Advice on using Seabourn Flightease Programme please

[FlyerTalker]

48 minutes ago, CLOU said:

Another FlightEase issue to be aware of that is new.  If you book through FlightEase you wll not get credit for the miles in the airline's frequent flier program. 

 

Incorrect.

 

It completely depends on both the airline and the specific fare basis of the ticket.  You cannot make a blanket statement about miles, either that you always will or always won't.

 

 

49 minutes ago, CLOU said:

We discovered this for our upcoming flights on United to Lisbon and home from Amsterdam.

 

You discovered this for YOUR tickets.

 

 

[CLOU]

My statement was too blanket but I did state that it appears to be the case for my United tickets in June, business class, and American has announced that it is initiating this policy, although I believe some travel agencies will be approved and tickets issued by those agencies will qualify for miles. Still, it is something to keep in mind when booking. This has never been an issue before when we have booked through Seabourn, always on United or United partners.

[SDuckers]

We have always booked our own flights, because when we did price comparisons FlightEase never seemed to be particularly competitive.  But we have booked a cruise out of Dubrovnik in the fall of 2025, and looking at the difficulty of getting there from Houston, along with concerns about the possibility of this cruise changing departure point, has lead us to conclude using FlightEase makes more sense.

[FlyerTalker]

2 hours ago, SDuckers said:

But we have booked a cruise out of Dubrovnik in the fall of 2025, and looking at the difficulty of getting there from Houston, along with concerns about the possibility of this cruise changing departure point, has lead us to conclude using FlightEase makes more sense.

 

Just how does using FlightEase make the "difficulty of getting there from Houston" any easier?  In fact, it has the potential of making things even more difficult, as FE may have fewer options to get to DBV than buying directly from the airlines.

 

And why do you think that the cruise will change its itinerary?  Do you know something we don't?

 

 

[sfvoyage]

Flight Ease has fewer options.  They only have contracted rates with selected airlines and on specific routes, and more often than not their rates are higher.  I have only found good options through them 20% of the time at most.

[jdk-atlga]

All: My FE thoughts are to compare and check frequently and often for options/pricing from FE to airline direct. As has been said before, with FE there are only a number of available seats on certain routes and when they are gone, they are gone. I find that it is best to get FE booking as early as possible, monitor it for better rates and continually compare - you can always cancel (within bounds) if you find another option more suitable than what you have with FE. I do not recommend a set/forget process with FE.

Best, jdk

[SDuckers]

15 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

 

Just how does using FlightEase make the "difficulty of getting there from Houston" any easier?  In fact, it has the potential of making things even more difficult, as FE may have fewer options to get to DBV than buying directly from the airlines.

 

And why do you think that the cruise will change its itinerary?  Do you know something we don't?

 

 

I think FlightEase might be able to parse the various airlines and connections issues easier than us doing it.  I don't have any particular info re: a change in itinerary, but back in 2017 we had booked a Seabourn cruise specifically because we wanted to go to Istanbul and Ephesus, but Seabourn pulled out of Istanbul and deleted Ephesus as a stop.  We ended up going with a completely different itinerary after that.  Given the known instability in the region, it's not far-fetched to have it happen again.  I'd rather have Seabourn and FlightEase deal with changing our flights if that occurs.

[EbonyJ]

Hi Everyone

 

Thank you all for your input and response to my original question.  I checked our preliminary documentation yesterday as suggested by @johng75370 and the updated information is:=

 

MONTREAL Montreal Ship to Montreal Airport Group Transfer: You will be transferred from the ship to the airport. If you have a Seabourn-booked flight departing after 3:00 PM you will be brought to an interim location to wait for your flight. If you have a Seabourn-booked flight departing between 3:00 PM and 6:00 PM you will receive a meal voucher for use at a restaurant or hotel. If you have a Seabourn-booked flight departing after 6:00 PM you will receive hospitality accommodations. You will be provided with further details when you receive your disembarkation information while on board the ship. 

 

I guess we will wait and see!  FWIW our flights were approx £2,000 less using FE and for our October cruise approx £3,000 less.  I will however continue checking them.