I hear most experienced cruisers here say...

[Fun~N~Sun]

They do not book their air travel through Carnival. Why not? We have only cruised once and we did book air through Carnival and it worked out great plus I thought the air fare rate was great. We flew from Baltimore to Puerto Rico. Next time we will fly from Baltimore to Florida. Tell me why I should not book air through Carnival for my next cruise. Thanks!:o

[CruiseCentric]

They do not book their air travel through Carnival. Why not? We have only cruised once and we did book air through Carnival and it worked out great plus I thought the air fare rate was great. We flew from Baltimore to Puerto Rico. Next time we will fly from Baltimore to Florida. Tell me why I should not book air through Carnival for my next cruise. Thanks!:o

In most cases you can book air fare much cheaper on your own... Plus with the savings you can fly in a day early. For my Transatlantic cruise I booked cruise air @ 800, if I can find something lower, I will cancel and book my own.

 

Plus when you book your own flight they will be the times that you decide upon. With the cruiseline, the time might not be what you would like. Its a personal choice...

[cantw82cruise]

Well I think for the most part you have more control when booking your own air. We also like to go in the day before and you can not do that when using Carnivals air. I have only booked air with Carnival one time in 10 cruises. It went ok but had a couple stops where I like to only go direct. And yes you can also save a lot of money by booking your own. For our April cruise Carnival wanted $379 per person we are flying for $137 per person.

 

Hope that helps...

 

John

[Darcy03231]

I prefer to book my own as I like to have control over my flights and, for every cruise, its been much less expensive to book on my own. We like to fly in the day before which you can't do with Carnival air. I've read more than one post where someone didn't make it to the ship on time using Carnival air and the ship wasn't held for them and Carnival wasn't any help in getting them to the next port of call. I book my own air, fly in a day early and don't stress out over getting to the ship on time.

[Bruin Steve]

I'll give you a different take...

 

First, I have never booked air through Carnival--because my Carnival cruises, to date, have been out of the West Coast...and I live here,...no air needed...My upcoming Carnival cruise is the second of two back-to-back, the first with Royal Caribbean...and we're using American Airlines frequent flyer miles...

 

That said, I have used the air package with Celebrity a couple of times, with Royal Caribbean, with Oceania and with the old Premier cruise lines...

 

The truth is that there is NO HARD AND FAST RULE about cruise line air being better or worse, cheaper or more expensive...

 

A lot depends on a lot of variables and factors...

 

First, the cruise lines tend to quote a single price for the entire season...usually the same price for large portions of the country or even the whole country...

 

Airlines, meanwhile, have prices that vary over time, range widely by geographical area and can even be vastly different for people on the same flight...

 

A lot depends on where you live...Certain well-travelled routes (LAX to JFK, JFK to MIA, etc.) might have artificially low prices because the airline has no trouble filling these...But if you're flying, say, from Boise, Idaho to Tampa, Florida to meet a cruise, you may not find low fares...

 

But the cruise line might charge the same price for the guy meeting the cruise from Boise as it does for the guy coming from NYC...

 

And Sail Date is a big variable as well...Air fares go up during the school summer vacation dates...or over the holidays...So, if the cruise line has merely set a flat rate, you may be way ahead with it if your cruise is in July, but you may be overpaying for that air if it's an April cruise...

 

Another thing to consider are the terms and conditions to your air fare...Getting that incredibly low rate may mean you have to book and pay way ahead of time...and your ticket may be noncancelable...When you use the cruise line air, you don't have to pay...and your fare is cancelable right up to the "final payment date"...

 

Also, you really need to include in your comparison ALL of the costs and charges...Remember, for example, cruise line air typically includes airport-to-ship and ship-to-airport transfers...Also compare adding in all fees, taxes, etc.

 

As far as controlling your own flight times, most cruise lines offer what they call "Deviations"...You can actually call your own flights, dates or flight times using the cruise line's program...and pay a small additional fee (We did it this past July with Oceania to fly in two days early and fly out two days late)...and with some cruise lines (like Celebrity) they waive the deviation fee for repeat customers...

