jan15

We are doing a 5 day land tour prior to boarding the ship. Trying to decide if it is worth purchasing the meal plan. It is $374.00 per person for 5 breakfast, 1 lunch and 4 dinners. I am reading mixed reviews. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I have balcony cabins on the Oasis. Cabin 10680 and 10692. Can you please tell me bed placement. TIA

My TA provides them to all her clients.

I am noticing pricing is really starting to go up on some of these cruises. I have one booked on the Reflection for Mar 2016 and the price for 2 people including taxes and port charges is $2504.00 for a C3. Plus I have the 123 GO. Now the price for the C3 is $3207.44 and that includes just the Go Big.

GS on the Oasis Oct 2015 $1534.00pp includes taxes and port charges. Was able to change my suite to one of the new aft suites

My husband and I have a GS for next Oct and I am paying $3096.96 for us both. Plus OBC. That price you were quoted was way high

SamFritz-I am very curious-what is your profession that you feel so strongly about putting down all travel agents

I just booked this past weekend the Rhine Getaway for 2015. Amsterdam to Basel with a post trip 2 night to Lucerne.

Viking has a choice of airlines and by paying $50.00 per person more you can choose the carrier of your choice. As far as seats-there is only a certain number of seats you can choose from as far as location but if you want to upgrade to economy plus you will have to pay a little more. They will basically assign you the seats within the pricing of the cruise and give you a confirmation number and you can go online to the carrier of your choice website and change the seats or pay to upgrade direct to the carrier. They will assign you the same confirmation for the outbound and the return flight. Hope this helps and answers some of your questions. I just dealt with Viking air yesterday so I am very familiar with the way they work.

We are on the Feb 3rd cruise and are doing private tours as they tend to be a lot less expensive than the ship excursions. If you are on the same sailing we have put together some private tours that you might be interested in. Please check out our roll call.

Hi Y'all. Just starting to plan our cruise from Syd to Auckland in Feb 2015 (our very first cruise!).

 

I am just looking through the shore excursions offered by Princess Cruises and wanted some insight to see if any of them are AMAZING and worth it. We are cruising on a budget, so we won't be doing paid shore excursions on every port, but I don't want to over look anything that is superb.

 

If anyone has done anything on the below list and has thought it was 10/10 please let me know :)

 

Melbourne:

• Ballarat Wildlife & Sovereign Hill Goldmine Township
  
• Fitzroy Gardens & Yarra River Cruise
  
• Historic Melbourne & Old Gaol
  
• Puffing Billy & Dandenon Ranges
  
• Melbourne by Colonial Tramcar
  
• City Drive & Eureka Deck
  
• River Cruise, Healesville Sanctuary & Wine Tasting
  
• Healesville Sanctuary, Yarra Valley & Wine
  
• Kangaroos, Koalas & You Yangs Park
  

 

Hobart:

• Richmond, Bonorong & Wine Tasting
  
• Port Arthur Historic Site
  
• Richmond & Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary
  
• City Drive & Royal Botanical Garden
  
• Port Arthur Historic Site (Wheelchair Confined Passengers)
  
• Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary, Mt. Field Park & Curringa Farm
  
• Russell Falls, Meadowbank & Wildlife
  
• Richmond and Bonorong
  
• Tasman Island Wildlife Cruise
  
• Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary
  
• City Drive, Narryna, Anglesea Barracks & Wine
  
• Huon Valley & Tahune Airwalk
  

 

Fiordland National Park

Scenic cruising? What is this? Does it cruise into Milford Sound? Has anyone done this recently (only posts I can find are from 2010)

 

Dunedin

• Taieri Gorge by Train & Larnach Castle
  
• City Drive, Olveston House & Botanic Gardens
  
• City Drive & Larnach Castle
  
• Olveston House & Larnach Castle
  
• Taieri Gorge by Train
  
• Olveston House & City Drive by Classic Car
  
• Taieri Gorge by Train (Wheelchair Confined Passengers)
  
• Otago Wildlife Cruise
  
• Nature's Wonders & Otago Peninsula
  
• Speights Brewery & Pub Hop
  

 

