General
Cruise |
Booking
a Cruise |
Cabin Selection
Group
Travel |
Cruise Reservation | Cruise
Lines
Section covers quesitons many cruisers have regarding how to book the best deal.
-
How do I book a cruise?
- Why
should I book with Cruises Inc?
- Why
are your rates better than what my local travel agent is quoting me?
- Is
it better to book my cruise early or wait for a last minute discount?
- Can
I book on short notice?
- Do
the cruise lines have Senior Citizen Rates? Family Rates? Last Minute
Discounts?
- What
about these rates in my Sunday newspaper? Why aren't they ever available?
- Why
can't I just deal with the cruise line directly?
- Do
the cruise lines ever give free upgrades?
- Can
I extend my cruise vacation?
- Should
I buy cancellation insurance? Is it worth it? What does it cover?
- How
do I pay for my cruise? What are the deposit and final payment requirements?
How do I book a cruise?
Click here
to provide us information about your cruising needs. Then through
email and in person, one of our enthusiastic, knowledgeable representatives
will be glad to help you. We will help you pick the cruise that fits your
vacation schedule, tastes, and budget; then make all the arrangements
to get you from your doorstep to your stateroom and back.
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Why should I book with
Eros Tours and Travels?
There are a number of reasons to book with
Eros Tours and Travels. Among them: fast, courteous service with the best
rates in the country.
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Why are your rates better
than what my local travel agent is quoting me?
Our margins are often better because we
buy in bulk. Often we have group rates that your local agent doesn't have.
We are informed immediately of special regional, last minute, and senior
promotions. Our agents are trained to ask for the best deal and most corporate
intensive agencies are not. By specializing in cruises, we're also very
good at finding them at the best prices, often passing on our margins
to you in the form of greater discounts.
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Is it better to
book my cruise early or wait for a last minute discount?
It depends on your level of flexibility,
but overall, it is better to book early. The cruise lines will often lower
your rate if a better promotion comes along after you book your trip.
Some guidelines are listed below for when you should consider booking,
but again what they really come down to is flexibility.
Book early (at least
6 - 8 months in advance) if:
- It's an inaugural cruise
- You want specific cabin, i.e.
· suites or mini-suites
· location (port, starboard, middle of the ship, bedding, etc.)
· handicapped
- It is a unique itinerary (holiday,
infrequent)
- You're not flexible with dates (honeymoon,
vacation, etc.)
- You need a cabin for 3 or 4 people
- You need multiple cabins (family,
group, etc.)
- You are particular about seating at
dinner (especially if you want late seating)
- You plan to use frequent flyer tickets
to get to the port (especially foreign cruises)
Book late if:
- You have lots of flexibility (itinerary,
dates), especially if only two people are cruising
- You don't care about the location
of your cabin and you will take an inside cabin
- You can drive to the port (and
none of the other guidelines apply)
- You feel it isn't any fun unless you
have lots of pressure :-)
Some cruise lines will now guarantee dinner
seating and take a lower deposit when you book early (this may only
be for repeat passengers).
Most people book 8 months to as much as
18 months in advance. You can always cancel, but of course you have to
lay out the money for the deposit. Refunds on deposits are slow, however,
and may take up to two months.
In the Caribbean at this time, where they
have obviously built too many ships (especially in the winter when
the ships are not in Alaska/Europe), some of these rules may not
apply. Anyway, they are only guidelines.
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Can I book on short
notice?
Even the most popular cruises sometimes
have space available because of late cancellations.
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Do the cruise lines
have Senior Citizen Rates? Family Rates? Last Minute Discounts?
Most of these promotions are available
in the off peak booking seasons, right after the first of the year and
between September and mid-December. Anyone can qualify for a senior rate
provided one of the passengers in the cabin is 55 years old or older.
Usually these rates have $50 to $100 per person lower than the normal
rates. Eros Tours and Travel will post Senior Rates on the Internet as
they become available.
Family Rates are programs that cruise lines
use to fill the third and fourth berths on cruises on soft sailings. For
example, the third and fourth person in a cabin may pay $499 per person
on a typical seven night cruise. However, to help fill a ship, the cruise
line may reduce this rate to $99 or even offer free passage to 3rds and
4ths. We will post these specials as well.
Finally, Last Minute Discounts are less
popular than in the past. Today, the cruise lines are trying fill the
ships with better early booking discounts like Royal Caribbean's Breakthrough
Rates and Carnival's SuperSavers. They can now tell about three months
prior to sailing if a sailing needs help. If they do, they'll institute
Past Passenger Discounts First, Senior Rates second, Regional Promotions
Third, and then drop the rates if necessary. Either way, if you book early
and the price comes down after putting down your deposit, the cruise line
will often lower your rate to the new promotion. You're always better
off booking early.
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What about these rates
I see in my Sunday newspaper? Why aren't they ever available?
