TA vs. Carnival Cruise Specialist..I am furioussssss

[CaptainEdwardJohnSmith]

:mad: For several weeks now, I have been reading you guys threads about recieving upgrades, on board credits, etc. Unfornately, I booked through a TA and apparently, she is not aggressive enough. I called CC and informed them that I have not recieved an ungrade, an onboard credit, nothing!!! Keep in mind I booked a balcony (lowest price available-infact I believe my room is 83??), an inside cabin for my three girls, two other couples booked in my party as well. This is my honeymoon and I am a past guest (3rd travel)

 

I was told by CC that I could not release my booking back to CC (b/c I leave in just three weeks) and my TA has to call when sees a special going on. Some of you were called at home by CC to inform you of your upgrade, credit, etc. I dont understand why CC can not call my TA in order to grant me an upgrade...something. I am HOOOOOT.

 

Do I have to have 10 cruises under my belt in order to be invited to a past guest party, recieve a credit, or an upgrade? Never again will I allow a TA to plan my cruise; I will book directly with CC.

 

I am so upset you guys-I didnt have time to proof..Sorry

 

 

the Captain certainly does not wish to sound rude, but this is exactly what happens when everyone HAS THE EXPECTATION that an upgrade, onboard credit etc is going to happen to them. I have always preached, people, you need to keep an open mind, if an upgrade or what-have-you happens it happens, if not, no biggie. If you go in with such an expectation and then it don't happen, you've set yourself up for a BIG disappointment, and you have not even gone on your cruise/vacation yet!

 

Just the Captain's take on the subject and once again, not tryingto be rude or anything like that.

 

Happy cruising everyone.

[truecruiser]

I never thought of that. I will be e-mailing her in minutes.....Thanks. In fact I am calling right now. Thanks again.

 

i wldn't count on her... register yourself on carnival.com if you haven't already done that. then check your cruise history under your profile. if all 3 cruises aren't there, see if a CCL rep can find them w/ you birthdate. if they were so long ago that they cannot be found, you'll have to provide proof of sailing.

[firefly333]

Thanks for thant info. I will monitor the prices (in fact I hear there is a one day sale coming up in two days) and I will be sure to call her and CC. I hear you guys...it is making sense to me now...thanks

 

The one day sale they just had prices went UP not down. You did get some upgrades to your cabin. But why would I pay $100 more for a cabin to get the "free" upgrades?

 

I wouldnt count on this one day sale being a price discount.

 

I have a page bookmarked on VTG site which is set for the port I prefer to go out of. I can pull it up with one click and check all the prices of cruises I am interested in. Saturday the price of my cabin for my Oct cruise dropped by $20. Not much I know. But I was surprised it dropped on a Saturday. I emailed my TA. She didnt see it and probably would have missed it. Only my category price was dropped, nothing else.

[Nauticlue]

Hey thanks, I will book directly with CC from this day forward. And yes, I like you alway moniter prices and just assume she was handling it. When I called, the one day sale was over and had recieved nothing.

 

Dont get me wrong you guys, I am not looking for handouts; I just thought I am a past guest 3rd cruise and as a result two othe couples booked rooms. Do someting CC!!

 

Thanks again for your reply...I never book anything less than 7 days. I dont care to be teased by the 3, 4, 5 day cruises.

 

Good morning, we have always booked through our "vacation planner" (8th cruise in July) and have never received any of the above........Oh well, some people are just luckier than others !!!

[westwingjazz]

the Captain certainly does not wish to sound rude, but this is exactly what happens when everyone HAS THE EXPECTATION that an upgrade, onboard credit etc is going to happen to them. I have always preached, people, you need to keep an open mind, if an upgrade or what-have-you happens it happens, if not, no biggie. If you go in with such an expectation and then it don't happen, you've set yourself up for a BIG disappointment, and you have not even gone on your cruise/vacation yet!

 

Just the Captain's take on the subject and once again, not tryingto be rude or anything like that.

 

Happy cruising everyone.

