Should we transfer our cruise booking to a Travel Agent?

[KBrote]

We have booked our first Oceania Cruise. It's a 10 day Greek Islands and Turkish Riviera cruise, October 24 - Nov. 3, 2023. We booked over the phone and have been speaking with Al Hernandez, one of the Oceania Reps. My husband and I will be using miles for our flights and our friends we are traveling with will be booking their air fare and plan to buy business class flights. So far we have done all the work ourselves as I am the one in charge of all travel plans in the family. I am comfortable booking trains in Italy, VRBO rentals in France, renting cars and driving all over Europe, etc. But now I am wondering if there is any advantage in transferring our booking to a travel agent? I am wondering about shipboard credit, getting good airfare for our friends, help with pre and post cruise hotels. We are spending 3 nights in Athens pre cruise and 4 nights on Santorini post cruise. I already have done research on hotels so not sure we need help there.

 

If you use a travel agent for your cruises what are the benefits? Do you think they can add to the perks on the cruise? We are in a low category...C2, Deluxe Ocean View, so we won't qualify for much. We are not doing O Life and chose Cruise Only fare so we will be responsible for all transfers, etc. which is not a problem for us. But we have gotten nothing in the way of credits while booking directly with Oceania ourselves. Any advice is welcome! 

Edited August 1, 2022 by KBrote

[LHT28]

I would shop around  you can get your Gratuities covered & an OBC  at minimum from a TA

 You would need to transfer the booking within 30 days of when you booked though

 

You can DIY the hotels etc 

Others will have more info  on why  to use an O  connected TA

JMO

 

Lyn

 

[Sny]

Aside from what Lyn mentions, a TA can often find better deals on hotels.  Our Amex Platinum card plus the TA's research has booked us into some 4 and 5 star hotels for a great price, with additional credit to us during the stay.  Using a TA who is a cruise specialist is important; as they are usually familiar with the ports. private shore excursions, transportation.  In the past two months, my TA has been on two European cruises with her family - she walks the walk and talks the talk.

And, when I panic and think that I've forgotten something, she's my "go to"  to put me at ease.

[Carol From California]

6 hours ago, KBrote said:

We have booked our first Oceania Cruise. It's a 10 day Greek Islands and Turkish Riviera cruise, October 24 - Nov. 3, 2023. We booked over the phone and have been speaking with Al Hernandez, one of the Oceania Reps. My husband and I will be using miles for our flights and our friends we are traveling with will be booking their air fare and plan to buy business class flights. So far we have done all the work ourselves as I am the one in charge of all travel plans in the family. I am comfortable booking trains in Italy, VRBO rentals in France, renting cars and driving all over Europe, etc. But now I am wondering if there is any advantage in transferring our booking to a travel agent? I am wondering about shipboard credit, getting good airfare for our friends, help with pre and post cruise hotels. We are spending 3 nights in Athens pre cruise and 4 nights on Santorini post cruise. I already have done research on hotels so not sure we need help there.

 

If you use a travel agent for your cruises what are the benefits? Do you think they can add to the perks on the cruise? We are in a low category...C2, Deluxe Ocean View, so we won't qualify for much. We are not doing O Life and chose Cruise Only fare so we will be responsible for all transfers, etc. which is not a problem for us. But we have gotten nothing in the way of credits while booking directly with Oceania ourselves. Any advice is welcome! 

Transferring your booking to a TA can result in getting rebates, shipboard credit, etc., plus you have someone to advocate for you.

[HiFi43]

KBrote, if you are comfortable doing both the ground reservations and the air reservations yourself I’d suggest you do so. We do that part on every Oceania cruise. But, transferring the cruise booking to an experienced cruise specialist who has a relationship with Oceania. It gives you leverage if any issues arrive. Second if the TA you choose is an Oceania Cruise Connoisseur member (top 30 Oceania Cruise TA’s) you are ore likely to get what Carol mentions above. I’m sure you can find a good one even though Cruise Critic does not allow us to recommend any specific TA.

[the more ports the better]

If you use a TA, plans can be made by sending an email.  No waiting on the phone.  Plus most TA’s have perks such as onboard credit, spa credit, drink packages, prepaid gratuities, etc.  UA and AA have cruise divisions and if you book with their TA’s you get a bunch of FF miles instead of OBC.  Helpful for biz tickets.

 

Basically, there is no down side to using one and the benefits can be great.

[alcpa1]

You can easily transfer your bookings to a TA. It must be done within 30 days of the initial booking.

For your ease I would also recommend you and your friends use the same agent so that bookings can easily be linked for something as simple as dinner reservations.

