Advantages and disadvantages of using an online TA

Is there any advantages or disadvantages of using an online TA with no deposit down? I know you can't recommend any but you know the ones I'm talking about. I always get the emails book a cruise with no deposit or obc, what's been your experience compared to booking with the cruise line

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I can't speak to the no deposit part but we used a ta for the first time for our 2018 cruise and so far I'm not a fan. Nothing against my ta because she's been nothing but great but as a planner the having to go through her for everything is something that stresses me out. Again that's totally a me issue but I just don't think it's for me.

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Did you get better perks than through carnival

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I can't speak to the no deposit part but we used a ta for the first time for our 2018 cruise and so far I'm not a fan. Nothing against my ta because she's been nothing but great but as a planner the having to go through her for everything is something that stresses me out. Again that's totally a me issue but I just don't think it's for me.

 

 

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I have to agree with this. I'm OCD and I love planning my vacations. That's part of the fun, picking out everything and planning it. I want complete control over my vacation. I don't want to have to ask someone to do everything for me or go through someone else for every little thing. TAs just aren't for us.

I don't like someone else but some of the perks you get or having no deposit seems better for finances

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Did you get better perks than through carnival

 

 

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We went one of my husbands friends as our ta so we didn't shop around and I'm sure could have gotten perks if we had. It's for a Royal Caribbean cruise and we got 50% off the normal deposit as well as a $60 dining credit for booking a balcony. We had originally planned on getting a suite and that would have also gotten us a $150 spa credit. We ended up switching to a balcony and an interior so ended up losing that one.

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I have to agree with this. I'm OCD and I love planning my vacations. That's part of the fun, picking out everything and planning it. I want complete control over my vacation. I don't want to have to ask someone to do everything for me or go through someone else for every little thing. TAs just aren't for us.

I agree. It really isn't worth it for me. This will be our first cruise with Royal so I'm not familiar with the types of things we would reserve in advance so I don't even know what I should be asking her to do.

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I have to agree with this. I'm OCD and I love planning my vacations. That's part of the fun, picking out everything and planning it. I want complete control over my vacation. I don't want to have to ask someone to do everything for me or go through someone else for every little thing. TAs just aren't for us.

I don't quite understand this. Calling a TA vs a pcc or booking online isn't much different. After that part of it I can't think of any booking changes you can make without calling in. What's the difference between calling and talking to carnival vs calling and talking to a TA. In my experience my outcome with a TA is equal to or better than expected when I ask about switching rooms or promotions or getting a price drop.

Aside from booking issues - any add on reservations, purchases, shore excursions, etc are still done online as normal.

I don't use a TA to plan the whole vacation for me but find I often get better prices, kick back OBC and better service through them.

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The perks of a TA are almost always better. On our last B2B we got 2 steakhouse meals and $100 OBC per cruise. The best CCL offered was $50 pp OBC. We never had any issues having her call CCL. She either called with me on hold or she called right back.

I don't quite understand this. Calling a TA vs a pcc or booking online isn't much different. After that part of it I can't think of any booking changes you can make without calling in. What's the difference between calling and talking to carnival vs calling and talking to a TA. In my experience my outcome with a TA is equal to or better than expected when I ask about switching rooms or promotions or getting a price drop.

 

Aside from booking issues - any add on reservations, purchases, shore excursions, etc are still done online as normal.

 

I don't use a TA to plan the whole vacation for me but find I often get better prices, kick back OBC and better service through them.

 

 

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For me it's less about the calling and more about the ability to be able to log in online and browse and book things.

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It's simple: Does the TA give you a better rate or more discounts? If yes, go with the TA. If not, book directly with Carnival. The only gotcha to consider is that some TAs have additional fees or cancellation penalties. These can be negotiated or mitigated by purchasing travel insurance or using a credit card that includes travel cancellation insurance.

It's not any more difficult to make changes or get price adjustments using a TA. There are good and bad TAs just like there are good and bad PCCs. For NCL, you can definitely get better rates through a TA on most cruises. I don't know about Carnival. The cruise I booked on the Horizon for next year was the same through the TA as it was through Carnival. I when through the TA because they offered cash back and credit based on my "club membership." :cool:

Booking with an AmEx Platinum card (through the American Express travel people) offers perks with Norwegian and Royal, but not Carnival. They can still book you on Carnival, but they can't get better pricing or offer any perks for some reason. On NCL, we got $100 OBC per person and dinner at Le Bistro.

For me it's less about the calling and more about the ability to be able to log in online and browse and book things.

 

 

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You can log in online and book all of your extras even with a TA -- excursions, spa packages, drink packages, etc - You simply can't edit your cruise, make a payment on your cruise

Booking with an AmEx Platinum card (through the American Express travel people) offers perks with Norwegian and Royal, but not Carnival. They can still book you on Carnival, but they can't get better pricing or offer any perks for some reason. On NCL, we got $100 OBC per person and dinner at Le Bistro.

I used my Amex card and got $100 off for spending $500 - Did this 7 different times by getting additional authorized user cards in my name for the deal

Like many, I do a lot of searches with a lot of online companies before I book. In the case of our upcoming October cruise, once I found the best deal I called Carnival to see if they could match it. Carnival could not match the price, but not the perks, so I booked with my online TA. By the way, I have had no problem with any subsequent questions I had.

My TA is awesome, on my next cruise she got us $275 OBC and has always gotten us much more OBC than the $50 carnival offers. I prefer the TA knowing I have someone there to take care of things for me.

And I am able to use the carnival site to book specialty restaurants, spa appointments and book excursions like FTTF.

You can log in online and book all of your extras even with a TA -- excursions, spa packages, drink packages, etc - You simply can't edit your cruise, make a payment on your cruise

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I used my Amex card and got $100 off for spending $500 - Did this 7 different times by getting additional authorized user cards in my name for the deal

How did I not know this? Thank you so much for the tip.

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I like being able to pick up the phone and call Carnival. Book it. Cancel it. Upgrade it. Get Different dining time.

That said..... I have a PVP at Carnival, and from now on I am using her. I like her

Other cruises, I often go to a guy at the biggest Vacation Travel Going company. He is quick. Calls back almost instantly. Very business like. . Gets what OBC is out there. Has put us with groups a couple of times. Wound up with some OBC and a better cabin.

Sometimes the company gets rid of overbooked cabins.

We were able to get a mid ship balcony on Freedom of the Seas for $715. Week to E. Caribbean. I like him a lot.

If I KNOW the PVP or TA.........let them do the work. And they know a lot more than passengers do.

Even though I have a TA who works in the building that I do, I want to be the one who controls my destiny and while she might be able to get me OBC or perks - I'd have to rely on her for that and I'd rather rely on me. My mistakes are my bad. My Early Saver savings, mine. The research, I do. The successful feeling once a great cruise is pulled off, totally mine. I only get to take one cruise a year and sometimes only every other year. I want to be the one who controls the who, what and where of every aspect of that vacation. If I'm let down or something goes wrong, its my fault. Sort of keeps me on my toes, so to speak!

The one time the TA does not return the call quickly can cost you. If their discount is big enough it might be worth the risk otherwise, you need to contact them usually during their business hours.