Book now and wait for a deal, or just book?

Looking for advice. If I book a cruise to get the cabin I want and then a deal (free grats, drink package, etc)comes along, can I switch it? Or is it just better to wait and hope good cabins are still available at your price point?

Looking for opinions and advice, thanks!

you can book now and then change promotions later on

They are offering free grats and money off flights now.

Yes you can book now and then change later if something better comes along.

Sometimes though the price will go up and you have to compare price and amenities to see if you come out ahead by changing.

Definitely book now to get the cabin you want. We check our booked cruises weekly to see if a better deal is available. More times then not, we do get better deals but you have to stay on top of it. Princess will not notify you.

They are offering free grats and money off flights now.

Yes you can book now and then change later if something better comes along.

Sometimes though the price will go up and you have to compare price and amenities to see if you come out ahead by changing.

No specials currently on the cruise I am looking at. But I am still considering booking?

Better to book directly with Princess at a higher rate or with a TA?

You can book now and as long as the deposit is refundable, change later. If you do want to change later remember that you will have a choice of the original offer or the current offer. You will not be able to pick and choose parts of each offer. So you can't take the original price and a perk from the current offer.

IF you find a TA that offers a good price and perks then also ask their policy about price drops/changes as some charge for changing and some don't.

No specials currently on the cruise I am looking at. But I am still considering booking?

 

Better to book directly with Princess at a higher rate or with a TA?

I always book direct, then look for a deal from a TA and move to a TA when closer to final payment date.

If you know what you want, book now....then watch the specials and look for a better deal from a TA. This works as long as the deposit is refundable.

I always book direct, then look for a deal from a TA and move to a TA when closer to final payment date.

What is the benefit of booking directly (at a higher price) rather than booking with a TA?

What is involved in switching from Princess to a TA.

I say book now and look for better deals. I always like to get the cabin that I want.

Tony

What is the benefit of booking directly (at a higher price) rather than booking with a TA?

What is involved in switching from Princess to a TA.

I always book my own flights. Shortly before final payment I call my TA and tell him what the cruise is and the cost I'm being charged and ask what he can do for me. He knocks a good percentage off the top of the price and I send Princess a short email stating that I want to move booking #xxxxxxx to my TA and give them his info. That's it. I still get a notice from Princess that my booking is for the full original price but my credit card is charged the discounted amount the TA quoted me. It's simple and I keep control of my booking until the very end. I have had the TA call me later - after final payment - to tell me an upsell has been offered. He's always on top of things.

I almost always book a cruise as soon as it is offered. Then I keep track of the offers for that cruise looking for a better price or perks which results in a call to Princess. As I get near the final payment date, I sometimes look around for a good offer from a TA to get the extra benefits. The TA is the one that communicates with Princess and transfers the booking to them which means I can no longer talk directly with Princess about the cruise.

I have also become unhappy with a TA and had Princess pull the reservation back to them. I had to email a letter asking that Princess pull it back. So you can transfer a cruise to a TA and you can move the cruise back to Princess. It is your choice.

I always book direct, then look for a deal from a TA and move to a TA when closer to final payment date.

Some TAs can give a better deal when they have group space on a cruise and can give the lower group rate to you.

However, if you wait too long to switch the booking to a TA, the group space may no longer be available and the price you pay will not be as low as it would have been if you had made the switch earlier.

I guess my next question is, why even book it directly with Princess in the first place...and not just go to the TA offering a good price?

I guess my next question is, why even book it directly with Princess in the first place...and not just go to the TA offering a good price?

IMHO It's about Princess promotion perks and timing. (And also with your TA, if they have special promotions, like one I use) You can have the cabin of your choice on deposit with Princess and it really is NOT difficult at all to have it transferred to a TA. But, then it is also great if you are able to get in from the get go on a good promotion with your TA and have cabin choice.

IMHO It's about Princess promotion perks and timing. (And also with your TA, if they have special promotions, like one I use) You can have the cabin of your choice on deposit with Princess and it really is NOT difficult at all to have it transferred to a TA. But, then it is also great if you are able to get in from the get go on a good promotion with your TA and have cabin choice.

But that still doesn't address why one would book directly with Princess and then transfer later? The TA will change the deal is something better comes along too? You can have your cabin of your choice with a TA, too.

I almost always book a cruise as soon as it is offered. Then I keep track of the offers for that cruise looking for a better price or perks which results in a call to Princess. As I get near the final payment date, I sometimes look around for a good offer from a TA to get the extra benefits. The TA is the one that communicates with Princess and transfers the booking to them which means I can no longer talk directly with Princess about the cruise.

 

I have also become unhappy with a TA and had Princess pull the reservation back to them. I had to email a letter asking that Princess pull it back. So you can transfer a cruise to a TA and you can move the cruise back to Princess. It is your choice.

Our TA now has a small cancellation fee so I always book the room I want through Princess and then transfer it to the TA when the decision is made to do the cruise. I also call Princess to book it as they will give you what ever the current sale price is plus all the previous passenger discounts you don't always see when doing it on line. One time this was nearly a $700 difference per person. TAs all have the same price, but they can provide different perks such as more OBC. Ours provides 2% off a future cruise. We do large cruises every few years and save these up for the big ones. It is almost a wash with the extra OBC you can get with a Big Box or Triple A, but service is far better when there is a problem. There is another thread going right now about someone booking an in-law with the wrong name and the $495 fee for a name change by a big box TA. With the number of problems that have risen over the years, we are glad we use a good TA.

Transferring this to a TA is easy for you later, but sometimes a letter is involved for longer or larger reservations. They will put the letter together, you just need to sign and fax it.

We book the cabin we want, if the price drops we ask for the better deal... generally get it before final payment.

We book the cabin we want, if the price drops we ask for the better deal... generally get it before final payment.

Right! I do this with my TA.