flight arrangements when 'air' is purchased through the cruise line

[antarctic penguin]

Our group of 2 families has booked our Princess March break cruise with "air" included . We booked with 1 parent and 1 child in each of 4 rooms. Our travel agent booked all 4 at the same time. Spoke with Princess today --was told that there is no guarantee each family will be on the same flight (ie 2 parents and 2 kids). Theoretically each grouping of parent & child could be on a different flight!!!!! Between the 8 of us we could have 4 different Toronto departure times and we could all arrive in San Juan at different time. I actually was shocked to find that out and Princess could not tell me what the odds were that that would happen. To specify that at least both parents and siblings be on the same flight we would have to pay Princess an extra $50 and I am not prepared to do that.......... so...wondering if anyone else who has travelled in a group has had any experience- all being together???? or all split up according to room booking???? Thanks for any feed back..............

[WeBeGone]

Have whomever you booked your cruise with "cross reference" all your bookings. That will insure that you will be on the same flights. Without cross referencing, you may indeed be on different flights.

[cherylandtk]

Even cross referencing your bookings does not guarantee same flights; this is one of the(many) drawbacks to using cruise air IMO, but it is still a much-used source. I am afraid the only way to guarantee the entire family on one flight is to pay for the deviation. Doing so will also allow you to pick your specific flights and routings, and is well worth the peace of mind. Even if you all get on the same flights (and more often than not that is what happens, just not guaranteed) you may get multiple stopovers, lousy routings and lousier times. It's just not worth it to many experienced cruisers.

[lvtotrvl1]

Totally agree with Cherl...and linking the reservations does not guarantee same flights.

[greatam]

Have whomever you booked your cruise with "cross reference" all your bookings. That will insure that you will be on the same flights. Without cross referencing, you may indeed be on different flights.

 

NOT on cruise air flights WITHOUT deviation (and the additional fees).

 

Cruise air is booked per cabin. With 1 parent, 1 child in each cabin, there is truly a possibility of different flights, different arrival times.

 

With quite a large amount of flights out of Toronto that work with a cruise, you could be on any flight arriving ANY time. Plan on the group being split up, with different departure and arrival times if you are not willing to pay for deviation.

 

Since there are 8 of you, have you looked into booking your own air??? May save you a bundle AND you would KNOW that you are all flying together. Post your dates and whether you are willing to spend the night in San Juan before or after your cruise.

[WeBeGone]

Totally agree with Cherl...and linking the reservations does not guarantee same flights.

 

I believe it does with Princess however I agree, the safest route is to pay air deviation and have air customized.

[cb at sea]

I would book my own air, too! That way, you can pick the flights, and times and seats that you want, instead of leaving it up to the cruiseline.

[Happy ks]

At the very least I'd check into booking air seperately. We've only done cruise/air once and vowed to never book that way again. Lousy flight times, not seated with our kids, we didn't know the flight arrangements until 4 weeks before leaving.

 

Ever since, we've booked air ourselves and arrived a day early. So far, we've been able to save enough money over what the cruise lines have charged to pay for a hotel room(s), meals and any transportation we've needed. There are always exceptions to this, so it's best to check it out for your own particular needs.

[antarctic penguin]

Thanks so much to all of you who gave me feedback.....these forums are such a wealth of information!..........

 

we had looked at booking air separately but actually could not find as good a price as we did through Princess unless we wanted 2 stop overs or a departure from San Juan back to Toronto at 7 or 8 am (ship doesn't even arrive in port til 7a.m.!!!) so decided to stay with Princess for the flight even after the info they gave me yesterday.

 

did talk to princess again to verify the first info given- he said if it is cross-referenced they try to keep everyone together but------- no guarantees.

 

Even checked with our travel agent ---is this usual and ? any experience re how likely we are to be split up. His reply was that he, unsolicited, called Princess on our behalf -- arranged for all 8 of us to be on the same flight, 1 stopover only, leaving Toronto in the early morning as we had hoped (we want to have time Sat. afternoon and Sun a.m. to check out San Juan before boarding the ship)!!! So, looks like that problem is solved. Hope there are no more surprises. I think we'll spend some of that "customizing airfare" money on a present for our awesome travel agent!

[jlp20]

Because I have been reading these boards for quite a while, I have learned to book my own travel.

 

It would appear $$$$ is the sole consideration when cruise lines book flights for pax.

 

I have read of incontinent departure times, long and multiple stops and no follow through once the flight is booked.