How do you get a better deal than thru the Cruise line?

[mafig]

Lot's of people were 'stranded' because of 9/11. None of the cruise lines or airlines were staffed to handle that kind of an incident.

 

 

Yes, but only one cruise line went out of business because of it. Their business model was to by-pass travel agents .... book only with them.

[dockman]

First, you are assuming that we, as customers, know exactly how much of a commission a TA gets from HAL, much less how much of that commission that TA is giving up to give to the client. From what I understand, there is not a standard rate given by HAL to the various TA's. Sales agents, in most fields, operate on commissions and have long been willing to cut their commissions to make a sale. We don't know how much profit the TA makes on a sale, so your dire predictions and warning may not have much merit.

 

Secondly, commissions are a "HUGE" expense? Surely you don't think that HAL does not build these commissions into the fares that we are charged.

 

As for HAL being shortchanged by having to pay out commissions to TA's, there is also the consideration that HAL undoubtedly benefits by relieving the cruise line of having to deal with the customer, post-deposit. I can't even imagine how much time that frees up, and it frees up time which can be used by the PCC's to bring in new customer, even if ultimately the booking is transferred to a TA.

 

 

standard travel agent commissions from cruise lines range from 10 to approx 15% plus some huge volume agencies get additional overrides....this has been the case for many many years.

 

agent commissions are indeed paid as the agents theoretically take a load off of HAL staff having to answer question after question on the phone...however when you call HAL and go through all the questions and selection etc and then after HAL staff has spent considerable time and effort and THEN the booking gets turned over to an agent who thus far has done nothing other than agree to rebate part of the commission to you this is not what agent commissions were ever intended to be used for...the idea of agent commissions is that your agent...NOT HAL staff will answer all your questions, collect and remit the payment etc.

 

my point is that as commission rebating becomes more and more widespread the cruise lines, just like the airlines, may decide to change commission payments or policies.

 

yes commissions are built into the fares but every direct booking with HAL with no agent commission is more money to the bottom line of HAL.....approx 22% of CCL bookings are now direct with zero agent commission and that number is going to only grow as people become more computer/internet savy....

 

and yes commissions are a HUGE expense to most all cruise lines....if this expense results in more bookings and less demands on HAL staff the expense can be justified...but if commission payments are ultimately used by agents to provide rebates to customers that is a slippery slope indeed.

 

HAL or any cruise line could very easily offer a discount or more perks to those clients who book direct....this would anger many big agency consortiums or OTAs but agents would do well to remember that an agent is a middleman and the suppliers can and do change the rules and amounts re commission payments..

 

I suspect that within ten years the vast majority of cruise bookings will be done online direct with the cruise lines via virtual assistants....the cruise lines have massive databases now of all past passengers and even online inquires and can email special offers to millions of clients and potential clients very cheaply with the click of a mouse...and just like the airlines have done by having clients pick and book their own flights and even do their own seat assignments etc (all tasks which used to be performed by paid airline res staff or agents) the cruise lines bean counters no doubt dream of the days when they can utilize technology to reduce their distribution costs.....

 

not a matter of IF but of when

[RuthC]

What was the cruise line in the early 2000's that sought to do away with booking with TAs. Regent 7 Seas? Something like that?

 

Out of business now.

 

Oceania, Azamara and Princess (I think) bought their ships.

Renaissance.

[Tampa Girl]

standard travel agent commissions from cruise lines range from 10 to approx 15% plus some huge volume agencies get additional overrides....this has been the case for many many years.

 

agent commissions are indeed paid as the agents theoretically take a load off of HAL staff having to answer question after question on the phone...however when you call HAL and go through all the questions and selection etc and then after HAL staff has spent considerable time and effort and THEN the booking gets turned over to an agent who thus far has done nothing other than agree to rebate part of the commission to you this is not what agent commissions were ever intended to be used for...the idea of agent commissions is that your agent...NOT HAL staff will answer all your questions, collect and remit the payment etc.

