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How do u book your Carnival cruise ?

onebzyldy

By onebzyldy,
in Carnival Cruise Lines

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onebzyldy

onebzyldy

Posted
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Have cruised with Princess, NCL, HAL, Costa and RCCL but we have NEVER cruised with Carnival. We have either booked our cruises directly with the cruise line or with an online TA. How do most of you book your Carnival cruise, direct with Carnival or with a TA? We have seen some fabulous deals online !

Happy Cruising.........

DonnaF :D

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westcruzer

westcruzer

Posted
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Have cruised with Princess, NCL, HAL, Costa and RCCL but we have NEVER cruised with Carnival. We have either booked our cruises directly with the cruise line or with an online TA. How do most of you book your Carnival cruise, direct with Carnival or with a TA? We have seen some fabulous deals online !

Happy Cruising.........

DonnaF :D

 

I use a TA for the extra on board credit as a gift

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crzycick

crzycick

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We bank with USAA and they have a vacation agency they work with and also a travel insurance company they recommend. The vacation people offer points when you book which can later be used for discounts. Our debit card used to gain points that could also be used for cruise travel although the rewards program recently ended. The travel insurance they use is much cheaper than the cruise line. For the 2 of us we paid $44 for the 2nd to highest package. The great thing about this company is that they would cover us if my husband's leave gets taken away. He's in the military and while not deployable at his current job, they can and do cancel people's trips last minute. They also cover if I were to become pregnant which is important for me because we're doing infertility treatment.

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cdamion

cdamion

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I have always booked directly. This time I went with a TA to get an OBC. At first, I was sorry I couldn't call and talk to Carnival directly, but the TA has been exceedingly responsive and helpful. I booked a land-based with her too to give her the commission since she's been so helpful.

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mdrobtx

mdrobtx

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We book thru American Airlines site for the ff miles. They also match any promotions that Carnival maybe running or if you are using a future cruise cert. Or if you get the stock holders benefit, they take care of it also.

 

They are a full service travel agent. On my last cruise there was a price drop that got us a free upgrade. AA took care of it all.

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geoherb "Live from...." Rare

geoherb

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I book through a TA. He has always been able to get me a better price than dealing with the cruise lines directly. Then on top of that, he usually can give us onboard credit and will send us a bottle of wine.

 

For our upcoming cruise on the Fantasy, he did a lot of work to get us qualified for the past passenger rate based on our status as having cruised on Princess. Well, not exactly a lot of work--but a long time on the phone with the people at Carnival. He said that Carnival would not have a record of my one cruise with them back in the 1980s. Plus we're taking along my mother-in-law and needed to book her with DH in order to get both of them the past passenger rate. He also found us good insurance coverage for this cruise. Since we're traveling with her, that was very important. Her last cruise (10 years ago) did not end well. She had to be taken off the ship and hospitalized in Greece. She's got that illness under control, but we never know what might happen between now and the end of our cruise.

 

He has always been responsive, so I don't worry about not being able to make a request. I book most of our cruises after the final payment date, so price drops don't matter.

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maofthree

maofthree

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I have been cruising for a while and decided to become a agent. I called ccl to ask some questions and i asked about senior, they said that they can't see some of the discounts that i as a agent can,I said the senior rate shows alot cheaper on my cruise and she said , we don;t see all of the discounts . i had all right infront of me to compare. I thought that is weird.

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bahama daydreamer

bahama daydreamer

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We always use our Carnival PVP. He helps set everyone up if we travel with a group and there's always rooms available that are not showing up online. He calls me before my final payment and automatically charges my credit card for me so I don't have to do anything. He calls before the cruise to see if there's any questions or if I need help with anything else. I feel like I'm being well taken care of.

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CruzVinnieCruz

CruzVinnieCruz

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We receive the Interline rate so we use an on line Internet site to look at prices and cabin selection then call our PVP at Carnival and he is the best ever. The site we use has the exact same information as our PVP when it comes to cabin selection so it has not been a problem.

 

Vinnie

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CruzVinnieCruz

CruzVinnieCruz

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Our first family cruise was booked by my aunt through her travel agent.

This cruise (just hubby and I), I booked on-line on the Carnival website. I didn't know using a TA can get you OBC or better rates? Good to know.

 

A travel agent can give up some of their commission as OBC but they cannot give a better rate than Carnival. They maybe able to figure out that you qualify for a discount but so can a Carnival PVP.

 

The previous poster using points is something different all together since the site they are using accepts them.

 

Vinnie

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Trish12345

Trish12345

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We check the prices everywhere which are usually the same so we go thru the Carnival Website. Have used a PVP when their website locked up & she was able to get the same cabin I was trying to book. They are always very helpful when I need to call, minimal hold time, answers my question quickly. Hey wouldn't it be nice if the bank, dr's office or credit card companies did this!!

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JennLuvs2Cruise

JennLuvs2Cruise

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We never use a Travel Agency. I just don't see the need for one. We usually start looking at cruise ideas & prices a year out in advance (generally right after we return from a cruise with our FCC).. And when we find one that we like, we save up the deposit in a month & call Carnival directly to book it. We don't use a PVP either. I just call and know all the information & rates needed to make the booking process as simple as possible for the representative.

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Homecomforts

Homecomforts

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We ALWAYS use our local TA. On our first cruise with NCL, we had a few minor issues, we made 1 call to our TA, and by the end of the day all was fixed. We did NOTHING else but make one phone call to her. When I'm on vacation, I want someone else to deal with any issues that may occur. Since our TA is local and wants more business from us, she will do all she can to "fix" anything that may arise. I don't want to have to be on the phone with some online person who really doesn't care if we have a good vacation or not. I don't want to be "on hold" for 3 hours and miss all the fun. :p So after our very first cruise, we have booked every other cruise through her (local TA) We have never had any other issues other than the very first cruise, but you never know.......Also, the little bit of onboard credit and/or bottle of wine, and package's for the kids also help :D

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