Please, take note of what Gary says about travel insurance. If you are one of the "it won't happen to me" brigade, then you take an enormous risk. On our last cruise, we both caught Covid. I was extremely ill and finished up for 10 days in the ICU at Mombasa General hospital. With the shipboard medical fees, the hospital, taxis and finding flights home the total was nearly €40,000. We had full travel insurance that had cost us nearly €400. They paid for everything. The lot. At 1% of the costs, it was a bargain!!
We are booking with the cruise lines recommended insurer. Holiday extras. Much like yourself, my uncle fell ill on holiday. He ended up stuck in eygpyt for 6 weeks
Anyone who travels with out is an accident waiting to happen. Many travel companies are now insisting that you have insurance before they except your booking. My T& C states that if after paying the deposit you don’t give insurance company details within 10 days you forfeit that deposit and your booking is cancelled. For full paying customers you have to give insurance details while booking.
I had friends who had an accident on their first day on the cruise and had to be taken off the ship by helicopter, back to Florida for surgery then medical flight back to their home country. Their medical bill was over a $ million. Thankfully they had comprehensive insurance.
About the girl who broke her foot in Cozumel - the cruise lines tell people all the time NOT to rent a scooter because, unless you're really experienced in driving one, it's an accident waiting to happen.
Lots of insurance companies are excluding driving on scooters now for cover in the fine print. Putting it in the same category as downhill skiing and deep sea diving. It's just so dangerous for most people.
Jet skis, horse riding and quad bikes are often excluded in travel insurance policies. You must read the small print and take advantage of the cooling off period if you want to switch to another insurer. You may be surprised by some of the exclusions.
Gary, you are absolutely right. Some years ago, one December, I procrastinated and waited last minute - 48 hours to be exact - to book a flight. The airlines told me they were all sold out for the date and times I wanted. I called up a travel agency, and they immediately got me on a flight on one of the airlines that told me they were sold out. But the bigger surprise was that the agent got me a ticket for a mere $385, a lot down from $770 the airlines quoted me. The agent explained that airlines block and reserve a number of seats on flights for travel agencies. That enables an agency (when they are not sold out) to have available seat, even when the airlines themselves say a flight is booked out.
Always always get travel insurance! We had a cruise booked and had to cancel on the morning at the airport when one of the covid tests came out positive. Got full refund of cruise fare and air travel.7000€
Thank you so much for supporting travel agents! There is so much misconception in booking with a travel agent. For instance, I’m a nurse who specializes in accessible travel. This is something so many people don’t know exists.
I also often use a specialised travel agent when traveling with my dad who's in a wheelchair. For neighbouring countries I can do it myself, but further out I find it easier to have people with experience who have local contacts (especially if I don't speak the local language).
The main point here, and the same I’ve learned after over 20 cruises - SHOP AROUND! Applies to the cruise, flights, hotels, and excursions. And keep an eye on prices on things that can be rebooked. Great video!
But with NCL if I'm playing in the casino onboard my next cruise might have a CAS 20% discount added to my 10% veteran discount as well as the NCL discount of either 50% off or 2nd guest free. What TA can match that? Though the CAS discount does not apply to suites or Haven.
@@rgruenhaus everyone’s situation is different. I personally loathe the casino, and Norwegian doesn’t take me everywhere I want to go, nor is every ship as good as the other in their fleet. Cruise loyalty doesn’t make sense to me, but it depends on your personal travel habits and what makes you happy.
Great advise Gary. You mentioned those two ladies who were injured in Cozumel and didn’t have travel insurance. What made their situation even worse was neither one had passports and thus had issues even getting out of the country and back home.
The advice on not purchasing the insurance from the cruise line is really valid and has been the practice of good agents for years. Book directly with reliable companies such as Allianz etc.
I used Allianz. See my comment in the general comments thread. More happened than just that but I didn't want to bore people. I think they'd be fine if you were hospitalised and in a coma. But in my circumstance, I pretty much had to organise and find everything (e.g. english-speaking hospitals) except for book a flight home. So maybe it's an expectation thing. I thought that they would help more... There are also two sides to every story.
Senior citizens - check with Medicare before you handle the insurance issue. In general - you are not losing medical benefits if you are abroad - the issue is however how to bridge the time when you have to pay upfront abroad and Medicare reimburses you. In many of those countries where Health Care is covered by the National Health care plan - services are free or at a minimal charge.
Completely agree with not booking flights through the cruise line! After a couple of ridiculous routings in the early years, we now always book our own flights. It appears the cruise lines use a computer algorithm that simply chooses the cheapest option, regardless of routing/connections/logic, even though the cost difference may be virtually insignificant. You can sometimes overcome this by subsequently going to the line's in-house travel consultants (or presumably your own travel agent, if applicable), but it's a hassle.
Totally agree, our agent (who also happens to be an excellent friend) knows I'm a total AvGeek and have been wanting to add the A380 to my list and came up with a wonderful itinerary for our upcoming Istanbul to Rome cruise that allows us to spend the night in London to visit family and fly on a BA380 back to DFW the next day. Honestly, it's really worth the effort to find a travel agent who gets you and also watches out for you.
I agree with most cruise lines booking air is better and cheaper on your own. The only exception I have found is with Viking, they may be marginally more expensive but they will work with you to get the flights you want and the transfers are worry free. I have a Viking cruise coming up and the original flights they gave me were a bit convoluted, called them up and got the direct flight immediately and was cheaper than I could have done on my own (although you pay some of that thru the cruise fare).
I booked with the cruise line and it was the cheapest and quickest route I could find anywhere. I was even able to contact the cruise line when there was a price drop and got the new price.
What he does not mention is fly cruise packages that are popular in the UK. All things are included and my future cruise we ae taken directly from the plane to the ship. If there is a flight delay the ship will wait. However there is the recent horror story of a charter flight arriving 16 hours late with the passengers being eventually being dumped at the airport in Barbados in the middle of the night for a 9 hour wait. P+Os care for these customers was lacking and although there was some care initially they just wanted them off the ship. They had chosen Maleth Aero for some of their charter flights which offers a long haul budget experience which is not up to the standard of their other charters. This airline flies older aircraft and the delay seems to have been a knock on affect because of this. Delays can happen with any airline but this is probably the worst and exposes the pit falls of cruise line charters being done on the cheap. Hopefully Maleth will loose the contract for this year's season starting in November and all flights will revert back to TUI.
Great advice. We cruised every 3-5 years so able to save travel miles for free airfare. Early on we did all tours with the cruise line because we were newbies and when we started cruising, no internet. As time progressed we started doing independent tours. We used Allianz for 5 of 6 cruises. We had some bad luck when cruising a couple of times with mother dying and husband’s illness. Travel insurance covered everything cancellations, medical and travel. Always get insurance, you never know. We used it 3 of 6 cruises. 😮
RE: Airline travel arranged by the cruise company? NO! I'm retired airline (pilot) and my opinion is, shop the airline options separately from the cruise lines' offers. IF there are flight disruptions, for example, you're better off dealing directly with the airline and your PNR in the reservation. And of course, ALWAYS plan to arrive the day before embarkation!! A hotel night is worth the peace of mind and NOT "missing the boat"!!
Agree! I always do air travel myself and I always go down the day before cruise and stay at a hotel and the day after I stay at a hotel before flying home, for some strange reason after every cruise when I get back to the hotel I am normally in bed for most of the day I feel like I am still on the boat and I am unbalanced with slight nausea like I am sea sick it normally subsides after a few hours but the hotel stay before and after a cruise is definitely less stressful! Got this advice from my travel agent!
Good advice, Gary. I booked my own hotel in Buenos Aires and a driver from the airport who had been recommended. Hotel was great & let me check in at 12:00! Booked a Viator for that night for Argentinian steakhouse and tango show and morning city tour. They picked me up & dropped me off at the hotel. My booked ride took me from the hotel to the port later, and hotel stored my luggage that morning.
I booked through AAA. While I'm sure it wasn't the absolute lowest, the agent helped me get cabins that weren't listed directly, placed me near enough to dining but not too close, got me credit, provided insight, and suggested insurance. I thought the insurance was a needless upsell at the time, but two of our family members caught COVID and were refunded fully. So, travel agents will be the only way I'll go from now on.
I had a very bad experience with AAA. They charge me twice for the insurance and said they didn’t make a mistake on their computer when it seem like they were having trouble, they assured me that they only charged once. When I looked it up on my account, I saw it was charged twice and I went back to the agent and she said you have to do it through your credit card. When I waited on the line long time they said you need to go to the agent who did that Finally, after much prompting, and talking to the manager they made it correct, it seems like the agent didn’t want to admit her mistake or bother correcting it Because of that, I will never use AAA again, and I used to use it quite frequently
Although a recent convert to taking repositioning cruises, I instinctively followed all of these ideas. For my first one, the agent gave me excellent advice on which cabin and where on the ship, plus some good advice on insurance. Second, I've been a traveler for many years and have always booked my own airfare and hotels. I also did DIY excursions on all the cruises, but on my most recent one I booked a tour with Shore Excursions for Gibraltar and wasn't disappointed. I'd add photos to the list of what I don't buy onboard.
Because of your recommendations in your videos, my sister and I used Shore Excursions on our cruise last fall. Exceptional service! More options for excursions. The instructions for meeting and what to bring, what to wear, what to expect were very clear. Communication was no problem. And we had no worries about getting back to the ship because of their guarantee. Thank you thank you for this fabulous tip!
So glad you brought up the real need for Cruise Insurance. Most American Employer provided insurance plans do not cover you outside the US. Neither does Medicare or Medicare Supplement plans. Many plans do not even cover you out of state or a very limited service area. Most Credit Card travel benefits are meager and many don’t even cover you on a cruise. You can purchase a yearly plan from Allianz or other reliable carrier for travel protection or at least medical coverage.
I've made some comments in the main thread about my experience with Allianz but there are two sides to every story and sometimes you just get unlucky when dealing with an otherwise ok insurer or telco etc. etc.
@@joycem8490 Some plans? Which one? That isn’t how Medicare Supplement insurance plans work. They are tertiary to Medicare, who is billed first for any claim. Supplement plans only cover some remaining costs, not covered by Medicare. As Medicare will deny your claim once you are overseas, even just over an hour from a US port, the Supplement plan will deny your claim as well. Medicare Advantage plans are Medicare Supplement plans usually offered by HMO’s that only cover you in a specific service area, with even more restrictions. I work for the fourth largest purchaser of Health Care coverage in the United States and none of our plans cover us overseas. I have seen so many accidents and people getting sick on cruises and land tours overseas. Was on a tour in the Holy Land when a lady fell and broke her leg. She got the care she needed, but had to rebook her tickets and fly home early. None of this was cheap and she had no insurance. Don’t risk it. We bought annual plans from Allianz.
Wish I'd watched this a few weeks ago! I've taken scores of flights and booked scores of hotel stays and booked them myself. It's so easy to do these days that I've often wondered why anyone would go through an agent. Naturally, I took the same approach to my cruise I just booked. I'm learning now that an agent might be a better option.
I had that Santiago/Valparaiso experience but on the cruise line's bus. Much simpler. My husband is always in favor of booking things through the line because he says the peace of mind is worth it. We had a sketchy flight to Miami once, and the line made sure we got to the ship just in the nick of time.
