Can I trust the cruise line on airfares?

[FlyerTalker]

As a further insight into when cruiseline air is higher -- when they contracted for the tickets on the negotiated contract, it was at a price where could then have a retail price of X that would generate a modest profit for their air operations. After that negotiated price was agreed to, market pricing led to open market pricing of Y (being less than X). But the airline is contracted to buy at prices in the neighborhood of X. They aren't going to take a significant loss by reselling at Y.

 

In other words, a cruiseline air ticket is an apple and a ticket direct from the airline is an orange. And you know the old saying about comparing apples and oranges.

[CruisingSince2012]

I have been waiting exactly one week to post this after losing Internet access in a thunderstorm.

 

Mom caled our travel agent to start talks about flights for our cruise next year. After a message exchange, they finally could have a phone conversation on August 30. The TA checked the cruise line's flight offers to see if any were available yet for a Budapest-Prague itinerary in June 2019. Good news: they are available.. More good news: one would cost only $981 in the main economy cabin on Delta.

 

Or so we thought. After scheduling a 10:00 appointment for the next morning, the TA called again to say she was afraid the deal wout be snatched up quickly and not last that long so she asked Mom if we could come to her office immediately. The time was shortly after 1:00. We got in the car as quickly as possible and were at her desk by 1:30. Then . . .

 

The TA called AMA Waterways after talking to us a few minutes. She was told the deal was off. The $981 ticket was $2000. Delta's retail price for it is $1900+ (I don't know the exact number) so it would have been better not to book it through AMA Waterways. After making her point clear to the person at the other end she was just given the $981 offer for it less than half an hour ago, the TA was still unable to get the price back to that. She was put on hold and spent the whole time ranting. All she could get from that phone call were reasons to use the word crap.

[FlyerTalker]

Curious about a travel agent that would only conduct business, both in person and at a specified appointment time. Especially when there is a supposedly great deal on the table.

 

But then, what do I know?

[Globaliser]

I think that CruisingSince2012 needs a different travel agent, one who's competent in booking airline tickets.

[Hlitner]

I would quickly "fire" that travel agent and take my business elsewhere. The agencies we use (there are 4) would all respond within the hour....or perhaps a few hours if it is a very busy time. But if I have a specific question on a booking I can get immediate answers from their Customer Service Desk (a common thing with cruise agencies).

 

Hank

[fbgd]

The saga continues! Given the number of threads discussing this one trip perhaps we should request a sub forum of "Cruise Air" be created to handle them all!

 

Oh, and I'd also fire your TA. Sounds a complete buffoon. Normally I'd say these kind of simple flights don't need a TA but then normally I'd say these simple flights don't need four threads devoted to them either so what do I know...

[CruisingSince2012]

Curious about a travel agent that would only conduct business, both in person and at a specified appointment time. Especially when there is a supposedly great deal on the table.

 

But then, what do I know?

 

Our travel agent obviously cannot book flights over the phone after a short conversadtion with one of the two travelers. For me to get get involved (which anyone who read my ATL layover story knows is important) it had to be done in person. IMO, "crap" was a good word to use because she was criticizing the cruise line for breaching a contract with the travel agency. I don't know what you mean by "only does business."

[CruisingSince2012]

I would quickly "fire" that travel agent and take my business elsewhere. The agencies we use (there are 4) would all respond within the hour....or perhaps a few hours if it is a very busy time. But if I have a specific question on a booking I can get immediate answers from their Customer Service Desk (a common thing with cruise agencies).

 

My TA did everything within minutes, not hours. What happened was my TA was on her phone when Mom called so it went straight to voicemail. Then we were not home when she called back a few hours later. Neither Mom nor the TA screwed up. The cruise line did.

 

BTW I have one of the best travel agents for her company in a 14-state region, She is paid by the travel agency, not her clients.

[#1cruiseaholic]

I have a question concerning the cruise airfare specifically air2sea. My husband just put a deposit on a Transpacific cruise for 2020 from Sydney to Honolulu. We have done a TA and was able to take advantage of flights to Rome. If we book our flight from Pittsburgh will air2sea permit an overnight stop in Hawaii and then continue to Sydney? I would love to break this flight up into sections. Since the one way tickets are usually much cheaper it would be nice to take advantage of the cruise air, but will book my own air if I can't break up the flight.

Appreciate any info available.

[waterbug123]

Our travel agent obviously cannot book flights over the phone after a short conversadtion with one of the two travelers.

 

Why not? Is there some reason she can't get your booking information over the phone? Could she not get you on the phone?

 

 

Neither Mom nor the TA screwed up. The cruise line did.

 

 

How so? You yourself said a half hour passed from the time your mom was on the phone with the TA and the TA saw the rate, and when you arrived in person and the TA called the cruise air person. The TA told your mom the rate was good and wouldn't last and apparently it didn't. How is that a screw up by the cruise line?

[Globaliser]

Our travel agent obviously cannot book flights over the phone after a short conversadtion with one of the two travelers.