 

my point is that as commission rebating becomes more and more widespread the cruise lines, just like the airlines, may decide to change commission payments or policies.

 

yes commissions are built into the fares but every direct booking with HAL with no agent commission is more money to the bottom line of HAL.....approx 22% of CCL bookings are now direct with zero agent commission and that number is going to only grow as people become more computer/internet savy....

 

and yes commissions are a HUGE expense to most all cruise lines....if this expense results in more bookings and less demands on HAL staff the expense can be justified...but if commission payments are ultimately used by agents to provide rebates to customers that is a slippery slope indeed.

 

HAL or any cruise line could very easily offer a discount or more perks to those clients who book direct....this would anger many big agency consortiums or OTAs but agents would do well to remember that an agent is a middleman and the suppliers can and do change the rules and amounts re commission payments..

 

I suspect that within ten years the vast majority of cruise bookings will be done online direct with the cruise lines via virtual assistants....the cruise lines have massive databases now of all past passengers and even online inquires and can email special offers to millions of clients and potential clients very cheaply with the click of a mouse...and just like the airlines have done by having clients pick and book their own flights and even do their own seat assignments etc (all tasks which used to be performed by paid airline res staff or agents) the cruise lines bean counters no doubt dream of the days when they can utilize technology to reduce their distribution costs.....

 

not a matter of IF but of when

 

Perhaps. But maybe then HAL would follow Celebrity's example and start providing attractive discounts. One can hope. In the meantime, I will book through a TA and enjoy whatever discounts they can offer.

[dockman]

Renaissance.

 

 

yes renaissance..

 

.but the internet gets better and better at answering questions and of course the younger folks are usually very comfortable booking online and even some of us older folks are getting more and more computer savy.....cruises also are not the big mystery to consumers they once were ...there are really only three big players...CCL, Roy Carib, and NCL and they will ultimately determine what if any commissions agents will receive...the airline commission cuts were started by American and many at the time said american will buckle under to agent demands....didn't happen as United, Delta and the rest quickly followed suit....

 

my point in this discussion was that having people boast online about what a big rebate they got from an agent is not all that wise for those that would like to see the agent models continue.... it is inevitable that commission payments will go down and incentives to book direct online with virtual agents will increase....technology love it or hate it is going to change cruise booking models in the coming years....

[dee2673]

Thank you. Will check that out.

 

 

 

We went over and over our card usage and got this card last December after reading about on Cruise Critic. The reserve . We were initially put off by the 450.00 annual fee. But we are very happy we got it. The signing bonus was 100,000 points. We have used the Chase Ultimate rewards site to book travel. We booked a RT flight to NYC from Seattle, a RT to San Francisco and an expensive hotel in SF. We still have 55,000+ points left. You also get a 300.00 per year travel credit which makes the fee $150.00. Great card

 

 

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[RocketMan275]

We went over and over our card usage and got this card last December after reading about on Cruise Critic. The reserve . We were initially put off by the 450.00 annual fee. But we are very happy we got it. The signing bonus was 100,000 points. We have used the Chase Ultimate rewards site to book travel. We booked a RT flight to NYC from Seattle, a RT to San Francisco and an expensive hotel in SF. We still have 55,000+ points left. You also get a 300.00 per year travel credit which makes the fee $150.00. Great card

 

 

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Interesting. I was curious about how their rewards site worked, if it was a real incentive or not.

 

We expect our cruise/travel habits to change within the next couple of years. We expect to be cruising more and flying to the ports rather than driving. Up till now, the Reserve card just didn't make much sense but with the changes we're anticipating it looks like a real winner.

 

Thanks for the information.

[RocketMan275]

yes renaissance..

 

my point in this discussion was that having people boast online about what a big rebate they got from an agent is not all that wise for those that would like to see the agent models continue.... it is inevitable that commission payments will go down and incentives to book direct online with virtual agents will increase....technology love it or hate it is going to change cruise booking models in the coming years....