Yes, I agree. In Tahiti our bus broke down (booked with Princess), replacement bus took over 2 hours, we were half hour late to ship, but ship waited as we were on their excursion. Imagine being stuck all the way out in French Polynesia if the ship had left. Scary. Thx
I just booked a cruise for 2025. Travel insurance through my travel agency was double for me and my daughter. Purchased the insurance on my own from the same company at a lower cost close to 50% less for me and around 41% less for my daughter. People do your homework but also never travel without. Peace of mind is better than the headache of having to come up with the funds.
While I haven't cruised, one thing I tend to do in general when traveling is separate my travel days from my vacation or "work" days (if I'm traveling for work). This usually means adding one or two days before and after the trip but allows for flexibility if there are delays. If there aren't any, then I just get to my destination a bit earlier than anticipated and have a free day. I know people who do sail and they advise NOT to travel on the same day as embarkation day and to arrive a day earlier and leave the day after.
Hey Gary Always nice to hear your POV. I’m A cruiser with 20 cruises under my belt. I agree NEVER book “Princess Air”, one & done. It cost me more and it was a pain, never again. I would caution on trip insurance……they pay you AFTER the fact. Those two young ladies would have had to cough up the 20k up front. I don’t buy insurance as I think it’s too particular. You’re absolutely correct NEVER buy directly from cruise line. Instead, get a room category specific option, then shop around. I had booked a cruise with one agency, the price went down and they wouldn’t accommodate me. I canceled, got my money back and rebooked with another agency that saved me $700 AND provided me better on board credit. Finally, you are spot on concerning shore excursions! I’m headed to cork Ireland, Iceland and Scotland July 2024 on Princess. I have booked all but 2 shore excursions on my own and saved hundreds! 30% off the ship price. Iceland is, as everyone knows, very expensive. Google shore excursions for X port and they list many options. More and more (even Iceland) they’re gearing excursions around ships movement. Happy travels
Your suggestion on travel insurance is misleading. All insurance plans reimburse after the fact. Hospitals, Doctors and Pharmacies, even in the US, do not get paid at point of service, they have to bill the insurer for reimbursement. It’s also not a question of having to pay the bill upfront. The hospital in Mexico can and will verify travel insurance as ability to pay. Without any insurance, in some countries you will not even receive treatment beyond palliative care.
If I could offer one suggestion: there is a distinction between direct flights and non-stop flights. Direct flights may or may not be non-stop flights. Direct flights may have intermediate stops and may even change aircraft at one of those stops! So check the itinerary carefully....if it says one or more stops, you're not going non-stop.
Great Travel Insurance tips Gary. The cost of travel insurance has literally gone through the roof post pandemic with some countries now refusing entry if the cruise traveller does not have insurance!! And I agree with you, third party insurance is definitely cheaper than the cruise line offerings. I now, always buy insurance through my travel agent!!
Exactly, rates have gone up, and our rates in the US are higher to begin with, but you can get a better deal buying an annual plan from a reputable carrier.
@@ChristianLehrer Not sure if US rates are "higher to begin with" Christian. Pre covid, our Duo travel insurance to Europe including a Med Cruise with a AU$200 excess was AU$1,364; post covid 2022 on an almost identical Europe trip plus Med cruise with a AU$250 excess was AU$3,064. Travel Insurance for this years Europe trip plus Med and UK cruises with a AU$250 excess is AU$3,715. All our trips run for about 6 weeks. Use an exchange rate of around US 70c to an Au$.
I have to disagree with the first point for cruising in Australia. All the travel agents I have been recommended were far more expensive than booking myself. I understand there are risks booking myself but thanks to channels like this one I am able to do proper research prior to booking.
Agents will often match that price if you bring it to them, you'll get far better service with an agent if things do go wrong. so if you see a cheaper price bring it to them. :)
This video is LOADED with good advice! One that stuck with me is the whole 'booking a transfer vs booking an Uber', what I have realised is that in some ports, it's actually MUCH cheaper to take the cruise line transfer than jump in an Uber. For example, on my Holland America cruise, they offered transfers to Miami Airport at the end of the cruise, but I decided to get an Uber. What I didn't realise is that there's no wi-fi outside the terminal building at Fort Lauderdale, there's no waiting taxi's and it's actually much much easier to just take the cruise line transfer. Excellent video as always, Gary!
Last time I took the cruise line transfer that included a city tour on the way. I'd never been in Boston proper, just the airport, so it was very interesting. I'd do that again.
You are hands down # 1 when comes to informing about cruise lines and all related issues. All of your postings are "open-minded" - honest "opinions" - and you always leave alternative options open for discussion. In short - you care more about building up a long-term mutually beneficial relationship rather than using bomb shell click-bait" hashtags to attract viewers. Customer satisfaction is more important to you than just building up # of clicks. I sincerely thank you for that.
I bought my travel insurance through Berkshire Hathaway. It was 1/2 the price and covered my flight, hotel, lost luggage and medical. We also booked an excursion in Cozumel we found on Trip Advisor. We had an in depth food tour that included going to see the local food market.
I agree about yiur insurance section EXCEPT, here in Canada very few companies have cancel for any reason, and the 2 that so, charge a hefty premium over the cruise line insurance. I go with Princess and they charge 12% for their Platinum coverage. I also have third party insurance because some think if they are doing a 10 day cruise, but do a pre and/or post stay, the ship insurance covers you for the 10 days while on the cruise, but not during travelling or these pre/post stays. This is not an issue if you are working and have great insurance coverage as one of your benefits, but that all changes once you are retired!
Hi FH6258. We are also in Canada and always get third party since the cruise lines don’t usually offer Canadians insurance and we spend extra days before and after the cruise. We use Manulife CoverMe Travel Insurance. What companies do you use?
@@slcrozier7987 I use CAA. I buy the annual premium with up to a 30 period each time as I am away 4-7 months a year. If I am gone more than 30 days ( it is common as I was gone from September 23 to Dec 28 on multiple cruises/ holidays and came back home for 2 days during that time. This year I will be doing 3 segments of the world cruise for 57 days. It is cheaper for me to buy the annual premium and top up for longer than 30 days away. As I have both my car and home insurance with them they give a 10% discount for travel insurance. Check them out as they are much more competitive than Manulife. But it is nit cancelation insurance. Only Princess offers cancel for any reason, the others will cover than (cekebrity), but you must have a US address and pay in US $. Do you have an agent?they should be able to guide you. If not let me know and I’ll give you my agents name. They are also a Virtuoso agency do you will get the virtuoso amenities.
On our recent cruise, we booked an excursion privately though the exact same excursion was also available through the cruise line. The time of the excursion was “1 hour after ship arrives”. Our stop the day before was cancelled (to rough for tenders), as a result, the arrival time the next day was changed from 1200 (noon) to 0700. We, wrongly as we discovered, assumed the excursion would go at 1300 as that was 1 hour after the original arrival time. It actually was also rescheduled to 0800. The passengers that booked through the cruise were alerted to this change. We were not.
The flight thing heavily depends on whether you're an EU customer or not. As an EU customer the cruise line becomes a travel package provider the instant they're selling you a flight to their cruise and are fully responsible for getting you on board. As long as you show up at the airport on time (or even at the train station to your airport if the issue already starts with the train) you can lay back and relax because anything else will be on the cruise line. If the airline fails to get you there on time it's not your problem. The cruise line has to make sure you do not miss embarkation. If all fails, you'll get a 100% refund plus some extra as compensation for the broken contract (if it was a flight issue). Not as nice as actually getting the cruise you were looking forward too, but at least you don't lose any money. If you book the flight independently and something goes wrong causing you to miss your boat, you'll get nothing.
But if you book it all through a travel agent the same protection applies. Annoyingly some cruise lines won't work work with travel agents, Viking being an example in the UK.
A friend of mine booked Their flights with their cruise line and because of flight delays they missed the cruise departure. The cruise line bussed about 40 people affected to the next port of call which took 8 hours. . This situation happened to me as well but I booked my own flights and Air Canada flew us On a direct flight to the next port of call and paid our hotel for one night with no problems at all. We were so happy that we didn’t book with the cruise line.
First river cruise, I booked air with Viking and paid to upgrade to Business class. When I got the air itinerary there was an extra stop on the way over and the final segment was not upgraded. When I called I was told “it’s out of our budget for the trip”. Needless to say I cancelled air from them and booked my own! Never again booking with the line.
I agree with you regarding travel insurance Gary! For my upcoming cruise in a couple of weeks I purchased the trip insurance through the cruise line, purchased insurance through Allianz and have coverage with my carnival mastercard that i used to pay for the cruise. Is it overkill? Maybe, but I hope not to have to use any of them
Overkill is always the smarter choice! I broke a bone while on a cruise a number of years ago, and I was extremely happy to have bought a pricey health insurance plan for the trip. I was in a hospital for a week and obviously had to fly home once discharged. The plan even paid for a hotel room for my spouse while I was in the hospital, and I even stayed in the hotel for two nights after I was discharged so I could rest before having to deal with airports and planes and layovers. It was well worth the money we spent! The trip sucked, though…
Regarding the flights that the cruiseline books. I think it depends where you live. I’m in Australia and there’s only certain ways that you can get to places from down under. My next cruise is on Silversea and they booked my flights to Cape Town on Singapore airlines, so I’m flying Sydney Singapore, Singapore Cape Town. I’m happy with this because Singapore is my favourite airline.
Gary - As always you make some good points. I'm a casual cruiser(15 cruises so far) and I can't agree with you more about travel insurance, particularly if you are over 50. Most U.S. insurance plans do not cover medical issues outside of the U.S. (neither does medicare). My biggest fear is requiring an airlift off a ship which can cost as much as $20,000. But the insurance also comes in handy for many other things. The airline temporarily lost our bad and had to fly it to our first port of call two day later. Since our bad was missing for more the 12 hours we were allowed to spend up to $600 for clothing replacement. Another time my wife and I got an upper respiratory infection and we needed antibiotics. About $200 each and both were quickly reimbursed to us when we got home. I also agree with your excursions comments. Sometimes there isn't much of a difference but many time not only is there a difference but by buying on line you get your E tickets and avoid lines to buy a ticket when you get there. Great episode!
Motorhoming will always be my first love. We did 4 weeks in Norway last year. Travelling up the west coast gives you multiple trips on the ferries across the fjords.
Transportation shuttle from airport to cruise port through cruiseline: $50-60 or more Public transportation: $5 perhaps. I travel with a small carry-on only, so I love hopping on the bus or train! In 2022 I sailed in & out of Los Angeles. We disembarked on a Tuesday, which happened to be election day. LA has free public transportation that day, so it cost me ZERO to get to LAX 😊
Travel agents are also able to monitor pricing and if the price happens to go down (which did happen with us once), they can pass that savings onto you. We wouldn’t have known if we had booked directly with the cruise line.
