Using II for travel services such as cruise?

[cigarboo]

I'm not sure where to post this. I was thinking about exchanging my timeshare for a cruise since I can't seem to exchange for anywhere on land that I'm too interested in. I'm thinking it's not a good way to use a week.

However, I did get check on prices of the same cruise without exchanging my week using their travel sevice and it did price lower than other travel sites. Has anyone ever used interval for travel services to book flights or cruises? Their flights seem cheaper as well. I'm wondering if there are any fine print I may be missing.

Particulary for cruises, I wonder if there are travel agency fees for cancellation, on top of cruiseline fees. I tried to do a booking on line to see the t & c, but no mention of thier fees, just the cruiseline fees.

Thanks!

 

[dominidude]

I have used II, i have nothing but praise for them. They have so far seemed very professional and lower priced than other travel agents for the same cruises.
That being said, a little comparison shopping never hurt anyone.

 

[Saintsfanfl]

Don't compare to other travel sites. Compare to booking directly with the operator. There is no reason to ever book on a travel site unless you hate booking at multiple sites for the same trip.

I don't see how the flights can be cheaper than booking direct. That is virtually impossible since airlines give a discount for booking directly on their site. There could be a very rare case of II receiving a promo discount but it would be extremely rare. The commission for flights is next to nothing so it doesn't leave room to offer a lower price. Also, almost all sites use the same search engines and actually pull the same pricing data. There are exceptions here and there for promos.

Cruises are different but if you poke around you will find that most of the cruises on II are the same price as booking direct. Sometimes there is a heavy discount with a promo for a specific cruise line. These discounts can be far lower than even booking direct.

Cruise exchanges can make sense for cheaper properties exchanging into the more expensive rooms on the ship. Expensive properties like Marriott have the worst cruise exchange value because II does not recognize the maintenance fee amount as a factor in the discount. II charges the same exchange fees regardless of the value in the property. The only variable is getaway or trading power and they don't have much difference programmed in so the nicer properties get the shaft on the exchange.

 

[DeniseM]

Exchanging for a cruise on II is usually not a good deal - you exchange your timeshare AND pay an additional fee that is almost as much as a purchasing a discounted cruise.

 

[Passepartout]

It appears that the OP figured out that exchanging for a cruise or airfare tickets is a lousy use of MF dollars, yet II has a travel agency that he says offers deals better than direct bookings.

I've tried to steer TUGgers away from exchanging for cruises, but this may be a different animal. I hope the OP follows through with this and informs us. I'd LOVE to be proven wrong.

Jim

 

[Saintsfanfl]

Exchanging for a cruise on II is usually not a good deal - you exchange your timeshare AND pay an additional fee that is almost as much as a purchasing a discounted cruise.

This is many times true but not always. I have a couple units that always generate a discount of more than double the maintenance fees for cruise exchanges into suites.

I just did a quick check on an RC cruise. II's price after taxes was cheaper by $100 per person vs booking direct on RC.

I checked a few flights and the prices were identical to booking direct.

Cruises are tricky because the discounts and specials are all over the place. It can pay to check 10 different sites.

 

[Ken555]

This is many times true but not always. I have a couple units that always generate a discount of more than double the maintenance fees for cruise exchanges into suites.

I just did a quick check on an RC cruise. II's price after taxes was cheaper by $100 per person vs booking direct on RC.

I checked a few flights and the prices were identical to booking direct.

I recently booked three RCL cruises. I checked II with and without using a SDO 1-bed as exchange. In every case booking with Costco was a lot less expensive, after promotions etc. Last year II was much less for a NCL cruise but over time I rebooked that with Costco as well since II ended up being higher.

I'd really like to see value from II for cruises, but so far it hasn't worked out. FWIW, every time I call Costco Travel they are extremely helpful and make no effort to end the call. I called II cruise dept several times over the last year and they were nowhere near as helpful. The on phone customer experience for cruises, unlike other travel services like flights, definitely influences where I buy.


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[Saintsfanfl]

I recently booked three RCL cruises. I checked II with and without using a SDO 1-bed as exchange. In every case booking with Costco was a lot less expensive, after promotions etc. Last year II was much less for a NCL cruise but over time I rebooked that with Costco as well since II ended up being higher.

I'd really like to see value from II for cruises, but so far it hasn't worked out. FWIW, every time I call Costco Travel they are extremely helpful and make no effort to end the call. I called II cruise dept several times over the last year and they were nowhere near as helpful. The on phone customer experience for cruises, unlike other travel services like flights, definitely influences where I buy.


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I forgot about costco travel. I always use them for car rentals. Great prices and every possible discount is automatically integrated.

I have said this before. I would rather chew on broken glass than talk to II on the phone. I would never call them to book anything unless I absolutely had to.

 

[Ken555]

I forgot about costco travel. I always use them for car rentals. Great prices and every possible discount is automatically integrated.

