MSC and Travel Agents?

[BermudaBound2014]

Just now, NCteacherlovescruising said:

Not true. Mine won’t book MSC, NCL or Carnival. 

 

This thread was resurrected from 2019, lots has changed post-covid. So many TA's got pimped that some are being more selective and only working with the lines that offer the highest commission.

[mscdivina2016]

On 6/5/2019 at 7:13 PM, jkgourmet said:

 

thanks for the explanation.  Mind sharing what more detail about what I highlighted above?  (As I said, it's been 5-6 years since we did the Divina.)

They constantly screw up and do not care about customers. 

They are horrible when it comes to customer service.

You call, your booking gets screwed up so use a TA.

Things that have happened personally to me.

Owed money despite being paid in full over a year in advance? 

They changed the date of my cruise with out telling me.

Changed my embarkation to a different country.

Added extra days to a cruise after I had airfare. They then added another day. Cost me change fees twice .

Downgraded my cabin from yacht club to a regular balcony with no reduction in fare.

 

Great product but let a TA handle the constant BS.

[CruisingWalter]

On 6/5/2019 at 5:25 PM, jkgourmet said:

Has MSC stopped participating with agents? 

 

Nope. Some TAs stopped carrying MSC when all the negative reviews started dropping, and I understand their commissions are not all that great. Makes sense when you look at the pricing. But there are plenty of TAs out there still supporting MSC. We got away from the 'big box' TAs and moved to more personalized experiences now. 

[CruisinMaterial]

Certain TAs carry MSC. Now that they're growing their presence in the US, they're getting more taking a look. Their international product, especially Europe is more appealing to some folks. It's cultured cruising. As for customer service, all the cruise lines have slipped in their pre-cruise operations. NCL has really fallen on their faces lately in all respects and MSC seems ready, willing and able to fill the void. I remember when I first started cruising, TAs didn't book NCL and now NCL is pushed heavily in the Northeast USA. Every cruise line that grows has the growing pains. However, what MSC doesn't have to deal with is the stock market investors so they're maintaining their standards while the rest are racing to the bottom to appease those same investors. Any TA not wanting to book MSC is doing a disservice to themselves and will lose their clients when they do switch.

[CruiserGrandma2]

On 6/5/2019 at 7:58 PM, Happy Cruiser 6143 said:

My TA has booked me with MSC twice and says I'm on my own after this.  She says they are an absolute nightmare to deal with and the amount of time it takes is unreal.  I imagine other agents feel the same way.

My TA has also booked 2 cruises on MSC for us.  My agent feels the same way as yours! 

[MsTabbyKats]

16 hours ago, CruiserGrandma2 said:

My TA has also booked 2 cruises on MSC for us.  My agent feels the same way as yours! 

My agent books for me, but won't go on it herself.  She says "too many problems...."