We usually book flights and transfers separately, not through the cruise lines. But for this summers' iceland cruise, we snatched a very good deal with the cruise line, a nonstop flight from Frankfurt to Reykjavik at an unbeatable price. A nonstop FRA - KEF booked by us would have been double. First we couldn't believe it and thought it is an airfare glitch - but no! Exactly the same flight, much much cheaper! This time it was good to make another phone call with the travel agency before booking a flight on our own 👍
I almost always book flights separately from a cruise, but did snag a sale on flights through Viking for an upcoming river cruise, they were $600 round-trip from the west coast US into Paris and out of Prague, a price I couldn't come close to when shopping myself, it saved us ~$400pp and included transfers. So if there's a sale, its worth checking at least. The itinerary we ended up with is fine with 2.5hr layover on the outbound, and then one 2.5h and one 6h (longer than ideal) layover on the return.
Wait til you get your seats and you may change your mind. Viking air put me in a basic economy seat that didn’t allow a carry on, only a personal item. Luckily I was able to upgrade to economy plus for $29 which was less than gate checking the bag. My travel agent was able to get Viking to reimburse me.
Excellent information as always Gary. Thanks. We specially agree about the flights and hotels. Usually can get better flights and rooms by ourselves. I’m sure everyone has a story, but on our last celebrity cruise to Alaska we booked economy flights from Toronto to Vancouver and from Seattle to Toronto with the cruise line. After some looking, we found better timed flights and asked celebrity to change them and asked for premium economy. They could not change them due to the fights being booked in their group fares (or something to that effect). Long story short we cancelled the flights, took the cancellation penalty and booked better flights in premium economy for less than the Celebrity fights including the penalty.
Thanks Gary, I find booking Air through Cruiselines depends on Cruiseline, Princess usually has cheaper fares than airlines and you can pick days, times and airports so no issue there, if airfares get cheaper anytime before 45 days to cruise, you can cancel and rebook no charge or if you decide not to go on cruuse before final payment can cancel no charge plus get benefit if something does happen, cruiseline is responsible to get you in ship. I saved thousands over the years booking air through cruiseline by refareing when fares drop and when cancelled cruises when something came up before final payment. Do not take cruise shuttle to or from ship except a couple times when took tour than airport drop off. Win, win, win, win by booking air with Princess. Agree with everything else. Thank you
Unfortunate plane routings are indeed based on airline deals, at least where I work. It may be possible for the cruise line to sell you an individual connection though, if you still want the security of the cruise line having to worry about you getting to the ship. An individual offer may result in services like airport to ship transfers not happening. And for self-organised transfers: request the exact docking position in advance, ideally with coordinates or a google maps link, as many berths simply don't have addresses and good port maps are rare. Alternatively phone the port authority. Please note that berths may change on short notice.
Only time we book flights through a cruise line has been through NCL when they offer 2 for 1 for international flights. They are "coach" tickets but we have been lucky to be booked with airlines that we have high status with, so we often receive free business/first class upgrades. If not we just pay for extra legroom. We always book fights to arrive 2 - 3 days early. Trip Insurance is critical. We have had an annual policy for years. Much cheaper to arrange your own transfers. In November '23 we were in Istanbul. The cruise line wanted $161 pp, we booked a private car for $51 pp.
100% agree on Transfers and flights. Our very first cruise NCL left us (and hundreds of others) waiting on the pier at Port Canaveral for over 5 hours awaiting transfer to Orlando airport. It was 90 F, no benches, no water, no snacks, no information, and no apologies. We also had NCL arranged flights. Once we arrived at the airport, we discovered our kids were put on a different flight then us. Same departure time, but different gates and different airlines. Only one digit difference in flight numbers (which is why we missed it). Will never makes these mistakes again!
Actually Travel Agencies are not allowed to cut their commissions to give clients a better deal. I was in the Travel Industry for 40 years, Sales Reps from the cruise lines told us that if we did cut our commissions for that purpose, we would be black listed and so then could not book them. The way one can get a better deal with a TA is that some book a group of cabins, which they can book clients into, and the cruise line gives the clients amenities like a shipboard credit.
IN 2022 I was a cruise doctor for RCL (Thanks to COVID-19). Fun job BTW. However … if you get injured on a cruise-line sponsored excursion, your medical expense is $0! Take that into account when you’re booking your excursions.
Not on HAL! I fell and injured my shoulder during a HAL excursion. Went to ships sickbay and had a bill for 350 bucks for a pain shot and some aspirin. Good thing I had trip insurance. They refunded me 100%. Safe sailings
Gary, thank you for your time. It's very hard to find a good travel agent, it is easier to deal with the line directly, and if you are lucky to find an excellent representative who is responsive and professional you would be better off. My representative guided me to what to buy from the line and what to get on my own. A travel agent will never know as much about the line and port city as a representative. Again, in my case the line representative has been on the cruise I am booked a number of times and able to advise me where to save and what to do. As to the insurance, I agree with you.
often agents actually know more they do many of the cruises themselves and been to many of the ports. Look up KVI - they have a huge group of agents and resources. Give them a try next time - very responsive and if things go wrong it's a lot easier to get help and faster.
That’s not true. As a travel agent who has LIVED abroad in port cities for YEARS, I most definitely know more about specific ports than anyone at the cruiseline.
On our first cruise, we booked flights to New Orleans and transfers through NCL. Sure, it cost a bit less, but they not only took us through a _much_ longer pair of connecting flights despite direct flights being available. But the return transfer took us directly to the airport where we were stuck for 14 hours before the flight, (longer because of delays). We really regretted being forced to hang around the airport and not having the chance to visit New Orleans even if only for lunch and a look around.
I hate cruise line flights due to the terrible indirect routing they use as Gary explains. Unfortunately 3 of my next 4 cruises are with Viking and in the UK they do not work through travel agents (they used to) so you have to book direct. For one of them I may just abandon their crap flights and book myself on EasyJet since it's so much shorter on the way home.
Another point about booking flights thru the cruise line....Some lines have a system where you can see available routings on line and choose what you want, while others assign you and charge an "air deviation fee" if you put in any requests. Each request counts as a deviation, For instance, I know there is a non-stop flight from my nearest airport to Orlando that leaves at 4pm daily. But if I want to get it thru a particular cruise line, I have to specify non-stop AND 4pm or later, which counts as 2 air deviations. In addition, even if you book thru the line that lets you choose your flights, they are booked thru a consolidator or third party. This usually means that if something happens, even if it is the fault of the airline, you are not able to deal with the airline directly. You have to contact the people you have booked thru. For example, we were flying in for an Alaska cruise when the airline canceled our flight a few days in advance. I received a notification from the airline that the flight was canceled, but when I called them, they would not arrange a substitute flight and I had to call the cruise line who put me thru to their air people. In contrast, when Delta canceled a flight I'd booked myself, I got a notification that my flight was canceled and they had put me on a different flight; is that was not satisfactory, please contact them at a given number. Their solution was not satisfactory, but when I called the airline, they were able to move me to a flight that was good for us.
Speaking to getting the airline tickets through the cruise line, we went through celebrities, air program, and it was a nightmare. The airline evidently moved our flights to getting to the cruise the same day. It took 4 to 6 days and hours and hours, but finally the Celebrity representative got us an acceptable change.
I agree with booking directly with an airline and a hotel, particularly if you have 'status' with them and want to earn points. Clearly, it's best, just in case your flight is delayed, to arrive a couple of days before a cruise or a tour and have travel and health insurance. Yes, one must carefully read the fine details of insurance coverage to ensure you are covered.
If you think that booking flights through the cruise line provides protection against things going wrong that’s not true. Another travel blogger had a video recently where he was on a flight that suffered a very long delay and resulted in them just missing the ship. Among the group on the flight were people who had booked the flight through the cruise line and had travel insurance also through the line. In that group in the end the people who were best taken care of were those relying on credit card insurance. The cruise line left them behind and then did almost nothing to help them including not refunding for the missed days from the cruise.
For the insurance, I will NOT travel without it. Ensure that it does cover your cruise, and if you are going to ride a scooter/vespa/bike, make sure your policy covers this as well. Many policies do not unless you pay an additional fee…and also require that you wear a helmet (which you need to provide if the hire company doesn’t)…insurance companies will look for any reason to decline a claim…don’t give them a reason!
Depending on the cruise i would almost put internet on this list. Recently i went on a cruise and every day apart from 1 we stopped in a port so i had covwrage on my phone and for a lot of the sea part we were just 10-20km offshore so on the outer decks could get signal as well from land. I found an online esim that covered all the locatuons and which offered 1gb free data up front which covered most of it and I paid for a bit after that ran out. The cost was 1/20th at least the cost of cruise internet.
Great Video as always. I find your content to be the most helpful. You have the best tips. Maybe that's why you call your channel Tips for Travelers. And probably why you have the most subscribers. At least I think you do. I really need to start writing down all the two types of companies you mention all the time. The private Shore Excursion group like namesake and Viatour and the other is the travel Insurance companies. I think I overpaid for Travel Insurance on my one and only cruise as my Expedia Agent who is my new accountant's wife used her place which included flight insurance which was useless since I live in South Florida. I like how you go on so many different cruise lines. I remember when you said each one is like a different sort of friend with this own unique personality. The perks on one line are only so important. It reminds me of the probably fifteen or so Cruise Bloggers I follow. I like each one for different reasons. Tony La Lida Loca is just a lot of fun. But he posts almost every day which gets dull. And Matt Hochberg just makes RCL seem like it would be so much fun. I don't know how you can keep up the enthusiasm going on so many cruises without your hubby Mark. I'm trying to find a female girlfriend travel partner but it ain't easy. Most of my male friends are married or in one case a guy who is still single I am pretty sure ghosted me about 15 years ago. I went on many vacations with him until his insecurities got the best of him. Well enough for now. Maybe I'll turn on the notification bell for a bit as I usually miss any replies anyone might post. Bye Bye for now.
Re point 1 about booking through a travel agent: my experience was the exact opposite. Approximately 6 months ago, I was looking to book a Royal Caribbean transatlantic cruise. I went to the Hays UK travel agent website (Hays market themselves as a cruise specialist agent), and their price was double the price on the Royal Caribbean website. When I phoned Hays to enquire, the person on the other end of the phone gave the verbal equivant of a shoulder-shrug and said "Well, that's the price they quoted us." He then hung up without discussing it further. Needless to say, I booked directly with Royal Caribbean. Perhaps I just need a better travel agent.
Yes! I should say I don’t use these chains or online agencies as they’re not great in my view and employees versus agents. I recommend people like Travel Counsellors that I use as they self employed and go the extra mile to ensure traveller happy and keep coming back. I can suggest mine
I've never got a better price by going through a TA. I have got a few bucks room credit, but then had to deal with the headache of going through the TA for everything. Using TA is not a bad idea if you are traveling with a large group or don't like to control you own vacation, but definitely not for the majority of people.
Gary I love your videos and they have helped us a lot. When we took our first and only cruise it was a transatlantic repositioning cruise. Everyone was surprised when we told them it was our first cruise but we used some of your tips and it made for a great experience. Now we don’t really want to travel any other way.
Gary - I love your site and your advice. We are very sporatic cruisers but always look for a premium experience. Your advice on excursions is spot on but you need to have a bit of adventure and risk tolerance to take full advantage. My example is an asian cruise we took on Azamara (Singapore to Hong Kong) and I arranged my own excursion from Bangkok to Siem Reip in Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat. It was an overnight trip and I booked my own air travel, lodging in a beautiful resort, private tour guide, car and driver. It was beyond wonderful. Ironically we were on the same plane as many of the cruise passengers and saw them at 2 restaurants on our tour., and they were on 3 tour buses. Their price through Azamara was $2000 per person and my price was $1000 for my wife and I. One big caveat was that on that cruise we were in Bangkok for 3 days so a hiccup was less risk. We have used private tours several other times - Saigon and Cape Town immediately come to mind . Going on your own should be explored by all when planning your trips, cruise or otherwise.
