I love my TA but her price is too high - Cruise Line Fans: Cruise Forum, Reviews and Chat From Real Cruisers

mafig · 10-13-2009, 09:28 AM

I love my TA. She's always available, always calls me back, emails me on weekends and usually gives me good pricing, doesn't charge any fees and I trust her.
She gave me her pricing on a cruise I'm considering.

Now I could kick myself for this but I went to Cruise Compete and got 4 quotes back.
All four of them are lower ....not by a few dollars but total about $230.

Do you think she would be insulted if I asked her to "sharpen her pencil" and perhaps give me a better deal? I don't want to take money out of her pocket but I also don't want to feel that she is not working as hard for my business as she did when I was *new.*

Let me know what you think, pls.

Char · 10-13-2009, 09:36 AM

Loving and trusting your TA is worth more than $230! I know from experience! Getting the service you expect and deserve is sometimes lacking when you book the lowest price.

A possible reason that the other TAs came back with lower pricing is that they may have quoted group fares. If they are selling within a group, then there would be a price difference.

Oh....it wouldn't hurt to mention the difference to your TA. Perhaps there could be a price adjustment. Follow your heart!

timwilloughby · 10-13-2009, 09:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mafig

I love my TA. She's always available, always calls me back, emails me on weekends and usually gives me good pricing, doesn't charge any fees and I trust her.
She gave me her pricing on a cruise I'm considering.

Now I could kick myself for this but I went to Cruise Compete and got 4 quotes back.
All four of them are lower ....not by a few dollars but total about $230.

Do you think she would be insulted if I asked her to "sharpen her pencil" and perhaps give me a better deal? I don't want to take money out of her pocket but I also don't want to feel that she is not working as hard for my business as she did when I was *new.*

Let me know what you think, pls.

You're in an interesting position, mafiq.

Its a cost-benefit analysis: Would you pay yourself $230 to insure against any mishaps, incorrect bookings, or a change in plans?

If the answer is NO, then you may want to simply bring up that fact that you discovered some lower rates online. I would imagine if you have a polite and sensible conversation around this matter, you may find that your TA can reduce the price by a few more dollars.

In the end, I view these slight difference in price as a good thing...TAs work hard to make sure your vision is executed. If there is a problem, its going to be THEIR problem to work out for YOU.

Let us know what you decide to do and what the results of you efforts are. I think this is an issue that comes up a lot and I know our other readers would be anxious to see how you handle the situation.

Any TAs on the board this morning who have some suggestions for mafiq?

LuLu · 10-13-2009, 10:42 AM

For sure TELL your trusted TA about the other quotes you received! Honetly, she'll want to know!

Could be the other quote has a hidden cost ... or .... the price dropped ... or many things could be a factor....

mafig · 10-13-2009, 11:56 AM

OK, I emailed her (coward that I am instead of calling).

She belongs to a consortium and one of the quotes ($200 less) comes from her "mother agency" so it should be close, don't you think.

I hope I have't gotten her angry at me. I have a cruise booked with her for January and my final payment will probably end up in Miami Bay - lol.

mafig · 10-13-2009, 01:16 PM

OK, I'm staying with me regular TA. Here's why:

I called a couple of the agencies and one charged too many fees (I don't do fees).

The other said there was no OBC showing for the sailing I requested. I know there is.

So with the OBC that my TA is offering the price comes out pretty close.

Another reason is this cruise is 12 months away. I don't need to worry about my booking with an "unknown" for a year. My TA says she expects another sale in January and hopefully we can get more OBC or a lower price. Anyway, I'm happy (sort of).

Thanks to all who replied.

reggierail · 10-13-2009, 01:47 PM

As you found out, the lowest price isn't always the best value. Having an agent that you can get in touch with and that you trust is worth a fortune.

Reggie

luckybluesman · 10-14-2009, 02:59 AM

I believe a good agent is worth their weight (not mine) in gold. I think you made a good choice.

Char · 10-14-2009, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mafig

OK, I'm staying with me regular TA. Here's why:

I called a couple of the agencies and one charged too many fees (I don't do fees).

The other said there was no OBC showing for the sailing I requested. I know there is.

So with the OBC that my TA is offering the price comes out pretty close.

Another reason is this cruise is 12 months away. I don't need to worry about my booking with an "unknown" for a year. My TA says she expects another sale in January and hopefully we can get more OBC or a lower price. Anyway, I'm happy (sort of).

Thanks to all who replied.

A good agent is hard to find! I'm glad you decided to stick with the one you know and trust.

We have booked 20 out of our last 22 cruises with the same agent and I wish it had been 22 out of 22! One was a group cruise and I didn't have any choice if I wanted to sail with the group. The other was a single booking and the agent did not service the booking or give us what was expected on board. So, the old saying "if it ain't broke don't fix it" would be good to remember.

patsea · 10-14-2009, 01:11 PM

I just want to weigh in here a little about cruise compete. Firstly, the agents that reply to you that are so much lower are rebating their commissions to you. Rebating of commissions is prohibitted by the cruise lines. Usually, and I am saying usually because I don't want to start of big discussion about it but usually, it is given to you in a form of a check after sailing from the travel agent because it's against cruise line policies to discount. Secondly the service you will get is nil. If you have a question you will not get an answer right away or it may not be the correct answer. I had a friend use one of these agencies and they did not do the insurance correctly and during the time between deposit and final he developed a back issue. Had he made final and then tried to cancel they would not have accepted his claim as those agents generally wait until just prior to final to make insurance payments. I'm not saying anything they do is wrong but just make sure you do your due diligence before plunking down your hard earned cash.