Travel Agency vs Cruise line

Any thoughts on which can give you a better deal Travel Agent or book directly with the cruise line.:confused:

The Travel Agent. The travel agent should be able to give you a price as good as you can get yourself from the cruise line plus provide some additional amenities.

Keith

Yes, you generally will do better with a TA. Some line, like Princess, allow TAs to discount. I find a good savings with them.

Other lines do not allow discounting, but if you look around you will find various perks, like OBC or a bottle of wine.

The answer to the OPs question is quite simple. When you know what cruise you want to book simply price-out your cruise and cabin category with several online TAs and also with the cruise line web site. Book with whoever gives you the best deal. We have done this for more then 50 cruises and it has saved us 10s of thousands of dollars.

Hank

In my experience, a good TA should be able to beat the cruise line's price by at least 10 percent. Don't listen to all the protestations that they're not permitted to discount or that they're making so little that they can't afford to discount.

Scott & Karen

We always use a TA. Once in a while we use an online company as they are less expensive sometimes, but your TA may beat or match that price. The cruise line prices are generaly higher for the same trip.

Research research research and go with who has the lowest TOTAL price.

We've never found the fullservice offered the best price even after deals and bonus, do you negotiate here like you do at car dealerships :D

Any thoughts on which can give you a better deal Travel Agent or book directly with the cruise line.:confused:

The answer to the OPs question is quite simple. When you know what cruise you want to book simply price-out your cruise and cabin category with several online TAs and also with the cruise line web site. Book with whoever gives you the best deal. We have done this for more then 50 cruises and it has saved us 10s of thousands of dollars.

 

Hank

So, you recommend wasting a travel agent's valuable time and then book elsewhere?

Travel Agents only get paid when they make a booking. Having them search down cheap rates for you just so you can go elsewhere? Don't be surprised when they start charging a service fee that is refundable when you book. You deserve it.

The third largest seller of cruises just went under last month in the UK. Why? Handing back the commission to their clients. It's really quite simple economics. You drop the price to absurd levels, you go out of business. Do you recommend other businesses drop their prices so low that they go out of business and people are thrown out of work? Would you do that for YOUR business??:rolleyes:

You can book through the cruise line directly if you would like to pay brochure price, don't want a discount, and don't like things like onboard credit or wine or specialty dining vouchers or pre-paid gratuities thrown in.

You can book through a travel agent if you'd like some of the above things as well as a heightened level of customer service, working with somebody who gets to know and cares about your preferences, who will still give up some of their commission to make sure you're getting a good deal (either via discounting if they can or by adding extras on).

You can book through a click-to-book site if you want a rock-bottom price (that may or may not be what they advertise by the time you decide to book with them), you'd like absolutely zero customer service either when you're booking or should something go wrong, and you also enjoy paying a "support" or "processing" fee every time you book, as well as additional change fees, cancellation fees, etc.

The choice is yours. In the end, if I'm spending money to go on a cruise, it's an investment and I'd much rather deal with somebody who looks after me. The perks are worth it, because I know my agent values me as a client (vs. click-to-book agencies and massive online TA booking mills, and vs. the cruise line, to whom I'm just another of many thousands of passengers), I know that if I have a problem it will get solved with an actual person, and I know that if the fares drop or something I'm interested in becomes available, she'll let me know. But that's just me. Your mileage may vary.

i use both and have gotten GREAT deals from both...do like the "personal service" i get with my TA, but i like getting answers quickly and not having to go thru the 'middle-man' (TA)...my last two cruises i really did get the BEST deal from the cruiseline....shop around and find what works for you and your cruise vacation!

Easy answer: Travel Agent

I don't think I have anything else to add that hasn't already been said, other than a Travel Agent can also be by your side when things go wrong such as helping you complete your travel insurance paperwork if something goes wrong, as an example.

I booked my last cruise with an online TA, and had booked the ones before that with the cruiseline. I didnt like dealing with the middleman to get questions answered or things done (impatience!!!). The online TA did give me some great amenities and bonuses, and after I got use to how things worked, and what was sent when, I was fine using them. I also liked that my credit card was charged directly by the cruiseline so Ididnt have to worry about the money missing, or the agency going under.

So, you recommend wasting a travel agent's valuable time and then book elsewhere?

 

Travel Agents only get paid when they make a booking. Having them search down cheap rates for you just so you can go elsewhere? Don't be surprised when they start charging a service fee that is refundable when you book. You deserve it.

