Question about transferring Princess booking to TA

[From Air to Sea!]

We’ve always booked directly with Princes in the past and have also booked Alaska ourselves for ‘24. Now we’ve decided to transfer our booking. What is the procedure? We have a TA but Princess won’t speak to him yet but the Princess rep sent me a form which I filled out a week ago and still nothing! Is it always this difficult? And how long does it take to actually transfer over?

Thanks

[cr8tiv1]

Is your computer capable of filling out the form without printing it out?  Then save it as a pdf.  Add it as an attachment.  DO NOT include it in the main part of the email.  The transfer form needs to be on one page.  If it is the body of the email, it will be cut off and Princess will not accept it. 

 

Email it back to Princess and CC your travel agent.  It should take a couple of days (if that long) for your TA to be able to pick up the booking.

[jeromep]

I did a transfer from Princess to a TA a couple of months back.  The TA I took the existing booking to provided me the transfer form, partially completed with the information I'd already given them about the cruise.  I basically only had to sign it.  I sent it back to my TA and they filed it with Princess.  The transfer occured in just about a day and it was all done.  Your TA should be filing the transfer request for you and then following up with Princess if there are any difficulties.  I'm surprised that you are hauling the mail on this one.

[Bwana Tom]

On a recent cruise we booked aboard the ship and provided our TA's contact information for them to transfer the booking. They assured me they would, but we heard nothing from either party after that. I called our TA and sure enough Princess hadn't contacted them. I provided our TA the details of the cruise and she took it from there. Easy Peasy!

[Coral]

If the prices are the same - it maybe just as easy to cancel the booking with Princess and have your TA book the cruise.

[sabookkeeper]

We transferred our booking to our TA last month.  I completed the transfer form and sent it back to my TA.  Two days later it had been transferred.

[trbarton]

15 hours ago, From Air to Sea! said:

We’ve always booked directly with Princes in the past and have also booked Alaska ourselves for ‘24. Now we’ve decided to transfer our booking. What is the procedure? We have a TA but Princess won’t speak to him yet but the Princess rep sent me a form which I filled out a week ago and still nothing! Is it always this difficult? And how long does it take to actually transfer over?

Thanks

With my T/A I have just given them my booking number & they did everything. Have you tried that?

Tom😀

[Thrak]

5 hours ago, trbarton said:

With my T/A I have just given them my booking number & they did everything. Have you tried that?

Tom😀

 

That's all I have done as well. He then sends me the form to sign. I print it out, sign it, scan it and send it back to him. I don't deal with Princess at all for the transfer.

[Coral]

5 hours ago, trbarton said:

With my T/A I have just given them my booking number & they did everything. Have you tried that?

Tom😀

My TA said this is no longer allowed.

[Thrak]

6 minutes ago, Coral said:

My TA said this is no longer allowed.

 

Must be something new. I did it in late September of last year. I did have to sign the form though. I could have driven 5 minutes to the TA's office and signed it there without the email steps.

Edited June 3, 2023 by Thrak

[Coral]

6 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

Must be something new. I did it in late September of last year. I did have to sign the form though. I could have driven 5 minutes to the TA's office and signed it there without the email steps.

If you sign the form, that makes a difference. The form you sign is allowed.

 

I was quoting @trbarton who said their TA can just take care of it with a booking number which is no longer allowed.

Edited June 4, 2023 by Coral

[Thrak]

Sorry, my bad. 🤪

Edited June 4, 2023 by Thrak

[trbarton]

6 hours ago, Coral said:

My TA said this is no longer allowed.

From my experience it sounds like your T/A doesn’t want to do it this way as my T/A has no objection & have never said anything about not doing it. 
 

Tom😀

Edited June 4, 2023 by trbarton

[Wblotner]

Is it true you can’t transfer after payment in full? I booked on short notice and want to transfer it.

[Cruise till you drop]

On 6/2/2023 at 10:40 PM, From Air to Sea! said:

We’ve always booked directly with Princes in the past and have also booked Alaska ourselves for ‘24. Now we’ve decided to transfer our booking. What is the procedure? We have a TA but Princess won’t speak to him yet but the Princess rep sent me a form which I filled out a week ago and still nothing! Is it always this difficult? And how long does it take to actually transfer over?

Thanks

May I ask why you want to do this transfer?

 

Just curious

 

Also are you missing out on OBC that you usually get if you make your initial booking with a TA?