Why not? Most air travel that is booked by phone is booked like this.

 

You're only buying an air ticket, not the Crown Jewels. It shouldn't be a tenth as difficult as you are making it.

[CruisingSince2012]

Why not? Is there some reason she can't get your booking information over the phone? Could she not get you on the phone?

 

How so? You yourself said a half hour passed from the time your mom was on the phone with the TA and the TA saw the rate, and when you arrived in person and the TA called the cruise air person. The TA told your mom the rate was good and wouldn't last and apparently it didn't. How is that a screw up by the cruise line?

 

It should not be so hard to understand. It needed to be a three-way conversation, which is impossible on the phone. It also is not possible for the agent to talk to us and the cruise line at the same time. It was "I will call the Ama Waterways and call you back" wehn Mom was on the phone. Obviously the only way to get everything done quickly was having us at her desk.

 

The part that made everyone mad was this: Ama Waterways still had the great deal on at 1:30. The TA could see it online. It was not a simple case of finding it too late. It was 100% the cruise line's fault because the TA said, "it did not disappear." If this was just being a few minutes late, the TA would not see it anymore while she was on hold and ranting to us.

[CruisingSince2012]

Why not? Most air travel that is booked by phone is booked like this.

 

You're only buying an air ticket, not the Crown Jewels. It shouldn't be a tenth as difficult as you are making it.

 

I am not the one making it so difficult. The cruise line is.

[fbgd]

It needed to be a three-way conversation, which is impossible on the phone.

 

It certainly isn't impossible. I have 7 way calls with people all across the US multiple times a day!

 

Even a simple iPhone has been able to do more than 2 way calls for years!

 

There's no feasible reason why your TA couldn't have had you and your mother on a three way call and then put you on hold whilst she called the cruiseline.

[FlyerTalker]

It should not be so hard to understand. It needed to be a three-way conversation, which is impossible on the phone.

 

Actually, it's pretty easy. It's called (amazingly) three-way calling, and has been around since the last century. I guess it hasnt' made its way to Gainesville yet.

 

It also is not possible for the agent to talk to us and the cruise line at the same time. It was "I will call the Ama Waterways and call you back" wehn Mom was on the phone. Obviously the only way to get everything done quickly was having us at her desk.

How about a simple "If you get a price below XXX, book it"? Or did the TA insist that you explicitly agree to a very specific price, and that each of you do the same? If so, those are some interesting business practices in a fast-paced world working two sides at once. Or did you insist on a specific price before you would agree to it?

 

The part that made everyone mad was this: Ama Waterways still had the great deal on at 1:30. The TA could see it online. It was not a simple case of finding it too late. It was 100% the cruise line's fault because the TA said, "it did not disappear." If this was just being a few minutes late, the TA would not see it anymore while she was on hold and ranting to us.

 

Your TA made the initial fatal mistake. At his first contact with AMA, he should have said "I'll take it....put it on hold for XX hours while I get final confirmation from my client." At least that's my view. But then, what do I know?

[Globaliser]

The part that made everyone mad was this: Ama Waterways still had the great deal on at 1:30. The TA could see it online. It was not a simple case of finding it too late. It was 100% the cruise line's fault because the TA said, "it did not disappear." If this was just being a few minutes late, the TA would not see it anymore while she was on hold and ranting to us.

Are you saying that after the cruise line told your TA that the offer was not available, it was still showing on the website?

 

In that case, that's almost certainly from the website simply not having been updated quickly. That happens everywhere. Even airlines do it with listings of special offers; sometimes they are sold out before the offer is taken down from the website. If it could not be booked, it could not be booked.

 

In fact, it's possible that it was already sold out by the time your TA first saw it, but your TA wasn't exactly speedy in trying to grab a "price almost too good to be true" offer for you.

 

I am not the one making it so difficult. The cruise line is.

No, it isn't. You've been angsting on here for something like a week, and I think that this is the first time that the cruise line has been contacted about air travel. You could have long ago booked some perfectly decent and sensible itinerary that allows for all of your limitations and restrictions for something like $1,300 per person (sorry, I haven't priced it again for this post).

[terry&mike]

As someone who handles these same business transactions for clients regularly, I'd like to make a suggestion for the future.

First, whatever air promotion AMA is offering with a booking, can be added to the booking at the time of the initial reservation. For example, free international air, that may require a $395 surcharge from your home city - this is set up with your initial booking reservation. Later, you can chose to roll the dice and take whatever air routing AMA provides you with, or you can customize (usually with a fee) AMA's air program to better suit your needs.

Second, the best way I have found to handle this sort of multi person/company phone call would be to call both traveling companions from my cell phone on a 3 way call from my office, and then put the cell phone on speaker mode. I then call the provider, such as AMA, on my office phone (usually I don't put the provider on speaker mode, but relay the information to the client during the call, to keep things focused). I know it is too late for this particular instance, but possibly it will simplify things for you in the future.

Happy travels!

