Travel Agents

[larryvel]

I am just about to pay my final payment (not due until mid-September) when I decided to check with other agencies to see if they could give me a better price. Once I told them what I was paying they both stated that it would be impossible to pay that amount due to the fact that my agency would not be making a cent commission and even losing money. I was told that I might get a surprise after I pay what is considered my final payment.

 

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I'm afraid that I'm going to get taken by the agency.

[kannruss]

I am just about to pay my final payment (not due until mid-September) when I decided to check with other agencies to see if they could give me a better price. Once I told them what I was paying they both stated that it would be impossible to pay that amount due to the fact that my agency would not be making a cent commission and even losing money. I was told that I might get a surprise after I pay what is considered my final payment.

 

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I'm afraid that I'm going to get taken by the agency.

It all depends on when you booked...if you locked in when rates were lower then it has nothing to do with your agency's commission but what rate they could secure from the cruiseline.

[garycarla]

It might be worth double checking that in includes everything.. taxes, port fees, etc.

 

Yes, you could have found a good rate that other agents can no longer match.

[Joanniebop]

It Pays to shop around.

 

I have found many different prices from on line agencys as well as TA's. Sometimes the TA has the better price and sometimes the online agency has the best price.

If you have a confirmation number you can just call the line and make sure everything is OK. If you are under deposit, chances are you are safe.

 

Good Luck

[M&MCruisin]

I am just about to pay my final payment (not due until mid-September) when I decided to check with other agencies to see if they could give me a better price. Once I told them what I was paying they both stated that it would be impossible to pay that amount due to the fact that my agency would not be making a cent commission and even losing money. I was told that I might get a surprise after I pay what is considered my final payment.

 

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I'm afraid that I'm going to get taken by the agency.

 

I dont think you have anything to worry about. I can tell you that I have had alot of trouble with agencies, which is probably why people pay more and book direct through NCL. All agents say that the other person isnt making any commission, but I guarantee you that they wouldnt have quoted you the price if they werent making any money. I have heard it all. Plus they buy a block of rooms and then sell them to us for whatever price they want according to NCL, who I talked to today. Once you lock into a rate, they cant make the price go higher unless you make a significant change. However my sister has had several occassions where the cruise line lowered their fares and she actually got a refund from the travel agency. (good agent) You should have received some statement showing the amount agreed, deposit and balance due. As long as you have that, I wouldnt worry about it. I booked my cruise the last week of July and about 1 week later, prices went up ALOT! I am still at my quoted price. I hope things work out for you and there isnt any funny business.

[newmexicoNita]

I am just about to pay my final payment (not due until mid-September) when I decided to check with other agencies to see if they could give me a better price. Once I told them what I was paying they both stated that it would be impossible to pay that amount due to the fact that my agency would not be making a cent commission and even losing money. I was told that I might get a surprise after I pay what is considered my final payment.

 

Has anyone experienced anything like this? I'm afraid that I'm going to get taken by the agency.

first of all, why are you checking around? You must have been satisfied with your first price or you would not have booked. That being said, I am an agent; if your Ta sent you an invoice which I assume they did, your price does include everything and no, you will not be assessed any other fees. Just ask the agent when you call to make the payment if that is all you owe. For any agency to say, that price can't be right is crazy... NMNita

[ImpulsivePuppy]

It Pays to shop around.

 

 

 

funny you mention that because my momma told me 'you better shop around.' good advice.

[judyjbest]

There's a pretty even playing field on prices to all TAs, but prices change over time. So, your TA may have blocked some space early on, with low prices that were better than these agents had at the last minute. If you've got receipts from your TA with your payments and total prices, you should be good to go!

[MrLee]

first of all, why are you checking around?

 

I always check just before final payment to see if the price may have gone down or I might get an upgrade at the same price (or maybe a little more). I did that for my cruise next month and got an upgrade AND a bit of a price reduction.

[M&MCruisin]

Since the topic is Travel Agents, I have a curious question to ask the seasoned cruisers. Lets take the deposit senario once step further. Once you have made a commitment and paid your deposit, does the TA have the right or the ability to cancel your booking? Let say they get mad at you because of particular demands or they find someone who will pay more for that room, etc.....I would think the once entered into an agreement, they should be bound to it and that the only one who could cancel would be the traveler. At least in a perfect world, thats how I think it should be. I mean they are working for us, not the other way around. I am new to this, so opinions are welcomed. Im not looking for a debate, just a thought I had.

