Future Cruise booking - does it have to be referred back to current TA?

When we were on a recent cruise we made a future cruise booking. When we made the future booking, we were told that the deposit would be fully refundable should we change our minds. We were also told that the future booking would be referred back to our online TA that we had used for the original booking. OK, that all seemed reasonable and low-risk. However, when we got back we noticed that the fine print of the TA agreement was that any cancellations would require $50 pp deposit forfeiture. As it turns out, we plan to go ahead with the cruise as booked, but it made me question whether I should make any more bookings on board if everything is subsequently going to back to this TA with its $50 pp cancellation policy. Can we tell Celebrity to just hold on to the reservation so that we deal directly with them (and thus avoid the cancellation fee imposed by the TA) OR perhaps at some point in the future move the reservation to any TA should we find an attractive incentive package that the TA offers?

On a related question, what have been people's experiences with on-board future cruise booking? Was it a no-lose proposition as the future cruise team painted it? What kind of incentives did people receive over and above what someone not on the cruise may have received?

Unless you request that your reservation stay with Celebrity it will be transferred to the TA you used for the current cruise. It is easy to avoid this, just tell them at booking to keep it with Celebrity then you will have 60 days from the date you booked to tranfer the reservation to any TA you chose.

On-board booking promotions change from time to time and can vary but what type of cruise you are booking. Repositioning cruises, TAs and TPs normally don't get much in the way of perks.

Generally the advantages to booking on board are reduced deposits and additional OBC. We book about half of our cruises while on board.

Unless you request that your reservation stay with Celebrity it will be transferred to the TA you used for the current cruise. It is easy to avoid this, just tell them at booking to keep it with Celebrity then you will have 60 days from the date you booked to tranfer the reservation to any TA you chose.

 

On-board booking promotions change from time to time and can vary but what type of cruise you are booking. Repositioning cruises, TAs and TPs normally don't get much in the way of perks.

 

Generally the advantages to booking on board are reduced deposits and additional OBC. We book about half of our cruises while on board.

If you don't tell them not to place the booking with the current TA they will send it back to them. I never let them use the same TA even if I do transfer it to them later. I like the ability to shop extra perks and play two TAs against each other. Otherwise they don't need to compete. I don't like TAs who charge a cancellation/change fee. They make a lot of money on their bookings and there are plenty of other TAs who don't charge the fee and give as good or better perks.

On a related question, what have been people's experiences with on-board future cruise booking? Was it a no-lose proposition as the future cruise team painted it? What kind of incentives did people receive over and above what someone not on the cruise may have received?

As long as there is no penalty for cancelling the cruise (US bookings either directly with Celebrity or transferred to a TA with no cancellation fees) it has to be a no-lose proposition.

When we (four sisters) sailed in a Royal Suite we all booked separate Sky Suites for next year (husbands get to go), we pointedly asked that the bookings not be placed with current agency as we were unhappy with them. We left the booking with Celebrity until we were home and able to pick another agent who gave us great OBC. Glad we booked early as our cabins have gone up by almost $5,000 each! We got the same perks at the time of booking that they are offering now, since they are Suites.

It really is a win win proposition but there are a couple of things they don't explain really well ... or haven't done so in the past.

If you are to do a booking, leave it with Celebrity and it is fully transferable but they are tight about doing so within the 60 day timeframe. It's best to look ahead of time into what the different travel agencies are offering so you can just book it with any agency you choose when you are onboard. I had friends that wanted to do a deposit on a sailing just as a placeholder but they booked with what I assume was the same agency you used. They were hit with that cancellation fee when they decided to cancel. If you are unsure, have another agency in mind that doesn't charge a cancellation fee when changing to another booking.

If you do change from one itinerary to another, you will keep the obc offered via the future cruise credit but only get the current perks that are offered when you go to rebook. So, let's say the current promo is only for one perk but by booking onboard, they are giving you two free perks. If you rebook and the promo is for only one perk, you will probably not get that extra perk unless the travel agency is offering it on top of the current promo being offered by Celebrity.

Also, you may not be able to use your future cruise certificate with a group booking or bookings with two other promos... nix that, you can probably use the certificate but it only counts for the money you paid for it. They can deny you the additional obc if that puts too many promos onto your booking.

Be sure to get your one category captain's club upgrade applied at the time of booking. They won't always automatically apply it for you. I had one future cruise sales associate on the Equinox that was phenomenal, though ... thought of everything for me. I would say that their knowledge and willingness to help does vary.

You can always purchase a future cruise certificate for an open booking. I would not suggest this. Unless there has been a change, these are non-refundable and it will only provide you with the onboard credit and not any additional perks. If you choose an actual sailing, these deposits are fully refundable as well as transferable to another cruise.

If you know you are traveling with the same person on the next cruise, you should each purchase a future cruise credit under the same reservation number. Only one reservation number can be used per booking ... not two certificates under different reservation numbers. Argh ... if only they explained that better when we purchased these this way several years ago. I am finally able to use one of these at the end of this year.

Thanks to everyone for detailed responses.

If you don't tell them not to place the booking with the current TA they will send it back to them. I never let them use the same TA even if I do transfer it to them later. I like the ability to shop extra perks and play two TAs against each other. Otherwise they don't need to compete. I don't like TAs who charge a cancellation/change fee. They make a lot of money on their bookings and there are plenty of other TAs who don't charge the fee and give as good or better perks.

How much is a lot of money? Do you know the commission percentage they receive? Is that published somewhere? I have several cruises booked and am curious what compensation they receive for my bookings. Thank you for this info.

How much is a lot of money? Do you know the commission percentage they receive? Is that published somewhere? I have several cruises booked and am curious what compensation they receive for my bookings. Thank you for this info.

Commission amounts vary by TA agreement with the cruise lines and they are not published publicly. However I and several others who have posted over time have received 10 percent perks. It doesn't matter to me how much they make but how much they're willing to share with me. Who gives me the best deal and does include service. I had been in sales for decades. That's how people buy...unless they're the type that likes to pay sticker when buying a car.

........Can we tell Celebrity to just hold on to the reservation so that we deal directly with them (and thus avoid the cancellation fee imposed by the TA) OR perhaps at some point in the future move the reservation to any TA should we find an attractive incentive package that the TA offers?

You then have 60 days to decide whether or not you want to assign it to a TA, check around to see which TA will offer you the best deal, and best of all, have the freedom to give it to any TA you choose without any hassles or complications.

But if you let them assign it to a TA initially, then it can be a real pain if you later change your mind, for whatever reason.

Just look at the thread

Is it possible to change which TA has my Celebrity Passages Deposit?