Benefits of booking with a travel agent

[rachelm23]

we are booking our next cruise and I have always just booked online through DCL site. Are there any benefits with going through a travel agency? What benefits have you gotten? Thanks so much!!

 

[AFamily]

The major seller for me was the OBC that the travel agent gave us for booking with them. If you go to the Dreams Unlimited website they have a section that shows how much they will give you in relation to the cost of the cruise.

 

[bumbershoot]

I use a TA if I get something in return. I use costcotravel.com because of the giftcard I receive when I get home from dcl. (Perks differ for cruise lines)

 

[ludari]

I really enjoy using a travel agent (TA) for booking all my cruises. The benefits us using a TA shipboard credit, maybe a gift in your stateroom but the biggest benefit for me is having my TA do all the work researching cruises based on my parameters (destination, budget, dates, etc). I'm sure you've done some cruise searches on the DCL site and having to navigate back and forth between different dates, ships and destinations can take some time.

 

[squirk]

Not that I don't like my TA or that she doesn't deliver great service, but OBC is pretty much why I use her. I love doing the research and planning, so I don't really need her to scout out itineraries for me. Given the way these cruises are priced (vs. the resorts) and the fact that I usually rebook far in advance and usually while onboard, I have yet to get a call from her stating that she found a new discount that would save me $$$. Finally, we rarely make changes to our itineraries or activities, at least no changes that I can't do online by myself faster than it would take to email her and ask her to do it for me.

So, again, for me, it's the OBC.