Question on OBC & travel agencies

[squirk]

When DU (or any other agency) advertises "$XXX of onboard credit when you book with us", is that OBC given only when you initially make the reservation through the travel agency? Or will agencies give you the advertised OBC if you re-book with DCL (i.e., while on-board for the discount and the DCL-granted OBC) but put your TA on the reservation when booking.

In other words, can you double your OBC by rebooking onboard (for the DCL OBC) and then "moving" the reservation to a travel agency (to get the agency's OBC as well)?

 

[PrincessShmoo]

When DU (or any other agency) advertises "$XXX of onboard credit when you book with us", is that OBC given only when you initially make the reservation through the travel agency? Or will agencies give you the advertised OBC if you re-book with DCL (i.e., while on-board for the discount and the DCL-granted OBC) but put your TA on the reservation when booking.

In other words, can you double your OBC by rebooking onboard (for the DCL OBC) and then "moving" the reservation to a travel agency (to get the agency's OBC as well)?

I don't know the whole answer, but I do know that many TAs will reduce their OBC if you book yourself and then transfer to them. As far as I know you can get both TA OBC and the Onboard Booking OBC.

 

[squirk]

I don't know the whole answer, but I do know that many TAs will reduce their OBC if you book yourself and then transfer to them. As far as I know you can get both TA OBC and the Onboard Booking OBC.

Thanks. Yes, the language "when you book with us" is what got me thinking you couldn't do a full double-dip on the OBC.

But that brings up a side question - how does OBC impact a TA's compensation, if at all? I am assuming they get less comp if you book onboard and transfer the res to them than if you book with them initially. Assuming that's true, does offering OBC impact their comp even further?

 

[princessmommyx3]

I just went through this. You can get both OBCs in full (DCL + DU) IF you assign your on board booking to DU while on the ship. This can only be done if the cruise you are sailing on when placing the on board booking was also booked thru DU.

For example, I was on the Dream last month on a cruise that I booked directly thru DCL. When I went to book another cruise while on board, I was not asked if I wanted the reservation assigned to a TA & I didn't think to ask. When I got home, I contacted my agent with DU that I have used in the past & she said that I had 30 days to transfer the reservation to her but would only receive 1/2 of the DU OBC, but all of the DCL OBC.

Conversely, I was on a cruise last year that I did book thru DU and while rebooking on board, I was asked if I wanted the new reservation assigned to the same TA as my current cruise & I said yes. I ended up getting both OBCs in full.

Sorry for the long explanation but I found it rather confusing at first.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

When I went to book another cruise while on board, I was not asked if I wanted the reservation assigned to a TA & I didn't think to ask.

But, if you had thought to ask, could you have assigned a TA at the time? And, thus, received the full OBC from the TA?

 

[lanejudy]

But that brings up a side question - how does OBC impact a TA's compensation, if at all? I am assuming they get less comp if you book onboard and transfer the res to them than if you book with them initially. Assuming that's true, does offering OBC impact their comp even further?

OBC offered by a TA comes directly out of the commission they receive -- whether that be commission received by the agency as a whole or the specific agent you deal with depends on how the agency is run/managed. DCL pays lower commission for reservations that are transferred to a TA, and that transfer must occur within 30 days of the initial booking. Some TAs (not all) will reduce the OBC they offer to clients for transferred reservations, directly as a result of the lower compensation they receive.

If you use a TA for your "current" cruise, you may name that TA when doing an OBB and it's not considered a transfer. If you did not use a TA, or wish to change to a different TA, you will have to make the OBB direct and then transfer after you are back home.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[princessmommyx3]

But, if you had thought to ask, could you have assigned a TA at the time? And, thus, received the full OBC from the TA?

Like lanejudy said, no. My DU TA told me that you can only assign a TA to an on board booking if you used that same TA for your "current" cruise.

 

[squirk]

If you use a TA for your "current" cruise, you may name that TA when doing an OBB and it's not considered a transfer. If you did not use a TA, or wish to change to a different TA, you will have to make the OBB direct and then transfer after you are back home.

My DU TA told me that you can only assign a TA to an on board booking if you used that same TA for your "current" cruise.

I'm not sure that's accurate; at least, it wasn't for me. One year, I was sailing on the Fantasy on a cruise booked with travel agent "A". When I was doing my OBB, I told the CM that I wanted to use TA "B" (who was also with a different agency to boot) instead. He seemed surprised I was switching TAs, but he did it with no fuss.

