canadaman111 Posted February 1, 2016 #1 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I was planning on booking through a travel agent because it is my first cruise and thought they would be able to help me with any questions I had. If I book that way will I still be able to view my reservation and or make payments through the carnival website? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
okgirl Posted February 1, 2016 #2 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I was planning on booking through a travel agent because it is my first cruise and thought they would be able to help me with any questions I had. If I book that way will I still be able to view my reservation and or make payments through the carnival website? You will be able to view your booking but you will have to make payments through your TA and all changed to your booking have to be done via your TA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klfrodo Posted February 1, 2016 #3 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I was planning on booking through a travel agent because it is my first cruise and thought they would be able to help me with any questions I had. If I book that way will I still be able to view my reservation and or make payments through the carnival website? My very first cruise, I was concerned like you and booked with a TA. However, booking with a TA is like having a union job or having a sports agent represent you. You have no control over your booking. All help, comments, questions, etc. MUST be handled by the TA. The TA is now your representative by contract. You can view your reservation, you can buy excursions, etc. but any changes or payments will go thru the TA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadaman111 Posted February 1, 2016 Author #4 Share Posted February 1, 2016 My very first cruise, I was concerned like you and booked with a TA. However, booking with a TA is like having a union job or having a sports agent represent you. You have no control over your booking. All help, comments, questions, etc. MUST be handled by the TA. The TA is now your representative by contract. You can view your reservation, you can buy excursions, etc. but any changes or payments will go thru the TA So would you recommend me booking directly through Carnival? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stargate fan Posted February 1, 2016 #5 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I was planning on booking through a travel agent because it is my first cruise and thought they would be able to help me with any questions I had. If I book that way will I still be able to view my reservation and or make payments through the carnival website? My very first cruise, I was concerned like you and booked with a TA. However, booking with a TA is like having a union job or having a sports agent represent you. You have no control over your booking. All help, comments, questions, etc. MUST be handled by the TA. The TA is now your representative by contract. You can view your reservation, you can buy excursions, etc. but any changes or payments will go thru the TA This is exactly why we have used the same Carnival PVP for over eight years. I like knowing I have total control over my booking. Every time I've seen a price drop I contacted him and he immediately emailed us info with the lower final price. Though I have not experienced this myself, I've read people state that their travel agents charged for transactions like price drops or refused to submit them altogether or were unavailable at the time and lost out of the price drop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stargate fan Posted February 1, 2016 #6 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So would you recommend me booking directly through Carnival? Yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweet Dutch Girl Posted February 1, 2016 #7 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So would you recommend me booking directly through Carnival? NO...unless you have hours to spare, are extremely patient, and are an online junkie. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadaman111 Posted February 1, 2016 Author #8 Share Posted February 1, 2016 NO...unless you have hours to spare, are extremely patient, and are an online junkie. I do love the planning aspect of a trip. Just worried I could miss something Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
riffatsea Posted February 1, 2016 #9 Share Posted February 1, 2016 There are good and bad travel agents like in any profession. We use a niece of ours mostly because we are being nice and giving her the commission she gets from the transaction. We pick our cabin and cruise and then tell her what to book. IF we see price drops or want to upgrade or change anything we tell her and she takes care of it. I don't think she knows any more about Carnival ships than we do. I think we probably know more because we have been on lots of Carnival cruises and she has not! There are some airline sites that will give you FF points if you book cruises on their sites. It is up to you to decide how to book but unless you have some great reason for using the agent I'd just book it myself on line or use a PVP from the Carnival site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elliair Posted February 1, 2016 #10 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I don't book through Carnival or Princess. I book through my Discover card to take advantage of the 5% cash back benefit. Sometimes you get 10% cash back. Never had any trouble with them, but booking through Carnival I had problems. You get different answers for the same question. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klfrodo Posted February 1, 2016 #11 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So would you recommend me booking directly through Carnival? Depends on you. Like I said, my first cruise, we used a TA. Once we became familiar with the nuances of cruise travel, we book directly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hftmrock Posted February 1, 2016 #12 Share Posted February 1, 2016 it depends.... there are MANY MANY MANY more bad TA's than good TAs. if you find the gem TA then I am sure it will be a great experience and they will let you know when there are price drops and they will be available 24/7 for anything you need. if you don't find that gem... it really could be a nightmare. I would go down the middle and get a PVP. they are like a travel agent but they work for carnival. you are able to manage your trip if you want and you can call the PVP to manage the trip. you can choose any way you want. Just my 2 cents Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadaman111 Posted February 1, 2016 Author #13 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So if you book online or through a carnival PVP you then make payments through Carnivals website? