Using "Cruise Compete "Agencies
 

It has been recommended to me to use Cruise Compete.com to book my Alaskan cruise. The prices are good. Does anyone have any advice/experience they can offer. My travel agent says these "discount" brokers are sometimes doing illegal actions.

I have used then twice. Different agencies...no problem. Just make sure you get everything in writing (any OBC or perks). Also make sure you know if they have cancellation fees, etc. I also get a phone number and name of the agent handling my reservation.

Still check around to see if you can do better. Try www.bestpricecruises.com and cruises-n-more.com. Best Price had our Alaskan Cabin last year for $1200 when other websites were showing "sold out" and $2300. Some of the largest internet agencies buy bulk rooms and the consumer can get really lucky. We took HAL to Alaska twice and Princess once, I HAL is much better because the ships are smaller and can get closer to the glaciers. Hope this helps.

Ps, both of the above mentioned TA's participate on CreuiseCompete but the agents don't always have time to respond to every quote request.

sorry for typos

Thanks for the input. Bestprice and Cruises N More are who I have been in contact with via Cruise Compete. We are on Princess Star as part of a family trip with in laws and I am trying to get best price for two outside cabins. Did you book on line or phone. I want a specific deck/catagory. How do I go about getting this. Also, I need side by side cabins (for older kids).

check out the 2 travelinwifey suggests. I recently asked for quotes from all the on-line firms I
have used in the past & then got
about 8 quotes from cruisecompete
companies.

Opted for 1 of them w/NO problems.
Good phone contact, Invoice has
listed the 3 perks I am receiving
& e-mailed me back 2x on my
queries.

I would call or e-mail the agencies to indicate the cabins you want.

HAL is a great line for Alaska.

Afterthought:

You should also register (free)
at www.cruisecritic.com which has
a wealth of info.

Curious what your travel agent alleges they are doing that is "illegal". I also used cruisecompete for Alaska for this summer. Princess has a record of my deposit, lists me as having hte promised cabins - so seems to be working so far.

Definitely call in for a quote as sometimes the online agents can get a 55+ discount (which could be a few hundred dollars per cabin) that doesn't show on the online quotes. That's, of course, if anyone 55+ is in your categoty.

If at all possible I would try to use one of those two agencies and keep checking to see if the prices fall over the next few months. We were able to get $400 back when a price dropped 30 days prior on a Princess cruise, people that booked direct or through a smaller agency did not get a refund, maybe two out of 10 got a cabin credit. Keep with the big names for the best savings.

Ps, I did have a bad incident with cruisequick.com just fyo and it is impossible to contact them by phone.

As long as you are on a smaller ship you will do very well for glacier viewing. Also, the actual glacier is importnat, Glacier Bay and Hubbard Glacier are the best. Tracy arm (popular on Princess) is nothing compared to the big glaciers. That should be a consideration when choosing a ship, hope this helps.

Thanks for the great input. I booked at a very good price with Best Price Cruises. Any recommendations on travel insurance?

I have found that www.insuremytrip.com is a good place to compare travel insurance policies.