 

Here's a strategy I advise:

 

When you book your cruise, book it WITH AIR...(There's no additional deposit...and you can cancel the air part only without canceling the cruise)...

That locks you into a price...Then, keep your eyes open for any airfare deals that blow the cruise line air price away...If you find one, congratulations...call your TA and cancel the air portion of your cruise...If you don't find a better deal (or if the deal is only slightly better but you don't want to go hard with the money and become nonrefundable) then pass...and go ahead and fly with the cruise line air program...

 

Like I said, we've flown with the cruise line several times and have never had a problem...and even though we live near a busy airport with an abundance of routes, we've always had trouble beating the cruise line deal...except when we've used our frequent flyer miles...

 

Good luck...

[ladyjbd3155]

Not an experienced cruiser, still waiting for my first :) but we did book our air on our own, for the same reasons everyone else mentioned. We wanted to fly in a day early and also be able to pick our own flight times, in order to maximize the vacation. Got the times we wanted to spend most of Sat. in Miami beforehand, and a late flight back home so we won't miss it and can also explore a little afterwards. And it was way cheaper!

 

Plus, I'm just way too much of a control freak not to :D

[Fun~N~Sun]

I'll give you a different take...

 

First, I have never booked air through Carnival--because my Carnival cruises, to date, have been out of the West Coast...and I live here,...no air needed...My upcoming Carnival cruise is the second of two back-to-back, the first with Royal Caribbean...and we're using American Airlines frequent flyer miles...

 

That said, I have used the air package with Celebrity a couple of times, with Royal Caribbean, with Oceania and with the old Premier cruise lines...

 

The truth is that there is NO HARD AND FAST RULE about cruise line air being better or worse, cheaper or more expensive...

 

A lot depends on a lot of variables and factors...

 

First, the cruise lines tend to quote a single price for the entire season...usually the same price for large portions of the country or even the whole country...

 

Airlines, meanwhile, have prices that vary over time, range widely by geographical area and can even be vastly different for people on the same flight...

 

A lot depends on where you live...Certain well-travelled routes (LAX to JFK, JFK to MIA, etc.) might have artificially low prices because the airline has no trouble filling these...But if you're flying, say, from Boise, Idaho to Tampa, Florida to meet a cruise, you may not find low fares...

 

But the cruise line might charge the same price for the guy meeting the cruise from Boise as it does for the guy coming from NYC...

 

And Sail Date is a big variable as well...Air fares go up during the school summer vacation dates...or over the holidays...So, if the cruise line has merely set a flat rate, you may be way ahead with it if your cruise is in July, but you may be overpaying for that air if it's an April cruise...

 

Another thing to consider are the terms and conditions to your air fare...Getting that incredibly low rate may mean you have to book and pay way ahead of time...and your ticket may be noncancelable...When you use the cruise line air, you don't have to pay...and your fare is cancelable right up to the "final payment date"...

 

Also, you really need to include in your comparison ALL of the costs and charges...Remember, for example, cruise line air typically includes airport-to-ship and ship-to-airport transfers...Also compare adding in all fees, taxes, etc.

 

As far as controlling your own flight times, most cruise lines offer what they call "Deviations"...You can actually call your own flights, dates or flight times using the cruise line's program...and pay a small additional fee (We did it this past July with Oceania to fly in two days early and fly out two days late)...and with some cruise lines (like Celebrity) they waive the deviation fee for repeat customers...

 

Here's a strategy I advise:

 

When you book your cruise, book it WITH AIR...(There's no additional deposit...and you can cancel the air part only without canceling the cruise)...

That locks you into a price...Then, keep your eyes open for any airfare deals that blow the cruise line air price away...If you find one, congratulations...call your TA and cancel the air portion of your cruise...If you don't find a better deal (or if the deal is only slightly better but you don't want to go hard with the money and become nonrefundable) then pass...and go ahead and fly with the cruise line air program...

 

Like I said, we've flown with the cruise line several times and have never had a problem...and even though we live near a busy airport with an abundance of routes, we've always had trouble beating the cruise line deal...except when we've used our frequent flyer miles...

