Using a TA

[UGAFan0829]

Okay, y'all. I know a lot of you here have TA's that you use to book your cruise. I went directly thru Disney on our last cruise, but now that I'm almost ready to book another, I was thinking of going through a TA this time. I have looked around at some of the sites and found some much cheaper rates than directly thru DCL, and I am still waiting on some other quotes. But what I need to know is this...besides a better price, what advantages or perks are there to booking thru a TA. I guess I'm just having some reservations about it because I haven't had the best of luck getting much of a response for quotes in the past and that makes me a little weary. Also, I've heard that things don't always get scheduled like they should and that you don't always get your cruise docs on time. So can someone give me some positive things about using a TA?
TIA!

 

[alexandrew]

A good TA is invaluable....

from a service perspective, a TA whom you trust and have a relationship with is a great asset....

 

[allears]

A good TA is invaluable....

from a service perspective, a TA whom you trust and have a relationship with is a great asset....

This is the most important thing! We could easily book our trips and handle the arrangments ourselves, but we've used a TA for all of our cruises and a couple of WDW trips and our upcoming DL trip. First she's a friend and we have close contact with her. Then she some times finds good packages for us. But most importanly, she has helped us more than once in a pintch. We've been able to call her and she's worked gotten us through a couple of interesting situations and she was able to get things done that we couldn't.

The only draw back I see to the TA is once DCL has record of the the reservation being held by a TA, they will only dicuss certain things and take certain requests from the TA. You can still book excursions, but speical requests and inquiries go through the TA.

Our vote is for the TA.

 

[ivanova]

I would recommend that instead of trying to get a quote from a "big" Internet travel agency, try to find an individual TA you can develop a relationship with and one that will communicate with you in your preferred form of communication (i.e. if you prefer phone contact via email contact, etc.). It doesn't necessarily have to be someone in your town, but should be someone that responds to your emails (or phone calls) in a reasonable amount of time.

 

[kbkids]

Has anyone ever used the Small World Vacations that are recommended through MouseSavers?

 

[greytlady]

Also a good TA will keep an eye on any reduction in prices so that you don't have to. I told my TA which excurisions I wanted and he arranged my excursions for me. I've heard of tales during the hurricanes that TA were invaluable in rearranging flights/hotels.

 

[Az Pirates]

Has anyone ever used the Small World Vacations that are recommended through MouseSavers?

Got a quote through them - but All Seasons and Dreams Unlimited were both less $$ for the same cruise/cabin categories for us.
I have seen posts from others who recommended them though.

 

[mickeyworld]

I booked thru Small World and they were fabulous!!! Not only that, I had a check for $150.00 waiting for me when I got home- almost a down payment on my Shutters bill! What a wonderful surprise.
I would be surprised if they didn't match another quote, but they were the cheapest I could find- they also took over the booking I made on board and I still qualify for the $150.00 present when I get home!

 

[smilingmouse]

I use Dana at www.micdan.com
Her prices have always been the lowest for my cruises.
Her service has been excellent too

 

[mketting]

Dreams Unlimited has been very helpful and had the best price by far for us. Ask for SueEllen for your specific TA.