There has been much discussion about using O air especially for business class travel. A TA can help you wade through that morass too.

There are basically two types of knowledgeable travel agents that work best with Oceania. The Connoisseur agents and the Preferred agents. According to Cruise Critic rules we cannot recommend specific agencies. These would also be the agencies most likely to book premium and higher end cruise lines. We've all got our favorites and wish we could make recs but alas.............

The cruise sounds wonderful and you seem to be someone we'd all like to travel with. 

Good luck

 

[LHT28]

10 hours ago, alcpa1 said:

For your ease I would also recommend you and your friends use the same agent so that bookings can easily be linked for something as simple as dinner reservations.

 

Never had a problem linking our friends  dinner res with ours  in the Specialties 

O has that option when you book  to "Invite " others 

My friends also have their own agent  they like

 

It is not  like other  lines  with set dining  where you may need to link  your bookings to se  able to get the same table in the dining room

JMO

[ORV]

11 hours ago, the more ports the better said:

Basically, there is no down side to using one

Yet the boards here on Cruise Critic are full of people that would argue this point with you all day(and night) long. I give up, it's the old lead a horse to water maxim. 

[edgee]

My TA offers a cash rebate on my fare of between 8 and 11% in the form of a check which I receive about two weeks before my cruise. Often they also cover gratuities. Also gives great service. So, the way I look at it, it makes no sense for me to, in effect, pay 10% extra for my vacation to book and keep my reservation directly with the cruise line.

[bbtondo]

3 hours ago, ORV said:

Yet the boards here on Cruise Critic are full of people that would argue this point with you all day(and night) long. I give up, it's the old lead a horse to water maxim. 

In my experience, booked Bora Bora on Regent with a "great" agency and TA as spoken about on these boards.  Turns out when I get the tickets, I was booked on another Island. Really?  Couldn't reach the TA and spent hours on the phone dealing directly with Regent and straighten things out myself. I believe she's still working and one of the "top" agents.

 

Also booked an Oceania cruise (which was cancelled due to Covid), with a different agency and one of those "top" TA's spoken about here.  I  knew more than them and again, spent hours straightening things out.

 

Needless to say, I am very gun shy on using a TA.

[ORV]

54 minutes ago, bbtondo said:

In my experience, booked Bora Bora on Regent with a "great" agency and TA as spoken about on these boards.  Turns out when I get the tickets, I was booked on another Island. Really?  Couldn't reach the TA and spent hours on the phone dealing directly with Regent and straighten things out myself. I believe she's still working and one of the "top" agents.

 

Also booked an Oceania cruise (which was cancelled due to Covid), with a different agency and one of those "top" TA's spoken about here.  I  knew more than them and again, spent hours straightening things out.

 

Needless to say, I am very gun shy on using a TA.

Without knowing who these great agency's are I have no response. BUT, I usually only have our TA book cruises, unless we are doing the flights through Oceania, then she's involved. Most flights, hotels, tours, etc., I take care of on my own. I do and have asked her advice for recommendations, which has always been spot on. Sorry it hasn't worked out for you. 

Edited August 2, 2022 by ORV

[1985rz1]

@ORV's suggestion is a good start, but you may want to check our several of the ones that pop up in the search to get a sense on how the agencies/agents operate. Once on board you also might want to seek out recommendations from fellow pax to compare services/perks.  You can always change moving forward if you find a better fit.  That's how we found ours, with whom we've stayed for the last 12 years.

Edited August 4, 2022 by 1985rz1

[pinotlover]

33 minutes ago, ORV said:

Well, in a word no, not for Oceania. 

 

A good start is "Member of Oceania Cruises' Connoisseur Club"

Actually a relic of the past. The “ Club” has not been altered, added to or deleted from, since around 2017 and the NCL acquisition of PCH. There’s been a lot of water under that bridge since 2017. 
 

My recommendation is to talk to fellow cruisers and feel them out about their Travel Agents and the Agencies they work for. First, decide what’s important to you. We have posters here that are only interested in rebate checks and the amounts thereof. They don’t actually use their TA. Others of us like a Travel professional to take care of our needs. Personally, I don’t want a 23 step plan of addressing an issue and DIY. I call, text, or email my TA and problem solved. One step, not 23. I still receive gracious benefits, but I don’t set down and do a line item by line item review of every commissionable items post cruise. 
 

