Another Flight Ease Question

[stan01]

Many threads on this over the years I know.  Specifically we have decided to use Flight Ease for premium class tickets on our transatlantic in Nov 2024, flying from US to Barcelona and back to US from Barbados.  When should we book this?  I know if we book now we'll get the reservation in the class of travel we want but the Seabourn site warns the fare could go up before final payment unless we ticket it early and at that point it becomes non-refundable.  In the meantime there's a decent chance the airlines will change the schedule before the final payment is due.

 

Should we book now (there are some fares we like that are cheaper than purchasing from airlines for one way tickets) or wait until June or July?  Should we have them ticket if if we like the fare?  We are very unlikely to cancel the cruise.  Maybe its a question to call Seabourn and ask.

[Earthtones]

Yes, book now but don't prepay. If fares go down between now and whenever your cruise payment is due you can change your reservations with no penalty, and if fares go up they probably won't affect your reservation. I think the warning about the possibility of a price increase is a CYA. I had the same question as you prior to our first Seabourn cruise last summer so called Flight Ease to try to better understand. The agent I spoke with told me she had never actually seen a fare go up for passengers with existing reservations. 

[alexandria]

If you haven't already used a cruise line to book your airline tickets, just be aware of the pitfalls as well as the benefits (the primary of which is convenience).

 

Booking through Flight Ease does remove one travel planning task from your hands and places it in the hands of Seabourn.  In addition to the flights, Seabourn will provide transfers from airport to ship and back and, if an overnight stay is required due to flight schedules, a hotel room as well.

 

However, if you book through Flight Ease you don't get to select your preferred airline, you don't get to select your routing (and may be booked onto flights with multiple stops vs a non-stop) nor the flight times, you often do not get to pre-select your seat at the time of booking, and you lose the ability to make changes to the flights at your discretion should you want to travel earlier or later or on a different routing.  If you want to fly to Barcelona a day or two before the sailing, or stay in Barbados for a few days before returning home, you may be required to pay deviation fees. 

 

Flight Ease has in some cases booked flights for passengers that don't arrive until the morning of the sailing.  While they promise to get you to the next port if there are flight delays that cause you to miss embarkation, for a transatlantic that may mean you miss a significant portion (or even all) of your sailing. 

 

For those who don't mind doing their own travel research, I recommend using Google Flights to find preferred flights (dates, airlines, flight numbers and class of service) and getting pricing for those.  I also always recommend arriving in your port of embarkation at least one day in advance, so research hotels and get pricing on those as well.  Finally, check cost and availability of transfers from the hotel to the port (taxi, Uber or such).  Then, once you have that information in hand, call Flight Ease and see what they can do to book your exact preferred flights and hotels.  That may help you decide whether to let Flight Ease handle those arrangements or to manage your own flights and hotels.

 

Personally, I have never found value in entrusting those arrangements to a cruise line.  For example, I recently booked fully refundable round-trip business class flights for my wife and I for a fall transpacific cruise to Tokyo.  For one-stop departing flights (there are no non-stops to our port of embarkation city from the east coast) and a non-stop return from Tokyo, I paid about $7,500 vs the $11,000 the cruise line wanted for flights of their choosing (and the more than $12,000 the cruise line would charge for my preferred airline, routing and dates).  I also booked a two-night stay at a luxury/high-end hotel in our port of embarkation city that was just over half of what the cruise line would charge for a single night in a hotel of their choice.  All told I saved at least $4,000 on the flights and hotels, they are all fully refundable, and I maintain full control over my bookings in the event I want to make any changes.

 

Of course, YMMV. 

 

Hope that is helpful!

[Croooser]

alexandria,

 

Are you sure that you are not confusing Flight Ease with another cruise line's air program? We are booked on our first Seabourn cruise and were able to review flight choices as soon as we made a deposit. We could choose days of travel, number and location of any connections, airline, etc. We experienced no change in price on the flights we reserved. All at a better price at that time than offered by the airlines for the same flights since Seabourn offered a Flight Ease air credit. And flights were refundable up until final payment.

 

We see Flight Ease as a real advantage when compared to - say Oceania's air program. Lock in the flights that we want at a good price and then cancel if we can find something better up until final payment? It's a very good program for us.

