Choice air

[1982CruzStart]

I have to say do complaints what so ever. When I first booked the flights the airline sometime later changed the times which was not to my satisfaction so I call Choice Air and they were more than helpful and change my flight to what I wanted.

Then came some problems on the day of departure. Flight delays and missed connections internationally. What a nightmare but Choice air went above and beyond to rebook us not once but several times with no problem. They then arranged for an overnight stay in a hotel then when we finally made it to our destination they arrange a personal car to pick us up from the airport which ended up being our second port of call and drove us to the ship.

Having read some other reviews I think they have turned themselves around and I would certainly not hesitate to book through them again.

I do my homework before booking anything and I have to say they are extremely competitive in their pricing.

 

Thank you for posting your experience. We are taking our first Choice Air flights in under a month and it is nice to know that they stand behind their service commitments.

[vplsh]

I want some input about flying into San Juan using RCCL Choice Air. I live in Ohio and we are booking a winter cruise that sails from San Juan. My question is: would any of you use Choice Air and fly in on the day of the cruise? I know that San Juan cruises do not leave the port until 8:30pm, so that is plus. Has anyone had flight problems and had Choice Air help them or had any experience with this? I would appreciate all info (good and bad).

 

Darlene

 

I have done this with Choice Air and when I've booked myself. It went fine both times. Would I do it if I had a choice? No- I'd rather make sure I had the extra time to get there in case of bad weather. But sometimes I just can't get the extra time off from work and I have to fly in the day of. If that's what you have to do to take the cruise, do it.

[FlyerTalker]

Thank you for posting your experience. We are taking our first Choice Air flights in under a month and it is nice to know that they stand behind their service commitments.

Sometimes you may get an agent that is willing to work to help you out. Other times, maybe not so much.

 

I highly recommend you read the actual terms and conditions for Choice Air and know exactly what the "service commitment" really is. 90+% of the time, you won't have to worry about that. But it's when things go pear shaped that you need to know what is real and what is hype.

 

Caveat emptor.

[az_tchr]

Really very simple that if you are flying in the day of your cruise and there is a flight delay it does not matter - airline, consolidator, Cruise Air - you will miss your ship. Airlines are always helpful with bookings made through them and it matters not if you are on a discount airline or American or ?? If possible they will assist. Consolidator bookings are more problematical as you need to get the consolidator to deal with the airline for you. An extra layer of difficulty.

 

If you must fly in the day of your cruise then do it. After your cruise why not see the port city and relax by leaving the next day. Again if work or ?? prevents then you simply can hope all goes well and it usually does.

 

Cruise Air is nothing more than a glorified travel agent/consolidator. They certainly have some clout in rebooking flights, but if there aren't any to get you there on time . . . oh well! flyertalker is correct.

[1982CruzStart]

Sometimes you may get an agent that is willing to work to help you out. Other times, maybe not so much.

 

I highly recommend you read the actual terms and conditions for Choice Air and know exactly what the "service commitment" really is. 90+% of the time, you won't have to worry about that. But it's when things go pear shaped that you need to know what is real and what is hype.

 

Caveat emptor.

 

Thank you for your comments. I went back and forth when making the decision to go with Choice Air. What made the difference was that the tickets with Choice Air were refundable and directly with the airline they weren't as well the price was better. We booked the flights far in advance and wanted the ability to cancel if we had to.

What I am counting on if there are any issues is that my DH is elite with the airline we are traveling on and we are flying business class so count on the airline to go out of their way to help us if the need arises. We are traveling 3 days before our cruise.

[kenish]

What made the difference was that the tickets with Choice Air were refundable and directly with the airline they weren't as well the price was better. We booked the flights far in advance and wanted the ability to cancel if we had to.

 

This most likely isn't the case. You have a *reservation* with Choice Air but you do not have *tickets* yet. CA has use of your money and will refund it if you cancel. About 3-4 weeks before your travel date (but sometimes only 5-10 days prior), CA will piece together an itinerary from their stock of tickets they bought in bulk long ago at the "specially negotiated fares". When tickets are issued you no longer can get a refund (and in many cases can't receive a credit as you could with tickets purchased directly from the airline). CA usually has tickets on-hand to match the reservation, but if they don't, your itinerary will change to something different.

 

Hope this clears up the difference between a Reservation and a Ticket. If you don't have the 13-digit ticket number(s), you only have a reservation at this point.

 

What I am counting on if there are any issues is that my DH is elite with the airline we are traveling on and we are flying business class so count on the airline to go out of their way to help us if the need arises. We are traveling 3 days before our cruise.

