Pcc or ta

[kapcruiser]

Which is better to book with? I've never cruised on Norwegian before and do not have a PCC. How can I find a good PCC?

[H&J]

I say use a travel agent as they work for you and not the company. Given all the complaints posted about the inconsistent customer service, I want to see the person working for me face to face as opposed to a "headset jockey".

[Demonyte]

I always use a TA for the same reasons as mentioned by Joteacher, but my TA also saves me hundreds of dollars over the NCL price.

 

 

+1

 

We have always gotten about 10% discount from NCL's price either in OBC or direct discount from the total sum through our TA.

 

And additional bonus with TAs is that they are independent from cruise lines, so now that we are switching over to Celebrity, I can continue using the same great agent.

[Gershep]

I prefer a PCC. Years ago when we were looking to book a cruise we were looking for rooms next to each other. The TA I was using told me she could not do that because there were not available. I didn't book with the TA, came home, called NCL and was able to get the same four rooms I asked the TA for. Not sure if TA's have a block of rooms offered to them but since then I have a great PCC that I love and book through her.

[Jeremiah1212]

Just book it yourself... As I sit here making final preparations for our cruise, I've done all of the planning and booking myself with no issues.

 

My first NCL cruise is this upcoming Saturday. I had two PCC's reach out to me but they offered nothing out of the ordinary. It was more a sales pitch call than anything else. Maybe the experience is different if you have status?

 

I've also reached out to a number of travel agent's over the years and never had any offer better than what I could get directly through the cruise line or had any perks thrown in. If I have a question I can easily find the answer online, or if I needed to make changes, I've never experienced a situation I couldn't handle myself.

 

I think it's partially a generational thing. The people who are more likely to pick up the phone and book with a live person over the phone are the group that wants the relationship of a travel agent or rep. I just find it easier to DIY.

[LrgPizza]

I've had the same PCC for a while now, and he is outstanding. As long as he continues to be outstanding, I have no reason to use a TA. I never understand the people that spend time on hold, etc. I just call his extension, if he doesn't answer I leave a message, and generally hear back within 30 minutes at the most. Otherwise I just email him if I have questions or needs, and he responds almost immediately, no matter what day of the week it is. The longest I've ever been on hold with NCL is merely the time it takes the phone to ring.

[Sizzlechest]

I always use a TA for the same reasons as mentioned by Joteacher, but my TA also saves me hundreds of dollars over the NCL price.

 

This.

[RickB56]

PCC without a doubt! Mine upgrades me on price drops, takes care of all of the extras I want. All in all she's the greatest

[EyeSeaEwe]

Which is better to book with? I've never cruised on Norwegian before and do not have a PCC. How can I find a good PCC?

 

I have no idea what the rules are here about posting PCCs but if you ask on FB you can find one easily. I would NEVER use a TA. Just not worth the hassle of having a middle man adding an extra layer of complexity to everything. I would much rather be able to place a quick call to my PCC if I need something and get an immediate answer/solution rather than have to call a TA wait for them to call NCL, have them get back to me with any questions NCL has, answer those questions for the TA, have them call NCL back, etc etc etc. WAY too complicated and too much of a hassle.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

To those of you who use a TA and get OBC and such great service, where do you find these people? Are they brick and mortar or online? Like Jeremiah1212, I've talked to a few TAs and they've never offered anything better than what I can get booking myself. A couple cruises ago, a couple roll call members and I became friends and they recommended their TAs. Tried them both and not only did they have nothing to offer that the cruise line didn't already offer, they did constant sales pitches trying to get me to book multiple cruises! I'd love to build a relationship with a TA but so far I haven't seen any advantage...

[Demonyte]

To those of you who use a TA and get OBC and such great service, where do you find these people? Are they brick and mortar or online?

 

 

I chose my TA from Cruise Critic's now removed "shipshop" that was a sponsored listing of TAs.

 

The company I use has brick and mortar presence in NJ but to my understanding they do most of their business remotely online or via phone.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I chose my TA from Cruise Critic's now removed "shipshop" that was a sponsored listing of TAs.