And, Costco includes an on board credit or other promo on every (or almost every) cruise that they pay for. For instance, I booked two cruises last fall under a promo that ended last month for free gratuities. The great deal about this is that even if I change cabins later on (in a price drop, for instance) Costco won't remove that particular promo while all other promos will likely need to be reapplied based on whatever is current at the time of the new booking.

I have said this before. I would rather chew on broken glass than talk to II on the phone. I would never call them to book anything unless I absolutely had to.

I've had a few good reps for timeshare exchanges, but the cruise dept needs a bit of help in how to be positive. The few times I called them I felt depressed by the end of the call.



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[Saintsfanfl]

I just checked Costco travel on the same RC cruise. It is the exact same price as direct on RC, so II is still cheaper in this specific case. But you are right Costco has the freebie credits that II doesn't have.

Also keep in mind that I am using a cruise example far in advance and very high demand prime season. This generally weeds out the ability to find it as a discount cruise on another site. The point is can a cruise exchange make sense? It definitely can in some cases, but not for discount shoppers after the cheaper rooms during off season.

 

[Ken555]

I just checked Costco travel on the same RC cruise. It is the exact same price as direct on RC, so II is still cheaper in this specific case.

Do you mind sharing which cruise you're looking at? (or send me a pm)


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[Saintsfanfl]

Do you mind sharing which cruise you're looking at? (or send me a pm)


Sent from my iPad

In this example I was using Allure of the Seas, 7 night western Caribbean, 3/6/16, Junior Suite. The price on RC and costco is $4,454.04 for two adults. The price on II is $4,012.40. It's a bigger discount than I realized. I thought it was $100 per person but the taxes are also lower on II. I wonder if that is actually correct. I wonder if there are additional fees that II is not charging.

The same cruise on an exchange with one of my more advantageous units is $3,206.74. The difference of $805.66 between the cash price is more than double my maintenance fee. I like to use the cruise exchange discount to compare trading power between units. I do not know for sure that trading power is related to the cruise exchange discount but I am convinced that it is.

 

[cigarboo]

I'm the OP and I appreciate everyone's input. You all have brought up some interesting points, especially about trading weeks with high maintenance fees, which is what I have(Marriott), so no trading for me.

Anyways, I used to book a lot of cruises through Costco which used to give great prices on NCL cruises. Recently, they've been pretty much the same price as the cruiseline, but Costco gives some on board credit. I prefer savings over OBC, so if Interval prices are accurate and they don't have a bunch of hidden fees, I may have just found myself a new way to book.

I happen to compare RCCL Harmony of the Seas with interval vs RCCL direct and Interval beat their price as well. My hesitation is with cancelation policy, since I like the option to cancel until the cruise line penalty kicks in.

Thanks again everyone. I may have to give it a try.

 

[dioxide45]

I started this thread in the Travel Info forum about the deals we have gotten on cruises through Interval Travel. We have now booked four cruises through II and every time they have been cheaper than direct through the cruise line.

I was told by a rep that I now work with fairly regularly that they have non public member rates available to them. We got a cruise this past April where the cruise fare was only a few dollars more than the taxes and port charges. It was probably only about a third of the cost of the same cruise through Carnival. A cruise for this fall was a few hundred less and we saved four hundred for a Mediterranean cruise for September 2016 on the Carnival Vista over Carnival's Early Saver rates.

I really can't compare II to Costco Travel because Costco doesn't sell Carnival Cruise Lines.

 

[got4boys]

I booked a cruise next year on NCL through Interval International and am very happy with the rates.

After doing the calculations and using my weeks (note - weeks have different value on cost - just play with the numbers and the different weeks you may have), I overall saved the following:

Cruise 1 - at booking - on NCL site - was $1,940.98 - I paid $1,671.50 - Savings $269.48 (booked in April 2015)

Cruise 2 - at booking - on NCL site - was $2,783.96 - I paid $2,665.92 - Savings $128.04 (booked in April 2015)

Note: The rates of the cruises that I booked have gone up.

Cruise 1 today is now $2,323.36

Cruise 2 today is now $4,110.64

Promotions change all the time...and so does the price.

 

[dioxide45]

Interval Travel is also seems willing to make price drop adjustments by simply calling them and they do have pretty long phone hours. Best yet, they don't charge a fee for cancelling or changing your cruise. We had booked through Cruise.com, and there was a $50pp fee to cancel our cruise on top of their $25 booking fee. We were able to apply all those moneys paid to a new cruise booking though.

 

[cigarboo]

Thanks dioxide! Sounds like interval is the way to go for my next cruise. The savings can be substantial and no extra fees!

 

[Saintsfanfl]

Commissions on cruises is pretty hefty. I used to work for a travel marketing company back in the day and they received a decent override commission on top of the large travel agent commission. The direct prices need to be similar to the agent prices or the system doesn't work. It appears that Interval is forgoing their commission and instead passing the savings on to the members. Or they are funneling the business to another agent that earns a lower than normal commission.