[duckman715]

Since the topic is Travel Agents, I have a curious question to ask the seasoned cruisers. Lets take the deposit senario once step further. Once you have made a commitment and paid your deposit, does the TA have the right or the ability to cancel your booking? Let say they get mad at you because of particular demands or they find someone who will pay more for that room, etc.....I would think the once entered into an agreement, they should be bound to it and that the only one who could cancel would be the traveler. At least in a perfect world, thats how I think it should be. I mean they are working for us, not the other way around. I am new to this, so opinions are welcomed. Im not looking for a debate, just a thought I had.

Since the cruise line corresponds with the TA rather than the passenger it is quite possible for the TA to cancel the cruise and the passenger not know of it until it was time for the cruise. The PAX thus being left high & dry. Of course without the PAX consent or direction such cancellation could be interpreted as a breach of contract . Emphasis on the could here since they could easilly claim it was some sort of accident (see below) or a well intentioned mistake (see below again). Proving malice would be difficult and costly.

 

I have twice had a reservation cancelled by a TA without my knowledge or consent. Once when I reserved a specific aft balcony while on another cruise the TA decided to put me in a group of theirs, cnacelled my desired cabin and put me in one amidships - same category. I only found out about it several months after because we were travelling with another couple and they needed my booking # to arrange dining table. We ended up with another aft cabin and $200 obc from the TA.

 

Another time after a reservation was made we noticed the rate had dropped and called our NEW TA and requested a fare adjustment. No problem with that except they cancelled the original booking, had the cruise line credit my credit card and then neglected to tell them to charge me for the new reservation. So we had no reservation at all. Again this was caught by accident when I received the second credit card bill showing no new charges two months later

[seahorse]

Since the topic is Travel Agents, I have a curious question to ask the seasoned cruisers. Lets take the deposit senario once step further. Once you have made a commitment and paid your deposit, does the TA have the right or the ability to cancel your booking? Let say they get mad at you because of particular demands or they find someone who will pay more for that room, etc.....I would think the once entered into an agreement, they should be bound to it and that the only one who could cancel would be the traveler. At least in a perfect world, thats how I think it should be. I mean they are working for us, not the other way around. I am new to this, so opinions are welcomed. Im not looking for a debate, just a thought I had.

 

Any reputable TA would not cancel any booking without the consent of the traveler. It is sometimes done by "accident" by the Line (slip of the computer fingers).

 

Your reasons that you gave that a TA may do this does not hold any credability. You would not cancel a held booking and re-sell it for more money:rolleyes: You would just book another cabin.

 

There has to be precautions in place for a cancellation and yes, a travel agent can cancel a booking WITH the permission of the client.

[M&MCruisin]

Thanks all. We have had alot of problems with our current booking both from the TA and NCL. When I got mad and said a few things, that although justified, it made the TA mad and said they would cancel our bookings. We have since "rectified" the situation and are moving forward together, but I am worried to death that they will just cancel at a later date if I dont kiss their behinds the next 7 months even though I have justified complaints. Guess I will just have to hang tight and hope for the best. Thanks again for your insight. Have safe travels and happy cruisin!

[M&MCruisin]

BTW...this wasnt an "accident", rather the TA just didnt want to work on it anymore even though the problems were caused by NCL and TA. Anyway, thanks again for sharing the info. At least I dont feel alone in this boat.

[kannruss]

Thanks all. We have had alot of problems with our current booking both from the TA and NCL. When I got mad and said a few things, that although justified, it made the TA mad and said they would cancel our bookings. We have since "rectified" the situation and are moving forward together, but I am worried to death that they will just cancel at a later date if I dont kiss their behinds the next 7 months even though I have justified complaints. Guess I will just have to hang tight and hope for the best. Thanks again for your insight. Have safe travels and happy cruisin!

Sounds like you'll be needing a new TA soon.

[Another ship trip]

first of all, why are you checking around? You must have been satisfied with your first price or you would not have booked. NMNita

 

Although a travel agent may not like this, I ALWAYS check the prices before final payment and after that if prices go lower. And about half the time, prices do go lower. I then ask for either a refund or a comparable upgrade. That is simply being a good (frugal) consumer.