[CruisingSince2012]

How about a simple "If you get a price below XXX, book it"? Or did the TA insist that you explicitly agree to a very specific price, and that each of you do the same? If so, those are some interesting business practices in a fast-paced world working two sides at once. Or did you insist on a specific price before you would agree to it.

 

The TA (a woman) was trying to get a lower price from the cruise line than the airline. This was not a specific number at the beginning. Once she was told on the phone a Delta flight over $1,800 at face value would cost only $981 through Ama, the specific price mattered a lot. It was probably our only chance of booking a flight for less than $1,000.

 

Your TA made the initial fatal mistake. At her first contact with AMA, she should have said "I'll take it....put it on hold for XX hours while I get final confirmation from my client." At least that's my view. But then, what do I know?

That is easy to say in hindsight, but do you know if the cruise line would have held it? The TA said this has happened to her before with the same cruise line. She will request a 24-hour hold from now on. For now she is not booking Ama Waterways cruises to any of her clilents.

[FlyerTalker]

The TA (a woman) was trying to get a lower price from the cruise line than the airline. This was not a specific number at the beginning. Once she was told on the phone a Delta flight over $1,800 at face value would cost only $981 through Ama, the specific price mattered a lot. It was probably our only chance of booking a flight for less than $1,000.

 

And your TA, when given the opportunity to take a huge savings, let it pass without grabbing it. If the goal was to get a lower price than direct from DL, it was found. And then it was tossed away.

 

But somehow, that's the cruiseline's fault.

[CruisingSince2012]

And your TA, when given the opportunity to take a huge savings, let it pass without grabbing it. If the goal was to get a lower price than direct from DL, it was found. And then it was tossed away.

 

But somehow, that's the cruise line's fault.

 

You are still not getting it. I would not even mention this at all if that was the case. Apparently, based on all the responses, I am the only Cruise Critic poster who was ever in this situation with a cruise line, because nobody understands what the TA criticized AMA Waterways for. Is this something that you can only comprehend by being at the office with me?

[Globaliser]

... because nobody understands what the TA criticized AMA Waterways for.

I think that the lack of understanding starts with not understanding that the travel agent did not do well on this occasion. As terry&mike says above, there were different ways of doing it which even we non-travel agents could think of.

 

And if the travel agent has used this one slip-up on her part to refuse now to book AMA for anyone (irrespective, it seems, of whether or not they might be interested in booking their air travel with AMA), then that's behaviour that reeks of petulance and sour grapes.

 

Anyway, if it was important to you to try to get the air fare down below $1,000, why are you still insisting on flying from/to GNV when that's going to cost you something like $600 more per person than other viable itineraries? The way the priorities are being set out doesn't seem to make sense.

[CruisingSince2012]

I never said anything about wanting airfare under $1,000. In fact I previously posted a question here about booking seats above economy if it is not booked through the cruise line. The GNV part is all on Mom. If I could drive at all, I could drive two hours from an international airport. I am sure the confusion stems from other people not knowing what it means for a deal to still be available, but the cruise line refusing to honor it and instead jacking up the airfare on that ticket - as opposed to missing out because of a deal not being available anymore.

[FlyerTalker]

Must

 

 

stop

 

 

beating

 

 

head

 

 

on

 

 

wall

[CruisingSince2012]

Refusing to sell AMA Waterways cruises temporarily is forcing the cruise line to correct the cruise line's mistake with airfare becuase they will not accept losing business from one of the best travel agents in 14 states. It is like the expressoin "money talks" on her end.

 

I asked the TA if everyone does it or certain companies. She said not everyone does that, citing HAL and Tauck as two cruise lines that never change the priceo fa specific flight half an hour after offering an amazing deal to her.

 

During our meeting at the office, she requested longer layovers in Atlanta and Amsterdam. Makes me think it was not a good flight anyway.

[waterbug123]

The TA said this has happened to her before with the same cruise line. She will request a 24-hour hold from now on. For now she is not booking Ama Waterways cruises to any of her clilents.

 

If it's happened before, I don't know why she wasn't already asking for a 24 hour hold. Your TA sounds a few cards short of a deck to me. She's had issues with a particular cruise line's air department before, yet never learned to ask for a hold when she sees a good price. But now? Suddenly just asking for a hold isn't enough. No, she is going to the far extreme and declaring that even though she apparently does a ton of business with AMA she isn't going to book her clients on them anymore. She is taking her toys and leaving the sandbox.

 

On a side note, I can't help but wonder if her show of yelling at the cruiseline while you sat in her office was just that- a show, for your benefit. You've come across on this board as somewhat contrary, lacking in basic understanding of how various things work in the airline world, expressing first one priority for flights, then another and so on. I can't help but wonder if your TA has experienced the same frustration with this as some on this board have, and was inwardly rolling her eyes the whole time, and just putting on a show for you.

 

I am sure the confusion stems from other people not knowing what it means for a deal to still be available, but the cruise line refusing to honor it

 

Actually YOU don't seem to understand that companies don't always update their websites every minute. It is far from uncommon to see a price online and then find out it's outdated.