[Neilio]

We just booked our flights for our Dec-Jan cruise on Encore from Hong Kong to Singapore. We are working with TA. The least expensive Business Class tickets via Flight ease were over $1500 per ticket more than what we could find ourselves. We were also able to get fully refundable tickets. We did have to pay now. Where the Flight Ease ticketing payment is not due until cruise is fully paid. Happy Cruising

[stan01]

3 hours ago, alexandria said:

However, if you book through Flight Ease you don't get to select your preferred airline, you don't get to select your routing (and may be booked onto flights with multiple stops vs a non-stop) nor the flight times, you often do not get to pre-select your seat at the time of booking, and you lose the ability to make changes to the flights at your discretion should you want to travel earlier or later or on a different routing.  If you want to fly to Barcelona a day or two before the sailing, or stay in Barbados for a few days before returning home, you may be required to pay deviation fees. 

 

Thanks for the time to post and the information.  Fortunately, Flight Ease (at least for US based Seabourn customers) does not work that way (which sounds awful I agree)!  We get access to a booking web site and can choose our own flight arrangements on any carrier, can check multiple airports, can book outbound and return on different carriers, and can get seat assignments when the airline allows that.

 

In this case, because it is a transatlantic Flight Ease gives us a lower cost.  For example, when i went to AA website they would not even book a round trip or multi-stop ticket across the Atlantic; had to do a one way ticket US to Europe and another one way ticket from Caribbean to US.  

Thanks all for the info, sounds like we will go ahead and book soon and take our chances with airline schedule changes. 

 

 

[stan01]

9 hours ago, Earthtones said:

I think the warning about the possibility of a price increase is a CYA. I had the same question as you prior to our first Seabourn cruise last summer so called Flight Ease to try to better understand. The agent I spoke with told me she had never actually seen a fare go up for passengers with existing reservations. 

That's great to know and exactly what I was hoping to hear!  Thank you!

[Earthtones]

One word of caution is that different airlines have different arrangements with Flight Ease. Some (eg, Delta, United, Alaska) allow you to choose your seat when you reserve and you'll even see it reflected when you visit the airline's website and look at the seat map for your flight. But others (eg, Air Canada, British Air) may not allow you to choose a seat in advance and the Flight Ease site does not spell that out, simply making it appear that you can't choose from the Flight Ease site. If you're unable to select seats for the flights you like, be sure to call Seabourn to find out if the fare rules even allow for preselected seats (yes, even for premium tickets).

[jdk-atlga]

Something else to consider - and I'm a fan of Flight Ease - is that you can always (up until a specific time) change your mind on a reservation. You can continue to compare/shop around within Flight Ease (being somewhat OCD, I do this on a regular basis) and decide to keep your FE or go airline direct. Flight Ease is very flexible in mixing/matching airlines (within reason) - example, I'm taking BA over to UK, then Delta/Virgin Atlantic back to Atlanta. I can indicate my specific travel days to allow front- or backend stays, generally without penalty. You can also cancel your reservation if you find a better outside deal. Flight Ease typically opens up about 330 days prior to trip. 

Best, jdk

[jdk-atlga]

4 minutes ago, Earthtones said:

One word of caution is that different airlines have different arrangements with Flight Ease. Some (eg, Delta, United, Alaska) allow you to choose your seat when you reserve and you'll even see it reflected when you visit the airline's website and look at the seat map for your flight. But others (eg, Air Canada, British Air) may not allow you to choose a seat in advance and the Flight Ease site does not spell that out, simply making it appear that you can't choose from the Flight Ease site. If you're unable to select seats for the flights you like, be sure to call Seabourn to find out if the fare rules even allow for preselected seats (yes, even for premium tickets).

The seat selection issue is a real thing - with British Air (in my experience) the most "difficult" for those of us in the States. We have had other threads in this Forum regarding this issue. Typically, if you want to specify your airline seat outside of Flight Ease, you can go to their own website, enter your Booking, and select (or not, your choice). BA still charges a seat fee on their site unless you wait until the usual 24-hour check-in time. 

Best, jdk

[lisa6191]

We are on this same cruise and just booked our air via Flight Ease last week. We had multiple choices of flights and could select any date we wanted to arrive and depart. We were able to book a nonstop in both directions and are landing in Barcelona 2 days early, all at a price that was less than booking direct. I was also worried about the flight price increase notice, so I am glad to hear that doesn’t usually happen.

