Using a travel agent?

[Jhondy]

Is it easier to book a cruise with a travel agent or just do it on your own?

I asked dreams unlimited for a quote but haven’t heard back from them yet. Idk how long they usually take but I’m anxious to book cause price is good and just got the Ok from DH to book a cruis for me and my daughter!

 

[MICHAELB1]

I ended up just directly booking, I wanted to make sure I could get a reasonable room on the ship without it selling out, but if you would like someone to help you with the particulars I would say it is definitely worth it and it helps support the agency.

 

[Kwami]

It's not really easier to book with a travel agent, but travel agents will handle special requests, changes, cancellations, etc. for you without you having to call Disney. That can save a lot of time! You might also get some onboard credits from your travel agent!

 

[Jhondy]

I think I’ll be a little more patient with dreams unlimited. It’s only been 24 hours. I’m just anxious to get the cruise booked so I have it locked in but it’s not till the fall so waiting another day or two probably won’t be a big deal

 

[diablodancer]

For me, personally, I prefer doing it myself. Had a case with a TA not replying to me trying to get clarification on the 14-day cancellation policy for a DCL sailing last year and it added a lot of stress (and ended up having to call DCL directly). Thankfully didn’t need to cancel but I’m much happier knowing I can myself as opposed to relying on someone else.

 

[tvguy]

I can do it myself, or I can have a professional do it at no cost to me. That was my reason for using a Travel Agent. However, I did book my last cruise through Celebrity direct, over the phone with one of their in house Travel Agents. She handled everything from my first call, booking the cruise and air fare, and keeping me posted until my cruise via e-mail. With Celebrity, I did notice that if I had booked directly on their website, there were incentives only available online. I could have gotten tips included. But by using their phone system, I was not qualified for that incentive, but they offered full trip insurance for just $25.

 

[Lizgistix]

I understand the anxious feeling of wanting to get that reservation in and the room held. Felt like forever before the Dreams agent got back to me because I had a room number picked out and everything and I didn't want someone else to grab it.

 

[Akck]

When I’ve requested a quote, I get what must be a form email basically acknowledging my request and that an agent will be assigned. I also get another email, also a form email from my agent, saying she’s working on the quote. I get the quote that day or the next. I’ve asked questions over the weekend, not expecting an answer until Monday, but she answered that day. As mentioned, your agent handles any changes you make, saving maybe hours on the phone with Disney. She has also gotten discounts without any prompting on my part.

 

[Lillebelle]

We *love* our Dreams agent. Yes, doing an initial booking online is probably easier, and we've had some similarly anxious days where we saw something we wanted to jump on and the wait (even though it was only a few hours) felt like forever, but in the end it's been so worth it because she's been such a huge help once there were problems. For example, we had to cancel a cruise last minute due to a positive COVID test, and she helped us navigate that and made things so much less stressful. Plus sorting out the mess of all our cruises that got cancelled by DCL due the pandemic and FCC's and whatnot - she's definitely earned our business. Hopefully you hear from someone soon (I'm sure they've gotten slammed with the new cruise release) and have an amazing time on your cruise!

 

[CaseyCruiser]

I love my travel agent

 

[SandyinMonterey]

I looked up Dream Unlimited Travel a couple times. Curious about them, wanting to read reviews (all this way before reading this). I was surprised to see it rated 3.4 stars which I don't consider very good. OP: did someone get back to you?

 

[Kwami]

I looked up Dream Unlimited Travel a couple times. Curious about them, wanting to read reviews (all this way before reading this). I was surprised to see it rated 3.4 stars which I don't consider very good. OP: did someone get back to you?

The people that run Dreams Unlimited also run this board, I think. That's why we don't mention other travel agents and why DU is so popular here. It's probably best not to talk about it too much.

 

[Geomom]

We use Dreams Unlimited for our Disney cruises, mainly for the on board credit (free $), but it's been really helpful to have our TA during Covid times. Our 2020 cruise was cancelled, it was booked with a placeholder that has been extended until 9/22, but someone has to call to use it--the TA does that. She'll do it on opening day when there are long waits, etc, if I tell her what I want. We have yet to go on that 2020 cruise...moved it to Fantasy August 2021, then to Magic June 2022,and then moved it again to Fantasy June 2022 as we feel better sailing out of the US this year. She's changed rooms for us when we asked, added/updated passport numbers to our account etc. Very happy to have her!

Hopefully you'll get a reply today, that first time does take a little while since they need to assign you an agent. They do everything by email, which works well for me and I never expect instant replies.

If you're in the US/Canada? Dreams Unlimited also sends out a gift basket shortly before your cruise, which is a nice touch.

 

[tlovesdis]

I always use a travel agent (my dad). He does all the work for me and if prices drop he gets the new prices and he makes my payments and everything. I don't have to worry about anything. I could do it myself, but would rather use a cruise expert!

 

[Memorymakerfor4]

Using a travel agent can be good if you've never been cruised with DCL. They can help advise quite a bit. But I won't use one anymore because of the delay in communication. Prices can change daily and I want to lock in a good deal when I see it. It's not hard to do yourself at all.

