Booking Direct vs Booking W/ TA

The more I read the more I'm learning that there is NO benefit to booking directly with X. In fact, from what I read, I'm loosing some decent perks by not using a TA. Another newbie lesson learned.

Cruise critic rules prevent the mentioning of travel agent/agency names.

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Cruise critic rules prevent the mentioning of travel agent/agency names.

 

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Another lesson learned...

I will say I end up picking my cruise from the cruiseline website and then shopping various sites and agencies for perks. I have always received something from the TA.

Word of earning, some agencies do not have 24×7 coverage so if you see a price drop, etc, the cruise line will not speak with you and require that your TA contact them. Some times the price drop is gone by the time the TA is opened. I now keep that in mind when shopping TA deals. That was a lesson that I learned.

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The more I read the more I'm learning that there is NO benefit to booking directly with X. In fact, from what I read, I'm loosing some decent perks by not using a TA. Another newbie lesson learned.

i have never gotten a better dral from a TA for an X cruise. Some other cruises a TA goes give me better perks.

i have never gotten a better dral from a TA for an X cruise. Some other cruises a TA goes give me better perks.

The cruise price may be the same but some TAs offer substantial OBC which is refundable. I don't care about a dinner(s) in a speciality restaurant, bottle of wine, or spa treatment if I can get 8-10% of the price in refundable OBC that makes me:D.

The cruise price may be the same but some TAs offer substantial OBC which is refundable. I don't care about a dinner(s) in a speciality restaurant, bottle of wine, or spa treatment if I can get 8-10% of the price in refundable OBC that makes me:D.

Not for Canadians, many TAs even charge cancellation and change fees.

i have never gotten a better dral from a TA for an X cruise. Some other cruises a TA goes give me better perks.

I would have to make an educated guess that you have looked in the wrong places. We have cruised a little with Celebrity (been Elite Plus for some time) and usually save 7-10% by booking with various cruise agencies....when looking at the overall deal (including OBCs, and other amenities). Celebrity (and the other RCI brands) do practice very strict price control...so it is normal to find nearly identical cruise prices. But certain cruise agencies enhance the bookings with generous on board credits, pre paid gratuities (now often included as additional OBCs). Other sellers of travel will offer generous benefits such as a nice credit for shopping in their store. In previous years we have even seen generous gift cards (haven't seen this in the past couple of years), pre or post cruise hotels, etc. We have also seen some agencies toss in paid trip insurance (sometimes combined with an OBC). We know one very reputable agency that used to simply rebate up to the 10% of the cruise price (not including taxes and fees) after the customer returned from their cruise (not sure if this agency still follows that practice).

My advice here on CC (which is like a broken record) has been the same from the beginning of CC...and even before CC on old sites like AOL, Prodigy, and even GENIE (that is really showing my age). It is simply "SHOP AROUND" for the best overall deal. Eventually you will develop your own "short list" of agencies that always seem to have the best deals. Some agencies seem to have special deals for specific cruise lines, so for a person like me who cruises many different lines, we really do need to shop around and use multiple agencies for our cruises.

Does this mean you should never book directly with a cruise line? Nope. Sometimes it pays to book direct and later transfer that booking to a cruise agency. We did this recently with a booking on another line where we could get a nice deal (while onboard another cruise). Once home we shopping the booking with a few of our favorite agencies and eventually transferred the booking an agency which gave us $1050 of On Board Credits (over the deal we had with the cruise line).

The dirty secret is that the cruise lines have no problems with these deals. Lines typically rely on travel/cruise agencies for up to 80% of their bookings! The cruise lines need these agencies so its a good partnership. The one line that tried to make it work without agencies (Renaissance) went bankrupt (there were many reasons for their failure). In the past we have done a future cruise booking on a Celebrity cruise...which we immediately transferred to a cruise agency....who added a generous OBC and Pre paid gratuities. The deals are still out there....but you have go get em :).

Hank

Not for Canadians, many TAs even charge cancellation and change fees.

We use a great U.S. TA that offers substantial OBC, accepts bookings in Cdn $ and no cancellation or change fees.

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When booking with X directly, they will match the OBC of the large TA’s.

Just tell the cruise consultant the deal you saw , they will look it up to confirm it and note your reservation. After final payment, that OBC will show up for your use.

Example : My cruise this December, an outside site had varying OBC offered based on your cruise price. Plus another $50 OBC for every booking. So after final payment , that $250 OBC showed on my reservation and I was able to use it, in addition to my $300 Celebrity OBC.