I totally second that question. In The Netherlands it seems impossible to find a TA that cares about your businees and is not a large uninterested corporation.
My husband and I are English but have lived in Turkey for many years. Following a recommendation we chose Bolsover Cruise Club as our travel agent, based in UK. They are brilliant. They can be reached by phone or use their website. Every single enquiry from me has been handled quickly and they phone me back so I don't have to pay for international phone calls.
Argument for buying more components (cruise, hotel, flight) from travel agent registered in my country: If you buy a package trip and something goes wrong like a cruise line or airline going bust there is a state managed fund that will compensate you - but only if you bought a package ie more than one component
Hi Gary. Thank you for your incredible work. I have watched your videos for a long time and they benefitted me. This video also contains many points that I completely agree but the title is misleading. Most of the things that you mention are points to consider but not to avoid at any cost. Usually, the alternative ways are better than buying directly from the cruise line, but in many circumstances, the advantages of direct buying may prevail. It can happen in remote ports, during the holiday season, and in some other special conditions.
Booking excursions direct: Yes! It's so much cheaper, and you often get a smaller group. However! If the excursion gets overbooked, they will drop direct bookings before they drop cruise bookings, even if the direct booking was done first. We had that happen for a dog sled excursion in Alaska.
Booked several private tours on our last cruise to be able to see what we wanted and have an air conditioned car. Excellent choice for hot climate! Thanks for the recommendations.
Gary, I appreciate your videos and your support of travel agents. However, I wish that you wouldn’t mention that some travel agents discount cruises or provide OBC with their commission. It creates an expectation that it is expected when booking with a travel agent. As a manager of a boutique travel agency, we offer premium service to our clients but we need to keep every penny of our commission to run the business. Rebating clients from our commission is like take money out my agents pockets. Travelers should definitely use agents for their service and the discounts they can get but shouldn’t expect them to reduce their commissions which is the only way they get paid and some cruise lines do not pay agents well. Thanks.
As a solo traveler who used to use taxis and Uber to get from the airport to the cruise terminal and back, I only use the cruise transfers now at $19 or $29 or $69 (Chile cruise terminal to their airport). It is worry free and much cheaper. I only travel with Holland America.
Once I booked my cruise, I needed airfare. So I inquired into the price of a flight associated with the cruise line, and they wanted $1,000 roughly. I said that I will look on my own, and found flights for $411.
This is another example why Tips for Travelers is the best. Gary does not favor one cruise line and provides a neutral perspective. I'd like to add one very important tip, as Gary mentioned Allianz and other 3rd party travel insurance providers. Definitely don't use the cruiseline travel insurance which is a ripoff but also don't directly contact Allianz (which is excellent) or other providers. Instead, use a travel insurance comparison tool like squaremouth which lays out all the plans, the price, benefits, etc., to be sure you're getting the best possible combination of benefits and price.
I have only had good experiences with air purchased from the cruise lines. ALL allowed you to choose your own flights. Be careful to not pick flights with unnecessary stops or if unavoidable, transfer times that are too short for comfort.
Booking through an agent is the way to go. My agent got me into a bargain interior cabin. I tickled him about an upgrade and a few weeks later I was booked into an unobstructed balcony cabin.
We have a south Caribbean cruise out Puerto Rico booked with RCL in May 2024. When comparing Venture Ashore and Shore Excursions Group, all the similar (some appear exactly the same) excursions were cheaper on RCL. I was surprised.
Sound advice. I always book via a Travel Agent if cruising out of a port abroad ..out of my home port (Southampton) I go direct (as certain lines give Services/NHS discount)
I have some clients that booked a Celebrity cruise thru me and then went directly to Air by Celebrity for the flights and they did make such a mess with that air booking that it virtually took months to sort out. I bet -they will never do that again😅 Also - like you - I don't recommend buying these mentioned above things from cruise lines - with some rare exceptions when it comes to transfers and excursions. How did you enjoy that 15 on Orange? I thougt that it was a very cute hotel in a great location. I went there in 2012 - a few months after it opened. We had a gala dinner there before flying out to safari in Sabi Sabi at Lion's Sands. I just booked that Atlas cruise from Buenos Aires - that I told you about. Maybe you can join us? A 17 night cruise balcony cabin for under U$5000 double occupancy. It leaves from Ushuaia on 27 March and it starts in Buenos on 26 March with a hotel night and a chartered flight on 27th. I think that the price is awesome and everything is included.
One good example of not buying Air travel & transportation from the line is a March 2025 sailing on the Norwegian Star from Ushuaia Argentina. On the Norwegian website - the cruise willl cost $5,350.52 CAD the airfare (from Ottawa) $1,442.19 and ground transportation $2,648,653.16 !!!!! I am assuming that is some kind of glitch on the website.
Great points, Gary. We love Viking--their cruises are perfection--but I would never again book flights, hotel or transfers through them. The flight routings were ridiculously grueling 3-stop affairs and dealing with "Viking Air" reps is not like dealing with Viking reps. For our pre-cruise stay, the hotel was more expensive than booking ourselves, and the transfer involved a long forced march onto a coach, a long wait to fill up the coach, and then an unwanted impromptu "tour" around the city so they could stall because the hotel rooms weren't ready! All this after a 16-hour journey that should have taken 8 hours.
The trouble is Viking don't work through travel agents in the UK so if you want other flights you have to do it all yourself. It's starting to put me off Viking.
I have an Alaska cruise booked with Viking. Their outbound flight takes 18 hours, going Heathrow to Dallas, immigration into the US (meaning we have to collect our luggage), then a flight to Calgary in Canada. There are several direct flights from Heathrow to Calgary that only take 8 hours and don't involve needlessly immigrating into the US only to leave it again, but they're on a different airline. Viking Air won't mix and match airlines for inbound and outbound flights unless they're in the same codeshare group.
Had 2 wonderful flight experiences with Viking. However, we live in NJ and are not far from 2 major airports: Newark and Philadelphia. Perhaps they have more flight options than if you live in areas that don’t have many European flights. We met people who had to change planes 1 or 2 times on their way to Rome. They lived on the West coast or in the midwest.
In March 2022 I booked directly with HAL because my TA’s quote was much higher than HAL’s price. I’ve always checked since then and it hasn’t happened again.
Good heavens Gary. You’ll be just down the road for a while in Cape Town! Hope you enjoy. Also hope you enjoy 15 on Orange. Spent time there a few years back and found the staff very friendly. I fear though you will miss out the best part of the Cape, it’s wines, although I’m sure the ship will be able to help there. Maybe book a terrestrial holiday one day in the Cape and make you way to the Hemel en Aarde Valley near Hermanus. 😊
Yeah, on the flight thing. I book through the cruise line if it is overseas. Twice in 2021 or so I booked airfare for cruises, only to have the cruise line cancel the trip entirely. If that happens, you’re stuck with the airfare, unless you booked fully refundable tickets or have expensive CFAR insurance on them and are willing to settle for about 75 cents on the dollar. I’ve actually ended up with better rates, connecting cities, and prices. However, I did have to be on top of things (as was my travel agent). I’m currently in Sydney for a cruise, and with my original flights, the time window kept changing to the point where there was less than two hours of layover in San Francisco. My agent was able to move me to a flight through LAX with more of a cushion. I did look up that flight on my departure day. The LAS to SFO flight was delayed.
Gary, relating to your comment about insurance: Do you have any idea how much you've paid for insurance during your cruising career as compared to the amount of claims you've made against the policy? You've cruised enough to be able to provide a reasonable cost/benefit analysis for insurance. Thanks.
Insurance is not about assessing savings to accept open ended risk. One event can save a million dollars in medical, air transport and more. My minor one was 2 hours in a hospital. $6000 usd. Cost me not a cent. IMO if you cant afford insurance you cant afford travel.
My wife and I were all set for HAL Eurodam trip to Alaska and then my retina detached, making flying across the country impossible. I paid less than the line’s insurance to cover the cruise and airline tickets and lost no money.
I always book my own flights as I simply can’t sit in an Economy class seat for more than an hour. Long legs, so I must have extra legroom. Last time I bought airfare from the cruise line the airline would not allow me to even pay extra to get an extra legroom Economy seat. Was told cruise line buys lowest fare code seats that do not allow any modifications. I’ll pay more to know I won’t be miserable for a 10 or12 hour flight. Premium Economy often gets you two checked bags too rather than one.
Hi Gary, thank you for your video I have watched quite a few of your videos and find them very informative. I just learned that you are based in UK near Heathrow? We are neighbors I am in Camberley :)
Cruise trip excursion: "Rome on your own" a busride with return from Civittaveccia to Rome. 50 usd per person. A family train ticket that included free public transport for a Day was 5.30 euros
Another example illustrates why you need insurance. A friend was with uson a cruise. His wife was pregnant, early days, and she had a small bleeding. Ship doctor sent her ashore to see a doctor, after what she was no longer allowed on board. They had to arrange their own flights from st Maarten to Europe. They had no travel insurance. It was quite expensive.
Thanks Gary. I enjoy your videos. We are cruising from Southampton soon with Princess. I did make the error of purchasing the cruise line insurance while booking last year. We also have an Allianz annual plan so I am paying more. We will be away from home for nearly a month.
Cruise lines are profit-making corporations, and they will make a profit on any service they provide to you, so shopping around can avoid that middle man and get you more for your money. I would also underscore the value of having a good travel agent who can give you unbiased advice and do some of the searching for you. Your agent can also intercede if there is a problem.
Good advice and thanks for the video. I personally always use the ship's excursions. If your return transportation is late getting to the ship, the ship may not wait. Recent story about that. But the ship will always wait for it's own excursions. So the extra cost may be a savings if you have to catch a flight to catch your cruise. Cheers.
Please, take note of what Gary says about travel insurance. If you are one of the "it won't happen to me" brigade, then you take an enormous risk. On our last cruise, we both caught Covid. I was extremely ill and finished up for 10 days in the ICU at Mombasa General hospital. With the shipboard medical fees, the hospital, taxis and finding flights home the total was nearly €40,000. We had full travel insurance that had cost us nearly €400. They paid for everything. The lot. At 1% of the costs, it was a bargain!!
We are booking with the cruise lines recommended insurer. Holiday extras.
Much like yourself, my uncle fell ill on holiday. He ended up stuck in eygpyt for 6 weeks
Anyone who travels with out is an accident waiting to happen. Many travel companies are now insisting that you have insurance before they except your booking. My T& C states that if after paying the deposit you don’t give insurance company details within 10 days you forfeit that deposit and your booking is cancelled. For full paying customers you have to give insurance details while booking.
I had friends who had an accident on their first day on the cruise and had to be taken off the ship by helicopter, back to Florida for surgery then medical flight back to their home country. Their medical bill was over a $ million. Thankfully they had comprehensive insurance.
