Using Costco travel??

[lisaradz]

We used Costco for our land & sea vacation for the hefty gift card. Has anyone ever used Costco travel for just the DCL cruise, RCCL or NCL? How did it go? With our land & sea, I knew exactly what I wanted but with 7 day cruise, there seem to be more options with planning. I'm thinking maybe direct is the way to go in case I need to make changes...any thoughts?

 

[JoiseyMom]

I have heard people complain about trying to reach a person there to make changes to their ressies. And I have also heard that their reps are not very knowlegable about DCL.

People have recently posted that COSTCO will no longer take a transferred reservation since the commission percentages are less for that type of ressie.

 

[RussN]

We used Costco for our land & sea vacation for the hefty gift card. Has anyone ever used Costco travel for just the DCL cruise, RCCL or NCL? How did it go? With our land & sea, I knew exactly what I wanted but with 7 day cruise, there seem to be more options with planning. I'm thinking maybe direct is the way to go in case I need to make changes...any thoughts?

I used Costco for my EC 2006 cruise and don't have any complaints. No issues and everyone seemed very helpful. Then it again, it has been 2.5 years since I used them last.

 

[strega7]

We used Costco in 2007 for our Western and they did a great job. I used them again for our Feb 2009 because of our previous experience and because of the gift card....definately a different experience this time. Everytime I have called, I have been on the phone for over an hour, I had to change some ressies around due to one family deciding not to go, and some of our other family taking thier place, that turned out to be a mess....got double charged for their insurance....had a horrible time trying to get the costco rep to understand how they got double charged (luckily I was able to get her to realize my parents were charged double our insurance price after arguing with her for about 15 minutes and almost in tears!). They definately seem not as well trained as the first time we used them. Also, on another note, we had the opportunity to get a $1600 discount off of our cruise thru my husbands work, if we had booked thru Disney we could have kept our staterooms originally reserved, and the dining seating and just transfer to get the huge discount. Because we booked thru Costco, we had to cancel entire thing and re-book, loosing our cabins, ressies and dinner seating.....Next time (if there is one) we will book thru Disney itself and transfer to a deal if one should come up at a later time.

 

[MaryAz]

We transferred our ressie back when they still took them. I called just today to check on the fuel surcharge. Had a very knowledgeable rep and was only on the phone for 15 min. I also had to make major changes a few monthes back and it did take a long call but it was all done correctly. I would reccomend them. And the hefty gift card is a great bonus!

 

[disneylove69]

I did my 2008 through Sams Club and had no problems.

 

[Interpol]

I just called Costco Travel for a quote on a 3-day Bahamas cruise for May 2009. The agent I spoke to knew about the Kids Cruise Free deal and quoted me a price that was much lower than DCL's website for a Category 6 stateroom with 2 adults and 2 kids. She also mentioned that we would receive a $125 Costco gift card for this reservation.

The last time I booked a land/sea package thru Costco for October 2008 for 2 staterooms (3 adults and 2 kids), we received a gift card for $500.

 

[Joan1]

I just called Costco Travel for a quote on a 3-day Bahamas cruise for May 2009. The agent I spoke to knew about the Kids Cruise Free deal and quoted me a price that was much lower than DCL's website for a Category 6 stateroom with 2 adults and 2 kids. She also mentioned that we would receive a $125 Costco gift card for this reservation.

The last time I booked a land/sea package thru Costco for October 2008 for 2 staterooms (3 adults and 2 kids), we received a gift card for $500.

With the kids free promo the price is the same as you would get on DCL.com no further discounts are allowed on the cruise fare itself. It could be that when you looked on the DCL site you didn't go all the way through to get the kids free price. There are certain steps you need to take to see the discounted total. Also the first price you see on Disney's site includes transfers and insurance which you may not have had included when booked through Costco

 

[Interpol]

With the kids free promo the price is the same as you would get on DCL.com no further discounts are allowed on the cruise fare itself. It could be that when you looked on the DCL site you didn't go all the way through to get the kids free price. There are certain steps you need to take to see the discounted total. Also the first price you see on Disney's site includes transfers and insurance which you may not have had included when booked through Costco

Ah, I see. You are correct, I didn't go all the way through the booking steps on DCL's site.

