All Things Vantage

[bobpatj]

I have a thought about a future Vantage cruise in the fall of 2017, but would love to combine it with an ocean cruise sailing back to the USA. Have any of you ever tried doing this? It sounds so much more fun than a 3 stop plane ride to get home! :)

[Shmoo here]

I have a thought about a future Vantage cruise in the fall of 2017, but would love to combine it with an ocean cruise sailing back to the USA. Have any of you ever tried doing this? It sounds so much more fun than a 3 stop plane ride to get home! :)

 

Well, how successful this would be depends on where the river cruise ends, and how you would get to whatever port you need to be to get on the cruise ship home. And if there's even a cruise ship anytime close to the debarkation day of your river cruise.

 

You'd need to allow for transportation from the river cruise ship to the ocean port. Possibly hotel, if you need to wait a few days.

 

But, it sounds like it would be nice. We had a direct flight from Frankfort to Los Angeles after our river cruise.

[Hydrokitty]

This sounds like a dream trip!! I love both river and ocean cruises, but the logistics you're talking about could be very complicated and require a lot of investigating. I'm thinking it could be a whole lot more involved than a 3 stop plane ride :eek: Are you sure there's no flight alternative for you? Cleveland is a big city....

[TravelerThom]

I have a thought about a future Vantage cruise in the fall of 2017, but would love to combine it with an ocean cruise sailing back to the USA. Have any of you ever tried doing this? It sounds so much more fun than a 3 stop plane ride to get home! :)

YES. I find it easiest to pick out the Transatlantic first (generally fully refundable), and then find a river cruise that fits. The cheapest cabin on a TA is more comfortable than first class on a plane! ENJOY!

 

Thom

[Hydrokitty]

YES. I find it easiest to pick out the Transatlantic first (generally fully refundable), and then find a river cruise that fits. The cheapest cabin on a TA is more comfortable than first class on a plane! ENJOY!

 

Thom

 

I'm going to have to look into this!! DH has announced that he has lost interest in flying long flights, even in business class, and I'm not quite done with Europe yet. :D

[CPT Trips]

Anyone else finding that "My Portfolio" on the Vantage web site is down?

 

And, while I am asking questions, does Vantage have a price guarantee? It looks like the catelog price has dropped.

[Shmoo here]

Anyone else finding that "My Portfolio" on the Vantage web site is down?

 

And, while I am asking questions, does Vantage have a price guarantee? It looks like the catelog price has dropped.

 

I find doing anything on the Vantage website is often difficult. Sometimes I have to wait a day or two to get into the site, much less do anything on my portfolio.

 

Sorry, don't know about price drops/guarantees.

[deec]

My experience has been they definitely do NOT have a price guarantee . In fact I had a catalog less than 2 months old and they would not honor published prices. Although when a less expensive cabin became available we were allowed to switch.

 

We have been happy with our 2 vantage cruises and have scheduled a third.

[CPT Trips]

I find doing anything on the Vantage website is often difficult. Sometimes I have to wait a day or two to get into the site, much less do anything on my portfolio.

 

Sorry, don't know about price drops/guarantees.

 

Heck, it's not like I'm trying to DO anything. I just want to check my invoice.

[Oondee]

Hi everyone,

We just booked our very first river cruise on Vantage (a 2017 Danube Christmas Markets cruise). I was trying to find reviews of Vantage and found 14 "negative" on BBB....mostly people complaining about Vantage overbooking, and people being "bumped" off the cruise at the last minute!! Has anyone on CC experienced this? We were not planning to do Vantage air, and when I called Customer Service, I was told yes, they do overbook (because of cancellations) and yes, we can be bumped, and no, they are not responsible if we have booked international airfare!! Any thoughts from the CC experts would be greatly appreciated.

Pervin

[Hydrokitty]

Hi everyone,

We just booked our very first river cruise on Vantage (a 2017 Danube Christmas Markets cruise). I was trying to find reviews of Vantage and found 14 "negative" on BBB....mostly people complaining about Vantage overbooking, and people being "bumped" off the cruise at the last minute!! Has anyone on CC experienced this? We were not planning to do Vantage air, and when I called Customer Service, I was told yes, they do overbook (because of cancellations) and yes, we can be bumped, and no, they are not responsible if we have booked international airfare!! Any thoughts from the CC experts would be greatly appreciated.

Pervin

 

Hi Pervin....in my 8 Vantage trips that has only happened to me once and I wasn't literally "bumped".... I was called and asked if I would be willing to book a different date since mine was over-booked and in return I would get a cabin upgrade. Problem was I already had the highest cabin level and I was traveling with 3 other people! Vantage said don't worry about it, and we had no problem. I think what happens is people reserve and pay the deposit and then when final payment comes due (about 90 days before sailing on Vantage) people sometimes cancel and Vantage already has the cabin sold....however, if everyone pays they're overbooked!! If you're asked and you're not interested tell them "No that's the only date that works for me" and stick to it. In all probability they'll keep upping the bonus until they find someone willing to take it. As for the air, that's one of the downsides of booking your own air. I know lots of my fellow posters swear by doing their own....I prefer to let Vantage do it. I fly business class and find I cannot beat their prices (most of the time) and in the case of being "bumped" I would expect Vantage to rebook me without penalty.:D

[Oondee]

Hi Pervin....in my 8 Vantage trips that has only happened to me once and I wasn't literally "bumped".... I was called and asked if I would be willing to book a different date since mine was over-booked and in return I would get a cabin upgrade. Problem was I already had the highest cabin level and I was traveling with 3 other people! Vantage said don't worry about it, and we had no problem. I think what happens is people reserve and pay the deposit and then when final payment comes due (about 90 days before sailing on Vantage) people sometimes cancel and Vantage already has the cabin sold....however, if everyone pays they're overbooked!! If you're asked and you're not interested tell them "No that's the only date that works for me" and stick to it. In all probability they'll keep upping the bonus until they find someone willing to take it. As for the air, that's one of the downsides of booking your own air. I know lots of my fellow posters swear by doing their own....I prefer to let Vantage do it. I fly business class and find I cannot beat their prices (most of the time) and in the case of being "bumped" I would expect Vantage to rebook me without penalty.:D

 

Hi Hydrokitty,,

Thanks so much....I feel so much better after reading your response. Wow, 8 Vantage trips!! You've certainly been to some wonderful and exotic locations. Thank you again.