Holy sheit jeezuz, well sure hope they are alright, give them my best regards and wishes
About the girl who broke her foot in Cozumel - the cruise lines tell people all the time NOT to rent a scooter because, unless you're really experienced in driving one, it's an accident waiting to happen.
Lots of insurance companies are excluding driving on scooters now for cover in the fine print. Putting it in the same category as downhill skiing and deep sea diving. It's just so dangerous for most people.
I have seen or heard about lots of scooter accidents among tourists
I have seen scooter and car collisions personally in Bermuda.
Jet skis, horse riding and quad bikes are often excluded in travel insurance policies. You must read the small print and take advantage of the cooling off period if you want to switch to another insurer. You may be surprised by some of the exclusions.
@@Mikeknz78 looP
Gary, you are absolutely right. Some years ago, one December, I procrastinated and waited last minute - 48 hours to be exact - to book a flight. The airlines told me they were all sold out for the date and times I wanted. I called up a travel agency, and they immediately got me on a flight on one of the airlines that told me they were sold out. But the bigger surprise was that the agent got me a ticket for a mere $385, a lot down from $770 the airlines quoted me. The agent explained that airlines block and reserve a number of seats on flights for travel agencies. That enables an agency (when they are not sold out) to have available seat, even when the airlines themselves say a flight is booked out.
Always always get travel insurance! We had a cruise booked and had to cancel on the morning at the airport when one of the covid tests came out positive. Got full refund of cruise fare and air travel.7000€
Thank you so much for supporting travel agents! There is so much misconception in booking with a travel agent.
For instance, I’m a nurse who specializes in accessible travel. This is something so many people don’t know exists.
I also often use a specialised travel agent when traveling with my dad who's in a wheelchair. For neighbouring countries I can do it myself, but further out I find it easier to have people with experience who have local contacts (especially if I don't speak the local language).
The main point here, and the same I’ve learned after over 20 cruises - SHOP AROUND! Applies to the cruise, flights, hotels, and excursions. And keep an eye on prices on things that can be rebooked. Great video!
Agree!!! Thanks for watching 👍🏻
But with NCL if I'm playing in the casino onboard my next cruise might have a CAS 20% discount added to my 10% veteran discount as well as the NCL discount of either 50% off or 2nd guest free.
What TA can match that? Though the CAS discount does not apply to suites or Haven.
@@rgruenhaus everyone’s situation is different. I personally loathe the casino, and Norwegian doesn’t take me everywhere I want to go, nor is every ship as good as the other in their fleet. Cruise loyalty doesn’t make sense to me, but it depends on your personal travel habits and what makes you happy.
I do my own excursions
Great advise Gary. You mentioned those two ladies who were injured in Cozumel and didn’t have travel insurance. What made their situation even worse was neither one had passports and thus had issues even getting out of the country and back home.
The advice on not purchasing the insurance from the cruise line is really valid and has been the practice of good agents for years. Book directly with reliable companies such as Allianz etc.
I used Allianz. See my comment in the general comments thread.
More happened than just that but I didn't want to bore people.
I think they'd be fine if you were hospitalised and in a coma. But in my circumstance, I pretty much had to organise and find everything (e.g. english-speaking hospitals) except for book a flight home. So maybe it's an expectation thing. I thought that they would help more...
There are also two sides to every story.
Senior citizens - check with Medicare before you handle the insurance issue. In general - you are not losing medical benefits if you are abroad - the issue is however how to bridge the time when you have to pay upfront abroad and Medicare reimburses you. In many of those countries where Health Care is covered by the National Health care plan - services are free or at a minimal charge.
Completely agree with not booking flights through the cruise line! After a couple of ridiculous routings in the early years, we now always book our own flights. It appears the cruise lines use a computer algorithm that simply chooses the cheapest option, regardless of routing/connections/logic, even though the cost difference may be virtually insignificant. You can sometimes overcome this by subsequently going to the line's in-house travel consultants (or presumably your own travel agent, if applicable), but it's a hassle.
Totally agree, our agent (who also happens to be an excellent friend) knows I'm a total AvGeek and have been wanting to add the A380 to my list and came up with a wonderful itinerary for our upcoming Istanbul to Rome cruise that allows us to spend the night in London to visit family and fly on a BA380 back to DFW the next day. Honestly, it's really worth the effort to find a travel agent who gets you and also watches out for you.
Only if you have a crappy travel agent.
We have had no issue's with flights through cruisline, but we have a wonderful travel agent.
I agree with most cruise lines booking air is better and cheaper on your own. The only exception I have found is with Viking, they may be marginally more expensive but they will work with you to get the flights you want and the transfers are worry free. I have a Viking cruise coming up and the original flights they gave me were a bit convoluted, called them up and got the direct flight immediately and was cheaper than I could have done on my own (although you pay some of that thru the cruise fare).
I booked with the cruise line and it was the cheapest and quickest route I could find anywhere. I was even able to contact the cruise line when there was a price drop and got the new price.
What he does not mention is fly cruise packages that are popular in the UK. All things are included and my future cruise we ae taken directly from the plane to the ship. If there is a flight delay the ship will wait. However there is the recent horror story of a charter flight arriving 16 hours late with the passengers being eventually being dumped at the airport in Barbados in the middle of the night for a 9 hour wait. P+Os care for these customers was lacking and although there was some care initially they just wanted them off the ship. They had chosen Maleth Aero for some of their charter flights which offers a long haul budget experience which is not up to the standard of their other charters. This airline flies older aircraft and the delay seems to have been a knock on affect because of this. Delays can happen with any airline but this is probably the worst and exposes the pit falls of cruise line charters being done on the cheap. Hopefully Maleth will loose the contract for this year's season starting in November and all flights will revert back to TUI.
Great advice. We cruised every 3-5 years so able to save travel miles for free airfare. Early on we did all tours with the cruise line because we were newbies and when we started cruising, no internet. As time progressed we started doing independent tours. We used Allianz for 5 of 6 cruises. We had some bad luck when cruising a couple of times with mother dying and husband’s illness. Travel insurance covered everything cancellations, medical and travel. Always get insurance, you never know. We used it 3 of 6 cruises. 😮
I’ve collected on Allianz too.
RE: Airline travel arranged by the cruise company? NO! I'm retired airline (pilot) and my opinion is, shop the airline options separately from the cruise lines' offers. IF there are flight disruptions, for example, you're better off dealing directly with the airline and your PNR in the reservation. And of course, ALWAYS plan to arrive the day before embarkation!! A hotel night is worth the peace of mind and NOT "missing the boat"!!
Agree! I always do air travel myself and I always go down the day before cruise and stay at a hotel and the day after I stay at a hotel before flying home, for some strange reason after every cruise when I get back to the hotel I am normally in bed for most of the day I feel like I am still on the boat and I am unbalanced with slight nausea like I am sea sick it normally subsides after a few hours but the hotel stay before and after a cruise is definitely less stressful! Got this advice from my travel agent!
Good advice, Gary. I booked my own hotel in Buenos Aires and a driver from the airport who had been recommended. Hotel was great & let me check in at 12:00! Booked a Viator for that night for Argentinian steakhouse and tango show and morning city tour. They picked me up & dropped me off at the hotel. My booked ride took me from the hotel to the port later, and hotel stored my luggage that morning.
What hotel? Going March 25th
I booked through AAA. While I'm sure it wasn't the absolute lowest, the agent helped me get cabins that weren't listed directly, placed me near enough to dining but not too close, got me credit, provided insight, and suggested insurance. I thought the insurance was a needless upsell at the time, but two of our family members caught COVID and were refunded fully. So, travel agents will be the only way I'll go from now on.
I had a very bad experience with AAA. They charge me twice for the insurance and said they didn’t make a mistake on their computer when it seem like they were having trouble, they assured me that they only charged once.
When I looked it up on my account, I saw it was charged twice and I went back to the agent and she said you have to do it through your credit card. When I waited on the line long time they said you need to go to the agent who did that Finally, after much prompting, and talking to the manager they made it correct, it seems like the agent didn’t want to admit her mistake or bother correcting it Because of that, I will never use AAA again, and I used to use it quite frequently
We have been very happy with AAA.
Although a recent convert to taking repositioning cruises, I instinctively followed all of these ideas. For my first one, the agent gave me excellent advice on which cabin and where on the ship, plus some good advice on insurance. Second, I've been a traveler for many years and have always booked my own airfare and hotels. I also did DIY excursions on all the cruises, but on my most recent one I booked a tour with Shore Excursions for Gibraltar and wasn't disappointed. I'd add photos to the list of what I don't buy onboard.
Because of your recommendations in your videos, my sister and I used Shore Excursions on our cruise last fall. Exceptional service! More options for excursions. The instructions for meeting and what to bring, what to wear, what to expect were very clear. Communication was no problem. And we had no worries about getting back to the ship because of their guarantee. Thank you thank you for this fabulous tip!
Many private vendors have guaranteed back to ship. The cruise lines try to scare you into thinking they are the only option.
So glad you brought up the real need for Cruise Insurance. Most American Employer provided insurance plans do not cover you outside the US. Neither does Medicare or Medicare Supplement plans. Many plans do not even cover you out of state or a very limited service area. Most Credit Card travel benefits are meager and many don’t even cover you on a cruise. You can purchase a yearly plan from Allianz or other reliable carrier for travel protection or at least medical coverage.
Yearly plan???
@@mksyogameditation7148 Yes, my partner has done that when regularly travelling overseas for business.
I've made some comments in the main thread about my experience with Allianz but there are two sides to every story and sometimes you just get unlucky when dealing with an otherwise ok insurer or telco etc. etc.
Some Medicare advantage plan covers oversea health.
@@joycem8490 Some plans? Which one? That isn’t how Medicare Supplement insurance plans work. They are tertiary to Medicare, who is billed first for any claim. Supplement plans only cover some remaining costs, not covered by Medicare. As Medicare will deny your claim once you are overseas, even just over an hour from a US port, the Supplement plan will deny your claim as well. Medicare Advantage plans are Medicare Supplement plans usually offered by HMO’s that only cover you in a specific service area, with even more restrictions. I work for the fourth largest purchaser of Health Care coverage in the United States and none of our plans cover us overseas. I have seen so many accidents and people getting sick on cruises and land tours overseas. Was on a tour in the Holy Land when a lady fell and broke her leg. She got the care she needed, but had to rebook her tickets and fly home early. None of this was cheap and she had no insurance. Don’t risk it. We bought annual plans from Allianz.
Wish I'd watched this a few weeks ago!
I've taken scores of flights and booked scores of hotel stays and booked them myself. It's so easy to do these days that I've often wondered why anyone would go through an agent. Naturally, I took the same approach to my cruise I just booked. I'm learning now that an agent might be a better option.
I had that Santiago/Valparaiso experience but on the cruise line's bus. Much simpler. My husband is always in favor of booking things through the line because he says the peace of mind is worth it. We had a sketchy flight to Miami once, and the line made sure we got to the ship just in the nick of time.
Yes, I agree. In Tahiti our bus broke down (booked with Princess), replacement bus took over 2 hours, we were half hour late to ship, but ship waited as we were on their excursion. Imagine being stuck all the way out in French Polynesia if the ship had left. Scary. Thx
I just booked a cruise for 2025. Travel insurance through my travel agency was double for me and my daughter. Purchased the insurance on my own from the same company at a lower cost close to 50% less for me and around 41% less for my daughter. People do your homework but also never travel without. Peace of mind is better than the headache of having to come up with the funds.