The rates you see in your Sunday newspaper
in January are often for sailings during the most affordable week in the
fall and on the shortest cruise. Since this pricing is based on the lowest
category on the ship (which also happens to have the fewest cabins), they
sold out by the time you call. Furthermore, until this year, all rates
were quoted without airfare and port charges. It's very difficult at times
to explain to a client that a seven night cruise with airfare and port
charges in an outside cabin from Kansas City is $1,099 per person when
they saw and ad in their paper stating their cruise rates were from $199
per person. $199 would be for a three night cruise in a bunk bed cabin
without airfare and port charges. It's very misleading and we try to avoid
such advertising.
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Why Can't I Just
Deal With The Cruise Line Directly?
You can actually make reservations with
some cruise lines, but usually this is not to your advantage. As a Top
Producer with most cruise lines, we often get special rates that are not
available to other travel agents, much less the public.
If you booked directly with the cruise line because we weren't available
or you didn't know about us, the cruise line will release your booking
to the travel agency of your choice provided you do so prior to your final
payment
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Do the cruise lines
ever give free upgrades?
Everyone either knows someone, met someone
on a ship, or they themselves have been upgraded to a higher category
than they paid for. Yes, it does happen and but not as frequently as people
think. How do upgrades work? Who knows? We're still trying to figure it
out, but here's our theory.
Most upgrades go to passengers who book
early and buy the lowest category on the ship in the form of a "Category
Guarantee." A "Category Guarantee" means that when you
book your cruise, you are not assigned a cabin number, you are simply
guaranteed that category or better. Since most people who cruise simply
want to get the best price, "Guarantees" are a great way to
fill the ship with people looking for a good rate.
The cruise lines always sell more guarantees
in a category than there are cabins in that category. For example, the
lowest rate on Celebrity Cruise Line's Zenith is a Category 12, inside
cabin. There are approximately 6 category 12 cabins. However, on each
sailing, Celebrity will sell between 40 and 60 Category 12 guarantees.
You don't have to be a rocket scientist to see that 34 people are going
to get a free upgrade. Usually these upgrades are given on a first come
first serve bases.
Most upgrades are often from low inside
cabins to higher inside cabins, or low outside cabins to higher outside
cabins. Rarely do passengers get upgraded from inside to outside but it
does happen. But don't book an inside cabin expecting a free upgrade to
an outside. It probably won't happen.
If you are assigned a cabin when you deposit
on your cruise, your chances of an upgrade are very small. If you are
traveling in a quad, your chances are very rare in that there are relatively
few quad cabins on a sailing. Cabin assignments on guarantees are usually
made between a few weeks and the day of sailing. If you don't like the
cabin they give you, tough luck, you're stuck. So if you're afraid of
being at the front, back, top, bottom, under the dining room, then don't
take the chance. Take an assignment at time of booking.
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Can I extend my cruise
vacation?
We can arrange pre- or post-cruise land
packages at the same time you book you cruise. These are available through
the cruise line and usually include transfers or a rental car.
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Should I buy cancellation
insurance? Is it worth it? What does it cover?
Without insurance, if you cancel your cruise
after final payment, you will suffer penalties. There is no question about
it. It could be $50 per person or could be the full cost of the trip.
The cruise line doesn't care if it was your life savings, if it was a
heart attack, a death or if you promise to rebook and say good things
about the line. You will not get your money back after final payment without
insurance.
We mention insurance to everyone. We don't
push it on anyone. For some reason, people perceive it as a cash cow for
us travel agents. It's not. But you should consider your own situation
before deciding for or against it?
- Would losing the total cost of trip
hurt?
- Do you have family members who are ill
or at risk of illness that if their condition turned worse you would
abandon your travel plans? Young children or older family members?
- Do you have a pre-existing medical condition?
- Is your trip relatively expensive? Are
you leaving the country for 10 days or longer?
- Are you at a point in your life where
you are susceptible to accident or illness?
- Are you booking your own air transportation?
- Have you ever experienced baggage delay
or loss by the airlines?
- Does your insurance cover medical expenses
in a foreign country? Probably not?
If you answered yes to any of these questions,
then you may want to consider insurance. Insurance typically costs about
10% of your total trip cost and usually covers baggage, trip delay, trip
interruption, medical expenses, medical evacuation, and more. The cruise
lines' insurance typically doesn't cover pre-existing conditions but we
have other insurance we sell to cover this situations. Ask your agent
for a brochure explaining it in more detail?
Is Insurance worth it? If you have to use
it, definitely? But insurance also buys peace of mind, which is not a
bad reason to have it either?
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How do I pay for
my cruise? What are the deposit and final payment requirements?
Always, always, always use a credit card
to book your trip. . They're convenient, they are safe, and you get extra
protection for your vacation from your credit card company.
If you are booking your cruise early (outside
of four months prior to travel) the cruise line typically requires a deposit
ranging from $100 per person for a 3 or 4 night cruise, $200 - $250 per
person for a 7 night cruise, and $300 or more for longer cruises. Your
cruise must be paid in full at least 65 days prior to travel for most
cruise lines (some require final payment even sooner).
You will get a comprehensive receipt for
every payment and will receive a final payment reminder to keep you on
top of your payments. If you would like to make periodic payments on your
trip, you may do so provided all payments are completed prior to the final
balance due date.
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