 

Good luck...

 

You brough up something interesting here I was wondering about. I can book my air through Carnival and then, I assume before final payment is made, I can always cancel the air portion of my Carnival reservation? I've read these boards ALOT and I have never heard this. Are you sure or can anyone confirm this for me?

[CruiseCentric]

You brough up something interesting here I was wondering about. I can book my air through Carnival and then, I assume before final payment is made, I can always cancel the air portion of my Carnival reservation? I've read these boards ALOT and I have never heard this. Are you sure or can anyone confirm this for me?

 

Yes, I said the same thing in my post. You have the option of booking cruise air, then canceling it before final payment is due.

[Kurbanfan]

We always book our air on our own. I could bet ya if you got a quote from Carnival today.......then checked on your own today, it would be cheaper on your own. Not sure when your cruise is.....but air fare changes all the time. If you have a little time before your cruise....just check it daily.

Good luck!

[big_duck]

You brough up something interesting here I was wondering about. I can book my air through Carnival and then, I assume before final payment is made, I can always cancel the air portion of my Carnival reservation? I've read these boards ALOT and I have never heard this. Are you sure or can anyone confirm this for me?

 

Yup, did it for my upcoming cruise. Originally booked "Air Carnival" but later changed to my own flights.

[PelicanBill]

Bruin had a good take on this.. many of us who say we never book through the cruise line live in places like Rochester NY where the standard air is $500 to Florida or $700 to San Juan. When I do it myself I get Florida at $200-250 and I got San Juan at $300. That's $1200 lower than Carnival wanted to charge for 3 people.

 

The deviation charge is a principal thing. How hard is it to book me a flight a day earlier? It doesn't cost the cruise line any more. I just can't stand to pay for it.

 

I always fly the day before to a cruise. Out of 10 air trips taken in the last 3 years, 2 had serious delays that would have meant missing a cruise if same day. I don't like those odds.

 

With all that said, when we book on our own we take on some risk for getting home. If the ship is delayed returning, the cruise line will take care of those who booked air with them first and others second. You may be on your own and have additional costs to bear to get home. I am willing to have that risk coming home.. but not to get to the ship on time.

 

Last fall there was an entertaining thread about someone flying in from the west coast. A friend posted hour by hour what was happening in the attempt to reach the ship on time. Her arrival was within 1/2 hour of sailing time and we tracked every minute of their travel - is there checked luggage to claim, give the taxi an extra $20 to go all out, people called to ask the ship to wait for her, it was a riot.

 

But I bet it took half the trip to recover from the stress of getting there!

[crusinmama06]

I always book my own air....no doubt. No one works as hard for finding the best dates/times/rates as I do for my own cruise. :D

 

I am flying direct into Orlando from Phillie for $117 ROUNDTRIP for the cruise in August.

 

I don't know if Carnival is the same as other cruiselines, but other lines only book with one carrier.

[momofzeke]

Repeating what most have already said, I like to have control over my own flights, and I can get them cheaper on my own. I want to pick the time we fly, and always go a day before the cruise. :)

[OhioJeff]

I like to arrive in the port city a few days before my cruise and stay at least one day after. By booking air on my own, it allows me to extend my vacation and save on the cost of cruise air and deviation.

[njs]

They do not book their air travel through Carnival. Why not? We have only cruised once and we did book air through Carnival and it worked out great plus I thought the air fare rate was great. We flew from Baltimore to Puerto Rico. Next time we will fly from Baltimore to Florida. Tell me why I should not book air through Carnival for my next cruise. Thanks!:o

 

I guess alot might depend on where you are flying from and to ~ Im from Canada and we only made the mistake once of letting the cruiseline book our flights- started first few days of cruise without luggage. (My dd had no problem rolling up jeans into capris but my sons and dh suffered in the heat:D ) Now we only book our own flights and fly in ahead of time. I dont like to start my vacation worrying about getting there on time, or wondering if my luggage will make the connecting flight so we book direct flights well in advance to get cheaper fares.

