New to Carnival..Better to book direct or TA??

[shaycamp21]

We are not new to cruising just to Carnival and are thinking of taking a Western Caribbean cruise this August (hurricane season I know) on the Glory. I noticed the price with our regular TA is quite a bit more than on Carnival's site if I choose the early booking feature. Do most of you book directly or use a TA? Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.:)

[cscurtiss]

For the first time ever, I booked through Carnival. The Early Saver rate was better than any other site offered at the time.

[cscurtiss]

:):):)

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

try shoping on the web

[S.S.Oceanlover]

We are not new to cruising just to Carnival and are thinking of taking a Western Caribbean cruise this August (hurricane season I know) on the Glory. I noticed the price with our regular TA is quite a bit more than on Carnival's site if I choose the early booking feature. Do most of you book directly or use a TA? Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.:)

 

Did you contact your TA to see if they offer the early savers rate?

 

If they don't I'd definitely book elsewhere but there is a good chance they offer it but don't have it listed on their website.

 

Bill

[cruisetobeaches]

We have ALWAYS booked direct through Carnival. Makes it so much easier if you need to change something. Find a better price? Call your PVP and tell him/her. They'll make it right so long as you are comparing apples to apples!

[dan40]

We are not new to cruising just to Carnival and are thinking of taking a Western Caribbean cruise this August (hurricane season I know) on the Glory. I noticed the price with our regular TA is quite a bit more than on Carnival's site if I choose the early booking feature. Do most of you book directly or use a TA? Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.:)

 

 

TA's have the EXACT same access to the ESP that Carnival people do. And EVERY other price and promotion that Carnival has. And if a TA wishes to, they can ALWAYS, without exception, BEAT Carnival's best price. Carnival WILL NOT price match a TA.

 

Dan

[lizardhowson]

We are not new to cruising just to Carnival and are thinking of taking a Western Caribbean cruise this August (hurricane season I know) on the Glory. I noticed the price with our regular TA is quite a bit more than on Carnival's site if I choose the early booking feature. Do most of you book directly or use a TA? Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.:)

 

Simple answer...

 

Are you willing and able to do the research before booking so there will be surprises ? If so, I'd recommend booking with Carnival.

 

If not, you might be one of those folks who will feel they need the "experience" of a TA.

 

As for me, I do all my own research (like reading lots and lots of posts here) prior to handing over any deposit. I have never had any surprises.

[Tsi2quick]

Simple answer...

 

Are you willing and able to do the research before booking so there will be surprises ? If so, I'd recommend booking with Carnival.

 

If not, you might be one of those folks who will feel they need the "experience" of a TA.

 

As for me, I do all my own research (like reading lots and lots of posts here) prior to handing over any deposit. I have never had any surprises.

 

I'm the same way. Part of the joy of a vacation is the planning that goes into it. We haven't taken a long vacation in a while since we have a 19 month old so I've been going crazy to do some research and planning! I am going to book my Carnival cruise directly through Carnival most likely using ESP. I get worried about a TA going out of business in today's economic conditions more so than I do worrying about Carnival. Besides, the ESP rate is great.

[Tapi]

My personal choice is to book through a Personal Vacation Planner directly with Carnival. Even though my PVP consistently delivers the same price as any other site (I qualify for an airline employee rate), I'm not driven by the price, but by the level of service that I get from her. With that said:

 

Always remember: Cheaper is NOT always better. IF I had a nickel for every thread that I read here of people that booked through XYZ and then got burned, I would have my next cruise paid off...!

 

More than looking for the lowest price, look for:

 

- Reputation (are you dealing with someone who knows what they're doing?)

- Product knowledge (can they answer your questions about the product you're purchasing?)

- Customer Service (Are they friendly and responsive? Are they easy to get a hold of? Can they assist you quickly?)

- Professionalism (Have they been thoroughly trained?)

- Financial status (Remember all those passengers who were left stranded when a big discounter went out of business a few months ago?)

- Fees (Are they charging you additional fees like booking fees, change or cancellation fees outside of penalty?)

 

DON'T shoot yourself in the foot based on price only. Shop around, ask lots of questions, compare one individual against another, and make a decision then. Some PVP's are excellent, some are not. Some TA's are excellent, some are not. When you find the right individual to trust with the thousands of dollars you're about to spend, you'll know!

 

I've been dealing with the same PVP for 4 years. She's awesome in every aspect, and has made our vacations much more memorable (including coming to the ship to meet us). Even if she couldn't match the price of an online travel discounter, I'd still book through her. The peace of mind of dealing with someone who meets all the criteria listed above is worth every penny.