 

Perhaps, but a reading of this thread should demonstrate that TA that discount are not all that common and are not that easy to find. TA are preventing by the cruise lines from advertising prices other than those offered by the cruise lines. One cannot find a discount by an internet search. One has to contact each TA directly which can be tedious. Discounting is just not all that pervasive. It isn't at all clear that discounting is so common that it will upset the entire booking and travel industry.

[mllewis48]

Interesting. I was curious about how their rewards site worked, if it was a real incentive or not.

 

 

 

We expect our cruise/travel habits to change within the next couple of years. We expect to be cruising more and flying to the ports rather than driving. Up till now, the Reserve card just didn't make much sense but with the changes we're anticipating it looks like a real winner.

 

 

 

Thanks for the information.

 

 

 

Research the card on Chase's webpage, there is much more to it than you think. If you do not have TSA Pre check or Global Entry it also pays for that plus the travel benefits above the trip protection. We do not buy insurance now since the card covers most of what we need.

 

 

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[RJ2002]

Interesting. I was curious about how their rewards site worked, if it was a real incentive or not.

 

We expect our cruise/travel habits to change within the next couple of years. We expect to be cruising more and flying to the ports rather than driving. Up till now, the Reserve card just didn't make much sense but with the changes we're anticipating it looks like a real winner.

 

Thanks for the information.

 

One word of caution about Chases's travel portal... be sure to do some comparison shopping on other sites before you pull the trigger and use your points through Chase. I have found that sometimes it wasn't necessary the best deal.

 

That being said, I am a big fan of the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. Lots of benefits for those who travel frequently.

[Tinknock50]

No non-refundable fare. I checked with three different reps. (because of the thread about this very subject here on cc) and they all confirmed that it is NOT a non-refundable rate. One rep from HAL said it was a combination of mariner (we are 4*) and casino discount, but if I wanted a still lower rate I could do a non refundable and save about $200 more pp, which a non - refundable is not for me. (Maybe if it was just before final payment I would do it, but with this cruise being 1.5 years away, no way!

And no online TA could offer a lower price? I am at a total loss as to what is happening there.:confused:

[Tinknock50]

standard travel agent commissions from cruise lines range from 10 to approx 15% plus some huge volume agencies get additional overrides....this has been the case for many many years.

 

agent commissions are indeed paid as the agents theoretically take a load off of HAL staff having to answer question after question on the phone...however when you call HAL and go through all the questions and selection etc and then after HAL staff has spent considerable time and effort and THEN the booking gets turned over to an agent who thus far has done nothing other than agree to rebate part of the commission to you this is not what agent commissions were ever intended to be used for...the idea of agent commissions is that your agent...NOT HAL staff will answer all your questions, collect and remit the payment etc.

 

my point is that as commission rebating becomes more and more widespread the cruise lines, just like the airlines, may decide to change commission payments or policies.

 

yes commissions are built into the fares but every direct booking with HAL with no agent commission is more money to the bottom line of HAL.....approx 22% of CCL bookings are now direct with zero agent commission and that number is going to only grow as people become more computer/internet savy....

 

and yes commissions are a HUGE expense to most all cruise lines....if this expense results in more bookings and less demands on HAL staff the expense can be justified...but if commission payments are ultimately used by agents to provide rebates to customers that is a slippery slope indeed.

 

HAL or any cruise line could very easily offer a discount or more perks to those clients who book direct....this would anger many big agency consortiums or OTAs but agents would do well to remember that an agent is a middleman and the suppliers can and do change the rules and amounts re commission payments..

 

I suspect that within ten years the vast majority of cruise bookings will be done online direct with the cruise lines via virtual assistants....the cruise lines have massive databases now of all past passengers and even online inquires and can email special offers to millions of clients and potential clients very cheaply with the click of a mouse...and just like the airlines have done by having clients pick and book their own flights and even do their own seat assignments etc (all tasks which used to be performed by paid airline res staff or agents) the cruise lines bean counters no doubt dream of the days when they can utilize technology to reduce their distribution costs.....