Pervin

[pbnjrockette]

We've traveled with Vantage 13 times and NEVER been bumped. We usually pay in full well in advance to take advantage of the %off discount so perhaps we are not the first they call. We have been happy with our Vantage experiences.

[Oondee]

We've traveled with Vantage 13 times and NEVER been bumped. We usually pay in full well in advance to take advantage of the %off discount so perhaps we are not the first they call. We have been happy with our Vantage experiences.

 

Thanks! Appreciate it. Do you use Vantage Air or do you make your own reservations?

[CPT Trips]

I haven't traveled yet with Vantage, only booked, and have already been bumped. They cancelled our cruise date and offered us a choice of two other dates. Now I have to submit an absentee ballot . . .

 

Just recently I observed that they are no longer showing a trip highlight on the online itinerary, dinner off the ship in Lyon. Interesting that they still show this activity in their online brochure. I'm waiting for a response to my inquiry about this change.

 

Just noticed today that their web site is now showing a lower fare and free air. We are still more than six months out. Guess I'll be making another inquiry.

[Shmoo here]

Well, we've only done one Vantage trip (so far), and we weren't "bumped" as such. They did change the ship we were on about 3 months after we booked. So they upgraded our room for the "inconvenience".

 

We paid in full at the point where we still had the maximum % off for doing so, and used Vantage air.

[pbnjrockette]

We've mostly used Vantage Air (especially for longer trips--China, India) but have booked our own for a few itineraries. We recently had a trip cancelled by Vantage (actually not their fault--the charter company Haimark went bankrupt). We were given the choice of rebooking on a different ship (different itinerary) and we turned them down. Full refund immediately.

[Oondee]

Thank you for all your most helpful responses. I can always rely on Cruise Critic members to come through! I think we will keep the Vantage river cruise, and hope for the best!

Pervin

[4774Papa]

Vantage called us a few months prior to our China trip in 2012. They offered us a bonus of $1000 total off our bill to move our trip up three weeks. We accepted and saved $1000.

[Oondee]

Vantage called us a few months prior to our China trip in 2012. They offered us a bonus of $1000 total off our bill to move our trip up three weeks. We accepted and saved $1000.

 

Sounds like you got a really good deal!

Pervin

[4774Papa]

Sounds like you got a really good deal!

Pervin

 

Your 3 week vantage trip including airfare cost us about $10000 for two and was the best trip we have ever taken. Loved China, but I would not want to live there.

[Hydrokitty]

We've used Vantage air on all but one trip. We fly business and I have found that I cannot beat Vantage prices, which include luggage handling and transfers. The only time I booked on my own was Trans Canada by train...but keep in mind that I live driving distance from 2 major international airports so it's easy for Vantage to book non stop and they have many carriers to choose from.

[4774Papa]

We've used Vantage air on all but one trip. We fly business and I have found that I cannot beat Vantage prices, which include luggage handling and transfers. The only time I booked on my own was Trans Canada by train...but keep in mind that I live driving distance from 2 major international airports so it's easy for Vantage to book non stop and they have many carriers to choose from.

 

We are booked on Vantage's Douro River cruise 13 May (less than a month from now). The airfare they offered was higher than what I booked with Delta on our own. Vantage came out a few months ago with promotional airfare for the trip that was cheaper, but it was designed to encourage people to book the cruise as well. I don't like waiting the last minute to buy airfare. We never fly Business, but I do like to be able to pick our seats and flights with fewest connections. For example, flying to Europe, I prefer flying on a 767 rather than a 777, since the 767 has two seats on the side instead of three on 777. DW likes the window and I like the aisle. If we fly on a 777, we still book the window and aisle and leave the middle seat open. Occasionally, we get an empty middle seas. Buy most of the time, we get a stranger between us, which is not really a problem. I like the aisle, since I like to get up and stretch my legs and of course, at my age, visit the facilities.

[Host Jazzbeau]

We are booked on Vantage's Douro River cruise 13 May (less than a month from now). The airfare they offered was higher than what I booked with Delta on our own. Vantage came out a few months ago with promotional airfare for the trip that was cheaper, but it was designed to encourage people to book the cruise as well. I don't like waiting the last minute to buy airfare. We never fly Business, but I do like to be able to pick our seats and flights with fewest connections. For example, flying to Europe, I prefer flying on a 767 rather than a 777, since the 767 has two seats on the side instead of three on 777. DW likes the window and I like the aisle. If we fly on a 777, we still book the window and aisle and leave the middle seat open. Occasionally, we get an empty middle seas. Buy most of the time, we get a stranger between us, which is not really a problem. I like the aisle, since I like to get up and stretch my legs and of course, at my age, visit the facilities.

 

I like the window too, but on a 777-type configuration we choose the two aisle seats.

[TravelerThom]

...I prefer flying on a 767 rather than a 777, since the 767 has two seats on the side instead of three on 777. DW likes the window and I like the aisle...

Be aware that there are different 777 seating layouts on different airlines. Some are 3-3-3, some are 2-5-2, ANA has some that are 2-4-3, and perhaps worst is Emirates at 3-4-3 (10 across rather than 9).

 

Thom