While I haven't cruised, one thing I tend to do in general when traveling is separate my travel days from my vacation or "work" days (if I'm traveling for work). This usually means adding one or two days before and after the trip but allows for flexibility if there are delays. If there aren't any, then I just get to my destination a bit earlier than anticipated and have a free day. I know people who do sail and they advise NOT to travel on the same day as embarkation day and to arrive a day earlier and leave the day after.
I've noticed cruiselines pick the most expensive hotels. I have found perfectly fine inexpensive hotels at these locations
Hey Gary
Always nice to hear your POV. I’m A cruiser with 20 cruises under my belt. I agree NEVER book “Princess Air”, one & done. It cost me more and it was a pain, never again.
I would caution on trip insurance……they pay you AFTER the fact. Those two young ladies would have had to cough up the 20k up front. I don’t buy insurance as I think it’s too particular.
You’re absolutely correct NEVER buy directly from cruise line. Instead, get a room category specific option, then shop around. I had booked a cruise with one agency, the price went down and they wouldn’t accommodate me. I canceled, got my money back and rebooked with another agency that saved me $700 AND provided me better on board credit. Finally, you are spot on concerning shore excursions! I’m headed to cork Ireland, Iceland and Scotland July 2024 on Princess. I have booked all but 2 shore excursions on my own and saved hundreds! 30% off the ship price. Iceland is, as everyone knows, very expensive. Google shore excursions for X port and they list many options. More and more (even Iceland) they’re gearing excursions around ships movement.
Happy travels
Your suggestion on travel insurance is misleading. All insurance plans reimburse after the fact. Hospitals, Doctors and Pharmacies, even in the US, do not get paid at point of service, they have to bill the insurer for reimbursement. It’s also not a question of having to pay the bill upfront. The hospital in Mexico can and will verify travel insurance as ability to pay. Without any insurance, in some countries you will not even receive treatment beyond palliative care.
If I could offer one suggestion: there is a distinction between direct flights and non-stop flights. Direct flights may or may not be non-stop flights. Direct flights may have intermediate stops and may even change aircraft at one of those stops! So check the itinerary carefully....if it says one or more stops, you're not going non-stop.
Great Travel Insurance tips Gary. The cost of travel insurance has literally gone through the roof post pandemic with some countries now refusing entry if the cruise traveller does not have insurance!! And I agree with you, third party insurance is definitely cheaper than the cruise line offerings. I now, always buy insurance through my travel agent!!
Thanks!!
Exactly, rates have gone up, and our rates in the US are higher to begin with, but you can get a better deal buying an annual plan from a reputable carrier.
@@ChristianLehrer Not sure if US rates are "higher to begin with" Christian. Pre covid, our Duo travel insurance to Europe including a Med Cruise with a AU$200 excess was AU$1,364; post covid 2022 on an almost identical Europe trip plus Med cruise with a AU$250 excess was AU$3,064. Travel Insurance for this years Europe trip plus Med and UK cruises with a AU$250 excess is AU$3,715. All our trips run for about 6 weeks. Use an exchange rate of around US 70c to an Au$.
I have to disagree with the first point for cruising in Australia. All the travel agents I have been recommended were far more expensive than booking myself. I understand there are risks booking myself but thanks to channels like this one I am able to do proper research prior to booking.
Agents will often match that price if you bring it to them, you'll get far better service with an agent if things do go wrong. so if you see a cheaper price bring it to them. :)
@@Amytheglobetrotter that is a good idea to try in the future. No harm in trying and see what’s what. Thanks for the advice
No recourse if agent goes broke. You cant even call cruise co or airline yourself. How many lost $$$ in covidand forgot that too?
This video is LOADED with good advice! One that stuck with me is the whole 'booking a transfer vs booking an Uber', what I have realised is that in some ports, it's actually MUCH cheaper to take the cruise line transfer than jump in an Uber. For example, on my Holland America cruise, they offered transfers to Miami Airport at the end of the cruise, but I decided to get an Uber. What I didn't realise is that there's no wi-fi outside the terminal building at Fort Lauderdale, there's no waiting taxi's and it's actually much much easier to just take the cruise line transfer.
Excellent video as always, Gary!
Last time I took the cruise line transfer that included a city tour on the way. I'd never been in Boston proper, just the airport, so it was very interesting. I'd do that again.
Always get travel insurance! Found this out a long time ago. Thanks for all the tips❤
You are hands down # 1 when comes to informing about cruise lines and all related issues. All of your postings are "open-minded" - honest "opinions" - and you always leave alternative options open for discussion. In short - you care more about building up a long-term mutually beneficial relationship rather than using bomb shell click-bait" hashtags to attract viewers. Customer satisfaction is more important to you than just building up # of clicks. I sincerely thank you for that.
I bought my travel insurance through Berkshire Hathaway. It was 1/2 the price and covered my flight, hotel, lost luggage and medical.
We also booked an excursion in Cozumel we found on Trip Advisor. We had an in depth food tour that included going to see the local food market.
I agree about yiur insurance section EXCEPT, here in Canada very few companies have cancel for any reason, and the 2 that so, charge a hefty premium over the cruise line insurance. I go with Princess and they charge 12% for their Platinum coverage.
I also have third party insurance because some think if they are doing a 10 day cruise, but do a pre and/or post stay, the ship insurance covers you for the 10 days while on the cruise, but not during travelling or these pre/post stays. This is not an issue if you are working and have great insurance coverage as one of your benefits, but that all changes once you are retired!
Hi FH6258. We are also in Canada and always get third party since the cruise lines don’t usually offer Canadians insurance and we spend extra days before and after the cruise. We use Manulife CoverMe Travel Insurance. What companies do you use?
@@slcrozier7987 I use CAA. I buy the annual premium with up to a 30 period each time as I am away 4-7 months a year. If I am gone more than 30 days ( it is common as I was gone from September 23 to Dec 28 on multiple cruises/ holidays and came back home for 2 days during that time. This year I will be doing 3 segments of the world cruise for 57 days. It is cheaper for me to buy the annual premium and top up for longer than 30 days away. As I have both my car and home insurance with them they give a 10% discount for travel insurance.
Check them out as they are much more competitive than Manulife. But it is nit cancelation insurance. Only Princess offers cancel for any reason, the others will cover than (cekebrity), but you must have a US address and pay in US $. Do you have an agent?they should be able to guide you. If not let me know and I’ll give you my agents name. They are also a Virtuoso agency do you will get the virtuoso amenities.
On our recent cruise, we booked an excursion privately though the exact same excursion was also available through the cruise line. The time of the excursion was “1 hour after ship arrives”. Our stop the day before was cancelled (to rough for tenders), as a result, the arrival time the next day was changed from 1200 (noon) to 0700. We, wrongly as we discovered, assumed the excursion would go at 1300 as that was 1 hour after the original arrival time. It actually was also rescheduled to 0800. The passengers that booked through the cruise were alerted to this change. We were not.
The flight thing heavily depends on whether you're an EU customer or not. As an EU customer the cruise line becomes a travel package provider the instant they're selling you a flight to their cruise and are fully responsible for getting you on board. As long as you show up at the airport on time (or even at the train station to your airport if the issue already starts with the train) you can lay back and relax because anything else will be on the cruise line. If the airline fails to get you there on time it's not your problem. The cruise line has to make sure you do not miss embarkation. If all fails, you'll get a 100% refund plus some extra as compensation for the broken contract (if it was a flight issue). Not as nice as actually getting the cruise you were looking forward too, but at least you don't lose any money. If you book the flight independently and something goes wrong causing you to miss your boat, you'll get nothing.
But if you book it all through a travel agent the same protection applies. Annoyingly some cruise lines won't work work with travel agents, Viking being an example in the UK.
A friend of mine booked Their flights with their cruise line and because of flight delays they missed the cruise departure. The cruise line bussed about 40 people affected to the next port of call which took 8 hours. . This situation happened to me as well but I booked my own flights and Air Canada flew us On a direct flight to the next port of call and paid our hotel for one night with no problems at all. We were so happy that we didn’t book with the cruise line.
First river cruise, I booked air with Viking and paid to upgrade to Business class. When I got the air itinerary there was an extra stop on the way over and the final segment was not upgraded. When I called I was told “it’s out of our budget for the trip”. Needless to say I cancelled air from them and booked my own! Never again booking with the line.
I agree with you regarding travel insurance Gary! For my upcoming cruise in a couple of weeks I purchased the trip insurance through the cruise line, purchased insurance through Allianz and have coverage with my carnival mastercard that i used to pay for the cruise. Is it overkill? Maybe, but I hope not to have to use any of them
Overkill is always the smarter choice! I broke a bone while on a cruise a number of years ago, and I was extremely happy to have bought a pricey health insurance plan for the trip. I was in a hospital for a week and obviously had to fly home once discharged. The plan even paid for a hotel room for my spouse while I was in the hospital, and I even stayed in the hotel for two nights after I was discharged so I could rest before having to deal with airports and planes and layovers. It was well worth the money we spent! The trip sucked, though…
Regarding the flights that the cruiseline books. I think it depends where you live. I’m in Australia and there’s only certain ways that you can get to places from down under. My next cruise is on Silversea and they booked my flights to Cape Town on Singapore airlines, so I’m flying Sydney Singapore, Singapore Cape Town. I’m happy with this because Singapore is my favourite airline.
Gary - As always you make some good points. I'm a casual cruiser(15 cruises so far) and I can't agree with you more about travel insurance, particularly if you are over 50. Most U.S. insurance plans do not cover medical issues outside of the U.S. (neither does medicare). My biggest fear is requiring an airlift off a ship which can cost as much as $20,000. But the insurance also comes in handy for many other things. The airline temporarily lost our bad and had to fly it to our first port of call two day later. Since our bad was missing for more the 12 hours we were allowed to spend up to $600 for clothing replacement. Another time my wife and I got an upper respiratory infection and we needed antibiotics. About $200 each and both were quickly reimbursed to us when we got home. I also agree with your excursions comments. Sometimes there isn't much of a difference but many time not only is there a difference but by buying on line you get your E tickets and avoid lines to buy a ticket when you get there. Great episode!
Motorhoming will always be my first love. We did 4 weeks in Norway last year. Travelling up the west coast gives you multiple trips on the ferries across the fjords.
Transportation shuttle from airport to cruise port through cruiseline: $50-60 or more
Public transportation: $5 perhaps.
I travel with a small carry-on only, so I love hopping on the bus or train! In 2022 I sailed in & out of Los Angeles. We disembarked on a Tuesday, which happened to be election day. LA has free public transportation that day, so it cost me ZERO to get to LAX 😊
Travel agents are also able to monitor pricing and if the price happens to go down (which did happen with us once), they can pass that savings onto you. We wouldn’t have known if we had booked directly with the cruise line.
We usually book flights and transfers separately, not through the cruise lines.
But for this summers' iceland cruise, we snatched a very good deal with the cruise line, a nonstop flight from Frankfurt to Reykjavik at an unbeatable price.
A nonstop FRA - KEF booked by us would have been double. First we couldn't believe it and thought it is an airfare glitch - but no! Exactly the same flight, much much cheaper!