 

One question though, if Seabourn provides transportation and hotel accommodations if you book with Flight ease, how does that work if you arrive 2 days early?

Edited March 3 by lisa6191

[stan01]

2 hours ago, Earthtones said:

One word of caution is that different airlines have different arrangements with Flight Ease. Some (eg, Delta, United, Alaska) allow you to choose your seat when you reserve and you'll even see it reflected when you visit the airline's website and look at the seat map for your flight. But others (eg, Air Canada, British Air) may not allow you to choose a seat in advance and the Flight Ease site does not spell that out, simply making it appear that you can't choose from the Flight Ease site. If you're unable to select seats for the flights you like, be sure to call Seabourn to find out if the fare rules even allow for preselected seats (yes, even for premium tickets).

 

I just booked our flights this morning.  Flight Ease allowed selection of the BA seats from LHR to BCN, but not from US to LHR.  I was fully expecting to have to pay the BA fee for premium class seat selection but when I went into the BA website to review the reservation it allowed me to select Business Class seats with no fee!  I was surprised and did so before they changed their mind!

 

Thanks all!

[johng75370]

1 hour ago, lisa6191 said:

One question though, if Seabourn provides transportation and hotel accommodations if you book with Flight ease, how does that work if you arrive 2 days early?

If you choose to arrive early I don’t think you get the transfer and hotel as complimentary (e.g. you’d have to pay).  We’ve had free hotel and transfers using FlightEase only for flights that require coming in a night earlier (e.g. from west coast to Miami or Barbados).

Edited March 3 by johng75370

[stan01]

1 hour ago, lisa6191 said:

One question though, if Seabourn provides transportation and hotel accommodations if you book with Flight ease, how does that work if you arrive 2 days early?

 

We've done it before.  First, it is necessary to pay for all of the extra hotel nights including the one that would otherwise be complimentary if arriving the day before.  In short, they switch you over to the pre-cruise hotel program which also covers transfer from the airport to the hotel and hotel to pier.  Of course someone could book their own hotel arranagements and not use the Seabourn program.  However, the last time we booked hotels through Seabourn we got a good rate at a very nice hotel (Four Seasons Miami Brickell).  We'll have to see what happens on this cruise.

Edited March 3 by stan01

[stan01]

2 hours ago, lisa6191 said:

We are on this same cruise 

 

 

Looking forward to it!  We are on for the crossing and another 7 days around Caribbean for total of 21 days.  I did create a thread in the roll call forum.

[stan01]

One other important point.  If using Flight Ease to book a flight yourself with extra pre- or post-cruise hotel nights it is necessary to call Seabourn and make sure they know to add in those extra nights in the hotel program.  In fact, I'd recommend calling Seabourn (or travel agent) no matter what after self-booking flights in Flight Ease.  There seems to be some manual things they still need to do and their IT systems are not 100% connected.  At least that's been our experience in general with Seabourn is to always call and confirm everything done on the website.  Also ask for a new booking confirmation that shows the added arrangements, that doesn't seem to be emailed out automatically.

[lisa6191]

3 hours ago, stan01 said:

One other important point.  If using Flight Ease to book a flight yourself with extra pre- or post-cruise hotel nights it is necessary to call Seabourn and make sure they know to add in those extra nights in the hotel program.  In fact, I'd recommend calling Seabourn (or travel agent) no matter what after self-booking flights in Flight Ease.  There seems to be some manual things they still need to do and their IT systems are not 100% connected.  At least that's been our experience in general with Seabourn is to always call and confirm everything done on the website.  Also ask for a new booking confirmation that shows the added arrangements, that doesn't seem to be emailed out automatically.

That’s probably a good idea, I will call tomorrow. When I went on American’s website to try to select seats, it just said have your travel agent purchase these tickets and wouldn’t let me do anything to the reservation. I guess because we haven’t actually paid yet? I’ll try to sort it out tomorrow.

[alexandria]

20 hours ago, stan01 said:

 

Thanks for the time to post and the information.  Fortunately, Flight Ease (at least for US based Seabourn customers) does not work that way (which sounds awful I agree)!  We get access to a booking web site and can choose our own flight arrangements on any carrier, can check multiple airports, can book outbound and return on different carriers, and can get seat assignments when the airline allows that.