Akaroa

• Tranz Alpine Train & Arthur's Pass
  
• Akaroa, Giants House & Canterbury Farm
  
• Banks Peninsula & City Drive
  
• Akaroa Harbour Nature Cruise
  
• Paua Bay Farm
  
• Canterbury Station, Mt Sunday & Lord of the Rings Sights
  
• Antarctic Centre & Botanic Gardens
  
• Wildlife Cruise
  
• Akaroa Harbour Swim with Dolphins
  
• Canterbury High Country by 4WD
  
• Christchurch On Your Own
  

 

Tauranga

• Te Puia Thermal Reserve, Maori Arts & Agrodome
  
• Wai-o-tapu Valley & Rainbow Springs
  
• Waimangu Volcanic Valley & Rainbow Springs
  
• Maori Cultural Highlights
  
• Tauranga City Drive, Elms Mission Station & Kiwi 360
  
• Tamaki Maori Village
  
• Hobbiton Movie Set
  
• Skyline Skyride & Luge
  
• Lake Rotoiti Kayak & Thermal Pool
  

 

I know that this is a really broad post. I was going to do a post for each Port, but then I thought that most people who have been to one of these ports have been to another one, too...

 

Lastly - if there is something you have personally done that you would do again that is not on the above list (as the above list is just the princess tours) PLEASE let me know! As I mentioned before, our budget is limited and we don't want to be paying for tours "just because". This is our first cruise- so we want to be "wowed"... (hope my expectations aren't too high here!! :p)

 

P.S. don't worry about conflicting interests, ages, etc. Just post your experiences and my family and I will figure out if it fits in with us.

 

Thanks in advance guys :)[/QU

Ann -

 

400.00 from Princess

15.00 because I used an FCC that was about to expire

100.00 for completing Princess refresher courses ( I am an outside agent for a travel agency in Tampa, but I only book for myself)

 

Even without the 100.00 I would have still gotten a great deal and it makes no difference to me where the ship goes!

 

Claudia

Are you with OA

Those luggage tags are great!!! I buy them for all my clients. If you are sailing on another cruiseline other than Royal or Celebrity you will need the larger size ones.

Oasis Halloween Cruise Oct 2015 booked a Grand suite on May 1. Price for 2 $3129. Just looked and it has gone up to $5209. Sweet!!!

Citizen's watches are always cheaper than Macy's and even Amazon (with the ship standard 35% off). I have done extensive research on specific models and have never found a price anywhere in the US cheaper than the ship. Some models that Macy's sells are cheaper. But for the exact same model they are not cheaper.

 

I cannot speak for Invicta or CARNIVAL, but please don't use such a wide brush that says the merchant at Royal will rip you off.

I am sorry if I offended you, however, I said you can get ripped off if you do not know pricing-I DID NOT say the merchant at Royal WILL rip you off. I do not understand what you mean by Citizen's watches are always cheaper than Macys. You do realize that Citizen is a watch brand and that Macys is a department store, right. As for the exact same model to say they are not cheaper is not true. Working in Macys in the watch dept I do know pricing and have compared certain models and they are more expensive on the ship. I have nothing against shopping on Royal-I have done plenty of it I was merely pointing out that pricing is not always better on the ship.

I would really check prices in the states before buying a watch onboard. I was on a Carnival ship last Dec and bought a Invicta watch onboard. I thought I was getting a good price but when I got home I went on Amazon and found the exact watch for over $100.00 cheaper. We can get caught when on a ship thinking their prices are really good but in reality you can get ripped off. I have worked in Macys in jewelry for years and we don't carry Invicta so I wasn't sure of the pricing but I know that when the ships carry Citizen watches on board they are always more expensive than the sales in Macys. Just be careful and know your prices before buying. Buyer beware!!!

Maybe she's sick, the kids are sick, her husband died, her mother died, she's on vacation, she just found out she has cancer, her car broke down. Maybe you're just a PITA and she's avoiding you. Give her a break!

In doing my research I now understand where you are coming from. You ARE a travel agent and defending all travel agents and in doing so you are also giving travel agents a bad rep by your nastiness. I guess things could have been a lot worse off form me. I could of ending up with you as my agent!!!

