chrismelissa Posted May 30, 2023 Report Share Posted May 30, 2023 We have never used a travel agent, can MEI get us a better price then we can get from RC on our own, and what about hotel prices too, but would like more info about them and what they can actually for us can they save us money Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted May 30, 2023 Report Share Posted May 30, 2023 The value of a good travel agent is how they protect your reservation, not what kind of deal you can get. That doesn't mean they can't get a better price, but pricing isn't the key benefit with an agent like MEI. Baked Alaska, Ryan79, Linda R and 4 others 6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OCSC Mike Posted May 30, 2023 Report Share Posted May 30, 2023 22 minutes ago, chrismelissa said: We have never used a travel agent, can MEI get us a better price then we can get from RC on our own, and what about hotel prices too, but would like more info about them and what they can actually for us can they save us money Contact them and ask your questions. Also, what smokey posted above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan79 Posted May 30, 2023 Report Share Posted May 30, 2023 Don’t bank on a better price than RC, but bank on them taking the hassle out of any changes that may pop up between booking and embarkation. I wasn’t a big travel agent guy myself but decided to give MEI a whirl on my last booking. A 3 sentence email got me a change in cabin category and change in sailing dates. A 3 sentence email was a whole lot less effort and hassle than trying to make those changes myself. Think of them as more of an insurance policy in case anything goes wrong or needs to be changed versus a discount maker. Going with a TA who provides a lower price often comes with a lower paid agent who isn’t going to bend over backwards for you like a non-discount agent will. CruiseGus, Neesa, tingtang and 2 others 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbrinkm Posted May 30, 2023 Report Share Posted May 30, 2023 We have to cruise during peak Spring Break times due to school schedules, and I've gotten at least a small discount off Royal's rates since I started using MEI - for a better package of rooms. It might not be a huge difference in price, but for just slightly less with MEI, I can choose my rooms out of their group rate options, which is important because our teens need to be in a room next door, AND a refundable option. Unlike some other travel, booking a cruise through a TA still leaves you with a lot of control over your vacation which I know some people don't like to give up. And I've also gotten a small amount of OBC each time I've booked with them as well. OCSC Mike and rjweber3 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PL8SWPR Posted May 31, 2023 Report Share Posted May 31, 2023 Booked Wonder Oct 2024. It was cheaper through them for a refundable rate with me selecting my room than a non refundable GTY booking direct. Plus, $50 OBC. I'm sure not all work out that way, but it did for us. This was the first time we've used an agent. OCSC Mike 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshleyDillo Posted May 31, 2023 Report Share Posted May 31, 2023 Sometimes you can benefit with cheaper pricing because MEI may have locked in group rates for a particular sailing at a lower price than the current going rate on the website. It costs nothing to ask and see if they have group rates for your sailing..nothing to lose! Sharla, JimnKathy, rjweber3 and 2 others 4 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Traveling Mike Posted May 31, 2023 Report Share Posted May 31, 2023 Some advice working with a travel agent. Do not trust them 100%. Do your research and have an idea of what you want and prices going in. Just look and figure out what you want on the RCL site and what it will cost. Then work with the travel agent(s) to do the booking. Do the same for hotels and flights. I book a lot of flights with RCL and Celebrity, but I am always checking prices with Google Flights and the on the airline website. The best person to protect you is you. FoxboroCruiser, rjweber3 and Cactus527 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liftedhands Posted May 31, 2023 Report Share Posted May 31, 2023 We use Jen Greene at MEI, she is amazing plus they watch for price drops. Highly recommend. Matt, fireclan and Sharla 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CruiseGus Posted June 2, 2023 Report Share Posted June 2, 2023 On 5/31/2023 at 7:56 AM, Liftedhands said: We use Jen Greene at MEI, she is amazing plus they watch for price drops. Highly recommend. In that case I use Michelle at MEI, and she just sent me $400 price drop on a future cruise. What I like is I send an email and it happens. She did a great job with getting all the Covid FCC straightened out. For me it's not All price, but impeccable service, which is what I get Sharla, Xaa, Liftedhands and 3 others 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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