[could travel all the time]

12 hours ago, Coral said:

My TA said this is no longer allowed.

My TA was surprised by the new process. Princess not only wanted the form filled out, I had to email it in myself. Poor guy was on the phone two times with them. Hopefully it won’t take long to transfer. 

[Coral]

2 hours ago, Cruise till you drop said:

May I ask why you want to do this transfer?

 

Just curious

 

Also are you missing out on OBC that you usually get if you make your initial booking with a TA?

I am not OP but my travel agent is always cheaper than booking direct with Princess. Plus my TA often has more group spacing (better pricing or OBC) if my booking is with them. It doesn't matter if I transfer or book directly, I get those benefits. Though I always book directly with my TA.

[Coral]

2 hours ago, Wblotner said:

Is it true you can’t transfer after payment in full? I booked on short notice and want to transfer it.

This is true. Once it is paid in full, you can't transfer.

[Coral]

6 hours ago, trbarton said:

From my experience it sounds like your T/A doesn’t want to do it this way as my T/A has no objection & have never said anything about not doing it. 
 

Tom😀

When was the last time you did this? 

 

I know my TA very well and have used her for 25+  years. I know she is telling the truth. I think I referred my TA to you several years ago for the Love Boat cruise on the Pacific Princess when you couldn't get a cabin on the ship and she had group space.

 

My TA has gone above and beyond for me. She is is telling me the truth.

 

They have made it more difficult for agents to just pick up the booking.

Edited June 4, 2023 by Coral

[SargassoPirate]

I check the basic cruise price with Princess and my warehouse club travel department.  I book whichever is cheaper.  More often than not it seems to be the cruise line is cheaper.  When everything is set, I transfer it to the warehouse club,  garner their benefits,  and charge the cruise to the warehouse club credit card and get another three percent cash back at the end of the year.

 

It's a seamless process. Download the transfer form from the warehouse club, scan it, email it to Princess, and then when I can see that the TA has taken over the booking, I confirm everything with the TA and get the booking info from them via email 

 

On a particularly expensive cruise, the warehouse is giving me a gift card voucher for $3500 once the cruise is completed and then I'm getting the three percent cash back next January 

 

[Coral]

5 minutes ago, SargassoPirate said:

 

It's a seamless process. Download the transfer form from the warehouse club, scan it, email it to Princess, and then when I can see that the TA has taken over the booking, I confirm everything with the TA and get the booking info from them via email 

 

The form (or letter) is the key that needs to be done.

[Wblotner]

11 hours ago, Cruise till you drop said:

May I ask why you want to do this transfer?

 

Just curious

 

Also are you missing out on OBC that you usually get if you make your initial booking with a TA?

To get some OBC of which princess has offered none

[sunviking90]

7 hours ago, SargassoPirate said:

I check the basic cruise price with Princess and my warehouse club travel department.  I book whichever is cheaper.  More often than not it seems to be the cruise line is cheaper.  When everything is set, I transfer it to the warehouse club,  garner their benefits,  and charge the cruise to the warehouse club credit card and get another three percent cash back at the end of the year.

 

It's a seamless process. Download the transfer form from the warehouse club, scan it, email it to Princess, and then when I can see that the TA has taken over the booking, I confirm everything with the TA and get the booking info from them via email 

 

On a particularly expensive cruise, the warehouse is giving me a gift card voucher for $3500 once the cruise is completed and then I'm getting the three percent cash back next January 

 

So, just to clarify I have a cruise booked and deposited with Princess (with a lot of OBC). I can now transfer this to the warehouse and everything stays the same, and now I get their benefits ($ cards) too?

[Coral]

44 minutes ago, sunviking90 said:

So, just to clarify I have a cruise booked and deposited with Princess (with a lot of OBC). I can now transfer this to the warehouse and everything stays the same, and now I get their benefits ($ cards) too?

I think it must be done within 60 days from deposit.

 

Yes.

Edited June 4, 2023 by Coral

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, sunviking90 said:

So, just to clarify I have a cruise booked and deposited with Princess (with a lot of OBC). I can now transfer this to the warehouse and everything stays the same, and now I get their benefits ($ cards) too?

Not only is there a time limint to tfr a booking, but if PCL is no longer offering the same OBC benefits you received, then you lose them if you re-book under a new Fare Code (whether with existing agent or a new one).

Edited June 4, 2023 by Steelers36