This time it was good to make another phone call with the travel agency before booking a flight on our own 👍
I almost always book flights separately from a cruise, but did snag a sale on flights through Viking for an upcoming river cruise, they were $600 round-trip from the west coast US into Paris and out of Prague, a price I couldn't come close to when shopping myself, it saved us ~$400pp and included transfers. So if there's a sale, its worth checking at least. The itinerary we ended up with is fine with 2.5hr layover on the outbound, and then one 2.5h and one 6h (longer than ideal) layover on the return.
Wait til you get your seats and you may change your mind. Viking air put me in a basic economy seat that didn’t allow a carry on, only a personal item. Luckily I was able to upgrade to economy plus for $29 which was less than gate checking the bag. My travel agent was able to get Viking to reimburse me.
Excellent information as always Gary. Thanks. We specially agree about the flights and hotels. Usually can get better flights and rooms by ourselves. I’m sure everyone has a story, but on our last celebrity cruise to Alaska we booked economy flights from Toronto to Vancouver and from Seattle to Toronto with the cruise line. After some looking, we found better timed flights and asked celebrity to change them and asked for premium economy. They could not change them due to the fights being booked in their group fares (or something to that effect). Long story short we cancelled the flights, took the cancellation penalty and booked better flights in premium economy for less than the Celebrity fights including the penalty.
Thanks Gary, I find booking Air through Cruiselines depends on Cruiseline, Princess usually has cheaper fares than airlines and you can pick days, times and airports so no issue there, if airfares get cheaper anytime before 45 days to cruise, you can cancel and rebook no charge or if you decide not to go on cruuse before final payment can cancel no charge plus get benefit if something does happen, cruiseline is responsible to get you in ship. I saved thousands over the years booking air through cruiseline by refareing when fares drop and when cancelled cruises when something came up before final payment. Do not take cruise shuttle to or from ship except a couple times when took tour than airport drop off. Win, win, win, win by booking air with Princess. Agree with everything else. Thank you
Unfortunate plane routings are indeed based on airline deals, at least where I work. It may be possible for the cruise line to sell you an individual connection though, if you still want the security of the cruise line having to worry about you getting to the ship. An individual offer may result in services like airport to ship transfers not happening.
And for self-organised transfers: request the exact docking position in advance, ideally with coordinates or a google maps link, as many berths simply don't have addresses and good port maps are rare. Alternatively phone the port authority. Please note that berths may change on short notice.
As a frequent cruiser, and someone that is beginning their own home based T/A services, I find this video extremely helpful!
Only time we book flights through a cruise line has been through NCL when they offer 2 for 1 for international flights. They are "coach" tickets but we have been lucky to be booked with airlines that we have high status with, so we often receive free business/first class upgrades. If not we just pay for extra legroom. We always book fights to arrive 2 - 3 days early. Trip Insurance is critical. We have had an annual policy for years. Much cheaper to arrange your own transfers. In November '23 we were in Istanbul. The cruise line wanted $161 pp, we booked a private car for $51 pp.
We have started cruising with Saga. Their insurance is cheaper than anything we have found elsewhere. It is specially tailored to the cruise.
100% agree on Transfers and flights. Our very first cruise NCL left us (and hundreds of others) waiting on the pier at Port Canaveral for over 5 hours awaiting transfer to Orlando airport. It was 90 F, no benches, no water, no snacks, no information, and no apologies. We also had NCL arranged flights. Once we arrived at the airport, we discovered our kids were put on a different flight then us. Same departure time, but different gates and different airlines. Only one digit difference in flight numbers (which is why we missed it). Will never makes these mistakes again!
Actually Travel Agencies are not allowed to cut their commissions to give clients a better deal. I was in the Travel Industry for 40 years, Sales Reps from the cruise lines told us that if we did cut our commissions for that purpose, we would be black listed and so then could not book them. The way one can get a better deal with a TA is that some book a group of cabins, which they can book clients into, and the cruise line gives the clients amenities like a shipboard credit.
IN 2022 I was a cruise doctor for RCL (Thanks to COVID-19). Fun job BTW. However … if you get injured on a cruise-line sponsored excursion, your medical expense is $0! Take that into account when you’re booking your excursions.
Not on HAL! I fell and injured my shoulder during a HAL excursion. Went to ships sickbay and had a bill for 350 bucks for a pain shot and some aspirin. Good thing I had trip insurance. They refunded me 100%. Safe sailings
Gary, thank you for your time. It's very hard to find a good travel agent, it is easier to deal with the line directly, and if you are lucky to find an excellent representative who is responsive and professional you would be better off. My representative guided me to what to buy from the line and what to get on my own. A travel agent will never know as much about the line and port city as a representative. Again, in my case the line representative has been on the cruise I am booked a number of times and able to advise me where to save and what to do. As to the insurance, I agree with you.
often agents actually know more they do many of the cruises themselves and been to many of the ports. Look up KVI - they have a huge group of agents and resources. Give them a try next time - very responsive and if things go wrong it's a lot easier to get help and faster.
That’s not true. As a travel agent who has LIVED abroad in port cities for YEARS, I most definitely know more about specific ports than anyone at the cruiseline.
On our first cruise, we booked flights to New Orleans and transfers through NCL. Sure, it cost a bit less, but they not only took us through a _much_ longer pair of connecting flights despite direct flights being available. But the return transfer took us directly to the airport where we were stuck for 14 hours before the flight, (longer because of delays). We really regretted being forced to hang around the airport and not having the chance to visit New Orleans even if only for lunch and a look around.
I hate cruise line flights due to the terrible indirect routing they use as Gary explains. Unfortunately 3 of my next 4 cruises are with Viking and in the UK they do not work through travel agents (they used to) so you have to book direct. For one of them I may just abandon their crap flights and book myself on EasyJet since it's so much shorter on the way home.
Another point about booking flights thru the cruise line....Some lines have a system where you can see available routings on line and choose what you want, while others assign you and charge an "air deviation fee" if you put in any requests. Each request counts as a deviation, For instance, I know there is a non-stop flight from my nearest airport to Orlando that leaves at 4pm daily. But if I want to get it thru a particular cruise line, I have to specify non-stop AND 4pm or later, which counts as 2 air deviations.
In addition, even if you book thru the line that lets you choose your flights, they are booked thru a consolidator or third party. This usually means that if something happens, even if it is the fault of the airline, you are not able to deal with the airline directly. You have to contact the people you have booked thru. For example, we were flying in for an Alaska cruise when the airline canceled our flight a few days in advance. I received a notification from the airline that the flight was canceled, but when I called them, they would not arrange a substitute flight and I had to call the cruise line who put me thru to their air people. In contrast, when Delta canceled a flight I'd booked myself, I got a notification that my flight was canceled and they had put me on a different flight; is that was not satisfactory, please contact them at a given number. Their solution was not satisfactory, but when I called the airline, they were able to move me to a flight that was good for us.
Speaking to getting the airline tickets through the cruise line, we went through celebrities, air program, and it was a nightmare. The airline evidently moved our flights to getting to the cruise the same day. It took 4 to 6 days and hours and hours, but finally the Celebrity representative got us an acceptable change.
I agree with booking directly with an airline and a hotel, particularly if you have 'status' with them and want to earn points. Clearly, it's best, just in case your flight is delayed, to arrive a couple of days before a cruise or a tour and have travel and health insurance. Yes, one must carefully read the fine details of insurance coverage to ensure you are covered.
If you think that booking flights through the cruise line provides protection against things going wrong that’s not true. Another travel blogger had a video recently where he was on a flight that suffered a very long delay and resulted in them just missing the ship. Among the group on the flight were people who had booked the flight through the cruise line and had travel insurance also through the line. In that group in the end the people who were best taken care of were those relying on credit card insurance. The cruise line left them behind and then did almost nothing to help them including not refunding for the missed days from the cruise.
For the insurance, I will NOT travel without it. Ensure that it does cover your cruise, and if you are going to ride a scooter/vespa/bike, make sure your policy covers this as well. Many policies do not unless you pay an additional fee…and also require that you wear a helmet (which you need to provide if the hire company doesn’t)…insurance companies will look for any reason to decline a claim…don’t give them a reason!
Depending on the cruise i would almost put internet on this list. Recently i went on a cruise and every day apart from 1 we stopped in a port so i had covwrage on my phone and for a lot of the sea part we were just 10-20km offshore so on the outer decks could get signal as well from land. I found an online esim that covered all the locatuons and which offered 1gb free data up front which covered most of it and I paid for a bit after that ran out. The cost was 1/20th at least the cost of cruise internet.
Great Video as always. I find your content to be the most helpful. You have the best tips. Maybe that's why you call your channel Tips for Travelers. And probably why you have the most subscribers. At least I think you do. I really need to start writing down all the two types of companies you mention all the time. The private Shore Excursion group like namesake and Viatour and the other is the travel Insurance companies. I think I overpaid for Travel Insurance on my one and only cruise as my Expedia Agent who is my new accountant's wife used her place which included flight insurance which was useless since I live in South Florida. I like how you go on so many different cruise lines. I remember when you said each one is like a different sort of friend with this own unique personality. The perks on one line are only so important. It reminds me of the probably fifteen or so Cruise Bloggers I follow. I like each one for different reasons. Tony La Lida Loca is just a lot of fun. But he posts almost every day which gets dull. And Matt Hochberg just makes RCL seem like it would be so much fun. I don't know how you can keep up the enthusiasm going on so many cruises without your hubby Mark. I'm trying to find a female girlfriend travel partner but it ain't easy. Most of my male friends are married or in one case a guy who is still single I am pretty sure ghosted me about 15 years ago. I went on many vacations with him until his insecurities got the best of him. Well enough for now. Maybe I'll turn on the notification bell for a bit as I usually miss any replies anyone might post. Bye Bye for now.
Thanks for the tips! I just checked the price on our cruise in December. It’s on sale and we are saving $1200! 😮😊
Re point 1 about booking through a travel agent: my experience was the exact opposite.
Approximately 6 months ago, I was looking to book a Royal Caribbean transatlantic cruise.
I went to the Hays UK travel agent website (Hays market themselves as a cruise specialist agent), and their price was double the price on the Royal Caribbean website.
When I phoned Hays to enquire, the person on the other end of the phone gave the verbal equivant of a shoulder-shrug and said "Well, that's the price they quoted us." He then hung up without discussing it further.
Needless to say, I booked directly with Royal Caribbean.
Perhaps I just need a better travel agent.
Yes! I should say I don’t use these chains or online agencies as they’re not great in my view and employees versus agents. I recommend people like Travel Counsellors that I use as they self employed and go the extra mile to ensure traveller happy and keep coming back. I can suggest mine
www.travelcounsellors.co.uk/sarah.bolton
Brilliant. Thank you. I may give her a call as I still need to arrange my isurance for the cruise. Very helpful (as all your content is).
I've never got a better price by going through a TA. I have got a few bucks room credit, but then had to deal with the headache of going through the TA for everything. Using TA is not a bad idea if you are traveling with a large group or don't like to control you own vacation, but definitely not for the majority of people.
Gary I love your videos and they have helped us a lot. When we took our first and only cruise it was a transatlantic repositioning cruise. Everyone was surprised when we told them it was our first cruise but we used some of your tips and it made for a great experience. Now we don’t really want to travel any other way.