When booking with X directly, they will match the OBC of the large TA’s.

Just tell the cruise consultant the deal you saw , they will look it up to confirm it and note your reservation. After final payment, that OBC will show up for your use.

Example : My cruise this December, an outside site had varying OBC offered based on your cruise price. Plus another $50 OBC for every booking. So after final payment , that $250 OBC showed on my reservation and I was able to use it, in addition to my $300 Celebrity OBC.

26 cruises with Celebrity and have never heard or seen that. Our OBC averages around 12-15% of the cruise fare. No way =X= is going to match that as a matter of course. Plus their OBCs are all non-refundable. No interest in that.

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When booking with X directly, they will match the OBC of the large TA’s.

Just tell the cruise consultant the deal you saw , they will look it up to confirm it and note your reservation. After final payment, that OBC will show up for your use.

Example : My cruise this December, an outside site had varying OBC offered based on your cruise price. Plus another $50 OBC for every booking. So after final payment , that $250 OBC showed on my reservation and I was able to use it, in addition to my $300 Celebrity OBC.

I had booked directly with Celebrity once because and had intended to transfer to my usual TA. The vacation planner did ask me to let him know what the deal was and he could probably match it. I believe the difference is that the Celebrity OBC will be non refundable where the OBC I get from the TA is refundable. This is important to me since we were booking a suite and had all perks included so the TA OBC went home with me after the cruise.

i have never gotten a better dral from a TA for an X cruise. Some other cruises a TA goes give me better perks.

Not sure where you’re located, but in the states I’ve found the opposite. After looking for deals on all of that other mainstream lines (RC, NCL and Celebrity) I’ve found that TA’s offer far better deals and OBC on Celebrity cruises than they can offer on other lines. I’ve never had any luck with NCL, the RC deals are usually very low OBC or a dinner where as Celebrity offers typically have have significant OBC and included gratuity. Sometimes even a group rate for th3 base fare. Maybe take a look at other sites where TA recommendations are allowed and you can find some hidden benefits.

One of the best ways to book celebrity cruises is to book them on-board....you get an additional perk (almost always OBC $'s and often lower deposits) on top of whatever Celebrity is offering on their web site. You then have 60 days from the date of that booking to move that booking to a TA of your choice...which many do because the TA will give you additional perks. Net: you get the regular Celebrity perks, you get the On-board booking perks AND you get the TA perks. Note: as you compare TA's offers, make sure you ask if there is any sort of cancellation or change fee by the TA on your reservation....some do have a charge for cancellations and some charge to make changes to your reservation...neither is a problem, but you need to understand the "total package" being offered by the TA.

If you aren't on a ship (RCL, Celebrity, Azamara...you can book any of them while on any of them)...you should check various TA's for their cruise price....although Celebrity would like you to think they are "price fixed", the reality is that some TA's offer group rates which are lower....don't worry about being in a group, you'll never even know who is in your group...it's just a way to get around that "price fixed" notion. Of course, you also have to compare TA perks...and that varies pretty widely. It's worth spending some time comparing. Note: occasionally there's a deal tied to a specific credit card for an additional perk....and sometimes you have to make the "normal" deposit instead of some lower deposit offer that Celebrity is offering to join "the group".

Think of Celebrity sales agents as the XYZ agency.....they effectively are just another TA with no more or less power than any other TA.

Finally, I wouldn't trust anyone, Celebrity agent or other, who told me "I'll match that deal" but it won't show up until after you make your final payment....unless it is in writing.

In the UK it is definitely better to book with a TA than direct especially if you need flights and a minimum one night pre cruise hotel stay. I have just booked a 2018 cruise with business class flights, basic out side cabin, two nights in Tokyo hotel and overseas transfers and it was £2.600 less with the TA than it was with Celebrity including the free drink package offer which Celebrity had on at the time. I find all the major British TAs offer similar deals but each can vary by up to £200 so I do try 2 or 3. You are ATOL covered so the booking is totally secure. I usually check the Celebrity price first and work from there. Also, if you are British and book a future cruise on-board you do not have the same rights as US passengers in terms of money back if you don't take up the cruise - you can still change to another cruise within the company. I checked out the cruise I have just booked while I was on Constellation in the Summer and it would have been far far dearer than using a TA once I got home. This may not be the case for other nationalities but Britons beware!

