Anyone else hate using a TA but feel like you need one?

I use a TA for the sole purpose of getting on board credit. I found mine on cruise compete and she gives the biggest OBC. I have used her for couple times. She booked my cruises and handled my payments and that was it.

I do all the planning myself.
 
If you’re worried about wearing your mom out, then I would suggest changing your attitude towards the trip. Think of this as a trip where you spend time with your mom and y’all happen to be at WDW. If you think about it that way then your approach to planning will change and hopefully you will be less stressed.
 
If you’re worried about wearing your mom out, then I would suggest changing your attitude towards the trip. Think of this as a trip where you spend time with your mom and y’all happen to be at WDW. If you think about it that way then your approach to planning will change and hopefully you will be less stressed.

You are overly presumptuous.

I am not worried about wearing my mom out, and I do not need to adjust my attitude. My attitude is that I know my mom is getting older and we won’t get to do many more trips together; I want her to have an amazing time.

I am not like some people who never see their moms or who only visit them a few times of year. I live with her. So, I know her very well, and I know what she likes and doesn’t like. I’ve planned several trips for us in the past, and she’s liked them all.

I just get stressed partly because I know this will probably be our last big trip together and partly because I want it to be perfect for her—not perfect, perfect for HER.

An earlier poster mentioned scheduling breaks which we always do anyway. We are not go, go, go people. We are tortoises not hares, and we are ok with that. We know how to enjoy small things.

I did not start this post to be lectured about my attitude or how to treat my mother.

I was merely expressing some mixed feelings I have about using a travel agent. I gave SOME information about my situation for context.
 


I see the majority here use a TA. Just wanting to share the other point of view to give more balance to this thread!

We're not using a TA. We love being in control. Not giving that away in exchange of OBC.

Plus, if anything goes wrong, we can deal with Disney. We know they treat their customers well and eventually everything is always sorted out.
 
I just get anxious about making it fun for her without wearing her out.
You are overly presumptuous.

I am not worried about wearing my mom out, and I do not need to adjust my attitude. My attitude is that I know my mom is getting older and we won’t get to do many more trips together; I want her to have an amazing time.

I am quoting both if these so you can hopefully see your overreaction to @tcufrog Its easy to see how she may have gotten the impression you were concerned about wearing your mom out since that is exactly what you said. Given the information she had, I thought her suggestion to reframe how you think about the trip was brilliant. Almost everyone I see on DISboards is helpful, nice and supportive. That's why I am still here, researching a non DIS trip since some of the same elements will apply and y'all are so nice. My suggestion to you is to not ask for help and then jump down the throat of someone giving it. We all know that the internet can be sometimes hard to interpret intent but Ive found that if I try to believe the person's intent is not bad towards me then I'm often more at peace and therefore more productive.

It sounds like you are going through something. You are in my thoughts. I hope you get everything you want from this trip.
 


Personally, I can see pros and cons of using a TA and appreciate feedback on other people’s experiences.

I do not like using message boards sometimes, because there are people who like to start giving opinions that can be quite offensive whether intended to be or not. That’s why I was thinking of using a travel agent. I would like someone to bounce ideas off of and get excited with me without the judgement and unsolicited analysis that often comes on message boards.

I would like to say thank you to those who actually answered the ORIGINAL question.
 
I love my TA, I always send her postcards. I'm a control freak but I prefer she sits on hold with DCL for an hour and not me. It's convenient for me to book with her. I think you can certainly go either way it's all about personal preference.
 
We started with our TA because we had young children and were worried about them getting tired and cranky. She was able to recommend a resort close to the parks we specifically wanted to visit so that we could easily leave the parks when the kids were tired and we could get back to hotel in a few minutes as opposed to hours. We could then nap or visit the pool for a break before heading back out to the resort. This made the whole trip much more enjoyable for everyone. We also were able to see the fireworks, and boat parade, from our room so we were not missing out if the kids crashed before the night activities started. This may help take the pressure off to get the whole Disney experience without totally wiping out physically. You can bounce your ideas off a TA and see what options they can suggest based on what is important to you for this particular trip. I hope you enjoy every minute of this special time with your mom.
 
I use a travel agent to book cruises for two reasons: to get on-board credit, and to avoid having to stay on the phone for hours on the first day of new bookings. I tell my travel agent what I want, she books it, and my next contact with her is usually giving permission to make our final payment. A few times I have asked her to upgrade our room or book post-cruise transportation. I handle all excursions myself, and I have never felt that I gave up control.

I would wonder what was going on if I was on the phone for hours. That has never been my experience. I do my research first, find the room that I want, and then call them to book it. I would book it online, but we do the placeholder on our previous cruise. I get an OBC doing it that way.
 
Since most of the Disney dedicated TAs share their commission in the form of on-board credits, it's a no-brainer to me. Even if you literally just tell them exactly what you want and have them book it for you. It's free money.
 
Just to add to my answer, I like using a TA for the cruise portion, they do all the work! I enjoy doing the other bookings.
 
After a couple bad TA's I finally found one who is amazing. I still plan everything myself, but she helps me save a small fortune with special discounts on land and obc on DCL. She has found us rooms which Disney and other TAs said were completely sold out, saving us the hassle of having to change resorts when we didn't want to. She also helps me 'talk' through decisions to make sure I am choosing the best options for my family. I am primarily responsible for the planning in my family, so it is nice to have another highly informed opinion weighing in on pros and cons of different options. A bad TA is worse than no TA, but a great one is absolutely worth any extra work involved.
 
I would wonder what was going on if I was on the phone for hours. That has never been my experience. I do my research first, find the room that I want, and then call them to book it. I would book it online, but we do the placeholder on our previous cruise. I get an OBC doing it that way.

Have you ever booked on opening day? Multi-hour waits are not unusual when new dates open.
 
I use a TA when it benefits me, such an a OBC or a discounted room or tickets at Disney. I have used several in the past off and on. I am using Dreams for my next cruise and I am really impressed with them so far.
 
Plus, if anything goes wrong, we can deal with Disney. We know they treat their customers well and eventually everything is always sorted out.

I book with Costco and never have to deal with them. I fact I usually never talk to a live person. Last cruise I had dietary restrictions. I just dealt with Disney directly using the live chat feature.
 
Have you ever booked on opening day? Multi-hour waits are not unusual when new dates open.

Only because Disney requires the Travel Agents to talk to a live person at Disney. Someone needs to tell Disney in the year 2020 all of these changes should be able to be done by the cruisers using a website. Using a live person to type in all of the changes is so antiquated.
 
Is the only reason people use Costco to maximize their discount they receive? Their website is decent and the few times I ended called them they were polite but I would never rely on them for their expertise on Disney Cruises.
 

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