Either way it is nice to see the benefit to II members. Most memberships, including II, state extra benefits that are no cheaper than anywhere else. Supposedly "discounted" Disney tickets drive me nuts. I have four different memberships that offer discounted tickets. When you click any of the links it takes you to the exact same prices as the Disney website. Maybe it's because I am a FL resident and there are no further discounts.

 

[PeelBoy]

I compared prices of 2016 Carnival Vista 10 days Mediterranean with II, Carnival, online agents and my travel agent. My travel agent's price is the cheapest by $120, so I booked with her. II is no different from other online agents, but is slightly cheaper than Carnival.com.

 

[dioxide45]

I compared prices of 2016 Carnival Vista 10 days Mediterranean with II, Carnival, online agents and my travel agent. My travel agent's price is the cheapest by $120, so I booked with her. II is no different from other online agents, but is slightly cheaper than Carnival.com.

Are you putting in that you are a past cruiser? I found when I did that, that II was actually higher than Carnival.com for our Vista cruise next fall. When I only indicate that I am a US Resident and indicate my state, that is when I saw the big discount.

What are your cruise dates? We are on the 10 day out of Barcelona leaving on 9/3/2016.

 

[Ron98GT]

I don't see how the flights can be cheaper than booking direct. That is virtually impossible

Not so.

Last year, I had to book an Alitalia flight for 2 from Rome, Italy to Venice, Italy. I used 40K of my RCI Points (the max allowed), and pretty much got the 2nd ticket for free. You really have to look at the cost of your MF's: in my case I'm paying less than a penny per point. Plus I add an excess number of points that I needed to use or lose.

You have to run the numbers, because sometimes it's worth using your points or week for an airline or cruise exchange, if the numbers work out in your favor.

Just don't forget the exchange fee that will be added on, at least in the case of RCI.

 

[Passepartout]

Last year, I had to book an Alitalia flight for 2 from Rome, Italy to Venice, Italy. I used 40K of my RCI Points (the max allowed), and pretty much got the 2nd ticket for free. You really have to look at the cost of your MF's: in my case I'm paying less than a penny per point. Plus I add an excess number of points that I needed to use or lose.

You have to run the numbers, because sometimes it's worth using your points or week for an airline or cruise exchange, if the numbers work out in your favor.

Just don't forget the exchange fee that will be added on, at least in the case of RCI.

So the 40K of points at $.01 each, plus $209 for one "free" companion ticket? $600 more or less doesn't appear to be much of a bargain to me. Currently, that Alitalia flight (one way) is $91pp in mid Sept. I wouldn't brag real loudly about that deal.

I will continue to advise people that timeshare points are worthless for anything but timeshare stays.

Jim

 

[Saintsfanfl]

Not so.

Last year, I had to book an Alitalia flight for 2 from Rome, Italy to Venice, Italy. I used 40K of my RCI Points (the max allowed), and pretty much got the 2nd ticket for free. You really have to look at the cost of your MF's: in my case I'm paying less than a penny per point. Plus I add an excess number of points that I needed to use or lose.

You have to run the numbers, because sometimes it's worth using your points or week for an airline or cruise exchange, if the numbers work out in your favor.

Just don't forget the exchange fee that will be added on, at least in the case of RCI.

That's completely different. I am talking about a consistent difference in cash prices between any travel site and booking direct. It's not possible because the airlines barely offer any commission. You might find a $25 or $50 lower price on occasion due to a promo but it will never be consistently lower across the board. It's usually the opposite because many travel sites charge a small fee for flights and some airlines give a discount for booking direct.


Check out American Airlines lowest fare guarantee on booking direct:

On aa.com you'll always get our lowest airfare guaranteed and no online booking fees on flights. If you find the exact same flight and itinerary for at least $5 less on another website on the same day you made your purchase and make your claim by midnight of the same calendar day, we will refund the difference in price and give you a $50 promotion code for a future flight purchase.

 

[Ron98GT]

Yes I"ll brag, because your totally clueless to what ticket prices were for prior to May 2014. You made a stupid comment, I know what the prices were when I made the reservation, your wrong, and your rambling egotistical attacks on me aren't going to change the facts.


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[Passepartout]

Yes I"ll brag, because your totally clueless to what ticket prices were for May 2015. You made a stupid comment, I know what the prices were when I made the reservation, your wrong, sand your rambling attacks on me aren't going to change the facts.

Please, enlighten me of those facts. How much WAS that flight in May of 2015?
How much was the MF on those 40K RCI Points? I just used your number, and added in the current exchange fee. A quick Kayak search revealed current flight prices between Rome and Venice. I went out a couple of weeks because I assumed that you would have booked your flight in advance.

At the risk of igniting further flames, I simply maintain that using timeshare points for anything but timeshare stays is not a good use of your MF dollars. And IF you have more points flowing into your RCI Points account than you can use (like I do too), it indicates that you (and I) have more Points ownerships than we need.

Anyway, I'd love to know those factual figures.

Jim