Pros and cons using Celebrity Air

[doktor71]

Never have booked air through a cruise line. Interestied  in your experiences, and can you select seats when you book?  Also, in case of delays causing missed flights, how easy is it to get help from Celebrity?

 

Thanks in advance!

[39august]

Depends on the airline whether you can select seats. I always have. Never had to use help on delays. However I like that payment is not due until cruise final pay date, that you can change or cancel at no charge up until that date, and if the price goes down you can get that adjustment. 

[Virginia100]

I always use Celebrity for my flights. I check Kayak for flights and best prices, Celebrity always has beaten those prices snd except  for ITA I select at time of booking my assigned seats. And changing due to a price decrease or a change in times is no problem.

[luv2camp04]

I've never booked airfare through Celebrity either.  They have an amazing price from Phoenix to San Juan, but it changes planes in Chicago.  I am always leery to fly through the north in Feb or March due to weather.  If I understand what others are saying, I can cancel or change the flight if I find something better??  Thanks for any help!!

[Arizona Wildcat]

If there is a delay Celebrity Air will work to try and sort things, but they cannot fix delayed or cancelled flights; only the same as the airline attempt to rebook you.  Celebrity Air does not have a magic wand.

We were delayed on flights booked with Princess.  It was a disaster and American Airlines came through with hotels and flights to get to the ship two days later.  Princess completely failed.  So you never know 

[Denny01]

I’ve found Celebrity Air to be much less cost when i do a one-way to or from Europe. when we do a TransAtlantic and only need to fly back or over to, the Air costs have been very good in comparison. 

 

Den

[moneeman]

41 minutes ago, Denny01 said:

I’ve found Celebrity Air to be much less cost when i do a one-way to or from Europe. when we do a TransAtlantic and only need to fly back or over to, the Air costs have been very good in comparison. 

 

Den

My latest experience backs this up.  I did a lot of research before calling.  I knew what flights I wanted, but they were different airlines.  I could get a decent rate on my own on either airline if I went round trip, but the schedule on one of the directions for each airline did not work for us.  Celebrity was able to get the flights I wanted with the equivalent of a round trip fare using different airlines.  Saved me about $1,000pp.  Now, my experience with seat selection was a different issue entirely, but we eventually worked that out as well

[neverlaysup]

Given the amount of cancellations and schedule changes with the airlines, I'm not sure there are any Pro's. Numerous carriers will NOT allow seat selection until final payment which is an instant NO to me. In booking my own flights over the last year, any time a major change happens, I can select any flight and seat (same class of service) for no additional cost. Even when I forgot to acknowledge a change, the airline worked with me and allowed me to change to a far more expensive flight for no charge. Hold and wait times for customer service suck on both sides so that is a wash. With FBC, they will chose the new flights and you may not get the best crack at seat selection. Unless you need an overpriced transfer included, I'm not why anyone would use FBC in this current environment.

[neverlaysup]

2 hours ago, Denny01 said:

I’ve found Celebrity Air to be much less cost when i do a one-way to or from Europe. when we do a TransAtlantic and only need to fly back or over to, the Air costs have been very good in comparison. 

 

Den

Good to know about the one way differences.

[RTR 21-0]

Has anyone booked a flight on American through Celebrity, been able to pick your seats and those seats actually be available after making final payment?  We cancelled our May 2022 Rome cruise and have booked for May 2023.  In 2021 I was able to select our seats on American through Celebrity and when I looked at the seat selections on the American website they were X'd out.  We never got to the final payment date on the cruise so am unsure if those seats would have been ours.  I'm at the flight booking stage again and trying to decide between American, 1 stop, refundable w/$200 change fee or United, 2 stops, non refundable but says pre-reserved seat assignment.  

[IsItTimeToCruiseYet?]

My husband and I booked a Transatlantic cruise on the Apex in November 2023.  We plan on flying to Barcelona from the USA three or four days prior to the cruise to explore the city.  For those of you that used Celebrity for a one way flight, pros/cons, advice, etc.?  We normally don't fly and I need all the help I can get.  Thank you in advance and happy cruising!

[Bgwest]

On 6/14/2022 at 12:02 AM, RTR 21-0 said:

Has anyone booked a flight on American through Celebrity, been able to pick your seats and those seats actually be available after making final payment?  We cancelled our May 2022 Rome cruise and have booked for May 2023.  In 2021 I was able to select our seats on American through Celebrity and when I looked at the seat selections on the American website they were X'd out.  We never got to the final payment date on the cruise so am unsure if those seats would have been ours.  I'm at the flight booking stage again and trying to decide between American, 1 stop, refundable w/$200 change fee or United, 2 stops, non refundable but says pre-reserved seat assignment.  

