NEWSFLASH: New Carnival Policy goes in effect August 1st, 2012
Carnival has just announced that effective 8/1/12, they will not allow travel agents to give ANY cash equivalent value-adds (i.e shipboard credit, pre-paid gratuities, gas cards, airline miles, reduced airfare; free or discounted travel insurance, hotel nights, or shore excursions) and will be limiting any booking incentives to a $ 25 pp non-cash equivalent item (like a tote bag, hat, beach towel, memory book, sunglasses and Carnival gifts delivered onboard (Bon Voyage items)). This new policy applies not only to advertising, but all forms of communication, including in-person, phone or any other means. If any travel agent is caught violating the policy, (whether big, small or even a home based agent belonging to a host agency) their commission can be eliminated and they can be put on a "no book" status.
What does this mean for you??
If you are a consumer and have been thinking of booking a Carnival cruise sailing in 2012, 2013 or 2014...make sure you book it before July 31, 2012 with a CLIA certified travel agency so that you can maximize your booking bonus before this new policy becomes effective. If you have a Travel Agency you already book with, use them. If you don't, give us a try. Either way, support the Travel Agent community and make sure you book with a cruise specialist before August 1, 2012.
Does this also apply to Princess cruises since they're owned by Carnival? We're about ready to book a Princess cruise for Fall 2013, so if applies to Princess as well, we'll have to bite the bullet earlier than planned so that we can get OBC from our travel agent.
Does this also apply to Princess cruises since they're owned by Carnival? We're about ready to book a Princess cruise for Fall 2013, so if applies to Princess as well, we'll have to bite the bullet earlier than planned so that we can get OBC from our travel agent.
On some discussion on cruise critic, someone says they talked to a media relations person who said that it's Carnival Cruise Line only so far, not Carnival Corp, so it shouldn't affect the other brands. Carnival Cruise Line was already apparently pretty restrictive on discounting before this.
The claim is that it's to help the small travel agents compete since they won't have to discount as much against their commission. Personally, I think it's more likely to get people to book through Carnival directly since it'll be the same price there as anywhere else.
Personally, I think it's more likely to get people to book through Carnival directly since it'll be the same price there as anywhere else.
That's exactly what I think about it too. Personally, if there is no benefit to me to not use my TA, I will still use her. At least I know some small chunk of my vacation spending is staying in my community. And frankly, Carnival (or RCI for that matter) has no idea what kinds of perks a TA might offer direct back to the customer, outside of the cruise transaction.
It's not hubris. I'll be surprised if this isn't policy at Royal and NCL soon. It's no different than when Royal first banned TA's from advertising lower rates than advetrised by Royal itself. Within a couple of years it was policy at the other two.
Interestingly, travel agents who post at CruiseCritic say they asked for this, and are happy because now they can compete with the larger internet agencies. Personally, I think they're morons as I haven't booked with a TA since Carnival adopted the "no lower advertised rates" policy a couple years ago. It's not worth the added hassle of going through a TA for $25 of OBC or free insurance. Now they're even more restricted/. Why would I add an extra layer of hassle with no added benefit to offset it?
Now if only Carnival would improve their embarrassment of a website.
An objective opinion? Booking direct only gets you the company line, though understandably I have my built-in biases.
That's fine if you are looking for advice. I've never called my TA and asked her what she thought a good cruise would be for us. While I'm sure you still get a ton of people asking what a good cruise is for parents and 2 pre-teens, dad likes to gamble, mom likes the shows, etc., more and more people read websites like cruise critic and get more info than they ever thought they would get. I basically email my TA, and say "I want this ship, this date, this cabin, we are staying at X hotel and here are my flight times." She'll check on price changes for me, but we typically book cruises that seem to go higher, not lower as time goes on.
I don't really need her for the booking, but like I said above, I like some of my money staying in the local economy, and she has been my wife's family's TA for years, so I keep going back to her. I actually met her for the first time after our 4th cruise booked with her, and her office is a block from our house LOL.
There is an over supply of cruise ships and cruise cabins. The industry is trying to fight supply and demand. Only idiots are going to get hurt. Just remember a cruise line pays 17% + other goodies to a travel agent. Use that knowledge to your advantage. And please do not challenge my statistics.
I can only speak for myself, a regular Carnival cruise passenger. If there is no incentive for me to book through a TA, I will just book directly on the Carnival website. Less hassle.
I think that the TAs that wanted this change just shot themselves in the foot and will lose a lot more business than they will gain from the "level playing field".
I don't really need her for the booking, but like I said above, I like some of my money staying in the local economy, and she has been my wife's family's TA for years, so I keep going back to her. I actually met her for the first time after our 4th cruise booked with her, and her office is a block from our house LOL.
I have to admit, one of the reasons I still book through a TA at this point is that I figure if I'm going to pay the same amount anyways, at least this way *someone* gets some money out of the company for the booking. And I've been dealing with the same TA for a number of years, with a reasonable number of cruises booked through her. But for someone like me, I'm not relying on her for advice, I'm probably one of the easier customers she has to deal with . Heck, I even feel a little guilty when I call in to get my price reduced because the cabin price has gone down (but not guilty enough not to take advantage of the $800 price drop that popped up on my next cruise).
74% of all statistics are made up on the spot. 
. Heck, I even feel a little guilty when I call in to get my price reduced because the cabin price has gone down (but not guilty enough not to take advantage of the $800 price drop that popped up on my next cruise).
