Carnival Fly To Fun- great deal!

I booked our flights today to Barcelona. I choose the airlines I wanted to use (Delta/Air France) and the days and times I wanted- we arrive 3 days before our sailing and depart the day we return.

Carnival's price? $725 per person. The EXACT SAME FLIGHTS through Delta? $1395!!

I ran the same flights through some aggregators like Kayak, all of them were $1390 or more. I'm impressed!

Best part? These are flexible, and can be changed up to time of final payment if we find less expensive or more convenient flights without penalty.

Not sure if their domestic flights offer as great of deals but thought I'd post and share it's worth calling and asking about.

Great job.

That's pretty amazing that you could pick the airlines and the flights.

I thought when you go with Carnival's flights that THEY do the picking.

Can you also pick seats on the plane??

That's pretty amazing that you could pick the airlines and the flights.

I thought when you go with Carnival's flights that THEY do the picking.

Can you also pick seats on the plane??

No, you can choose the dates, airlines, etc. I wanted AF/Delta and luckily they were the least expensive anyway- but I didn't want the return flights the agent initially suggested, so we went over other options and I chose the one I wanted. They cost $20 more per person but I was happy to pay it to get what I wanted. My Carnival person grabbed seats for us in vicinity we wanted- but I will be able to change them if I want in 24 hours when the final docs arrive.

You can also specify class of service. We went for coach but I know some on my ships FB page have done upgraded instead.

I did a flight many years ago and it was totally different. Like you could only fly in the day of I think, and you had to take whatever flight they gave you, no flexibility. They seem to have completely revamped it all.

We booked our air through Carnival to Barcelona and back from Athens last year. The price was very good and we were able to upgrade directly with Delta. Some people said they could not upgrade or pick seats until final payment was made but we were able to upgrade to premium econ and pick our seats two months before final payment.

This was the only time we used Carnival to book our air. Domestically it does not make sense but going to Europe it was a great deal.

That is great! Happy for you!

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We also booked their Carnival for a European cruise leaving out of Barcelona. Also did a 2-day pre-cruise stay prior to cruise. It was just easier booking everything thru Carnival (airfare, hotel, and transfers) and knowing if any thing happened they would take care of us. Have to agree with others, pricing was very reasonable for everything. This is the one and only time I would consider using their total

package pricing.

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I booked our flights today to Barcelona. I choose the airlines I wanted to use (Delta/Air France) and the days and times I wanted- we arrive 3 days before our sailing and depart the day we return.

 

Carnival's price? $725 per person. The EXACT SAME FLIGHTS through Delta? $1395!!

 

I ran the same flights through some aggregators like Kayak, all of them were $1390 or more. I'm impressed!

 

Best part? These are flexible, and can be changed up to time of final payment if we find less expensive or more convenient flights without penalty.

 

Not sure if their domestic flights offer as great of deals but thought I'd post and share it's worth calling and asking about.

Do you mind confirming which dates you were looking at? I am on the April 29th, 2018 and can't even search that far out on some of the airline websites for flights to Barcelona. The idea that the price is great and the payment is not due and can be changed is making this sound quite attractive.

We also booked their Carnival for a European cruise leaving out of Barcelona. Also did a 2-day pre-cruise stay prior to cruise. It was just easier booking everything thru Carnival (airfare, hotel, and transfers) and knowing if any thing happened they would take care of us. Have to agree with others, pricing was very reasonable for everything. This is the one and only time I would consider using their total

package pricing.

 

 

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You state that if anything happened that they would take care of us. Maybe. They may help. If it's the airlines issue like mechanical problem usually the airline will cover costs. The cruise line is not obligated to pay any extra expenses, the fine print says they are just your agent. Travel insurance will reimburse for a covered reason. With travel insurance, you pay and file a claim usually. The recent BA issue is good example of something that may not be "taken care of".

For details, there is a cruise air and a travel insurance board here on Cruise Critic. The devil is in the details.

Here's the details from your cruise contract:

IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR CARNIVAL’S AIR PROGRAMS

29. Arrangements by CARNIVAL: If you are participating in our FLY2FUN program, or FLY2FUN and Tour package, Carnival will arrange for air transportation from the select home cities offered to an airport near the departure point of your Cruise or Cruise tour and return air transportation from an airport near the termination point of your Cruise or Cruise tour to the home city from which you departed. Please refer to Carnival’s web page for additional information on our FLY2FUN program and destinations. Carnival reserves the right to add or withdraw an air city at any time, but will attempt to accommodate those Guests under deposit or final payment. Air bookings are not guaranteed and are subject to air carrier’s availability and restrictions. Guest who purchased the FLY2FUN program will be responsible for securing their own hotel accommodations and will be responsible for hotel, taxes, porterage and transportation between the hotel and the airport/pier.

30. Schedule Changes/Air Delays: Carnival strives to accommodate each Guest on flights that will ensure timely arrival and boarding of your ship. In the event that the Guest is precluded from a timely arrival to the port of embarkation, as a result of weather conditions or other flight delays, Carnival, at its own expense, will make the flight, transportation, and lodging arrangements necessary to coordinate for the Guest’s successful boarding at ship’s next port of call. Carnival reserves the right to change or alter, without notice, flight arrangements in order to meet our ship departure and/or arrival times. Guest will be notified of flight re-accommodations. If tickets have already been issued, Carnival will adjust your itinerary or air carrier accordingly and will notify Guests of any price adjustments that may be necessary. If you choose to cancel your flight arrangements or alter your airline schedule in any way once your tickets have been issued you will be responsible for any additional cost or fees resulting from the cancellation or change, which can total up to the full cost of the ticket. If you request Carnival’s assistance with a change in airline arrangements, within 60 days of departure and you purchased FLY2FUN Flexible Fare program, a service fee of $200 USD, or its equivalent in foreign currency, will be levied in addition to any charges imposed by the airlines. If you purchased the FLY2FUN Restricted Fare program and you chose to make a change, all airline imposed change fees will be levied regardless of when the change is made. If your flights are delayed, refer to the Fly2Fun page.