 

I understand where you are coming from. I did not expect an upgrade. I simply would LIKE one after giving CC three years of business and having other book as a result. Just a 'Thank you' from CC. This cruise alone we have spent well over 5,000.00 and you are right; I havent EVEN cruised yet....

 

you dont come across rude-its ok

[westwingjazz]

Good morning, we have always booked through our "vacation planner" (8th cruise in July) and have never received any of the above........Oh well, some people are just luckier than others !!!

 

Amen to that....

[conweb]

:confused: Well I am on here just trying to learn....It is my first cruise and after getting all the cheap flyers and finding out that they are never what it says in the begining. I stay in close contact with "wayne" my carnival guy but can't really get info I want out of him. We are in cabins 6463 and 6465 AFT Upper deck on Victory. Can anyone tell me if this is a good cabin or not? I can't find anyone that has cruised on Victory before to give me tips. Like I said this is my first cruise. A group of "young" 50 ladies making a dream come true...don't want it to be a nightmare....:eek: Any tips will be appreciated. Sounds like all of you guys have cruised alot. Thanks for any advice!

[westwingjazz]

The one day sale they just had prices went UP not down. You did get some upgrades to your cabin. But why would I pay $100 more for a cabin to get the "free" upgrades?

 

I wouldnt count on this one day sale being a price discount.

 

I have a page bookmarked on VTG site which is set for the port I prefer to go out of. I can pull it up with one click and check all the prices of cruises I am interested in. Saturday the price of my cabin for my Oct cruise dropped by $20. Not much I know. But I was surprised it dropped on a Saturday. I emailed my TA. She didnt see it and probably would have missed it. Only my category price was dropped, nothing else.

 

I sail Liberty in about 25 days; I will check prices every hour on the hour.

[BrendaB1]

:mad: For several weeks now, I have been reading you guys threads about recieving upgrades, on board credits, etc. Unfornately, I booked through a TA and apparently, she is not aggressive enough. I called CC and informed them that I have not recieved an ungrade, an onboard credit, nothing!!! Keep in mind I booked a balcony (lowest price available-infact I believe my room is 83??), an inside cabin for my three girls, two other couples booked in my party as well. This is my honeymoon and I am a past guest (3rd travel).

 

I was told by CC that I could not release my booking back to CC (b/c I leave in just three weeks) and my TA has to call when sees a special going on. Some of you were called at home by CC to inform you of your upgrade, credit, etc. I dont understand why CC can not call my TA in order to grant me an upgrade...something. I am HOOOOOT.

 

Do I have to have 10 cruises under my belt in order to be invited to a past guest party, recieve a credit, or an upgrade? Never again will I allow a TA to plan my cruise; I will book directly with CC.

 

I am so upset you guys-I didnt have time to proof..Sorry

 

Sorry but I don't see where you are entitled to anything other than an invite to the Past Guest party. You don't have enough cabins booked to qualify as a group to receive any of those perks. Being a 3 time guest gets you nothing but a gold card & invitation to that party.

I've booked lots of cruises & have expected & received nothing. I believe you stated in another post that the price had increaded by $100. Be happy you got the lower price instead.

Sounds like you are stressing out over nothing. Relax & go have a great honeymoon cruise. :)

[CaptainEdwardJohnSmith]

I understand where you are coming from. I did not expect an upgrade. I simply would LIKE one after giving CC three years of business and having other book as a result. Just a 'Thank you' from CC. This cruise alone we have spent well over 5,000.00 and you are right; I havent EVEN cruised yet....

 

you dont come across rude-its ok

 

Westwingjazz,

Listen to what the Captain has to say to you, my friend:

Do NOT dwell on this topic, you have booked a vacation for yourself and your family, go and have the time of your life with them. Upgrades, onboard credits are secondary.

If they happen, fine, yes, that really would be nice. If not, no biggie. No matter what cabin you get, how bad can it be cruising, say, the Mexican Riviera, the Caribbean, Alaska or Hawaii or wherever it is that you are going.

