Alaska-first time to cruise questions

[IndieTraveler]

Spouse and I (in 30s) will be taking our first cruise ever in Sept (Alaska) and have decided on HAL (exact ship not yet decided though).

I book most travel online- any reason a first time cruiser should use a travel agent instead? Flights and hotels are pretty straight forward, but not sure what to expect with cruising. If you book online, what sites are most reputable other than HAL itself?

Do you book flights independent of the cruiseline? I know i can get much better pricing myself.
Also, is cruise protection/insurance needed? any othe advice would be appreciated! Thanks

[cruisequeen10]

Spouse and I (in 30s) will be taking our first cruise ever in Sept (Alaska) and have decided on HAL (exact ship not yet decided though).

I book most travel online- any reason a first time cruiser should use a travel agent instead? Flights and hotels are pretty straight forward, but not sure what to expect with cruising. If you book online, what sites are most reputable other than HAL itself?

Do you book flights independent of the cruiseline? I know i can get much better pricing myself.
Also, is cruise protection/insurance needed? any othe advice would be appreciated! Thanks

I have never booked online, only with a TA. If you book the airline through HAL, you might not get the most direct routing to your destination. If you don't purchase the insurance, if anything happens, you will lose everything you have paid.

[RuthC]

First cruise ever? Then I would recommend you sit down and talk it over with a good TA who is knows about cruises. Not all cruiselines are created equal. What you should be looking for, IMHO, is the atmosphere that's best for you.
There are basicly three different routes for Alaska cruises; there are advantages and disadvantages to each.
There are several different sizes of ships. Again, advantages and disadvantages to each.
Do you like the traditional type of things? Or a more "up-beat" style? How about dinner? Traditional, fixed sitting? Or do you want more flexibility? Or some combination?

All these (and more!) are things a good TA will try to ascertain before directing you to what should be a fabulous time.

Good luck. And have a great time in The Great Land!

[dakrewser]

What Ruth said!

You might luck out and get just what you want, but a good cruise-specialist travel agent can find just the right match for you, especially important for a first cruise, and won't cost you a penny, may even save you a bunch.

My first cruise was so un-fun that it was six years until I got on a ship again. A good TA would have made all the difference...

[Krazy Kruizers]

We use a TA - that way if there are any problems she can personally take care of them. We also like the idea that we can personally see her.

We arrange our own air and hotels - we don't have the TA do that.

First cruise?? Great!! Alaska - you'll love it!!!

[bellebaby]

We use an on-line agency, but have the same TA at that agency making arrangements for us. It gives us personalized service with great pricing. We don't "sit down" together, but talk over the phone. We have used the same agency/agent for our last 5 cruises.

However, Ruth's information is really good. Do your research with a good TA and via other means (this board, books, etc.). It will take some time, but will make a world of difference.

By the way, we just love cruising to Alaska. You'll have a great time.

B

[Cruise Grana]

We recently took our first cruise - to AK. We are well travelled and seldom used a TA as I book everything on line. When planning the cruise - I thought since it was new venture and I was completely unlearned in this area, I'd better get a TA. My mistake was going with someone a friend reccommended - but turns out was not a cruise specialist. Frankly, other than the gifts we received on board, my TA was no help -actually gave me incorrect information on different occasions. I learned far more and saved myself lots of trouble - from these boards. I think the key is to make sure that the TA is a cruise specialist - how you determine that other than taking their word for it is another question.

[cruiseplease]

My DH and I are in our mid 30s and taking our first cruise to Alaska departing next week. We ended up booking through an online TA. I tried to consult a land based TA in our city, the first one I talked to knew NOTHING! (she had only booked 1 other cruise before) but was able to give me the brochures for all the major cruise lines. I read all of them word for word, front-to-back and then tried to find an agent with experience. I got recommendations from the cruise line association (CLIA was the acronym for the organization I believe) supposedly one with the highest level of experience. I consulted her but could tell she only booked with one line (all of her maps were from them, she didn't have brochures from any of the other lines, couldn't answer questions, etc.) I felt as though I knew just as much about the other lines as she did and I was able to get a MUCH better price online than anything she quoted me. I have had anxious moments when I heard about problems that others have had getting their documents or having problems where you want an agent to go to bat for you and use avenues not available to the general public. But so far we haven't had any problems, everything seems to fine, of course I won't know for sure until next week when we sail!

Bottom line . . .I think it really depends on your comfort level and needs. I have traveled extensively in my life and am a Type A love to plan/research kind of person. Staying on top of the details comes easily to me. I know what I want out of my vacation, and how to get it. If you don't want to worry about the details definately go with a TA in person, especially if you can find a good one! But with a little research and information, it's not that hard to do on your own! Happy travels!

[shuttle-c]

We have continued to book through our TA, because several times we have not been happy with our cabin if we got a guarantee. She has always managed to work with inventory to get a better cabin or upgrade of the category we paid for.

Some times we do book a specific cabin. She also has given us her personal phone number and we are fortunate enough to be able to call her when any problems arise.
One time going to Alaska we were given a $250 on board credit, but when we got on the ship, HAL didn't have a record of the credit.

Our TA quickly took care of it and within 4 hours the credit was showing up on our account.

I think the personal touch is so much better.