[paulagualalala]

I've booked through my Carnival PVP and through a TA. I had a bad experience with 2 separate TA's but never a problem with Carnival direct. I happen to have a super nice Personal Vacation Planner with Carnival. With the TA's I've used I'm lucky to get a return call if I need to make a change, ask a question etc. Unless you are going on a group cruise I think the prices are about the same these days.;)

[teahoney]

Simple answer...

 

Are you willing and able to do the research before booking so there will be surprises ? If so, I'd recommend booking with Carnival.

 

If not, you might be one of those folks who will feel they need the "experience" of a TA.

 

As for me, I do all my own research (like reading lots and lots of posts here) prior to handing over any deposit. I have never had any surprises.

 

ITA. I put a lot of hours into researching this year's family vacation. A LOT. If you have that kind of time I say go for it and book right through Carnival. If you don't have that kind of time a TA is probably for you.

[lizardhowson]

Simple answer...

 

Are you willing and able to do the research before booking so there will be surprises ? If so, I'd recommend booking with Carnival.

 

Sorry, it's supposed to read "no surprises"...

[DanJ]

I booked with the PVP a couple days ago. I wasn't sure if he was able to offer a better deal than I saw on carnival.com, but he was persistent by calling me practically every time he noticed I was logged in. Decided to give him a chance to quote me, and it turned out his price was the same as my TA and what the website had.

 

I told him that I would book with my TA, since she has been good to me over the years. He said no problem, that he isn't in competition with travel agents and that he can do the booking and transfer it to her. She gets the commission and he gets the credit at Carnival for the booking. Sounded good to me, so I went ahead with him while I was on the phone.

 

I have no idea how the pay structure works for the PVP's, but it sounds like a pretty sweet deal for a TA like mine who gets hundreds of dollars in commission for basically collecting my tickets for me LOL. Of course, I'm sure Carnival would rather I didn't give the booking to my TA, but if they aren't going to reward me for keeping the booking solely with them, then I might as well help our local economy out as well LOL.

[Freezy_kitty]

We recently had a major problem with our cruise on Splendor, those of us that booked through Carnival did not get any help, those with TA got their money back. Also make sure an book your insurance through an outside company do not book through the cruise lines:(

[Pitboss32]

TA's have the EXACT same access to the ESP that Carnival people do. And EVERY other price and promotion that Carnival has. And if a TA wishes to, they can ALWAYS, without exception, BEAT Carnival's best price. Carnival WILL NOT price match a TA.

 

Dan

 

No Dan, not ALL travel agents have the same access to the ESP.

 

Unless a travel agent books their clients thru bookccl.com, Apollo's Leisure Shopper, Sabre's Cruise Director, Worldspan, Amadeus, or Revelex they can NOT book their clients early saver.

 

There are still alot of agents who happen to call Carnival on behalf of their clients to make bookings. In that instance, the Carnival agent would quote them the qualifying rate (senior,past guest, military, resident, interline) only. If the TA asks about early saver, the Carnival agent can quote the price. HOWEVER, Carnial will not book the early saver for the agent. It must be completed online thru one of the above mentioned sites. There are still NUMEROUS agencies today who aren't set up on the sites above.

 

Carnival agents will not book early saver for travel agents.

[Frank12]

We have ALWAYS booked direct through Carnival. Makes it so much easier if you need to change something. Find a better price? Call your PVP and tell him/her. They'll make it right so long as you are comparing apples to apples!

 

 

I Agree.

[MamaParrotHead]

I have done both and much prefer my PVP at Carnival. As long as you're not new to cruising, know your preferences and where you want your cabin to be, I see no need for a TA. I'm all for eliminating the middle man and having control over my booking myself. The incentives offered by some TA's, for me, are minor compared to the peace of mind knowing I have control and access to my booking directly with Carnival.

[arpie05]

I booked my NCL cruise with a travel agent and my CCL with a PVP. I would not use the travel agent again. I had to do the same amount of work, she ended up over charging me - and didn't make it right. (Charged my friend less - too complicated to explain :)) - expected us to make it right between us (we did - but it took six months after the trip for her to pay me the money she owed me)

My PVP worked with me, credited me for a deposit I paid for someone else's trip when it was time for them to finally pay so they could just finally pay their full amount - instead of there being an issue of them just paying the difference. he's great.

[EmmasNana]

I recently booked my first Carnival cruise and booked an early saver through the PVP. I then saw a TA who was offering the same price but in addition, an OBC of $100. I talked with the PVP at Carnival because I didn't want him to lose out on anything if I transferred my booking to the TA. I was assured that he would get his credit and so I then transferred and kept the same balcony room, same price and will receive a $100 OBC. I was also assured by the TA(in writing) that if the price drops, they will honor it.

