As the popularity of cruises has increased, so have the choices you have for booking your cruise. I have categorized the seven most common booking alternatives. At the end, I will identify which is my preferred method.

It should be noted that the cruise industry has pretty much leveled the pricing. When determining the best price, make sure you include taxes, port fees, and seller fees. I have found out that the bottom line pricing from nearly any source is nearly the same. The deciding factors are convenience and your comfort levels.

  1. Online via the cruise line: All cruise lines offer a booking engine that can be very useful in understanding both their cruise itineraries and their ships. You can book through the cruise line, but will probably not receive the best rate. Unfortunately, you cannot compare cruises from other lines using the cruise line website. This is fine if you are committed to a single cruise line for your cruises, which I found is the case for many passengers due to the buildup of loyalty points.
  2. Online via aggregator website: There are number of online sites that aggregate cruise information from the various lines. Some (e.g., CruiseWeb.com, Cruise.com, CruiseCritic.com, and others) are dedicated to cruising. Others (e.g., Kayak.com, CheapTickets.com, Expedia.com, and others) also provide air, land, and other travel arrangements. I have found that these sites are great for planning purposes, but have never booked online through one since I have been able to get equal or better pricing from my agent.  Most of the aggregators offer access to an in-person agent, which I highly recommend.  However, I have spoken to other cruisers who have looked through the sites and have been very happy. Just be aware that that the support may be limited, and many decisions were based on your knowledge and capabilities.
  3. Wholesale clubs: Wholesale clubs, such as Costco and Bjs, offer travel services at a discount and provide personalized services as well. Just a caution that the sales approach for wholesale clubs is on how much they are discounting from the cruise lines catalog price, which is almost never the price the ticket is sold for. Go armed with information from research so you know whether you’re getting a good price or not. I have spoken to cruisers who have used wholesale clubs – some have gotten a good price, others not.
  4. Timeshare services: If you own a timeshare, you may have access to cruise booking services that provide discounted tickets in exchange for points against your timeshare. We belong to RCI, which does have a cruise booking service. We did book one cruise through the service, thinking we were getting a good price, but, in the end, after all the fees and other charges, I determine we paid more than if we had gone through our agent.
  5. Tour group: There are number of tour operators who organize groups of cruisers. They normally bundle the services of a tour director and other services with their pricing. While this can make it hard to determine whether you’re getting a good price, it does provide the convenience of having someone with you at all times who can help you navigate the ins and outs of both the cruise and the ports. Many of these tour groups have additional seminars and activities that you would not normally receive as a regular passenger. From what I have seen, this can be a great way if you’re going with a tour shares common interest with you.
  6. General purpose travel agent: A general-purpose agent is one that books travel not only for cruises, but also for air, hotels, and land-based travel. AAA is a great example of a general-purpose travel agent. The advantage is that you can book more than just a cruise, which is great if you’re doing some travel before or after the cruise. They will also have crew specialists who can help.
  7. Cruise specific travel agent: A cruise specific agent is one who only handles cruises. This is my preferred method of booking, as I will explain in my post on “6 Reasons to Use a Cruise Agent“. The bottom line is I have always gotten optimal pricing, frequent improvements as a pricing changed, and great advice. My agent is Kevin Sweigard at The Cruise Web, Inc. (www.cruiseweb.com). I have recommended him many times and everyone stated that he is totally attentive to their needs, even when they end up not purchasing a cruise. Please feel free to click on his name to send him an email – I did not receive any commission or fee for these referrals.

There is no cost penalty to using an agent. You will get very personalized treatment and, if you have a good agent, this will save you huge amounts of time. If you’re more comfortable doing everything online, then I suggest researching the various cruise aggregators and picking the one with which you are most comfortable.

Good luck and please complete our poll to let us know how you book your cruises.