Decide what’s important to you and discuss that with your TA. An example is in 2019, we were traveling with friends that used our TA. She comped our four Dom Perignon La Reserve dinners. She knew we all love Dom and La Reserve. A wonderful evening and we toasted her at the dinner. Other cruisers requested her contact information. To us much more special than  a cash rebate of equal costs. To others here, even drinkers, they only want CASH. Comping that meal meant they lost credit card miles they would have received paying

for themselves. Cash only please! Decide what’s important to you and communicate that with your potential TA.

[ORV]

49 minutes ago, pinotlover said:

Actually a relic of the past. The “ Club” has not been altered, added to or deleted from, since around 2017 and the NCL acquisition of PCH. There’s been a lot of water under that bridge since 2017. 
 

My recommendation is to talk to fellow cruisers and feel them out about their Travel Agents and the Agencies they work for. First, decide what’s important to you. We have posters here that are only interested in rebate checks and the amounts thereof. They don’t actually use their TA. Others of us like a Travel professional to take care of our needs. Personally, I don’t want a 23 step plan of addressing an issue and DIY. I call, text, or email my TA and problem solved. One step, not 23. I still receive gracious benefits, but I don’t set down and do a line item by line item review of every commissionable items post cruise. 
 

Decide what’s important to you and discuss that with your TA. An example is in 2019, we were traveling with friends that used our TA. She comped our four Dom Perignon La Reserve dinners. She knew we all love Dom and La Reserve. A wonderful evening and we toasted her at the dinner. Other cruisers requested her contact information. To us much more special than  a cash rebate of equal costs. To others here, even drinkers, they only want CASH. Comping that meal meant they lost credit card miles they would have received paying

for themselves. Cash only please! Decide what’s important to you and communicate that with your potential TA.

Yes, but, many TA's still use that designation, and you can bet they are still well connected with Oceania. 

 

Certainly don't disagree with the rest of what you said. 

[1985rz1]

@ORV @pinotlover I'm curious about your comments, since I know of at least one travel agent who has posted on his FB site that, first, he received a top twenty commendation from O for elite status in the Connoisseur Club (top 20) in April and, second, he received a commendation from O for being the top producer, 2 days ago. In both case he forwarded the letters from O that he got for the commendations.  

Edited August 4, 2022 by 1985rz1

[edgee]

3 hours ago, pinotlover said:

Actually a relic of the past. The “ Club” has not been altered, added to or deleted from, since around 2017 and the NCL acquisition of PCH. There’s been a lot of water under that bridge since 2017. 
 

My recommendation is to talk to fellow cruisers and feel them out about their Travel Agents and the Agencies they work for. First, decide what’s important to you. We have posters here that are only interested in rebate checks and the amounts thereof. They don’t actually use their TA. Others of us like a Travel professional to take care of our needs. Personally, I don’t want a 23 step plan of addressing an issue and DIY. I call, text, or email my TA and problem solved. One step, not 23. I still receive gracious benefits, but I don’t set down and do a line item by line item review of every commissionable items post cruise. 
 

Decide what’s important to you and discuss that with your TA. An example is in 2019, we were traveling with friends that used our TA. She comped our four Dom Perignon La Reserve dinners. She knew we all love Dom and La Reserve. A wonderful evening and we toasted her at the dinner. Other cruisers requested her contact information. To us much more special than  a cash rebate of equal costs. To others here, even drinkers, they only want CASH. Comping that meal meant they lost credit card miles they would have received paying

for themselves. Cash only please! Decide what’s important to you and communicate that with your potential TA.

Good advice. I would add that there are some very knowledgeable TAs who provide great service whose agencies also provide very competitive cash rebates and other benefits which lower the cost of the cruise. It is not always an either/or situation.

 

[ORV]

10 hours ago, 1985rz1 said:

@ORV @pinotlover I'm curious about your comments, since I know of at least one travel agent who has posted on his FB site that, first, he received a top twenty commendation from O for elite status in the Connoisseur Club (top 20) in April and, second, he received a commendation from O for being the top producer, 2 days ago. In both case he forwarded the letters from O that he got for the commendations.  

I have no idea either way, and if I did it might disappear?????????????

[pinotlover]

10 hours ago, edgee said:

Good advice. I would add that there are some very knowledgeable TAs who provide great service whose agencies also provide very competitive cash rebates and other benefits which lower the cost of the cruise. It is not always an either/or situation.

 

If cash rebates are the main objective with a Travel Agency, remember that the top of the heap today are the Preferred Agencies. These are top sellers NCLH wide. They all get the same commission level NCLH wide as those only concentrated on Oceania. For the DIYERS, where only cash counts, these agents/agencies may fit the bill.