 

not a matter of IF but of when

".....as commission rebating becomes more and more widespread the cruise lines, just like the airlines, may decide to change commission payments or policies."

 

That has been "widespread" since I started cruising in the '90s . I doubt the cruise lines just found out about it and will change for that reason. Not to say they won't change how they do things of course.

[RocketMan275]

One word of caution about Chases's travel portal... be sure to do some comparison shopping on other sites before you pull the trigger and use your points through Chase. I have found that sometimes it wasn't necessary the best deal.

 

That being said, I am a big fan of the Chase Sapphire Reserve card. Lots of benefits for those who travel frequently.

 

Good information. Several have noted that 10% discounts can be found from the right TA. How does this portal compare to that kind of discount. I realize it's probably case by case, but in general?

[Tinknock50]

Perhaps. But maybe then HAL would follow Celebrity's example and start providing attractive discounts. One can hope. In the meantime, I will book through a TA and enjoy whatever discounts they can offer.

 

I have been wanting to cruise with Celebrity again for some time. I have not seen any attractive discounts from Celebrity in a long time, so I keep coming back to HAL for the better pricing. I attribute that to the policy of no TA discounting Celebrity adopted a few years ago. So I hope HAL doesn't follow Celebrity's example too much!

[RocketMan275]

Research the card on Chase's webpage, there is much more to it than you think. If you do not have TSA Pre check or Global Entry it also pays for that plus the travel benefits above the trip protection. We do not buy insurance now since the card covers most of what we need.

 

 

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Thank you. I'm fairly familiar with the card. It just hasn't made sense for us but as we will be travelling far more, it just might.

[mllewis48]

Thank you. I'm fairly familiar with the card. It just hasn't made sense for us but as we will be travelling far more, it just might.

 

 

 

Totally understand since retirement we travel quite a bit so it does benefit our needs.

 

 

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[tgg]

Thank you. I'm fairly familiar with the card. It just hasn't made sense for us but as we will be travelling far more, it just might.

 

We thought that $450 per year was a bit high for us to pay for the Chase Sapphire Reserve card - so we went with the $95 per year Chase Sapphire Rewards card. Obviously when you pay less for the card the benefits are less inclusive. But we were particularly interested in the $10,000 per passenger cancellation insurance. We pair that with GeoBlue Trekker international medical coverage insurance plan. This combination, originally suggested by a fellow CruiseCritic member, works perfectly for us.

 

What we hadn't known is that the price of travel insurance jumps astronomically as you get older. We now save hundreds of dollars per trip by using the Chase card paired with GeoBlue.

[mllewis48]

We thought that $450 per year was a bit high for us to pay for the Chase Sapphire Reserve card - so we went with the $95 per year Chase Sapphire Rewards card. Obviously when you pay less for the card the benefits are less inclusive. But we were particularly interested in the $10,000 per passenger cancellation insurance. We pair that with GeoBlue Trekker international medical coverage insurance plan. This combination, originally suggested by a fellow CruiseCritic member, works perfectly for us.

 

 

 

What we hadn't known is that the price of travel insurance jumps astronomically as you get older. We now save hundreds of dollars per trip by using the Chase card paired with GeoBlue.

 

 

 

Even though it's $450 you get $300 travel credit every year plus the other perks so if you travel it's more of a value than the Preferred card and you get the Trip Medical benefits. One nice cruise and you pay for it by not having to buy other travel insurance? Everyone has their own needs [emoji41]

 

 

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[RJ2002]

Good information. Several have noted that 10% discounts can be found from the right TA. How does this portal compare to that kind of discount. I realize it's probably case by case, but in general?

 

Chase's Ultimate Rewards travel booking portal only covers air, hotels, cars and "activities" (excursions). I did not realize that it didn't include cruises until I just looked, prompted by your question.