Maybe he wasn't supposed to, but did it anyway?

 

[ILovePixieDust]

I was on a cruise that i had booked directly with DCL. I rebooked onboard and added a TA to that reservation and was able to get full OBC from travel agent as well. As long as you add the name when you book onboard it should not be a problem even if they are not on current reservation.

 

[princessmommyx3]

Squirk and ILovePixieDust, were either of these within the past year? My DU TA told me that the rule changed about a year ago. This is her quote to me:

"If the cruise you are sailing on is not booked under an agency, you can't make the onboard booking under the agency. You can transfer this to us, however as a transfer this will get only half our usual onboard credit. This is due to the reduced commission DCL pays on transferred reservations."

I am not trying to say y'all are wrong because I know that TAs have given out innacurate information before. You could very well be right & my TA could be wrong.

 

[squirk]

Squirk and ILovePixieDust, were either of these within the past year? My DU TA told me that the rule changed about a year ago. This is her quote to me:

"If the cruise you are sailing on is not booked under an agency, you can't make the onboard booking under the agency. You can transfer this to us, however as a transfer this will get only half our usual onboard credit. This is due to the reduced commission DCL pays on transferred reservations."

I am not trying to say y'all are wrong because I know that TAs have given out innacurate information before. You could very well be right & my TA could be wrong.

Mine was more than a year ago. Probably closer to two.

 

[bumbershoot]

From memory, the only TA that still gives full credit if you change to them after booking is costcotravel.com. (but with them it's not OBC for Disney Cruise, but a giftcard for Costco sent within a week after your cruise)

 

[tinkerone]

we did a onboard booking last october. the sailing we were on was booked through DU however i no longer wished to deal with DU and ask that my new t.a. be listed as the agent instead of DU. the answer was a firm no, i could request DU or nobody. i booked it without an agent and when i got home then transferred it to the agency i had wanted.
i actually knew that before i asked but thought i would ask anyways. hope this helps.

 

[lanejudy]

Squirk and ILovePixieDust, were either of these within the past year? My DU TA told me that the rule changed about a year ago

Correct. The rule changed about a year ago (give or take a few months). So cruises from a couple years ago very well may have been allowed to name a new or different TA to an OBB. It is no longer allowed. Reduced commission/reduced OBC seems to vary by agency, with some offering none on transferred reservations and some offering a reduced OBC and others apparently no difference.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[squirk]

OBC offered by a TA comes directly out of the commission they receive -- whether that be commission received by the agency as a whole or the specific agent you deal with depends on how the agency is run/managed.

That can't be a direct dollar-for-dollar reduction in commission, can it? At DU, they give $250 OBC for a $5,000 cruise. Now, I am sure DU drives enough business to receive top-tier comp from DCL, but just to keep it simple, let's go with the 10% agency commission, with 60% of that going to the TA.

At $5,000, the agency would get $500 in commission. $300 (60%) goes to the agent and $200 (40%) goes to the agency. If the $250 OBC comes out of the TA's commission, that means they only make $50 on the $5,000 cruise? 1%? Who in their right mind would do that for $50?

If the OBC comes out of the agency's cut, that would mean they are net negative for (-$50), which makes even less sense.

Even if DU gets a heightened 15% payout ($750 split $450/$300), that would mean that after the $250 OBC comes out, the TA gets $200 ($450-$250 OBC) for booking a $5,000 cruise, or the agency only makes $50 ($300-$250 OBC). Neither option seems to deliver an acceptable ROI.

 

[ILovePixieDust]

Mine was more than a year ago. Probably closer to two.

Mine was in March 2014 so more than a year ago as well….so maybe that has changed.

 

[Susiesark]

Are there other agencies paying as high as DU. without going through Costco?

 

[tinkerone]

Are there other agencies paying as high as DU. without going through Costco?

what i did was went to agencies around my area and asked if they would match the du incentive. i got mostly no's but i finally found one that said sure. give it a try, go to places around where you live and ask. all they can say is no and you may find a local who will say yes.

 

[JW9DVC]

Are there other agencies paying as high as DU. without going through Costco?

What's wrong with Costco?

 

[Susiesark]

Nothing wrong with Costco, they give the highest amount, but it is the form of a Costco Cash card not OBC, and I don't currently have a Costco membership.