Maybe she's sick, the kids are sick, her husband died, her mother died, she's on vacation, she just found out she has cancer, her car broke down. Maybe you're just a PITA and she's avoiding you. Give her a break!

You don't have to be so rude-who are you to judge so harshly. Did you wake up on the wrong side of the bed today are just a mean nasty person. And NO I am not a PITA as you call me but think YOU ARE. GIVE ME A BREAK!!! just sayin....

If I am not booked into a group Royal can pull up my booking-look at it but cannot discuss pricing. They can discuss any other questions I may have-general questions. At least if I have a question they can see exactly what I am talking about such as making sure I am cross-referenced with another party. Something simple. Being in a group booking they cannot do that.

Is it a big agency? If so, I'm sure you can talk to someone else. If they say you need to talk to ........ Tell them they won't return calls.

 

You could also give the agent the benefit of the doubt for now. Could be sick or away for a few days.

Yes-it is one of the biggest agencies out there. I am hoping for a call back tomorrow. If I don't get one by the end of the day I will take it a step further on Friday. What is so hard about using her is that she is always booking me into a group booking so if I have any questions I can't ask anyone at Royal since they cannot access group booking info and I can't speak to anyone at group bookings at Royal since they only will speak to the travel agent. I have asked her not to put me into a group booking since I get no benefit especially with the BOGOHO but she insists she has to.

The agent may not be lying..if it is coming from them, through their commission, it will NOT always show up on the invoice...'

 

OBC from the cruise line will, sometimes right away, sometimes in a day or so.

 

When you call to buy OBC or even gifts, sometimes it is not processed right away.

 

When I give OBC to people it does not show up on the invoice....

Every booking I ever did with this travel agent DID include on the invoice the onboard credit provided by her so that is not the case of it appearing later on. It makes no sense why she would include it on all 9 invoices up front on mine yet choose to leave it off my friends. I did send my travel agent a 2nd E-Mail to please call me and received an automatic reply that she is out of the office until June 5th. She did work yesterday since after my friend send her an E-Mail yesterday asking about her onboard credit and where is was on the invoice a new invoice suddenly appeared with her onboard credit on it. I am hoping I will receive a phone call tomorrow so we can get past all this and move forward.

In regards to the onboard credit on the invoice-all the onboard credit she has given me always showed up on the invoice under the notes section. All 6 cruises I have booked with her shows she giving me onboard credit and well as the previous 3 cruises. I hate to say she was lying but...

Do you all think I should try E-Mailing her one more time or at this point just call her supervisor. Also-I referred her to friends that are going on a Feb 2016 cruise with my DH and I. I mentioned to the agent about giving them onboard credit like us and she said she would. My friends showed me a copy of their invoice and there was no onboard credit listed. I asked my agent if she had given them the onboard credit and she said she did. I never said anything to her about her lying but that annoys me to.

I have using the same travel agent for years and have been happy with her up until now. This has nothing to do with perks. I feel like her service has gone downhill for me. She is not returning my phone calls and has been giving me conflicting information in E-Mails back and forth. I have used this agent for 3 previous cruises and have 6 more with her over the next 2 years. I sent her an E-Mail to call me yesterday early afternoon and have not heard back from her yet. How long do I give her before I call again or is it wrong to contact her superior. I am really annoyed over this and don't know how I should handle it. I am ready to pull the bookings.

Going on the Diamond Princess this Jan/Feb 2015. Booked in a Vista Suite with an aft wraparound balcony. Doing a 6 day tour with Princess to the Great Barrier Reef followed by a 12 night cruise Sydney to New Zealand. Cost is around $18,000.00. No airfare included since my DH has points. Just the 2 of us. Can't wait. Always wanted to do Australia-cross this one off our bucket list!!!

Pricing are starting to go up like crazy. I sent my TA an E-Mail to put Allure on a hold for me for May 8th and May 22nd 2016 since I was not sure which one I wanted. She went and thank goodness put them on hold since 1 hour later they both went up over $100.00 for a GS. I decided to go with the May 8th and already received my invoice with the original price.