Originally Posted by
mnaguib
I run one of the agencies giving quotes to CruiseCompete clients and we don't even bother quoting unless we can offer a substantial discount (minimum -20%) over the current market price.
For us CruiseCompete is a side business helping us fill group space, and pick up new clients along the way, who then mostly become repeat clients because they appreciate the service and reliability we offer.
We are small (20 people) and highly specialized, so it is quite likely that most folks have never heard of us, but really if someone only wants to book with a big agency what is the purpose of using Cruise Compete versus simply calling them or checking their website.
I think the beauty of CruiseCompete is really that small specialized agencies like ours can get their competitively priced inventory to market and stand out of the crowd.
In that respect CruiseCompete is rather unique.
We've been hesitant to deal with "unknown" online-only vendors for cruise reservations.
We usually want a very specific suite; there may only be two and we may want the on on a specific side for a specific itinerary.
Now, with at least some cruise lines, we can reserve with the line itself, and then (with some limitations) we might be able to transfer the reservation to an outside agent of our choice.
IF we did this, would an agency such as yours still be able to offer the same discounts/OBC as if we had gone through you at the start?
Or do you only offer cabins that are "left over" from groups where you had booked a block and didn't sell all of them?
GC