Take my advice, leave your expectations at home (I do not mean that in a rude way).

I tell you this because if you are going to carry that expectation/disappointment with you onboard and then maybe some other things during the cruise don't go the way you planned them, then you are setting yourself up for more disappointments and you will start looking at things as being a culmination of things going wrong when it may not be so.

As you build experience with cruising, things will come along and you will react to them based on YOUR experiences, yes you may very well learn to get better deals.

Be Happy with what you have achieved so far, I am sure you have worked very hard to spend that 5 Grand on your vacation, now make that 5 Grand you have put into it WORK FOR YOU.

 

Sorry about the long rant and happy cruising. :)

[Nauticlue]

the Captain certainly does not wish to sound rude, but this is exactly what happens when everyone HAS THE EXPECTATION that an upgrade, onboard credit etc is going to happen to them. I have always preached, people, you need to keep an open mind, if an upgrade or what-have-you happens it happens, if not, no biggie. If you go in with such an expectation and then it don't happen, you've set yourself up for a BIG disappointment, and you have not even gone on your cruise/vacation yet!

 

Just the Captain's take on the subject and once again, not tryingto be rude or anything like that.

 

Happy cruising everyone.

 

I agree with you captain. Going in, you know how much your trip is going to cost, the cabin that you have booked, etc........any upgrade, onboard credit, etc is an added bonus !!!

[snownyet]

Id also like to add that when more than one cabin is tied together in a booking, the odds of an upgrade are slim to none. Most often upgrades are single room availability and they wont split up a party travelling together. As far as perks for multiple cruises, I wish! The reality is unless youve sailed on a cruiseline ALOT, youre not going to get much more than an invite to the captains cocktail party.

[HenryE1005]

We used a travel agent to book our Carnival Freedom cruise sailing 4/7/07. I am very pleased with the credits he was able to secure and the quick responses when I noticed price drops. I received almost $400 in reductions before the final payment. There were no further price drops after the final payment.

 

I think it's always important to check with others to see if they've had good luck with an agent. I know I paid less than if I had purchased the cruise from Carnival directly. I also feel that I have received excellent service throughout the past several months as quesitons came up.

 

Henry

[westwingjazz]

Westwingjazz,

Listen to what the Captain has to say to you, my friend:

Do NOT dwell on this topic, you have booked a vacation for yourself and your family, go and have the time of your life with them. Upgrades, onboard credits are secondary.

If they happen, fine, yes, that really would be nice. If not, no biggie. No matter what cabin you get, how bad can it be cruising, say, the Mexican Riviera, the Caribbean, Alaska or Hawaii or wherever it is that you are going.

Take my advice, leave your expectations at home (I do not mean that in a rude way).

I tell you this because if you are going to carry that expectation/disappointment with you onboard and then maybe some other things during the cruise don't go the way you planned them, then you are setting yourself up for more disappointments and you will start looking at things as being a culmination of things going wrong when it may not be so.

As you build experience with cruising, things will come along and you will react to them based on YOUR experiences, yes you may very well learn to get better deals.

Be Happy with what you have achieved so far, I am sure you have worked very hard to spend that 5 Grand on your vacation, now make that 5 Grand you have put into it WORK FOR YOU.

 

Sorry about the long rant and happy cruising. :)

 

No, no sorry(s) needed. You are most certainly right. Just toss it up to a lesson learned and have a HAPPY honeymoon. I get/got the message.

[truecruiser]

No, no sorry(s) needed. You are most certainly right. Just toss it up to a lesson learned and have a HAPPY honeymoon. I get/got the message.

 

 

put me in the minority column, but i don't see the need for you to keep apologizing:confused:. there's nothing wrong w/ you asking the question.

 

price drops won't be monitored by most TAs, your cruise is booked, they don't care. and, they won't be monitored by cvs' (carnival cruise vacation specialists), but in many instances a good carnival pvp (personal vacation planner -- in a different dept, the marketing dept), will monitor and call you.

