How best to book?

[Chewbecca]

Hi, i'm new to this forum.

We have chosen a HAL cruise next summer, have checked there is availability and booked flights, we are now ready to book the cruise. Can anyone recommend where to book to obtain the best price / deal please?

Thanks!

[tangerinebunny]

No matter which method you choose (brick & mortar TA, big on-line agency, HAL), do some homework yourself and know what prices are coming up on-line. And if you do use an agency, make sure it's a trustworthy one that will send your deposit directly to HAL and not hold it.

The boards are rife with leanings toward each of the above.

It seems to depend on how much control you want over your booking.

Do you want a TA to hold your hand? Then you want a live person you can talk to, perhaps a local.

Do you like to plan things yourself? Then book with HAL or one of their consultants. This option gives you the most control.

Is bottom line all important? Then consider the big on-line guys but keep in mind that once your cruise is booked their customer service is less than stellar. I once sat on hold with one of those guys for over an hour.

Have fun and happy sailing -

[Globaliser]

Hi, Chewbecca, and welcome to CC!Can anyone recommend where to book to obtain the best price / deal please?The one thing that can't be done here is to give you names of specific travel agents, as CC doesn't allow that.

[KirkNC]

We have found the on-line agents to be the cheapest however we need no real help after we are booked.

Kirk

[mabert]

Keep an eye on the price. My experience, HAL won't tell you, even if you have a PCC (Personal Cruise Consultant) and the online folks don't seem to. It has been a while since I worked with a TA, but the last time I had one, she didn't follow it either.

I check prices on Friday's since that seems to be when they drop.

And I would prefer to work with HAL directly, but sometimes the OBC's with the online group I work with make enough of a difference.

When you do take your HAL trip, book a Future Cruise. You secure it for $100 and get an OBC. You can then transfer it to the TA of your choice and get another OBC, if they offer one. You can use it for 4 years. So if you have to cancel, you do so and it just sits there.

And, if the market drops enough, buy Carnival stock. That gets you an additional OBC for EACH cruise based on the length of the trip. I don't own any, didn't know about until it went up.

And consider the HAL credit card, another way to save money.

Miriam

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

As mentioned -- we are not allowed to mention TA's here.

But each of us deal with a TA or agency or online that we feel confortable with. Many of us have dealt with the same person or persons for years.

I am not sure why you went ahead and bought your airline tickets before you booked the cruise. Yes -- you may know the dates you want to cruise -- but what if the agent you decide to work with can get you a better deal on a different date? Are you willing to pay the higher price of the cruise because you bought the air tickets? Or would you be willing to pay the price to change your flights because of cheaper cruise date?

[Chewbecca]

Thanks for the advice. We'll go through an agent as bottom line is important and I can't envisage needing after sales service (she hopes!) We've booked flights as they were using ba miles so quite restricted and they were available on the route we wanted. It seems these flights are tougher to get that cruise availability. We're also restricted on our holiday dates so not flexible to move to a different date with better deal sadly.
Thanks again!

[Valley Girl of VA]

And, if the market drops enough, buy Carnival stock. That gets you an additional OBC for EACH cruise based on the length of the trip. I don't own any, didn't know about until it went up.

And consider the HAL credit card, another way to save money.

Miriam

If you book a future cruise while on board then you cannot combine that with your OBC from your stocks. You cannot combine HAL OBC's.

[andeesue]

If you book a future cruise while on board then you cannot combine that with your OBC from your stocks. You cannot combine HAL OBC's.


I've had no problem combining my CCL OBC with both OBC from booking with my future cruise deposit and from my TA, as recently as this past April. Hope this isn't a new policy you're referring to...

[RuthC]

If you book a future cruise while on board then you cannot combine that with your OBC from your stocks. You cannot combine HAL OBC's.
Unless this is a very, very new policy, which I have not read about on CC, then this is not correct. You can combine a credit from a Future Cruise Deposit with stockholder credit. I have done it several times.

[Two@Sea]

If you book a future cruise while on board then you cannot combine that with your OBC from your stocks. You cannot combine HAL OBC's.

I'm afraid you have HAL confused with RCCL and Celebrity. You cannot combine onboard credits with them... but happily, you can on HAL! :D

[English_in_Spain]

When giving OP advice on booking, deposits, price drops etc do bear in mind that he/she is in the UK and things may be different to your experiences.

Chewbecca, I would suggest you go to the UK cruisers section and ask the same questions there.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=683

[Valley Girl of VA]

You are right! I just sailed Celebrity last month. Sorry everyone..my mistake. Apologies to all.

[Wehwalt]

I generally book online. I suggest checking to see which gives you the best deal, though often prices are the same, one may give you more OBC. Certain credit cards (such as one with initials A E) may have inhouse or contracted travel bureaus which may give you a good deal on OBC. You need to shop around. If you are considering a future cruise on the same line, yes, there is a person on board who may give you what sounds like a good deal, but either know before you go or spend a few minutes in internet cafe on board or in port before deciding for sure.