Gary - I love your site and your advice. We are very sporatic cruisers but always look for a premium experience. Your advice on excursions is spot on but you need to have a bit of adventure and risk tolerance to take full advantage. My example is an asian cruise we took on Azamara (Singapore to Hong Kong) and I arranged my own excursion from Bangkok to Siem Reip in Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat. It was an overnight trip and I booked my own air travel, lodging in a beautiful resort, private tour guide, car and driver. It was beyond wonderful. Ironically we were on the same plane as many of the cruise passengers and saw them at 2 restaurants on our tour., and they were on 3 tour buses. Their price through Azamara was $2000 per person and my price was $1000 for my wife and I. One big caveat was that on that cruise we were in Bangkok for 3 days so a hiccup was less risk. We have used private tours several other times - Saigon and Cape Town immediately come to mind . Going on your own should be explored by all when planning your trips, cruise or otherwise.
Excellent points however, how does one find a truly GOOD travel agent? Do you have any video's on that subject?
I totally second that question. In The Netherlands it seems impossible to find a TA that cares about your businees and is not a large uninterested corporation.
My husband and I are English but have lived in Turkey for many years. Following a recommendation we chose Bolsover Cruise Club as our travel agent, based in UK. They are brilliant. They can be reached by phone or use their website. Every single enquiry from me has been handled quickly and they phone me back so I don't have to pay for international phone calls.
Argument for buying more components (cruise, hotel, flight) from travel agent registered in my country: If you buy a package trip and something goes wrong like a cruise line or airline going bust there is a state managed fund that will compensate you - but only if you bought a package ie more than one component
Hi Gary. Thank you for your incredible work. I have watched your videos for a long time and they benefitted me. This video also contains many points that I completely agree but the title is misleading. Most of the things that you mention are points to consider but not to avoid at any cost. Usually, the alternative ways are better than buying directly from the cruise line, but in many circumstances, the advantages of direct buying may prevail. It can happen in remote ports, during the holiday season, and in some other special conditions.
Booking excursions direct: Yes! It's so much cheaper, and you often get a smaller group. However! If the excursion gets overbooked, they will drop direct bookings before they drop cruise bookings, even if the direct booking was done first. We had that happen for a dog sled excursion in Alaska.
Great information! Will have to brush up on our insurance more. Thanks
Booked several private tours on our last cruise to be able to see what we wanted and have an air conditioned car. Excellent choice for hot climate! Thanks for the recommendations.
Gary, I appreciate your videos and your support of travel agents. However, I wish that you wouldn’t mention that some travel agents discount cruises or provide OBC with their commission. It creates an expectation that it is expected when booking with a travel agent. As a manager of a boutique travel agency, we offer premium service to our clients but we need to keep every penny of our commission to run the business. Rebating clients from our commission is like take money out my agents pockets. Travelers should definitely use agents for their service and the discounts they can get but shouldn’t expect them to reduce their commissions which is the only way they get paid and some cruise lines do not pay agents well. Thanks.
Well Done Gary; I have been waiting for a video like this. Much Respect from Colorado, USA.
As a solo traveler who used to use taxis and Uber to get from the airport to the cruise terminal and back, I only use the cruise transfers now at $19 or $29 or $69 (Chile cruise terminal to their airport). It is worry free and much cheaper. I only travel with Holland America.
Once I booked my cruise, I needed airfare. So I inquired into the price of a flight associated with the cruise line, and they wanted $1,000 roughly. I said that I will look on my own, and found flights for $411.
This is another example why Tips for Travelers is the best. Gary does not favor one cruise line and provides a neutral perspective. I'd like to add one very important tip, as Gary mentioned Allianz and other 3rd party travel insurance providers. Definitely don't use the cruiseline travel insurance which is a ripoff but also don't directly contact Allianz (which is excellent) or other providers. Instead, use a travel insurance comparison tool like squaremouth which lays out all the plans, the price, benefits, etc., to be sure you're getting the best possible combination of benefits and price.
I have only had good experiences with air purchased from the cruise lines. ALL allowed you to choose your own flights. Be careful to not pick flights with unnecessary stops or if unavoidable, transfer times that are too short for comfort.
Booking through an agent is the way to go. My agent got me into a bargain interior cabin. I tickled him about an upgrade and a few weeks later I was booked into an unobstructed balcony cabin.
We have a south Caribbean cruise out Puerto Rico booked with RCL in May 2024. When comparing Venture Ashore and Shore Excursions Group, all the similar (some appear exactly the same) excursions were cheaper on RCL. I was surprised.
Sound advice. I always book via a Travel Agent if cruising out of a port abroad ..out of my home port (Southampton) I go direct (as certain lines give Services/NHS discount)
I always want my travel agent so I get personal attention. I’m solo.
I have some clients that booked a Celebrity cruise thru me and then went directly to Air by Celebrity for the flights and they did make such a mess with that air booking that it virtually took months to sort out. I bet -they will never do that again😅 Also - like you - I don't recommend buying these mentioned above things from cruise lines - with some rare exceptions when it comes to transfers and excursions. How did you enjoy that 15 on Orange? I thougt that it was a very cute hotel in a great location. I went there in 2012 - a few months after it opened. We had a gala dinner there before flying out to safari in Sabi Sabi at Lion's Sands. I just booked that Atlas cruise from Buenos Aires - that I told you about. Maybe you can join us? A 17 night cruise balcony cabin for under U$5000 double occupancy. It leaves from Ushuaia on 27 March and it starts in Buenos on 26 March with a hotel night and a chartered flight on 27th. I think that the price is awesome and everything is included.
One good example of not buying Air travel & transportation from the line is a March 2025 sailing on the Norwegian Star from Ushuaia Argentina. On the Norwegian website - the cruise willl cost $5,350.52 CAD the airfare (from Ottawa) $1,442.19 and ground transportation $2,648,653.16 !!!!! I am assuming that is some kind of glitch on the website.
Great points, Gary. We love Viking--their cruises are perfection--but I would never again book flights, hotel or transfers through them. The flight routings were ridiculously grueling 3-stop affairs and dealing with "Viking Air" reps is not like dealing with Viking reps. For our pre-cruise stay, the hotel was more expensive than booking ourselves, and the transfer involved a long forced march onto a coach, a long wait to fill up the coach, and then an unwanted impromptu "tour" around the city so they could stall because the hotel rooms weren't ready! All this after a 16-hour journey that should have taken 8 hours.
The trouble is Viking don't work through travel agents in the UK so if you want other flights you have to do it all yourself. It's starting to put me off Viking.
wow this is helpful information! We would like to go on a Viking cruise one day so I really appreciate this feedback! Thanks for sharing.
I have an Alaska cruise booked with Viking. Their outbound flight takes 18 hours, going Heathrow to Dallas, immigration into the US (meaning we have to collect our luggage), then a flight to Calgary in Canada. There are several direct flights from Heathrow to Calgary that only take 8 hours and don't involve needlessly immigrating into the US only to leave it again, but they're on a different airline. Viking Air won't mix and match airlines for inbound and outbound flights unless they're in the same codeshare group.
Had 2 wonderful flight experiences with Viking. However, we live in NJ and are not far from 2 major airports: Newark and Philadelphia. Perhaps they have more flight options than if you live in areas that don’t have many European flights. We met people who had to change planes 1 or 2 times on their way to Rome. They lived on the West coast or in the midwest.
We live in CT.
In March 2022 I booked directly with HAL because my TA’s quote was much higher than HAL’s price. I’ve always checked since then and it hasn’t happened again.
Good heavens Gary. You’ll be just down the road for a while in Cape Town! Hope you enjoy. Also hope you enjoy 15 on Orange. Spent time there a few years back and found the staff very friendly. I fear though you will miss out the best part of the Cape, it’s wines, although I’m sure the ship will be able to help there. Maybe book a terrestrial holiday one day in the Cape and make you way to the Hemel en Aarde Valley near Hermanus. 😊
It used to be booking air with the cruise line was a set rate and good routes
Yep, it used to be around $200 RT
Yeah, on the flight thing. I book through the cruise line if it is overseas. Twice in 2021 or so I booked airfare for cruises, only to have the cruise line cancel the trip entirely. If that happens, you’re stuck with the airfare, unless you booked fully refundable tickets or have expensive CFAR insurance on them and are willing to settle for about 75 cents on the dollar.
I’ve actually ended up with better rates, connecting cities, and prices. However, I did have to be on top of things (as was my travel agent). I’m currently in Sydney for a cruise, and with my original flights, the time window kept changing to the point where there was less than two hours of layover in San Francisco. My agent was able to move me to a flight through LAX with more of a cushion. I did look up that flight on my departure day. The LAS to SFO flight was delayed.
Gary, relating to your comment about insurance: Do you have any idea how much you've paid for insurance during your cruising career as compared to the amount of claims you've made against the policy? You've cruised enough to be able to provide a reasonable cost/benefit analysis for insurance. Thanks.
Insurance is not about assessing savings to accept open ended risk. One event can save a million dollars in medical, air transport and more. My minor one was 2 hours in a hospital. $6000 usd. Cost me not a cent. IMO if you cant afford insurance you cant afford travel.
Great tips! Thank you for the video!
I’ve been using Viator for Alaska excursions and love them
My wife and I were all set for HAL Eurodam trip to Alaska and then my retina detached, making flying across the country impossible. I paid less than the line’s insurance to cover the cruise and airline tickets and lost no money.
I always book my own flights as I simply can’t sit in an Economy class seat for more than an hour. Long legs, so I must have extra legroom. Last time I bought airfare from the cruise line the airline would not allow me to even pay extra to get an extra legroom Economy seat. Was told cruise line buys lowest fare code seats that do not allow any modifications. I’ll pay more to know I won’t be miserable for a 10 or12 hour flight. Premium Economy often gets you two checked bags too rather than one.
Hi Gary, thank you for your video I have watched quite a few of your videos and find them very informative. I just learned that you are based in UK near Heathrow? We are neighbors I am in Camberley :)
Cruise trip excursion: "Rome on your own" a busride with return from Civittaveccia to Rome. 50 usd per person. A family train ticket that included free public transport for a Day was 5.30 euros
Another example illustrates why you need insurance. A friend was with uson a cruise. His wife was pregnant, early days, and she had a small bleeding. Ship doctor sent her ashore to see a doctor, after what she was no longer allowed on board. They had to arrange their own flights from st Maarten to Europe. They had no travel insurance. It was quite expensive.
Thanks Gary. I enjoy your videos. We are cruising from Southampton soon with Princess. I did make the error of purchasing the cruise line insurance while booking last year. We also have an Allianz annual plan so I am paying more. We
will be away from home for nearly a month.
Cruise lines are profit-making corporations, and they will make a profit on any service they provide to you, so shopping around can avoid that middle man and get you more for your money. I would also underscore the value of having a good travel agent who can give you unbiased advice and do some of the searching for you. Your agent can also intercede if there is a problem.
Good advice and thanks for the video. I personally always use the ship's excursions. If your return transportation is late getting to the ship, the ship may not wait. Recent story about that. But the ship will always wait for it's own excursions. So the extra cost may be a savings if you have to catch a flight to catch your cruise. Cheers.
Ships dont always wait
But the line may get you back to next port.