Advantages booking directly with DCL

[travel with kids]

I have received quotes from several locations. The two cheapest were DCL and DU. They both were the same, except that DU will give us a $200. rebate. What are the advantages of booking directly with DCL?.....Thanks

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by travel with kids
What are the advantages of booking directly with DCL

The big advantage is that if you have too much money in your bank account, you can reduce your balance more if you book directly with DCL because you won't get the rebate.

Seriously, there is no advantage. In either case, you'll have access to the same inventory of staterooms and you'll be treated the same on the ship. You won't have a greater chance of getting one of those rare, free upgrades either way.

If you book with DCL, you can check your reservation online at DCL's website. If you book with DU, you can check your reservation online at DU's website.

In another thread last month, somebody asked, "Do you book your cruises with the Disney company? Or do you go with someone else?" I answered:
<blockquote>Everyone books their DCL cruises with Disney Cruise Line. It's just that some people book directly with DCL, and some people book through a travel agency. Booking directly with DCL will always result in the highest price, if you compare to a discount online agency.

Everyone starts with the same price. A DCL cruise for a certain number of passengers for a specific departure date in a given category, being booked at a particular point in time, has a certain price. All things being equal, everyone should be charging the same, because everyone is sellling the same DCL inventory. But, all things are not equal. DCL pays a commission to travel agencies.

Your neighborhood travel agency probably keeps the entire commission; they have low volume, pay high rent, and provide very personalized service. They may or may not know much about DCL.

On the other hand, most high-volume and online tragel agencies share part of their commission with you, in the form of rebates, room credits, price reductions, gifts, or some combination of these. By subtracting these, you can calculate the net price. (There can also be some cases where a travel agency has booked a block of rooms at a group rate, which may further reduce the price.)

A good travel agency that specializes in Disney vacations and Disney cruises knows exactly what to ask for, what requests to make, and can answer all your questions.

Of all online agencies, my favorite is Dreams Unlimited (DU) -- not just because I got an excellent rebate and room credit from them, but also because they sponsor this board. (In fact, the DIS boards and DU have the same ownership.)</blockquote>

 

[TJHutch]

The only advantage is being able to see your reservation online and calling DCL directly if you have any questions. Personally it is not worth $200.00 to me. You could use that $200 for souveniers, tips, etc. The majority of my questions were answered by this forum. Although I have never booked through DU, I have heard alot of good things about them.

 

[disneygatorfan]

really the only advantage is not having to go thru a TA to get questions answered... go for the $200 rebate. More money to spend on board is the best advantage of all !