OT - How to book non-disney cruise??

[riu girl]

First time cruiser.

I have done the research and have found a great cruise, great date, great ports of call, good price, etc etc.

Now how does one go about actually booking it?

I have been on cruisecritic.com and it looks like no one is actually allowed to post actual reccommended cruise booking web sites.

So I am asking this here.

Through the cruise line www.ncl.com the cruise works out to $1777 US including taxes etc . I went on www.cruiscompete.com, entered the cruise info. and received a few quotes, the lowest being $1604 US including taxes etc.

But being first time cruisers, I am not too comfortable just going ahead and booking with a web site that I know nothing about and am thinking about simply booking with www.ncl.com.

Any suggestions/reccommendations??
Thank you
PS - I am the same person who "studied" skyauction for several months before I actually bid on anything. Now I am a skyauction junkie (10+ wins) but it takes me a long time to get comfortable with new travel web sites.

 

[drag n' fly]

Always go through a reputable travel agent or agency. A good one one is
http://www.cruiseshipcenters.ca/CSSearch.aspx
This will allow you to find one in your area. There is nothing worse than trying to fix someone elses mistake yourself. A great travel agent can be your best friend and can get you access to cabins that are blocked off to wholesalers. They also know which ones not to book.

We also subscribe to http://www.cruisecritic.com/ a great forum for all cruising information. HTHhttp://www.cruisecritic.com/

 

[wee-haggis]

We found the best prices around (after looking at numerous websites) was Cruise Value Center. Very easy to book and everything went like clockwork.
http://www.mycruisevalue.com/v3/index.asp