 

In this case, because it is a transatlantic Flight Ease gives us a lower cost.  For example, when i went to AA website they would not even book a round trip or multi-stop ticket across the Atlantic; had to do a one way ticket US to Europe and another one way ticket from Caribbean to US.  

Thanks all for the info, sounds like we will go ahead and book soon and take our chances with airline schedule changes. 

 

 

Sorry for the incorrect information, I was indeed thinking of Silversea as far as the booking process.

 

However, as far as pricing, I still recommend checking pricing on your desired flights booking direct before booking via Flight Ease.  When we booked our upcoming sailing on the Quest, we found that business class airfare booked on Flight Ease for our desired flights was significantly more than booked direct.  I just checked again and the pricing today for our round-trip flights booking on Flight Ease would be $4,100 pp where the same exact flights, dates, routings and class would be just $2,450 pp if booked direct.  In fairness, they do have other flights for our sailing that are less expensive booked via Flight Ease than if booked direct but those have more stops and are on less desirable aircraft for business class than those we selected. 

 

In your case, it sounds as though Flight Ease was the better/more preferable option.

 

Despite my error in my earlier post, my point remains...compare the offerings of Flight Ease vs booking direct and then select the booking option that makes the most sense for you!

[cruiseej]

On 3/3/2024 at 4:20 PM, lisa6191 said:

When I went on American’s website to try to select seats, it just said have your travel agent purchase these tickets and wouldn’t let me do anything to the reservation. I guess because we haven’t actually paid yet?

 

Yes. That's one of the downsides to booking via Flight Ease. You get to pick your flights early and not pay until the cruise final payment deadline, but in many cases, you can't select your seats. We have a cruise this September for which we've booked our flights via Flight Ease, but we can't select seats pre- or post-cruise because the seats have been booked but not yet paid. We're debating whether to have our TA pay Seabourn for the flights now, three months before final payment deadline, in order to select our seats. But… there's a good chance flight schedules could be updated in June (typically about 3-4 months before the month of flying), so paying for the flights now could be problematic if the schedule of any of the flights is changed unfavorably. 

[Vineyard View]

When we booked flights on British Air in BC, we had to pay extra (I don’t remember how much but it was acceptable) to choose seats ahead of time. Does AA give you that option? 

[lisa6191]

24 minutes ago, Vineyard View said:

When we booked flights on British Air in BC, we had to pay extra (I don’t remember how much but it was acceptable) to choose seats ahead of time. Does AA give you that option? 

We were able to request seats in Flight ease, so for now I will leave it at that. As we get closer I will worry about it, we still have 8 months.

 

Different question, where on the website do you find hotel arrangements? I only see flights in pre and post cruise travel. Or do I have to call for that?

[stan01]

2 hours ago, lisa6191 said:

We were able to request seats in Flight ease, so for now I will leave it at that. As we get closer I will worry about it, we still have 8 months.

 

Different question, where on the website do you find hotel arrangements? I only see flights in pre and post cruise travel. Or do I have to call for that?

 

I am able to view and change seats on the AA and BA flights I booked this weekend.

 

You must call for hotels, there may be multiple choices.  

[lisa6191]

7 minutes ago, stan01 said:

 

I am able to view and change seats on the AA and BA flights I booked this weekend.

 

You must call for hotels, there may be multiple choices.  

On the AA website? Did you pay for your tickets already? Or can you only view and change on Flight ease?

[stan01]

37 minutes ago, lisa6191 said:

On the AA website? Did you pay for your tickets already? Or can you only view and change on Flight ease?

 

On the AA and BA websites.  Not ticketed yet, but was able to select seats.

 

 

[Tallante]

10 hours ago, lisa6191 said:

On the AA website? Did you pay for your tickets already? Or can you only view and change on Flight ease?

 

10 hours ago, stan01 said:

 

On the AA and BA websites.  Not ticketed yet, but was able to select seats.

 

 

You can always  book business class seats on European flights at no cost, If its long haul they charge unless you are a certain status, not sure if it’s gold or platinum now, you pay until 24 hours beforehand. Be aware that seats paid for in the event of cancellation, the money isn’t refundable.