 

Good you're traveling 3 days prior. Although elite status and flying Biz class can't hurt, you aren't the airline's customer and you're flying on a heavily restricted ticket. The fare rules of the ticket override options the agent at the airline could otherwise provide (routing you through a different city, endorsing your ticket to another airline, etc).

 

Chances are you will be fine, traveling 3 days in advance really "de-risks" the CA tickets. Hope this helps you be a more informed consumer to make a good risk/cost decision.

[1982CruzStart]

This most likely isn't the case. You have a *reservation* with Choice Air but you do not have *tickets* yet. CA has use of your money and will refund it if you cancel. About 3-4 weeks before your travel date (but sometimes only 5-10 days prior), CA will piece together an itinerary from their stock of tickets they bought in bulk long ago at the "specially negotiated fares". When tickets are issued you no longer can get a refund (and in many cases can't receive a credit as you could with tickets purchased directly from the airline). CA usually has tickets on-hand to match the reservation, but if they don't, your itinerary will change to something different.

 

Hope this clears up the difference between a Reservation and a Ticket. If you don't have the 13-digit ticket number(s), you only have a reservation at this point.

 

 

 

Good you're traveling 3 days prior. Although elite status and flying Biz class can't hurt, you aren't the airline's customer and you're flying on a heavily restricted ticket. The fare rules of the ticket override options the agent at the airline could otherwise provide (routing you through a different city, endorsing your ticket to another airline, etc).

 

Chances are you will be fine, traveling 3 days in advance really "de-risks" the CA tickets. Hope this helps you be a more informed consumer to make a good risk/cost decision.

 

Thank you for your comments. We do have e-docs with the 13 digit ticket numbers and have had so for a considerable amount of time. We have been able to go online as well as talk directly to the airline for months to select seats and discuss our reservation so I am fairly confident in our flights. Maybe it is the difference between flying out of Canada then the USA.

 

I do appreciate hearing from all the experienced travelers here on CC. We have done a lot of international travel but it is always good to learn more.

[Christine Frances]

This most likely isn't the case. You have a *reservation* with Choice Air but you do not have *tickets* yet. CA has use of your money and will refund it if you cancel. About 3-4 weeks before your travel date (but sometimes only 5-10 days prior), CA will piece together an itinerary from their stock of tickets they bought in bulk long ago at the "specially negotiated fares". When tickets are issued you no longer can get a refund (and in many cases can't receive a credit as you could with tickets purchased directly from the airline). CA usually has tickets on-hand to match the reservation, but if they don't, your itinerary will change to something different.

 

Hope this clears up the difference between a Reservation and a Ticket. If you don't have the 13-digit ticket number(s), you only have a reservation at this point.

 

 

 

Good you're traveling 3 days prior. Although elite status and flying Biz class can't hurt, you aren't the airline's customer and you're flying on a heavily restricted ticket. The fare rules of the ticket override options the agent at the airline could otherwise provide (routing you through a different city, endorsing your ticket to another airline, etc).

 

Chances are you will be fine, traveling 3 days in advance really "de-risks" the CA tickets. Hope this helps you be a more informed consumer to make a good risk/cost decision.

 

I think this is a good description of the old "Cruise Air" which is paid for at final payment and only then you find out your flights. With Choice Air, you select your flights, pay for them at time of booking and are "ticketed".

 

This is from the Azamara board

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47882575&postcount=31

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=47883590&postcount=33

[waterbug123]

I think this is a good description of the old "Cruise Air" which is paid for at final payment and only then you find out your flights. With Choice Air, you select your flights, pay for them at time of booking and are "ticketed".

 

My understanding is that sometimes you may be ticketed right away and other times not. Just like sometimes when you purchase air from the cruise line you are getting "consolidator" type tickets and sometimes you are not, and sometimes you get great help from Choice Air when there are problems, and other times you get none whatsoever. The challenge is that it's practically impossible to know what you're going to get when you purchase.

[Christine Frances]

My understanding is that sometimes you may be ticketed right away and other times not. Just like sometimes when you purchase air from the cruise line you are getting "consolidator" type tickets and sometimes you are not, and sometimes you get great help from Choice Air when there are problems, and other times you get none whatsoever. The challenge is that it's practically impossible to know what you're going to get when you purchase.

 

Just in the last 4 bookings that I have had with Choice Air, my 2 multi city and 2 one-ways have all been ticketed the same day I booked and paid for them.