31. Refunds/Seat Assignments/Special Services/Fares/Lost Tickets/Baggage Charges: Failure to use your FLY2FUN airline ticket/s results in a waiver of its value and any compensation; unused airline tickets are only refundable to Carnival. Please note that because of changing airline tariffs, your actual air ticket may reflect fares higher or lower than the air add-on or cruise only credit amounts originally quoted. If so, the difference is neither chargeable nor refundable to you; you will be charged the amount originally quoted. Carnival reserves the right to pass on to the Guest any cancellation or change penalties, which may total up to the amount originally quoted. It is your sole responsibility to re-confirm flight arrangements, within 48 hours of flight departure. Please note that although Carnival Cruise Line can pass requests for seat assignments, special meals and special assistance to the airlines, we cannot guarantee that such requests will be honored. For the best travel experience, we recommend that Guests or their travel agents contact the airlines directly to confirm these requests. Carnival is not responsible for airline schedule changes. Guests are responsible for luggage fees, excess luggage charges as well as any other charges imposed by airlines or airports. For additional information on airline’s baggage charges and fees please refer to www.carnival.com/airlinebaggagefees,reference against the Travel Information page you received along with your cabin confirmation or the Travel Information page in your cruise document accessed through Manage My Cruise. If a paper ticket is issued instead of an E-ticket, the original paper ticket must be returned to Carnival; any outstanding refund will be held pending the receipt of the paper tickets.

32. Liability and Relationship with Airlines: If Carnival is unable to arrange for air transportation for any cause beyond Carnival’s control, such as airline capacity controls, air transportation arranged is no longer available, or otherwise fails to materialize, Carnival’s sole liability will be limited to refunding the air add-on paid or cruise only credit. Carnival acts as an independent travel agent, and it is not affiliated with the airline carriers. Carnival books air as a convenience for the Guests. Carnival assumes no liability for any of the airlines’ acts or omissions, including, without limitation, those involving cancellation of flights, schedule changes, re-routings, damage to or delay or loss of baggage, flight delays, equipment failures, accidents, pilot or other staff shortages, overbooking or clerical/system errors. Your rights against the airlines are controlled and subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the airline’s ticket and tariffs, and any and all applicable laws and regulations.

They will make arrangements free of charge. The arrangement costs mayl be passed to the cruiser.

Do you mind confirming which dates you were looking at? I am on the April 29th, 2018 and can't even search that far out on some of the airline websites for flights to Barcelona. The idea that the price is great and the payment is not due and can be changed is making this sound quite attractive.

You have to call Carnival (or your TA) direct to book this, we sail April 2 and I know I just started seeing rates available via sites like Kayak a few weeks ago from my location. People in bigger cities like Boston and NY apparently were able to actually book a few months ago! It depends on your airport code. I would call Carnival and ask them directly, they will give you rates and you could always price compare with another week tp get an idea of how good they are.

You state that if anything happened that they would take care of us. Maybe. They may help. If it's the airlines issue like mechanical problem usually the airline will cover costs. The cruise line is not obligated to pay any extra expenses, the fine print says they are just your agent. Travel insurance will reimburse for a covered reason. With travel insurance, you pay and file a claim usually. The recent BA issue is good example of something that may not be "taken care of".

 

We will certainly have travel insurance (through our own company) for this trip. I never travel abroad without it! It covers everything including flights. Carnival says they'll get us there if flights are cancelled, etc but I need more than that, I want to full insurance monty!

I am just wondering if these tickets are actually booked with Delta when you pick them or if Carnival will issue them closer to the date of travel?

I wonder how often tickets booked far out would be changed because the airline has sold more at a higher price and doesn't need the business from Carnival any longer at this lower price.

Just the sceptic in me who always worries about air travel that is not booked directly with the airline.

I am just wondering if these tickets are actually booked with Delta when you pick them or if Carnival will issue them closer to the date of travel?

I wonder how often tickets booked far out would be changed because the airline has sold more at a higher price and doesn't need the business from Carnival any longer at this lower price.

Just the sceptic in me who always worries about air travel that is not booked directly with the airline.

You are actually given assigned seats when you book. They are booked immediately. These are not just "place holder" tickets without assigned seats, believe me that was my first question when I called lol!

Good for you for asking!

It sounds really great!!

Barcelona is my favorite city in Europe so glad you are spending some time there and not just flying in for the cruise!!

We used it for our Vista cruise last August for flights, transportation and hotel. It was all worth it. Much cheaper than I could find at the time.

You have to call Carnival (or your TA) direct to book this, we sail April 2 and I know I just started seeing rates available via sites like Kayak a few weeks ago from my location. People in bigger cities like Boston and NY apparently were able to actually book a few months ago! It depends on your airport code. I would call Carnival and ask them directly, they will give you rates and you could always price compare with another week tp get an idea of how good they are.

Thanks for the response. I had no luck when calling them even though I am in a major city in Canada. They said possibly in 1 more week. It appears you might have to wait 365 days or less from the cruise date to get prices through them. I'll try back at the end of this week. I am hoping their prices are better then what I am seeing. Right now Direct for me is $2600Cad or $1935USD for 2 people.

Most airlines don't have schedules and prices set over a year in advance.

It is not Carnival's fault. In fact even if you book a flight a year ahead the airlines often change their schedules!