Thread: Do you buy your flights through the cruiseline?

When you are flying to your port of embarkation, do you book the flights thru the cruiseline or do you book them separately?

Well I am the first to post and vote! Whoo Hoo! I chose it depends, because if there was a really good deal through the cruiseline (well it could happen!) then I would go through them. If I can get a good deal, then I book it.

I also chose "it depends". Before booking anything we always check to see which airline has the best deal for our dates.

If we are flying one way to/from Europe for a transatlantic, then we let the cruiseline do it because it's always been less expensive for those kinds of flights and transfers are included. If it's domestic, we always book our own.

I always book seperately... I just can't justify the price differential.. the savings normally allows us to fly in early and stay a couple of nights in the embarkation city.

I always let Carnival book my flight, it's less of a hassle. I could probably get a better deal elsewhere, but what the heck.

We have always booked our own flights. We check the cruise line rates, but they are always more expensive. Plus, the cruise lines will sometimes give you the worst routing and often long layovers. When we book our own, we not only save alot of money, but we can usually get a direct and even non-stop flight.

Pete

Originally Posted by Cruise Planner

We have always booked our own flights. We check the cruise line rates, but they are always more expensive. Plus, the cruise lines will sometimes give you the worst routing and often long layovers. When we book our own, we not only save alot of money, but we can usually get a direct and even non-stop flight.

Pete

Not necessarily so, but sometimes you can get lousy flights! That's why, when we book our overseas flights with the cruise line, we do a deviation and choose which flights we want. We have never let the cruise line choose for us. There is sometimes a fee for this service if you haven't sailed with the cruise lines before, but we have never had that problem :

The day we make the cruise booking we choose our flights and usually the same day they are confirmed and we can go online to select our seats. With the cruise lines we have booked with, you have the opportunity to cancel the air arrangements without penalty if you do this prior to final payment. We have never canceled since the cruise line air has always been much lower than what we could find on our own, and we do keep checking right up to final payment.

As I mentioned earlier, we always book our own air for domestic flights because I have never seen cruise air with lower prices than what we could find on our own.

I agree with Char 100%. Another point, it is very difficult to book a One Way return from Europe to the USA on the major Air booking sites used in the USA. I hope you understand what I wrote because I'm not sure I do.

The one and only time I let my TA book my air, I ended up cancelling it. Found the same flight at a much cheaper price about 2 months down the road.

I encourage clients to book air on their own, directly through the airline. For my business insurance purposes I have to charge a $10 fee pp if I do air...

Sometimes the cruise lines offer free air from certain gateways...that is well worth it!