 

The company I use has brick and mortar presence in NJ but to my understanding they do most of their business remotely online or via phone.

 

Thank you. Sometimes I wish we could share the names, but I can't imagine what CC would degrade to if that were allowed. LOL.

[phissy]

We have done it each way in the past. Directly online with NCL, PCC and through a big box travel service (available online and by phone).

 

We are Platinum with NCL and leave for another cruise this weekend (POA )

 

For this trip, we used big box travel service. Saved us $1,000 over NCL online with latitudes pricing.

Have all promotions and additional OBC from agency. Was able to call upsell dept directly and get upsell offer to Suite.

We always price it out to see which is best.

[elliotterae]

I have no idea what the rules are here about posting PCCs but if you ask on FB you can find one easily. I would NEVER use a TA. Just not worth the hassle of having a middle man adding an extra layer of complexity to everything. I would much rather be able to place a quick call to my PCC if I need something and get an immediate answer/solution rather than have to call a TA wait for them to call NCL, have them get back to me with any questions NCL has, answer those questions for the TA, have them call NCL back, etc etc etc. WAY too complicated and too much of a hassle.

 

This a hundred times. Ive tried TAs twice. Once to book Disney and once for a cruise. Both times I regretted it and both times I ended up cancelling and rebooking direct through the company. I am sure there are good Travel agents out there, but the number of bad ones is higher IMO.

Being able to pick up the phone and call direct is worth alot. I think Id have to be getting 75% off to ever try a TA again.

[cdnsteelman]

Well it really depends what you're after.

 

Some would say you have better ability to influence NCL if you use one of their in house people - that wasn't my experience the two times I used a PCC.

 

Others would say a bricks and mortar TA who is a cruise expert can help with insights about certain sailing / ships / lines and earn their keep that way.

 

If you look at my signature you'll see I'm a relatively experienced cruiser and the approach I prefer is doing all the research myself (it's something I enjoy anyway) and then shopping the business around to reputable online discounter TAs. I now have a relationship with three (and they always know they are competing with others) who will allow me to book in Canadian or US dollars and I always end up with a 10-15 per cent better deal at a minimum (sometimes even better) over booking directly with NCL. I have used this method for bookings far in advance, for last minute sales and for normal booking windows and I have always found benefit that suits me. I have also found that "my" TAs are able to influence NCL in my favour when there are pre-final-payment changes I want to make as a a result of changing offers and I have used them to stay on top of NCL for upgrade / upsell offers successfully several times. As an example my most recent booking (Star SE Asia in March 2017) I received everything NCL was offering directly plus a $1,000 price discount plus $200 OBC on an SC for two adults and two kids.

 

That said, while some may try to convince you their way is the right way, the only right way is what you feel comfortable with.

 

Happy cruising,

csm

[Sizzlechest]

To those of you who use a TA and get OBC and such great service, where do you find these people?

 

I was lucky. The one from a "big box" club happened to be spectacular. Other ones from that company are terrible, so I make sure to only do business with her. TA discounts sometimes come from the fact that they get group discounts by prebooking blocks of rooms. That's how they sometimes offer fares below what's on NCL's website. OTOH, one-off cruises like the July 1st Breakaway 9-day cruise has prices that are identical to NCL. Still, there's other money back and discounts to be made.

[Windsailer]

And for those who say you're more likely to get an upsell if you book direclty with NCL - I don't know if that's true. I do know that I've gotten two amazing upsell offers (various Haven suites) for my upcoming Epic cruise that came through my TA. This cruise would be my 4th with NCL but I've cruised many, many times with HAL.

 

I do all my own research and my TA is always happy to help with price reductions, cabin changes, etc. I don't need any hand-holding but she's there if I need help. Such as when NCL re-deployed 5 ships for this year messing up my Epic cruise. And her price is ALWAYS lower than NCL's with some OBC thrown in.

 

As other have said, you have to do what you fell comfortable with.

[Demonyte]

TA discounts sometimes come from the fact that they get group discounts by prebooking blocks of rooms. That's how they sometimes offer fares below what's on NCL's website.

