Thread: Early booking through a travel agent

The reason I started thinking about cruises 36 months in advance is I expected it to be only 24 months at first, then had a sudden change in 2012 travel plans. Now I want to know if it is possible to predict when Western Mediterranean itineraries will become available to cruise specialists and the general public so I can book one ASAP. This is important to me because a specific cabin looks better than the rest and is likely to already be taken if I put off booking. (It is E721 if I sail on a Princess ship, FYI.) I plan to book through a TA because it is my first, so I need to talk to one anyway. Athough Princess is my top choice right now, I am willing to consider other cruise lines if they offer better prices and itineraries.

Originally Posted by Smart Traveler

The reason I started thinking about cruises 36 months in advance is I expected it to be only 24 months at first, then had a sudden change in 2012 travel plans. Now I want to know if it is possible to predict when Western Mediterranean itineraries will become available to cruise specialists and the general public so I can book one ASAP. This is important to me because a specific cabin looks better than the rest and is likely to already be taken if I put off booking. (It is E721 if I sail on a Princess ship, FYI.) I plan to book through a TA because it is my first, so I need to talk to one anyway. Athough Princess is my top choice right now, I am willing to consider other cruise lines if they offer better prices and itineraries.

The itins for the Med are usually published in March the year before.
i.e for 2012 until March/April 2013 the itins will be available in March 2011 and for 2013 to MarchApril 2014 they will be published aprox March 2012.

Still a long way away to plan, re plan and plan a bit again

Obviously, I'm prejudice on the matter, but you should always book through an agent. Several reasons why; first, almost all of the major cruise lines require everyone to sell the same cruise for the same price. The only time prices will be less is if they have a group on board. Secondly, the cruise lines represent themselves, whereas an agent represents you. Should you have any problems, you will want someone on your side. The cruise line will not be able to provide information on any other cruise line, whereas an agent can provide information on all the cruise lines. Should prices go down, the cruise line won't tell you about it, whereas an agent will normally be able to get the price reduction for you, provided final payment has not been made and there are no restrictions involved. And lastly, an agent who specializes in cruises has been on all the major cruise lines, on most of the ships, and to many of the ports, so their expertise can be invaluable in helping you plan your vacation.

Keep in mind that you should stay away from agents who don't have alot of personal cruise experience. Also, if they use the word 'recommend' alot, go someplace else. The reason agents tend to recommend is because first of all, it may be the only thing they know and don't have experience with other things. Second, they may have thoroughly enjoyed their cruise. But remember, we're all different and what one person loves, another may hate - so what they enjoyed, you may not. And third, they may be recommending one cruise line over another because they get a bigger commission with that particular cruise company.

An agent's main responsibility is to provide you with all the information you need so that you can make an educated decision on what's best for you based on your requirements, your expectations, your budget, and your lifestyle. It's important to them to insure you have a wonderful time so that you'll utilize their services again and recommend them to your family and friends.

Bottom line is that an agent will work for you to insure you have a wonderful vacation. Their services are free, so there's absolutely no advantage to using an online site or the cruise line to make your reservations. Let them do the work for you, so you don't have to.

Now as for your cruise and how soon you can book it, Princess is currently only showing cruises up until May 2012. Some cruise lines will start showing itineraries a little further out, while some won't be as much. It also depends on the itineraries and the ships. If a cruise line is thinking of making changes, then sometimes the itineraries won't be posted as far out. If they don't plan on making any changes, then they will post them further out. For example, the Royal Caribbean Oasis of the Seas and the Allure of the Seas - they have itineraries shown through September 2012 because there are no plans to move those ships or change the itineraries.

Hope all this helps, but if you have any more questions, let us know.

Pete

I usually tell my travel agent what I am looking for and as soon as the schedules open up I make the mad dash to book the "special" cabins right away. It is always a frenzy the first few days as us diehards keep the agents busy.

Earlier this year, I had my fingers on the keyboard for the Celebrity schedule but it kept getting delayed. My travel agent Jen was on it, though, and kept me informed.

The hardest part of the whole mess? After I booked my cruise I tried to transfer it to Jen for her to monitor and keep up with. It took Celebrity forever to get it right.

You've got some good advice so far.

Pete, right now ANYTHING helps as long as it is not the same old crap Cruise Critic members gave me constantly. I wish that board had an Ask the Agents section.

If you don't charge your customers, how do you get paid?

Using a Travel Agent has saved me $$ and work. I will never go back to doing it myself.

Andrea, travel agents get a commission from the cruise lines for their sales.

Unlike airlines which do not give travel agents anything. Which is one reason why travel agents are so reluctant to book any air these days unless it is with something else.

As Char already stated, agents get paid a commission by the cruise lines. So most reputable agents will not charge a booking or cancellation fee. Some online sites will.

Remember what I said about 'recommending'. Agents will often recommend one cruise line over another because they make a bigger commission. Cruise lines pay commissions based on the amount of sales an agent makes. The more they sell, the larger the commission. Luckily for us, we're always at the top of the commission level, so there's never any benefit for us selling one cruise line over another like there is for some agents.

One fact that was put out by CLIA (Cruise Lines International Association), which is an organization that all the cruise lines and agents belong to, is that almost all of the reservation people you talk to on an online site or with the cruise line have been there for less than 6 months and almost all of them have never even seen a ship, let alone been on a cruise or to any of the ports. They are simply 'order takers' and their job is to make your reservation and take your money. Their job is not to provide you with too much information, since it is something beyond their experience. A good agent is always ready, willing, and able to provide as much information as you can handle.

And also remember what I said about CC (or the Dark Side as we like to call it), they are full of negativity and should anyone post something they don't like, they get banned for life. And that includes information to, from, or by agents. A sort of censorship, if you will. And don't ever think about saying something negative of NCL, who is one of their biggest supporters. That will get you banned quicker than anything.

Here, everyone is more than willing to help in any way they can and everyone can express their opinions, as long as it is in good taste. And agents are always invited to provide their input to assist, which is a good thing since we have more experience in dealing with the cruise lines than most people.

Pete