Not for Canadians, many TAs even charge cancellation and change fees.

Maybe it would be helpful to put Canada in as your location so people would understand the context of your posts?

Not for Canadians, many TAs even charge cancellation and change fees.

To the best of our knowledge, Canadians can book with any North American travel/cruise agent are not limited to only Canadian TAs. There is little difference between Canadian and US bookings...other then your dollar is worth less.

Hank

I would have to make an educated guess that you have looked in the wrong places.

 

My advice here on CC It is simply "SHOP AROUND" for the best overall deal. Eventually you will develop your own "short list" of agencies that always seem to have the best deals. Some agencies seem to have special deals for specific cruise lines, so for a person like me who cruises many different lines, we really do need to shop around and use multiple agencies for our cruises.

 

 

The deals are still out there....but you have go get em :).

Hank

Totally agree here. Especially if cruising regularly. We use one TA for X and a different one for Princess or HAL. And again, a different one if we do an all inclusive, river cruise or land tour. Too, once you book again and again, you are more likely to be rewarded for your loyalty.

Just read the small print and details. Know ahead of time what you want, and you don't need the cruise line to book.

To the best of our knowledge, Canadians can book with any North American travel/cruise agent are not limited to only Canadian TAs. There is little difference between Canadian and US bookings...other then your dollar is worth less.

 

Hank

I believe you are correct. We book with a U.S. agent in either U.S. or Canadian funds. Depending on what the cruise line is using for a exchange rate, it may be better to book in one currency or the other. I also believe Brits and maybe other nationalities can also book with U.S. TA’s.

Our Celebrity PCC has told us in the past if we provided him with our TA's offered perks in writing to transfer a booking, he would take it to his supervisor to see if they would match it to keep the booking from being transferred. Since we just found a TA yesterday that has their perks noted in writing on their website, we`re going to contact our PCC on Monday, since we only booked the cruise a couple of weeks ago while on a X cruise, and see what he says. We really like our X PCC and would personally prefer to keep our X bookings with him. I'll let you know what we find out.

I will say I end up picking my cruise from the cruiseline website and then shopping various sites and agencies for perks. I have always received something from the TA.

 

Word of earning, some agencies do not have 24×7 coverage so if you see a price drop, etc, the cruise line will not speak with you and require that your TA contact them. Some times the price drop is gone by the time the TA is opened. I now keep that in mind when shopping TA deals. That was a lesson that I learned.

 

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I learned that if I see a price drop during times that my TA is unavailable I place a cabin on a 24 hour hold and take a screen shot. Never have had a problem with getting the drop. Sometimes I've been better off the way I am, and sometimes I've saved several hundred dollars and upgraded cabin class.

When booking with X directly, they will match the OBC of the large TA’s.

Just tell the cruise consultant the deal you saw , they will look it up to confirm it and note your reservation. After final payment, that OBC will show up for your use.

Example : My cruise this December, an outside site had varying OBC offered based on your cruise price. Plus another $50 OBC for every booking. So after final payment , that $250 OBC showed on my reservation and I was able to use it, in addition to my $300 Celebrity OBC.

I've tried that matching with X quite a few times, and each time I do I've been told they can't match the deal and to go with the TA. The TA was giving me more OBC, pre-paid gratuities and drinks in addition to the perks I was getting. In addition, the TA's cruise fare was $100 less per person. No brainer!

Our Celebrity PCC has told us in the past if we provided him with our TA's offered perks in writing to transfer a booking, he would take it to his supervisor to see if they would match it to keep the booking from being transferred. Since we just found a TA yesterday that has their perks noted in writing on their website, we`re going to contact our PCC on Monday, since we only booked the cruise a couple of weeks ago while on a X cruise, and see what he says. We really like our X PCC and would personally prefer to keep our X bookings with him. I'll let you know what we find out.

Very interested in hearing what you're able to do.. Thank you.

We use a great U.S. TA that offers substantial OBC, accepts bookings in Cdn $ and no cancellation or change fees.

 

 

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Hello koolforkatz. I enjoyed your post. Can you contact me by email. Canadians here too. donpars@gmail.com

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Hello koolforkatz. I enjoyed your post. Can you contact me by email. Canadians here too. (email addy deleted)

 

 

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Just a heads up, not only is mentioning TAs against the rules here, soliciting in either direction for TA referrals by email is also against the rules. You might not have been aware of that.