 

 

Yep, that can provide even additional savings on top of everything else, but our TA gives us part of their commission and therefore we always get better prices than cruise lines' published ones.

[nyc12345]

To those of you who use a TA and get OBC and such great service, where do you find these people? Are they brick and mortar or online? Like Jeremiah1212, I've talked to a few TAs and they've never offered anything better than what I can get booking myself. A couple cruises ago, a couple roll call members and I became friends and they recommended their TAs. Tried them both and not only did they have nothing to offer that the cruise line didn't already offer, they did constant sales pitches trying to get me to book multiple cruises! I'd love to build a relationship with a TA but so far I haven't seen any advantage...

 

Ask your friends or people on the ship. That's how I found my TA. Great service and savings of 10% helps. :D

[lhsail]

I found mine by using a website that allows TAs to "compete" for your business. You enter the info re your cruise and it comes back with offers from TAs. I picked one, checked the company out via BBB and having been using that company ever since.

 

Same here. We cruise a few times a year and I have done some pricing with other TAs, direct, etc., but always come back to her due to pricing, OBC and service.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

Ask your friends or people on the ship. That's how I found my TA. Great service and savings of 10% helps. :D

 

I tried that twice and it didn't work out well at all. :( Most of my friends don't travel much--at least not the way I do! They all come to me for advice. :D

[spanishguy1970]

TA for sure. We just got a new agent and she is the greatest, got us the best deal, keeps us updated with new deals and just adds that personal touch we could not find with an NCL PCC..

 

She is also LGBT friendly. We also get the best on board credit offers with our TA.

 

I guess having a good one is a gamble well we won the jackpot with her.

Edited January 27, 2016 by qtaromar1970

[spanishguy1970]

To those of you who use a TA and get OBC and such great service, where do you find these people? Are they brick and mortar or online? Like Jeremiah1212, I've talked to a few TAs and they've never offered anything better than what I can get booking myself. A couple cruises ago, a couple roll call members and I became friends and they recommended their TAs. Tried them both and not only did they have nothing to offer that the cruise line didn't already offer, they did constant sales pitches trying to get me to book multiple cruises! I'd love to build a relationship with a TA but so far I haven't seen any advantage...

 

 

I chose mine after the last agent we had became more and more lazy. I asked question on here and she responded. She does not bother you, she just tells you of upcoming cruises that you may be interested in and the on board credit you will get. For instance on this coming cruise i got 200 dollars on board credit as opposed to what i would have gotten directly with NCL $ 50.00. She costs compare and if prices go down is always in contact with me. I don't have time to be online searching for the best deal.

[Quilting_Cruiser]

I chose mine after the last agent we had became more and more lazy. I asked question on here and she responded. She does not bother you, she just tells you of upcoming cruises that you may be interested in and the on board credit you will get. For instance on this coming cruise i got 200 dollars on board credit as opposed to what i would have gotten directly with NCL $ 50.00. She costs compare and if prices go down is always in contact with me. I don't have time to be online searching for the best deal.

 

 

That sounds nice. If I could find one like that, I'd love it. I have 8 weeks off next year and am planning to do a couple of 7+ day cruises so it would be nice to get the extra little perks. :o

[Windsailer]

 

 

 

When NCL did a mass cancelation in August it really paid to have the right TA and PCC. Some people got excellent deals and got NCL to price protect for legitimate alternatives where others with TA's that were massive such as C..... and or bad ta's pr pcc with NCL got really no deal at all and got screwed out of their vacations. The only people who seemed to make out great were people who had someone good to go to bat for them. Those types of issues don't typically arise where thousands are suddenly screwed but charters on all lines do happen regularly.

 

 

That is absolutely true. I was one of those affected. When I read about the re-deployment of the Epic I emailed my TA. She had just gotten the notice from NCL. For the next three days she worked with NCL to get me (and my bennies) transferred to another Epic cruise - one that wasn't on NCL's approved change-over list. And I got a screaming hot price for a large balcony. If I had booked directly with NCL I doubt very much if the process would have been so successful - based on the horror stories I read about on CC.