 

[Sykes]

A good travel agent will save you time and can end up saving you money too. A bad travel agent will just get in your way and create delays. If you choose to go the travel agent route, plan to do some work finding someone who is responsive and who works well with your personality, and once you find that person develop a long-term relationship with them.

 

[trivan]

I booked our cruise directly, then was able to have a travel agent "take it over" to get the credits. It wasn't as much if I used the TA first, but it was something and I didn't have to deal with the delay of booking with a TA.

 

[Jhondy]

Someone did get back to me from dreams unlimited and I have paid my deposit for a 4 night cruise on the Wish.

I’m still nervous cause some of the information on the dreams unlimited website appears to either be out of date or doesn’t include the Wish ship. So I was getting confused. For example initially I was just going to book a category 9C room (guaranteed ocean view) but on dreams unlimited site it shows those are usually obstructed view type rooms on the other ships and doesn’t say anything about on the Wish. I didn’t want obstructed view so I went with category 9B but it’s on a much lower floor than I was hoping for but at least I know the view won’t be obstructed and that was what’s most important to me.

I’m excited for this trip and my daughter, who will be 3, is excited when she saw a video of the ship on TV. However, when it’s actually time to fly down, I’m not going to tell her where we are going just in case we test positive and can’t get on the ship. Idk how I would explain to an excited 3 yo that we couldn’t get on so I’m going to stay vague about our trip with her

 

[Geomom]

Someone did get back to me from dreams unlimited and I have paid my deposit for a 4 night cruise on the Wish.

I’m still nervous cause some of the information on the dreams unlimited website appears to either be out of date or doesn’t include the Wish ship. So I was getting confused. For example initially I was just going to book a category 9C room (guaranteed ocean view) but on dreams unlimited site it shows those are usually obstructed view type rooms on the other ships and doesn’t say anything about on the Wish. I didn’t want obstructed view so I went with category 9B but it’s on a much lower floor than I was hoping for but at least I know the view won’t be obstructed and that was what’s most important to me.

I’m excited for this trip and my daughter, who will be 3, is excited when she saw a video of the ship on TV. However, when it’s actually time to fly down, I’m not going to tell her where we are going just in case we test positive and can’t get on the ship. Idk how I would explain to an excited 3 yo that we couldn’t get on so I’m going to stay vague about our trip with her

I always go to the Disney site first to figure out what I want and then tell my TA to book it. The Wish is brand new, completely new ship design, still having finishing touches added and no one knows exactly what the rooms will be like, just whatever sketches Disney has out there. 9B should be midship, which is great as far as sea sickness. Looking at a Wish deck map I think deck 2 would be perfect for you, the age 3-12 kids clubs are on that floor! We love sailing 9C aft, deck 2 Oceanview rooms on the Magic/Wonder, so don't worry about being on a low deck, it's really not 'that' low! I will say that right now, Disney has been moving people on deck 2 on the current 4 ships to higher decks and using deck 2 as a quarantine floor as it's close to health services on deck 1, etc. Who knows if they will even need quarantine rooms by the time the Wish sets sail in July. Also, if you have a guarantee room, you are guaranteed a 9B or better...so you could end up in a 9B, or a 9A, or an 8 or something else, you won't know until you get your room assignment which is usually within a couple weeks of sailing.

Enjoy your cruise!

 

[Jhondy]

I always go to the Disney site first to figure out what I want and then tell my TA to book it. The Wish is brand new, completely new ship design, still having finishing touches added and no one knows exactly what the rooms will be like, just whatever sketches Disney has out there. 9B should be midship, which is great as far as sea sickness. Looking at a Wish deck map I think deck 2 would be perfect for you, the age 3-12 kids clubs are on that floor! We love sailing 9C aft, deck 2 Oceanview rooms on the Magic/Wonder, so don't worry about being on a low deck, it's really not 'that' low! I will say that right now, Disney has been moving people on deck 2 on the current 4 ships to higher decks and using deck 2 as a quarantine floor as it's close to health services on deck 1, etc. Who knows if they will even need quarantine rooms by the time the Wish sets sail in July. Also, if you have a guarantee room, you are guaranteed a 9B or better...so you could end up in a 9B, or a 9A, or an 8 or something else, you won't know until you get your room assignment which is usually within a couple weeks of sailing.

Enjoy your cruise!

I ended up booking the 9B cause I was worried all 9C guarantee ocean view rooms would be obstructed and the TA didn’t answer my question when I asked; she just modified my quote from 9C to 9B like I asked her to do if 9C were obstructed view rooms. The price difference was only like $5 so not a huge difference but I would have preferred a higher deck since most our time will be at the pools. I plan to take DD to the kids club for open house times but not sure that I’ll take her other times. I guess it depends on the activities but I prefer to enjoy the cruise with her and not doing separate things.

now I just need southwest to release their flights for the fall and hope the prices aren’t crazy. I checked some other airlines and they seem high especially since they don’t include bags. *fingers crossed* I can get a good price on a non stop flight the day before and on our way home that doesn’t involve us hanging out at the airport for too many hours while I try to entertain a 3 yr. old