First off, we do not waste any TAs time since we do all of our booking online. We have even booked major cruises (more then 40 days) with a few clicks of the mouse. Second: The travel industry is like most other industries in a somewhat free market and is about competition. "Wasting" a TAs time is no different then going to several auto dealers to shop around for a car, going to several stores to shop for clothes, shoes, etc. As to TAs charging fees, that is already a norm with many TAs.. To be blunt, I do not care about TA fees since I simply book with whoever has the best overall deal which involves netting the cruise cost, fees, OBCs, etc.

The travel industry has been undergoing many changes, and quite a lot of the change involves TAs. Full service TAs are becoming a dinosauer. Many airlines have stopped paying commissions, and some airlines only accept online bookings. Search engines such as Kayak make it a snap for a traveler to quickly check various options in seconds. As to cruises, just about every cruise line now accepts direct bookings online (or on the phone) and there are numerous large TAs where you can instantly book a cruise online with a few clicks of the mouse. There are also a few web sites where you can post your cruise request and it will be bid-on by multiple TAs. Folks that choose to ignore these newer options will often find themselves paying more money (sometimes thousands of dollars) for their trips.

Hank

We spend time looking at pricing ourselves. We check cruise line sites, newspaper ads, online TA sites then we contact our TA who works for a company that operates by oneline and B&M. We have always found a better deal with our TA but you do need to do your due diligence. We like dealing with our TA as he is able to cut through the bafflegaff that cruise lines will throw at you from time to time and if a problem arises then we have a person on the phone line who knows us, values our business and sorts the issue out....rather than dealing with some faceless person in a call center who knows us not from Adam and really doesn't much care.

Any thoughts on which can give you a better deal Travel Agent or book directly with the cruise line.:confused:

At least this is what I found to work best...When I find a cruise I am interested in I keep close watch on what the cruise line is offering. Ex...Princess sent me a special for an upcoming repo cruise from NY to Fll. Price was less than $65 a day plus an OB credit. Booked it with Princess then called my online travel agent. Gave her my price and asked what they could do. Of course they beat it. So I then transferred my booking from Princess to my TA. DONE! Better price, and more perks to boot! She makes money and I save money. :):) Just be sure to price quote the same cabin category.

So, you recommend wasting a travel agent's valuable time and then book elsewhere?

 

Travel Agents only get paid when they make a booking. Having them search down cheap rates for you just so you can go elsewhere? Don't be surprised when they start charging a service fee that is refundable when you book. You deserve it.

If the T.A. had that attitude, I would probably just go direct with someone else. When you are in business for yourself, not every call translates into a sale, but every contact with someone is a potential for a future sale if you treat the person kindly and don't act like they are only a dollar sign to you. That is real customer service.

We think TA could always give you something extra

To repeat what many have already pointed out.....with a TA you will get more personalized service, extra amenities and best of all have someone in your corner who will do all the work for you. The TA will take care of the little things as well as the major issues should they arrive.

Like most on here, we always research all outlets from the cruiseline themselves to online TA's to B&M local offices and have purchased cruises from all of them, so we agree that there is no clear "best" way to book a cruise.

My complaint is that I can't find a local T/A that knows their stuff to partner up with, I either beat their offers with a better deal online or end up spending half my time educating THEM on cruising!:eek:

I wish I could find a local agent like some of you have...

So far, we have booked the most with one certain online agency that advertises on CC, if we plan far enough ahead and wait we can usually snare a great deal on a cruise we have been watching:)

Like most on here, we always research all outlets from the cruiseline themselves to online TA's to B&M local offices and have purchased cruises from all of them, so we agree that there is no clear "best" way to book a cruise.

 

My complaint is that I can't find a local T/A that knows their stuff to partner up with, I either beat their offers with a better deal online or end up spending half my time educating THEM on cruising!:eek:

 

I wish I could find a local agent like some of you have...

 

So far, we have booked the most with one certain online agency that advertises on CC, if we plan far enough ahead and wait we can usually snare a great deal on a cruise we have been watching:)

Our TA is an online agent but we have been using her so long it feels like she lives next door and is a good friend.

Always check a TA. They can usually give you a better deal.

Our TA is an online agent but we have been using her so long it feels like she lives next door and is a good friend.

How fortunate for you! I'm Jealous!