Just booked our first X cruise a couple of weeks ago. Booked air using XAir on AA. 

As soon as I booked the flights and they were confirmed (not ticketed, just confirmed), I grabbed the record locator number and went over to AA.com, loaded in the record locator and pulled up our record and selected seats. 

I'm Platinum on AA but I really don't think that part matters.

The AA website still shows that the tickets haven't been paid for by XAir but that part isn't unusual. Happens all the time using EZAir (Princess). Although they don't ticket until 45 days or so prior to departure, seat selection was available immediately for us. 

Hope it works for you.  

 

United I know absolutely nothing about. 

[RTR 21-0]

20 minutes ago, Bgwest said:

Just booked our first X cruise a couple of weeks ago. Booked air using XAir on AA. 

As soon as I booked the flights and they were confirmed (not ticketed, just confirmed), I grabbed the record locator number and went over to AA.com, loaded in the record locator and pulled up our record and selected seats. 

I'm Platinum on AA but I really don't think that part matters.

The AA website still shows that the tickets haven't been paid for by XAir but that part isn't unusual. Happens all the time using EZAir (Princess). Although they don't ticket until 45 days or so prior to departure, seat selection was available immediately for us. 

Hope it works for you.  

 

United I know absolutely nothing about. 

Thanks for that info.  Waiting a few more days for AA to release their flights for our time period of travel to compare to XAir then I'll be booking somewhere!  Probably XAir since I can defer payment a little longer.  

[chilliano]

"As soon as I booked the flights and they were confirmed (not ticketed, just confirmed), I grabbed the record locator number and went over to AA.com, loaded in the record locator and pulled up our record and selected seats. "

 

Bgwest, How long did it take for you to get the confirmation?  I see the flight on my Celebrity page but I haven't received a confirmation email or see a confirmation # (or record locator) on Celebrity.  Wondering, too, if it makes a difference whether one selects "pay now" vs "pay when final payment due."

 

thanks

[kenb]

42 minutes ago, chilliano said:

"As soon as I booked the flights and they were confirmed (not ticketed, just confirmed), I grabbed the record locator number and went over to AA.com, loaded in the record locator and pulled up our record and selected seats. "

 

Bgwest, How long did it take for you to get the confirmation?  I see the flight on my Celebrity page but I haven't received a confirmation email or see a confirmation # (or record locator) on Celebrity.  Wondering, too, if it makes a difference whether one selects "pay now" vs "pay when final payment due."

 

thanks

I received a confirmation email right after I made my flight arrangements with Celebrity air. It included the locator. I went to the United site and was able to pick seats. I went to the AA site and they had my reservation but would not allow me to pick seats until it was paid.

[chilliano]

Thanks for your response Kenb.  OK, I can answer my own question.  I did NOT get a confirmation email, so I called Celebrity Flights and the agent provided it to me over the phone.  With the code, I was able to find it on the United Web Site.   Our frequent flyer numbers weren't there even though I provided them.  This wasn't an issue.  I put my husband's FF number in first.  He has better status, and I was able to select both our seats with his higher status.  I'm not concerned about not getting the confirmation email.  The reservation shows up on both our United Apps.  

[JRWLOBO]

We've used Flights by Celebrity on several occasions and have always been able to select our seats.  We have used American, United and Delta and all have allowed us to pick our seats and, yes, those were the seats we had when we boarded the flight.  On one occasion, we had to call the airline itself to book our seats, and, on another occasion, we called Flights by Celebrity to get our seats booked.  I agree with a previous poster in that I will not book a flight and hope for the best when it comes to seat assignment.  I want to pick out my own seat.  Several times after booking we have been notified by the airline that changes were made to the flight, which at times meant a change in the plane.  The airline then picked new seats for us, but we could go back into the airline website and change them.  We have always been quite satisfied with Flights by Celebrity, especially on one-way flights.

[dream2cruise]

We booked first class nonstop flights on AA through Celebrity Air with a TA and selected seats 2A and 2C.  AA had several flight time changes prior to final cruise payment.  We never bothered to check our seats until final payment was done.  We are now seated on row 4 and no longer next to one another.  No other first class seats are available.  We are hoping passengers seated next to us will be accommodating and allow us to switch.  Why in the world would AA or Celebrity separate a married couple especially in the age of COVID?  Those airline tickets were a huge splurge for us.