 

if you book w/ a cvs (someone you call at carnival, they'll most likely honor any reduction, but you have to do the monitoring). TAs? -- well, i told you b/4 the line i've rec'd from them on that.

 

just keep your eyes out. register on carnival.com so you get notice of the sales, then call in the future, that's all.

 

the decrease a couple of weeks ago is moot at this point. that ship has sailed, so to speak LOL:D . you paid the lowest at the time you booked, so as many others have already stated, you have to book being 100% comfortable w/ the price you are paying knowing that a sale might not ever apply to your booking.

 

your situation is a little different. there was a sale, but you didn't know until after the fact. chances are the TA wld have given you a line anyway..., not the discount.

 

but, on future sailings, keep tabs on it, and book w/ a pvp or cvs for your greatest chance of taking advantage of price reductions.

[lvtotrvl1]

I have to agree with Captain...enjoy the cruise. I will say though, your first post seemed a little harsh bearing in mind that there doesn't seem to have been any upgrades or OBC's available for your cruise. I understand you expect them, many people do, the cruiselines just always don't think that way, but I don't see where your TA was as bad as your post eluded to.

[truecruiser]

I have to agree with Captain...enjoy the cruise. I will say though, your first post seemed a little harsh bearing in mind that there doesn't seem to have been any upgrades or OBC's available for your cruise. I understand you expect them, many people do, the cruiselines just always don't think that way, but I don't see where your TA was as bad as your post eluded to.

 

there was a sale which lowered her booking price. she just wasn't aware of it until after the fact. at least that's how i ubderstood it.

[Mikel1733]

Id also like to add that when more than one cabin is tied together in a booking, the odds of an upgrade are slim to none. Most often upgrades are single room availability and they wont split up a party travelling together. As far as perks for multiple cruises, I wish! The reality is unless youve sailed on a cruiseline ALOT, youre not going to get much more than an invite to the captains cocktail party.

 

 

My daughter was married on the Valor. Our group had 6 cabins. Our daughters cabin was not linked to the group so their cabin would be separate from the rest of the group and have some privacy. As it happens the group of cabins got a very nice upgrade and my daughter didn't......luck of the draw I guess. P.S. We had a great time, the wedding was very nicely done and the reception was phenomenal. Great way to do a wedding.

[catlady1971]

I've gotta say, listen to the Capt'n. He is an awesome guy who knows what he's talking about. I love ya, Capt'n. You are AWESOME!!! ;) I love reading your advice and funny comments. Tell the misses I said hi. :D

[Kurbanfan]

but I don't see where your TA was as bad as your post eluded to.

 

I totally agree here.......

I don't see what if anything the TA did wrong. Most people that do get the upgrades or obc are constantly monitering the prices themselves.

[lvtotrvl1]

there was a sale which lowered her booking price. she just wasn't aware of it until after the fact. at least that's how i ubderstood it.

 

I just read it again, and I still don't see where they say that...I think later on someone mentions a one day sale, but that is only applicable for new bookings.

[truecruiser]

I just read it again, and I still don't see where they say that...I think later on someone mentions a one day sale, but that is only applicable for new bookings.

 

it was post 4, though i now see that the OP doesn't state she knew for certain it went down. re: applying to new bookings only -- that's always there.

[truecruiser]

I've gotta say, listen to the Capt'n. He is an awesome guy who knows what he's talking about...

 

and you know this how?:p

[VentureMan_2000]

Never again will I allow a TA to plan my cruise; I will book directly with CC.

 

 

 

Yeppers... that seems to be a common risk when booking with a TA. The whole point of having a TA is to provide service. If they can't do that, then what is the point?

 

I really prefer taking matters into my own hands and booking directly. Carnival is open 7x24 for bookings, questions, and concerns. And they can handle everything. I'm not at the mercy of another's attitude.

 

I have heard there are some great TA's out there. But finding them is another story.

[Kurbanfan]

I have heard there are some great TA's out there.

 

I can vouch for that:D