I will normally book through the cruise line and then transfer to a TA if a better option comes up.:)

[dan40]

No Dan, not ALL travel agents have the same access to the ESP.

 

Unless a travel agent books their clients thru bookccl.com, Apollo's Leisure Shopper, Sabre's Cruise Director, Worldspan, Amadeus, or Revelex they can NOT book their clients early saver.

 

There are still alot of agents who happen to call Carnival on behalf of their clients to make bookings. In that instance, the Carnival agent would quote them the qualifying rate (senior,past guest, military, resident, interline) only. If the TA asks about early saver, the Carnival agent can quote the price. HOWEVER, Carnial will not book the early saver for the agent. It must be completed online thru one of the above mentioned sites. There are still NUMEROUS agencies today who aren't set up on the sites above.

 

Carnival agents will not book early saver for travel agents.

 

And you know this information, HOW?

 

And even if true, you are talking about TA's operating out of a packing crate. I'm talking about TA's that are actually in business. TA's where, BY CONTRACT, They have agreed to not advertise rates below Carnival's rate and CARNIVAL HAS AGREED TO NOT UNDERSELL THE TA.

 

Also, even tho this is a Carnival board, and Carnival is my favorite line, MOST of the people here will cruise on some other line at some point. Even the newbies will takes cruises on non-Carnival branded ships. They might be CCL owned, but not Carnival branded. ASK your PVP to book you on Cunard, HAL, Costa, PCL, NCL, RCL, MSC, X, Seabourn. They cannot even begin to help, even with the sister lines. My TA can and does help with all the lines and AT NO COST TO ME, and almost always a SAVINGS to me.

 

So, a PVP can do ABSOLUTELY nothing a "REAL" TA cannot do. But the TA can and often does much the PVP cannot do.

 

Dan

[MargieWY]

Also, even tho this is a Carnival board, and Carnival is my favorite line, MOST of the people here will cruise on some other line at some point. Even the newbies will takes cruises on non-Carnival branded ships. They might be CCL owned, but not Carnival branded. ASK your PVP to book you on Cunard, HAL, Costa, PCL, NCL, RCL, MSC, X, Seabourn. They cannot even begin to help, even with the sister lines. My TA can and does help with all the lines and AT NO COST TO ME, and almost always a SAVINGS to me.

 

So, a PVP can do ABSOLUTELY nothing a "REAL" TA cannot do. But the TA can and often does much the PVP cannot do.

 

Dan

 

Yep, the TA can do much more than a PVP, including confusing the crap out of you when they mix up the products they're selling (like the different TA's I've spoken to!).

 

If I'm booking specifically a CARNIVAL cruise, why would I book it with a TA who knows a little bit about Cunard, HAL, Costa, PCL, NCL, RCL, MSC, X, or Seabourn, instead of booking with someone who is specifically trained on CARNIVAL cruises??? (and don't tell me "because they can give me a lower price" because I don't shop for cheap, I shop for quality. Otherwise I would go to Denny's for a steak dinner).

[Tanbella]

I have actually been looking around myself as I am not sure which to book thought either. But i have noticed that carnivals rates are lower then TA' rates but TA's give you more incentives free wine or champagne, OBC, something extra:D. But i understand if the price changes both can refund money Carnival does it thought OBC, think its the same with TA.

 

I think I will book directly with carnival as I am getting my own airline tickets. I also know some TA's offer insurance included, but I think i won't need that as I am going two days early and am planning for every possible situation.

 

Also on these boards (and there is a wealth of info;)) I have read bad exxperiance with TA's and price ajustments or people tryint to get in contact with carnival but cant because they did it throught there TA:eek:(much easier to talk to carnival if you have booked directly to my understanding) It depends on what you feel comfortable with get a recommendation from family or friends. Its bound to be a great vacation anyway. Hope you enjoy.

[Kurbanfan]

Yep, the TA can do much more than a PVP, including confusing the crap out of you when they mix up the products they're selling (like the different TA's I've spoken to!).

 

If I'm booking specifically a CARNIVAL cruise, why would I book it with a TA who knows a little bit about Cunard, HAL, Costa, PCL, NCL, RCL, MSC, X, or Seabourn, instead of booking with someone who is specifically trained on CARNIVAL cruises??? (and don't tell me "because they can give me a lower price" because I don't shop for cheap, I shop for quality. Otherwise I would go to Denny's for a steak dinner).

 

I agree why would you book with a TA who is not knowledgeable:confused:

Find one that is:D

[MargieWY]

I agree why would you book with a TA who is not knowledgeable:confused:

Find one that is:D

 

No need to find a "knowledgeable" (:rolleyes:) TA

 

I already have a CARNIVAL PVP for my CARNIVAL cruises :D