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherbear4000 Posted February 1, 2016 #14 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I prefer to book directly with Carnival. If you book through a TA, then everything has to be done through the TA. This includes payments, upgrades, even asking questions. I like managing everything myself and dealing with Carnival directly. It is really easy to log into your account on Carnival's website and make payments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beerman2 Posted February 1, 2016 #15 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So if you book online or through a carnival PVP you then make payments through Carnivals website? Yes Through web or call them directly to make payment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1midsun Posted February 1, 2016 #16 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So if you book online or through a carnival PVP you then make payments through Carnivals website? Yes, or you can call and make them over the phone if you would rather not do it online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st3ph888 Posted February 1, 2016 #17 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So would you recommend me booking directly through Carnival? Personally, I prefer booking through TA. We had a bad experience on-board a RC ship 1.5 years ago with a leaky/moldy smelling room we made no headway @ guest service desk after 2 days and 5+ visits. However, within 2 hours of contacting my TA, our problem was resolved- to my satisfaction. I know it's not common, but personally I like that extra security that it provides. That being said, I go to her knowing what I want to book and she does the leg work. Doesn't cost me anything more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coevan Posted February 1, 2016 #18 Share Posted February 1, 2016 another perk no one has mentioned is on board credit and free Steakhouse dinner we received. Our T.A was wonderful, returned calls and emails immediately. We decided to make the trip a B2B a month after booking and she was great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canadaman111 Posted February 1, 2016 Author #19 Share Posted February 1, 2016 another perk no one has mentioned is on board credit and free Steakhouse dinner we received. Our T.A was wonderful, returned calls and emails immediately. We decided to make the trip a B2B a month after booking and she was great. So that is true? I have read that a TA can get you certain deals or perks that you wouldn't get otherwise... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klfrodo Posted February 1, 2016 #20 Share Posted February 1, 2016 So that is true? I have read that a TA can get you certain deals or perks that you wouldn't get otherwise... The TA gives you (sometimes) these perks on their own. It comes out of their commission. Not worth it in my opinion for me to give up control of my booking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coevan Posted February 1, 2016 #21 Share Posted February 1, 2016 I never felt out of control with the booking. The TA was very responsive, even made 3 way calls to CCL. I forgot to mention the bottle of Champagne in my room, no 2, one from my TA, one for being Platinum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvincruising Posted February 2, 2016 #22 Share Posted February 2, 2016 I never felt out of control with the booking. The TA was very responsive, even made 3 way calls to CCL. I forgot to mention the bottle of Champagne in my room, no 2, one from my TA, one for being Platinum. This and OBC from your TA. Talk to other cruisers and get recommendations for TA's. There are good ones. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruising maniac Posted February 2, 2016 #23 Share Posted February 2, 2016 I have been using a TA for years. I do the research (because I like to), book through the cruise line website, make my payments online, then transfer my booking to my TA within 90 days. I always get an OBC of about 10% of my fare. If the price goes down, I send her an e-mail and she contacts Carnival for a rate adjustment. If she is off, someone else in the office does it for me. They are open from 8 to 8. Not like Carnival's 24 hours but it has worked extremely well for me. Last cruise I used gift cards to pay off the cruise and made 2 room changes. She handled all of that with a phone call or an email. Just ask questions and make sure that they do not charge a fee to make changes to your reservation and that some perk is offered. Maybe get a referral from a friend. If she did not give us the OBC, I would not see an advantage in using a TA but I LOVE my OBC. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darth frosty Posted February 2, 2016 #24 Share Posted February 2, 2016 I like booking thru carnival's website. But I do use a PVP that I really like. Basically I call and give him the info I found online of what cabin and sailing date I want. We really like aft balconies and since there are so few we dont have to worry about price drops (bummer) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachbum53 Posted February 2, 2016 #25 Share Posted February 2, 2016 For our very first cruise (many moons ago), we used a TA. As a perk, he said there would be a bottle of wine waiting for us in our cabin. When we got to our cabin, no bottle of wine.:( We asked the TA about it when we got back, and he apologized, saying he forgot. We "forgot" to use him as a TA after that. Beginning with our second cruise, and ever since then, we have booked directly with the cruise line, using a PVP for Carnival. It's nice that some TA's can offer and do give extras to their customers, such as OBC or other goodies. However, it's not the "norm". Many travel agencies discourage the practice. We like doing our own research for cruises (and air travel), so that we can be well informed. Then, when we're ready, we call our PVP and tell her what we want and she helps us with the booking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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