Regardless, I'm still planning to go with Costco for the gift card and their cheaper travel insurance.

 

[Tink113]

Carefully with Costco's travel insurance! i booked with them for our Dec 07 cruise and luckily nothing went wrong. I went to book 10 of us for our family May 09 cruise & after looking over the travel insurance more carefully with my parents joining us, I noticed that costco left a ton out. For example, Hurricane's are not covered with Costco insurance. Missing something due to hurricanes is not considered a trip interruption... I called & asked. So i canceled my costco insurance & went with insurmytrip.com

Oh, and I would never book with them again now that you can't transfer. I have easily spent 8 hours on the phone in hold time ect for all the things to change or add. Plus Costco charges $25 per change to a room, so when I moved my brother from our room to my older brothers & My nephew to ours it was $100.00!!! $25.00 to move my bother out of mine, $25.00 to move my brother into the other room, $25.00 to move my nephew out of his, & $25.00 to move him into ours. I would never have done it, but this was the only way to have a castaway member in each cabin.

DU & other's are offering great incentives. Try them.

 

[Interpol]

Carefully with Costco's travel insurance! i booked with them for our Dec 07 cruise and luckily nothing went wrong. I went to book 10 of us for our family May 09 cruise & after looking over the travel insurance more carefully with my parents joining us, I noticed that costco left a ton out. For example, Hurricane's are not covered with Costco insurance. Missing something due to hurricanes is not considered a trip interruption... I called & asked. So i canceled my costco insurance & went with insurmytrip.com

Not sure who you talked to, but you received incorrect information.

It's clearly stated on Costco Travel's website and on their Travel Insurance coverage terms and conditions that hurricanes (both at home and at your vacation destination) are covered.

Also, Costco Executive members receive double benefits for free (i.e., $100,000 coverage for trip cancellation instead of $50,000).

 

[lbgraves]

Perhaps they have changed the company they do their travel insurance through but others have had this problem with their travel insurance not covering hurricane issues in the past. If they have changed their coverage to include it, then that is good.

If you are referring to DCL's travel insurance, anything is less expensive and it doesn't cover any preexisting conditions with the effective date being the date final payment is due for the cruise. Going through other companies on your own can get better coverage at a lower rate and most companies have a kids covered for free policy. You may want to look into that before purchasing Costco's insurance.

 

[mhuppman]

A friend of mine booked a 7-day Eastern Caribbean Cruise for her family. On the Monday before the cruise, her father in-law passed away, and they sought to rebook the cruise through Disney, but was directed back to Costco, who does not seem to be willing to allow a cancel or a rebook. She opted out of trip insurance...

Is anyone aware of any tactics she can take to recoup to $6,000. she has apparantly lost. Costco has only said they would "do what they can to elevate her concerns to the next level".

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks a million!!

 

[lbgraves]

A friend of mine booked a 7-day Eastern Caribbean Cruise for her family. On the Monday before the cruise, her father in-law passed away, and they sought to rebook the cruise through Disney, but was directed back to Costco, who does not seem to be willing to allow a cancel or a rebook. She opted out of trip insurance...

Is anyone aware of any tactics she can take to recoup to $6,000. she has apparantly lost. Costco has only said they would "do what they can to elevate her concerns to the next level".

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks a million!!

Sorry, but if your friend did not purchase travel insurance then she will not be recovering any of the cost of the cruise that she lost by cancelling a week or less before the cruise when the penalty is 100% of the money paid. This is what insurance is for. Even if she had purchased trip insurance, if her FIL died from a preexisting condition [even if he was not going to go on the cruise] then she would not have been eligible for a refund of any kinds with any policy that did not cover PECs, which DCL's own insurance does not cover. Costco is putting in a request to DCL to reconsider and go against DCL's own rules but DCL does not have to do anything. Many people have posted on the board of similar cases and DCL has not bent the rules for anyone since announcing last year that they were going to be strictly enforcing their cancellation policies. If they allowed anyone who had to cancel a cruise to just change their dates then there would be no reason for anyone to purchase travel insurance.