[garycarla]

If you are concerned about your TA doing something to your reservation, keep checking the online registration to make sure you are in NCLs computer system. Actually, this is a good idea for ANYONE traveling. You just never know what might happen.

[judyjbest]

I had a customer checking her online booking every night, and one night it didn't appear, so about midnight she calls me. It was fine in my system, she mistyped one of the letters. Just retype your booking a couple of times before you freak when it's gone!

[Mountaineers2]

We have a travel agent we love but used an on-line site this time to book our cruise because our TA could not find any vacancies on one sailing date for the cruise we wanted,, and on the other sailing date the price to her was over $800 more per person. We found out that the on-line firms often book large numbers of cabins months in advance at a heavily discounted cost and then none are available for the average TA.

[M&MCruisin]

I had a customer checking her online booking every night, and one night it didn't appear, so about midnight she calls me. It was fine in my system, she mistyped one of the letters. Just retype your booking a couple of times before you freak when it's gone!

 

I have been checking NCL every day. One night I had entered the wrong name for that room (we have several rooms) and I did panic! But, quickly realized I entered wrong. Its a shame though. I would rather spend my time dreaming of the cruise and planning excurions, but I am concerned so therefore checking. Hopefully things will settle down and straighten out soon! May not use TAs anymore. I never say never, but may not! Thanks again all!

[Guest BeckyThane]

Color me stupid and go ahead and administer 50 lashes with a wet noodle -- I booked a cruise through a new agency instead of my old tried-and-true because of a cheaper price. Boy, am I paying for it now! I can't get hold of these people; they have better than bankers' hours and never answer a phone. All I can ever do is leave a message, which is never returned. I called the cruiseline asking if I could make a payment on an already existing booking directly to them, but they said the booking was "frozen" by the TA and they couldn't access it. (Even the cruiseline rep said it was ridiculous to have to leave a message in order to make a payment.) My last message was rather stern, and now I'm afraid of repurcussions because of ~their~ poor customer service!

 

Is there any way I can change the booking back to my old TA?

 

HELP!!!

 

~ Becky

[jramsey757]

;) I have been a TA for over 26 years and never heard of such a situation! Once you book, a Reputable TA can't & Wouldn't Cancel your Booking even if you are an A....... without your Permission!

That is just not done.

I have had a lot of Clients over the Years that I can't stand but I still Help them and am nice to them. That is your Job and your Livelihood.

Rates can go down but very seldom does it happen. Also, almost always they will state "For NEW Bookings Only".

Sound to me like you need to get a New TA with some experience!:D:cool:

[M&MCruisin]

Color me stupid and go ahead and administer 50 lashes with a wet noodle -- I booked a cruise through a new agency instead of my old tried-and-true because of a cheaper price. Boy, am I paying for it now! I can't get hold of these people; they have better than bankers' hours and never answer a phone. All I can ever do is leave a message, which is never returned. I called the cruiseline asking if I could make a payment on an already existing booking directly to them, but they said the booking was "frozen" by the TA and they couldn't access it. (Even the cruiseline rep said it was ridiculous to have to leave a message in order to make a payment.) My last message was rather stern, and now I'm afraid of repurcussions because of ~their~ poor customer service!

 

Is there any way I can change the booking back to my old TA?

 

HELP!!!

 

~ Becky

 

I feel your pain. The only way to switch (I just tried myself) is to get your old TA to agree to the pricing. Its unlikely right now because it appears pricing has gone up recently. Now, when the new place goes to release your rooms, the new one needs to be watching to try and get those rooms, but there is no guarantee they can do it. Unfortuneatly you are kind of stuck unless you want to risk losing the rooms and pay a higher price. My only concern/caution would be that if they are never accessible, when they get the documents from the cruise line, will they actually forward them to you in a timely manner so you have them for boarding. If by chance you went through cruise compete originally, you can email them and someone will get with you quickly and help you resolve your problems. I have had to do that myself. Hope things work out for you so you can start to enjoy the pre-cruise excitement.

[Guest BeckyThane]

Thanks, M&M. I finally got a call back this afternoon, and tried to be my charming self <snicker>. Made my payment, and will look forward to receiving my final payment invoice soon.

 

~ Becky