[I Luv Crusin]

I also think it depends on the situation. It may be cheaper with Carnival but usually it's not. I do think I heard that when you get air with the cruiseline they include transfers. And there's debate on the wisdom of that too! :rolleyes:

 

We've used Carnival's transfers twice. The first time in New Orleans, bad experience. 2nd time in Rome and that was OK. Most often we either drove to the port or took a regular taxi!

[Bunkie103]

We always do our own air for all of the above mentioned reasons. However, my son returned to FLL from his Princess cruise on the Sunday after Thanksgiving which is the heaviest single travel day of the year. He had booked his own air and the air COST MORE THAN THE CRUISE, and they had a suite! So just shop around before you buy.;)

[moxie99]

If you book your airfare through Carnival you will not be guaranteed to be sitting together on the plane. This can be very important when traveling with children. I don't know about you, but I want my daughter beside me, God forbid there be an emergency while in flight - I want to know I can get to her.

We booked ONCE through Carnival and we we discovered we couldln't sit together I threw the fit of a lifetime. I was allowed to cancel my airfare and still managed, at the late date, to get my own fare, much cheaper, the day before and hubby, daughter and I were all together.

[phlydude]

I let the cruiseline handle my airfare once...it wasn't Carnival (it was NCL).

It wasn't a bad experience but we did have the issue where we couldn't sit together until we pulled some frequent flier strings with the airline.

We travelled for a Thanksgiving week cruise so I think that and cost was the factor (my MIL and FIL paid for it as a wedding / xmas gift).

If the cruise was in winter, it might have been too close for comfort...arrive in FLL around 1:30 and waited on a bus for a while. Made it to the Miami port around 3 PM and didn't have a chance to really do much but drop my bag, pick up the life jacket and head to muster.

On the way home, we were routed from Miami through Raleigh to Philly on American...my wife had a fit when she had to take the regional jet.

 

So to keep the peace, to arrive a day early, to select your own seats, to avoid last minute arrivals, etc. I book my own airfare.

[Illinoisgal]

I like to be in control of my flighth times etc. I have heard many horror stories of connections scheduled w/o enought time etc.

 

I am flying Southwest for 39.00 per person for our June cruise from Chicago to New you cant beat that !

[Bruin Steve]

Okay, allow me to address a few points that have come up since my last post...

 

...other lines only book with one carrier.

Well, not really...from my experience, they book with many carriers...in fact, on our last cruise with Oceania using their air, they flew us there on United and home on Lufthansa...The cruise lines have deals with multiple airlines and often their hand is forced by where you are flying to and from...They can't deal with only one airline when that airline might not service your airport...

 

I like to arrive in the port city a few days before my cruise and stay at least one day after. By booking air on my own, it allows me to extend my vacation and save on the cost of cruise air and deviation.

So do I...but I can do this using the cruise air as well...As a RCCL Diamond member and a Celebrity Elite, those lines don't charge me the fee for the deviation...even so, the cost of the deviation is just another piece in the calculations one has to do to determine if it's worth it or not...

 

As to flying in early, for me, that's one of the cardinal rules...especially the farther away from home you're going...but, again, there's deviations...and there's also a way to do it by booking hotels through the cruise line...Say you book a two night hotel package, well, then, they fly you in two nights in advance--with no deviation charges...Of course, sometimes the hotel deals aren't the best rates, but, again, you count up all of the costs and see if it's worth it to you...

 

I do think I heard that when you get air with the cruiseline they include transfers. And there's debate on the wisdom of that too!

Really there's no debate...a cruise line transfer is usually a bus ride...but, it varies port to port...In Venice, it's really valuable...they handle your luggage directly to the hotel (remember, it's Venice...buses can't take you to the hotel) and lead you there after getting you as close as possible...In Barcelona, the cruise line sent a van to the hotel for us...The only debate is whether you can do it cheaper...but the cost is included in your air in this scenario...generally, when charged separately to those without the air package , you CAN do it cheaper...but that's not the issue here...The issue is that if you do your own air, you also need to do your own connecting land transportation...so when you compare your airfare to cruise line air cost, you need to add whatever it's going to cost you in taxis to your airfare to be talking apples and apples...