 

[mhuppman]

Thanks, Lisa. Thanks for your response.

I can certainly understand this position, however it is leaving a bad taste in the mouth of this person who has never cruised with Disney and is going through a tough loss. I'd think they'd reconsider in this troubling economic time. This individual had been saving for several years for this once-in-a-lifetime family vacation....

Have a great day!! Mike

 

[lbgraves]

Thanks, Lisa. Thanks for your response.

I can certainly understand this position, however it is leaving a bad taste in the mouth of this person who has never cruised with Disney and is going through a tough loss. I'd think they'd reconsider in this troubling economic time. This individual had been saving for several years for this once-in-a-lifetime family vacation....

Have a great day!! Mike

I am sorry that your friend had to learn this while she is going through a difficult time. Someone on the trip reports board recently had to cancel a trip about a week before the cruise because their daughter was diagnosed with cancer. DCL did not refund anything and they had not purchased insurance. She posted an update in the past week that her daughter died from the disease. You never know what is going to happen when you book a cruise a year or more in advance.

Actually, I would expect businesses to tighten their reins more with the current economic situation. They did not have time to fill the vacency created by the cancellation. DCL cruises are very expensive, which is why it is always a good idea to purchase insurance which is relatively inexpensive when compared to the cost of the cruise. It cost us around $130 to insure our 2 week cruise and week at DL last summer. The kids' coverage was free. A 7 day cruise costs us $84 to insure with time at WDW before the cruise. Unfortunately, it is only through cases like this that people might realize that the insurance is worth the extra money so that this does not happen to them.

 

[moet7]

Hi
I just booked with Costco and received a 925.00 gift card for two cabins. A cat. 6 with 2 people and a cat. 10 with 4 people.

When I first called Costco I spoke with a woman who knew LOTS about Disney Cruising. Told me that there was a Military Discount available for my cruise date and asked if I qualified. Also told me about the visa obc offer of 50.00 per stateroom and the 1/2 off desposit promotion.

I called the next day and spoke with another Costco TA and this one told me none of the above. I told HIM everything and he was very nice and said he would have to check it all out with Disney.

Both times I called I called when costco opened and had a 2 min wait.

So just like with Disney, if all depends on who answers the phone as to how much they know.

What I do like about Costco besides the cash card is that Disney is the one who sends out your final documents. Last time I cruised, it took forever, it seemed like for me to get my documents, as they went from Disney to the TA to me.

I understand people's fears on using them if they need to make changes. I knew exactly what I wanted and just told the Costco TA what to do. If you are new to cruising then perhaps using Costco isn't for you, but if you know what you want and you know you won't be changing things around, the cash card is very worth using them.

I had actually booked my cruise with DCL when the dates came out and then found out that Costco is no longer taking the transfers.

The TA I spoke with at Costco told me that if the price of the cruise hasn't gone up and it hadn't that I could just cancel with DCL and rebook with them to get the gift card.

So this is what I did. I called DCL cancelled my cruise and then picked up the phone and called Costco the moment they opened and got back the same two rooms I had and one of them was a secret port hole room:thumbsup

There were lots of rooms still available and if I would have lost my two original cabins I would have been fine with it. And to me having 925.00 to spend vs a secret port hole room was worth it to me.

 

[Lori1960]

Are you saying that I person can get a better deal with costco.Didn know costco did disney or disney cruise

 

[jilljill]

Are you saying that I person can get a better deal with costco.Didn know costco did disney or disney cruise

Costco has a full service travel agency. You will pay the same price, but they offer some sort of 'rebate' after your travel - a gift card to use at the warehouse store or online.

 

[ClaireinTN]

Someone mentioned earlier in the thread that reservations can't be transferred to costco. Is that corect? My plan is to book a "dummy reservation" when we are on our Alaska cruise and then change it once we decide what we actually want to do, probably a 2013 cruise. So I couldn't transfer the reservation to costco?