[Arizona Wildcat]

Because your actual seats were not booked at the time you contacted Celebrity.   Then AA changed flights and one of those had only two non adjacent first class seats open.  The computer that assigned your seats at AA only recognized a person.  Not your status in marriage.

This one likely no the fault of Celebrity Air but remember they are a consolidator- not a travel agent.  Unless lots cheaper probably best to book direct.

[dream2cruise]

1 minute ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

Because your actual seats were not booked at the time you contacted Celebrity.   Then AA changed flights and one of those had only two non adjacent first class seats open.  The computer that assigned your seats at AA only recognized a person.  Not your status in marriage.

This one likely no the fault of Celebrity Air but remember they are a consolidator- not a travel agent.  Unless lots cheaper probably best to book direct.

True.  This example is one reason to book direct.

[Bgwest]

2 hours ago, chilliano said:

"As soon as I booked the flights and they were confirmed (not ticketed, just confirmed), I grabbed the record locator number and went over to AA.com, loaded in the record locator and pulled up our record and selected seats. "

 

Bgwest, How long did it take for you to get the confirmation?  I see the flight on my Celebrity page but I haven't received a confirmation email or see a confirmation # (or record locator) on Celebrity.  Wondering, too, if it makes a difference whether one selects "pay now" vs "pay when final payment due."

 

thanks

Received the confirmation and record locator immediately upon booking as @kenbapparently did. 

 

Unlike @kenb's experience, I was able to select/confirm seats at that time on AA, before final payment. Being located near DFW, we never fly United so can't comment on them. This is the first time we've used Celebrity air and wondered how this might work. We use EZAir (Princess) a lot and have always had the same experience with them. As I said earlier, I'm Platinum with AA but I can't see that this makes a difference.  But maybe it does. I really don't know how to confirm or refute this part. 

[drakes2]

2 hours ago, kenb said:

I received a confirmation email right after I made my flight arrangements with Celebrity air. It included the locator. I went to the United site and was able to pick seats. I went to the AA site and they had my reservation but would not allow me to pick seats until it was paid.

I've only booked FBC once and price was identical to what I could find on my own. Was 2 weeks out from cruise when my original flight was canceled.  They are not the most knowledgeable and big language barrier but at least we had flights. 

[Bgwest]

32 minutes ago, dream2cruise said:

True.  This example is one reason to book direct.

Better yet, capture the normally better fares using XAir/EZAir, etc, select seats on your airline of choice and check your seating assignment regularly, like an eagle.

 

Over the years I've experienced what you did after an aircraft change, etc when booking direct with the airline so I don't believe booking direct is the solution. The airline will also sometimes move pax to undesirable seats. 

 

It's completely incumbent on the passenger to look out for her/his own booking and wellbeing. This, of course, takes a few keystrokes from time to time but heck, I look at as part of the fun! 

[JsMom2]

Pros:

You can book air without paying until finally payment, and if you need to cancel it after that there is usually only a small $200 fee per ticket.

 

Up until final you can change or cancel the flights with no penalty, so you can still shop for alternatives while holding the X flights

 

If you have issues with flight delays it is usually faster to reach the air department than waiting 3 hours to speak to someone at the airline.  In the past they have double booked me on a connecting flight in case I miss the original one.

 

If your return flight needs to be changed because the cruise is extended or cut short, you will get a new flight confirmation delivered to your stateroom automatically. 
 

If you want to have your flights ticketed earlier for any reason, you can call in and pay for them and request immediate ticketing.

You will still earn your frequent flier miles

 

Air department is open 24/7

 

Cons:
The airline will be paid with the cruise line credit card, so any perks you receive with your airline card will not apply.  If you have airline status, or are flying first class this may not be an issue, but paying for round trip luggage can add a significant cost. 

You can’t use any airline credits you may be holding to pay for the flights. 
 

With the current airline policies, you can cancel flights at the last minute and still get a full credit to be used on another flight, or can change your flight online and get the difference back in a credit.  Not sure how that works with X air.

 

[JsMom2]

2 hours ago, TMFTL said:

I used Xair on for a cruise August out of Rome.  I went to upgrade the seats but the flight has not been ticketed!!.  Well past final payment.  

 

Shouldn't the tickets been ticketed by now? 

 

Looking for anyone else that has encountered this.

Call and ask for them to be ticketed.