days).  Sometimes they offer an extra $100 during periodic sales.  On another note, my pet peeve is that V markets cruises using # of days, unlike most other lines.

Edited May 14, 2022 by FetaCheese
Clarity

[FetaCheese]

Any unused TA provided OBC is refunded to pax after returning home.  Mine was a mailed bank check.

[Baron Barracuda]

Your OBC of $700 is really nice though; is it because you've used this TA previously? We have 2 Viking cruises coming up (one is 29 days), so I'm wondering if I should transfer these to the TA you use. Mind sharing their name? 🙂

 

CC doesn't permit us to name TA's.  We have been using the same very large online outfit for over 20 years.  For Viking sailings we initially book directly with VO or VR.  Have found their reps to be knowledgeable and allows me to deal directly with Viking Air to ensure I get the flights I want.  Once booking is switched to TA all contact with Viking has to go through them.  Every TA should offer some form of incentive to use their services.  Just shop around and ask.  My TA told me Viking caps the incentive they are allowed to offer and that I receive the maximum.  

[dd57]

Just to clarify, all changes to a booking, like adding an extension, and all payments go thru the TA.  You can still call or chat thru MVJ or email Tellus with questions.  The chat people have been very good helping with issues booking excursions and answering questions about our butterfly cruise (what they call B2B).

 

I too book directly then switch to our TA.  And we have always gotten OBC on river cruises as well as ocean.

[longterm]

I contacted a travel agent (whose name I saw on an online video); they got back to me, and were able to take over one of our 2 upcoming bookings--the one that was booked in the last 30 days--and offered us a $300 OBC each. 

My brother and his wife will be on the same river cruise with us and booked their stateroom a week ago as we did, so they're going to transfer their reservation to the same TA. 

Question: is there a way to see what OBC one has on an upcoming cruise? We got an OBC when we booked while onboard in March, but I don't see it reflected anywhere online or in the invoice we received. Anyone know how, other than calling Viking, to confirm an existing OBC?

[dd57]

Ours is listed on page 3 of our Guest Statement from Viking.  If you don't see it on yours, I would go into my viking journey and use the chat function that shows up on the right side of the page.

[longterm]

11 minutes ago, dd57 said:

Ours is listed on page 3 of our Guest Statement from Viking.  If you don't see it on yours, I would go into my viking journey and use the chat function that shows up on the right side of the page.

I just remembered that the OBC was given to us on the cruise we were on at the time (and spent), so that's why we don't see it on our upcoming cruise.

[FetaCheese]

My experience: TA provided OBC did not show on V invoice, or in MVJ.  It was shown on TA invoice. Received a card in cabin 1st day confirming OBC.

[longterm]

39 minutes ago, FetaCheese said:

My experience: TA provided OBC did not show on V invoice, or in MVJ.  It was shown on TA invoice. Received a card in cabin 1st day confirming OBC.

Good to know, thanks.

[Heidi13]

5 hours ago, FetaCheese said:

My experience: TA provided OBC did not show on V invoice, or in MVJ.  It was shown on TA invoice. Received a card in cabin 1st day confirming OBC.

 

We had a similar experience

[dd57]

My TA OBC shows up on the guest statement that I  received directly from Viking after changing flights.  I just double checked. 

[dd57]

It also showed up on my pre purchased items statement from Viking that I asked for after making shore excursion reservations.