We have never been on a cruise before and our 25th anniversary is coming up. We are wondering if it is best to use your timeshare desposit through RCI to book a cruise or find one on your own. Any suggestions? Thanks!
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RCI cruise or book your own?
- Thread starter Indy
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lbertera
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I just bought a Panama cruise on Skyauction. I have been checking prices for a year and it turned out to be a great deal. Everything was booked on Celebrity in a couple of days.
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RCI is awfully expensive for cruises. Which is OK if the TS is just going to waste, but the best value would be to go with www.VacationsToGo.com or www.Cruise.com, or www.go-today.com. There are many other cruise consolidators, any of which will beat RCI for price and service.
If you haven't cruised before, you might first decide where you want to go, then what age group you would be comfortable with, (Carnival is a younger, more of a 'party' crowd, while Holland America is a bit grayer, if you know what I mean). You might consider how important is a balcony cabin, or if you are in a different port every day, maybe an inside cabin is fine. There are European river cruises through Holland at Tulip time that can be just wonderful.
In short, with cruises, there are so many choices, a cruise specialist can really help you make the most of a cruise. A major anniversary is not the time for a do-it-yourself getaway.
Good luck and have fun on your cruise!
Jim Ricks
If you haven't cruised before, you might first decide where you want to go, then what age group you would be comfortable with, (Carnival is a younger, more of a 'party' crowd, while Holland America is a bit grayer, if you know what I mean). You might consider how important is a balcony cabin, or if you are in a different port every day, maybe an inside cabin is fine. There are European river cruises through Holland at Tulip time that can be just wonderful.
In short, with cruises, there are so many choices, a cruise specialist can really help you make the most of a cruise. A major anniversary is not the time for a do-it-yourself getaway.
Good luck and have fun on your cruise!
Jim Ricks
Carolinian
TUG Member
''Cruise exchanges'' are notoriously poor value. You can often buy a cruise from a consolidator for less than just the cash portion of what you pay RCI, and not have to give up your exchange week.
There is a good list of cruise consolidators on the Links Directory at www.timeshareforums.com - look under Website Navigation
There is a good list of cruise consolidators on the Links Directory at www.timeshareforums.com - look under Website Navigation
You would have to run the numbers to be sure. For many cruises, exchange is not cheaper but there are some situations in which is does make sense.
Do your own cost comparisons so that you know if it is a good deal for the trip you are planning.
Do your own cost comparisons so that you know if it is a good deal for the trip you are planning.
Thanks everyone for the info. Think I will check out the websites and possibly call a travel agent to see what they offer.
PStreet1
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We got great deals with
www.crucon.com
www.skyauction.com
www.vacationstogo.com (on the 90 day specials)
We checked extensively on each and found the best deals varied from site to site depending on what you are trying to book. As in so many things, there is no best answer: some have better deals on this cruise, some on that cruise.
www.crucon.com
www.skyauction.com
www.vacationstogo.com (on the 90 day specials)
We checked extensively on each and found the best deals varied from site to site depending on what you are trying to book. As in so many things, there is no best answer: some have better deals on this cruise, some on that cruise.
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A great site for general Cruise Info is www.cruisecritic.com Lots of boards and info. If this is your first time, I suggest you peruse that site to see what interests you.
I also suggest you skip RCI offer unless your deposit is going to waste.
Cheers
I also suggest you skip RCI offer unless your deposit is going to waste.
Cheers
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I'm not sure about RCI but with I.I., you can not use an existing deposit to exchange for a cruise. Units used for cruise exchanges go straight to the rental pool instead of the exchange pool so they can attempt to rent the unit to collect the amount of discount they've given you. So if you've already deposited your unit, a cruise exchange may not be an option for you depending on how RCI handles things.