 

I also did a few "dummy" bookings just now for both hotels and air, and their portal values your Chase points at $0.15/per point. I don't want to start a debate on the value of frequent flyer points, but I'll just say that $0.15 is the value that I've often seen mentioned as the "average" value of FF points. Couple of other observations... not all hotels or flights come up on a Chase search vs. other online TA sites. Also, you apparently can't book premium cabin flights.

 

Like a lot of things, I think the value of using Chase points through their travel booking portal is based on what is important to the individual. For us, we generally transfer the Chase points to one of their travel partners (airlines, hotels), and then book the reward. Again, you have to do your homework to determine the best "deal". ;)

[RocketMan275]

Chase's Ultimate Rewards travel booking portal only covers air, hotels, cars and "activities" (excursions). I did not realize that it didn't include cruises until I just looked, prompted by your question.

 

I also did a few "dummy" bookings just now for both hotels and air, and their portal values your Chase points at $0.15/per point. I don't want to start a debate on the value of frequent flyer points, but I'll just say that $0.15 is the value that I've often seen mentioned as the "average" value of FF points. Couple of other observations... not all hotels or flights come up on a Chase search vs. other online TA sites. Also, you apparently can't book premium cabin flights.

 

Like a lot of things, I think the value of using Chase points through their travel booking portal is based on what is important to the individual. For us, we generally transfer the Chase points to one of their travel partners (airlines, hotels), and then book the reward. Again, you have to do your homework to determine the best "deal". ;)

 

I much prefer the simpler cash back cards.

[Tampa Girl]

I have been wanting to cruise with Celebrity again for some time. I have not seen any attractive discounts from Celebrity in a long time, so I keep coming back to HAL for the better pricing. I attribute that to the policy of no TA discounting Celebrity adopted a few years ago. So I hope HAL doesn't follow Celebrity's example too much!

 

I have no personal knowledge of Celebrity's discounts. A friend of ours who cruises on Celebrity said that Tuesdays seem to be the magic day to call Celebrity for good discounts. Worth a try. The discounts come, according to him, directly from Celebrity, not a TA.

[BarbarianPaul]

I only book directly through my PCC at Holland America. Its much easier for me to contact them directly and get all my questions answered, rather than wait 2-3 days for a TA. Also, once I discover a reduction in cabin fare (and I check), it's easier to just call myself and get on obc or refund. I hate dealing through a middleman, and the obc my TA offers hasn't been enough to justify the inconvenience. And no one knows the ships better than the holland America PCCs.

 

 

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[BarbarianPaul]

I have no personal knowledge of Celebrity's discounts. A friend of ours who cruises on Celebrity said that Tuesdays seem to be the magic day to call Celebrity for good discounts. Worth a try. The discounts come, according to him, directly from Celebrity, not a TA.

 

 

 

I absolutely love Celebrity, but most of their deals involve the addition of extra perks, and when I check on a cruise I've already booked, I usually find that the cruise fare has been raised over and above the cost of whatever extras they're throwing in. Or the discounted cabins are in an undesirable category. It's kind of a shell game.

 

 

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[albingirl]

I only book directly through my PCC at Holland America. Its much easier for me to contact them directly and get all my questions answered, rather than wait 2-3 days for a TA. Also, once I discover a reduction in cabin fare (and I check), it's easier to just call myself and get on obc or refund. I hate dealing through a middleman, and the obc my TA offers hasn't been enough to justify the inconvenience. And no one knows the ships better than the holland America PCCs.

 

 

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I used to feel the way you do, but now the price differential is significant enough to move me toward a TA.

[Tampa Girl]

I absolutely love Celebrity, but most of their deals involve the addition of extra perks, and when I check on a cruise I've already booked, I usually find that the cruise fare has been raised over and above the cost of whatever extras they're throwing in. Or the discounted cabins are in an undesirable category. It's kind of a shell game.

 

 

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When my friend was considering booking on Celebrity recently, I ran a check on my usual online website, and none of the offers were discounted. It seems that Celebrity pretty much controls its fares.