 

If you book your airfare through Carnival you will not be guaranteed to be sitting together on the plane...

It's really not that big of a problem...if you think about it ahead of time...as soon as you get your air assignments you CALL the airline directly...or go onto their website and CHOOSE YOUR OWN SEATS...If for any reason you can't get them together, you can deal with it any time...even up to the day of the flight...and they withhold certain seats up to flight time and have room to maneuver...Trust me, they won't let you sit 27 rows from yopur screaming kid...

 

Oh...and the talk of missed flights, delayed flights, lost luggage, etc. All of those things can happen whether YOU book your own flights or the cruise line books them for you...I hate to break it to you, but IT'S THE SAME FLIGHT!!!

[njs]

Okay, allow me to address a few points that have come up since my last post...

 

 

 

Oh...and the talk of missed flights, delayed flights, lost luggage, etc. All of those things can happen whether YOU book your own flights or the cruise line books them for you...I hate to break it to you, but IT'S THE SAME FLIGHT!!!

 

Not necessarily - I know what is a reasonable time frame for connecting flights, but some of the things mentioned above happen when the cruiseline books connections that are totally unrealistic that even if you do make the flight~barely, there is no way the luggage will. Been there, done that:rolleyes: I'd still rather book my own direct flight

[Mikew0805]

You brough up something interesting here I was wondering about. I can book my air through Carnival and then, I assume before final payment is made, I can always cancel the air portion of my Carnival reservation? I've read these boards ALOT and I have never heard this. Are you sure or can anyone confirm this for me?

 

Ahhh I remember the "old" days. :eek: :eek: When the air was automatically included with the cruise, and if you chose not to use it, you got a $200 discount on the cruise! Actually, I still have a few of the brochures here from the early 90's when this was still in place.

 

Also, I wanted to mention ( and this could have changed ) but when I worked in reservations for Carnival, we could cancel the air up to 14 days before sailing, even if documents were issued. The reason was, it was bulk air and 100% refundable to the cruise line. I remember removing air at last minute all the time for folks!

 

-Mike

[Quilting_Cruiser]

We've booked air through Carnival twice. The first time was on our northbound Alaska cruise. We need flights from Portland (Oregon) to Vancouver and then from Archorage back to Portland. Carnival's price was hundreds lower than what we could get on our own.

 

This was the cruise we learned to never fly in the same day! The flight is just under an hour and 15 minutes and we were scheduled to arrive mid-morning, but we had mechanical delays and barely made the ship! I called Carnival two or three times as delays were announced--thinking that if we missed the ship they would help us---and they informed us that it would be our responsibility to get to the first port and basically that we were on our own and could file a claim post-cruise to be reimbursed.

 

The second time we booked air through Carnival was on one of our Caribbean cruises. Because we live on the left coast, they flew us in a day early and gave us two rooms at a pretty nice hotel. That worked out well and was, again, less expensive than booking on our own.

 

It's really not that big of a problem...if you think about it ahead of time...as soon as you get your air assignments you CALL the airline directly...or go onto their website and CHOOSE YOUR OWN SEATS...If for any reason you can't get them together, you can deal with it any time...even up to the day of the flight...and they withhold certain seats up to flight time and have room to maneuver...Trust me, they won't let you sit 27 rows from yopur screaming kid...

 

This is not a sure thing. My DH and DD flew last year to visit another DD at college. When we booked we couldn't get their seats together. We called the airline and they said that we would have to handle it at check in. At check in they said we would have to handle it at the gate. At the gate they told DH the flight attendants would move people around. The flight attendants said that they couldn't do that (what?!? I've seen them do that tons of times!). DH asked a couple of people about changing seats, and one man agreed to trade seats with DD a few rows back.

 

Cheers!

Jayne

[Wennfred]

We used to always book with Carnivals Air because we are coming from the West Coast, they fly us in a Day earily and we get to stay at a very nice Hotel. Very organized and safe. Today we have these 2 for 1 coupons we used for Air so we book the flights on our own.

 

 

Fred