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Question about Cruise tickets?

06 Jun

This will be my first time going on a cruise and i want to know how it works. so u book it through the phone with ur credit card. how do they give u the tickets?

 
6 Comments

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  1. Twiztid

    June 6, 2010 at 4:19 pm

    They will mail you the tickets after you make your finale payment, up to 3 weeks before you leave. You ticket package will tell you every thing you need to know from there, such as;

    Name
    Iteneary
    Time of boarding
    Where to board
    Room number
    Dining time/rotation, exc.

     

  2. gummyroach

    June 6, 2010 at 4:22 pm

    The only cruises I’ve been on so far, were through Carnival, but I imagine most of them have a similar process.

    My first 3 cruises, I booked through http://www.singlescruise.com . Basically this is a travel agency specialising in cruises for single travellers. I booked on-line, with my credit card. The last 2 times, I called Carnival Directly, and spoke to one of their cruise specialists/reservationists. Again, I used my credit card.

    About 2 to 3 weeks before the cruise, they sent a packet in the mail via an express carrier like DHL or Fed-Ex. Oddly enough, nobody had to sign for the package, they just left it on my porch. Anyway, when I opened it and discovered it was my tickets, that’s when I did “The Daffy Duck Dance”. (Bouncing off the walls with excitement, going absolutely bonkers from that point up until the day of the cruise! “woo hoo! woot! woo hoo!” You know the drill!)

    The packet contained a map of the ship, a booklet of the ships rules and policies, such as what they are and are not responsible for, what’s included in the cost, what isn’t. Also included important information about what kind of proof of citizenship I needed, what documentation I needed to bring with me. Also, there was this large “coupon book”. THIS is where the actual tickets were contained. This “booklet” has several pages of information you will be required to fill out. Carnival has what they call a “Fun Pass” . Basically what this is, is you fill out a lot of the information ahead of time, over the internet, and then print out your “pass”. By having that information already taken care of, it is “supposed to” speed up the boarding process. If you haven’t filled it out ahead of time, they’ll have you fill out the booklet when you go to check in.

    They will open an on-ship “charge account”. Carnival calls this their “sign and sail card”. Other ships have the same thing, but different name, such as “sea pass”. This account is opened before you board the ship. They usually debit your credit card approximately $200 for this account. This is usually NOT included in the initial cost of the cruise. So if your cruise was advertised at $250 a person, this doesn’t include the $200 “deposit” taken debited from your credit card for your Sign and Sail account. If you use a debit card, make sure you have that much in your account before you go, or you may get overdraft charges. The reason for the sign and sail card is that almost everything you buy on the ship is done through the sign and sail card. About the only thing cash is used for on the ship is for tipping, (they still automatically charge anywhere from 10 to 20 dollars a day on your S&S card for gratuities anyway), and maybe for the casino. Everything else; drinks, souvenirs, specialty restraunts, excursions, ect. gets charge to that card. At the end of the cruise, depending on how much you’ve spent, if your account has $ leftover, it’s credited back to your debit card or credit card. If you’re in the red, you’ll be expected to pay it. (more than likely it’ll be charged to your credit or debit card.)

    If you don’t have a debit or credit card, they (Carnival anyway) would accept cash, and a deposit.

    I’ve heard stories of travelers getting their tickets the very day of the cruise. There is a special area at the check-in counter, called “Will Call” for this. The majority of the passengers get their tickets in the mail a few weeks before the cruise.

    Hope this helped.

     

  3. Kim

    June 6, 2010 at 5:05 pm

    If you book online you can print everything right from there. That is what I do!

     

  4. ga kid

    June 6, 2010 at 5:29 pm

    booking online is easier….but if you do the phone…..they will take your credit card and mail or email you the stuff

     

  5. norf4

    June 6, 2010 at 6:00 pm

    Stop! Do not pass go; do not collect your $200.00!

    First-off, while MANY people use BIG cruise agencies, I do not recommend you do-so. They are impersonal, and on many occasions, of little or no help if there is a problem with your tickets, cruise-itinerary, or the cruise-line in one way or another. My suggestion is for you to use Cruise Compete. Cruise Compete ( cruisecompete.com ) is a reference website that is supported by the cruise agent industry. THOUSANDS of independent agents and agencies vie for your business, and you pick which one you want to do business with, based on the info each one supplies you with. Most if not all of them are certified by the industry, so that adds a layer of protection to you when your money is going to someone you will most likely never meet or even see.

    I found my agent of more than five years through the internet and never looked back! She is a Consummate professional, and always fights to make sure I got the very best price from the cruise-line that is possible. This, many times has happened LONG after I booked my cruise, and the deal was paid-off; and long before the cruise lines began to offer their recent “Best-Price guarantee” programs. Furthermore, the cruise-line sends HER all the documentation, which she then double-checks to make sure everything is correct. If everything checks out, she first notifies me VIA e-mail, and follows up if she doesn’t hear back. Once she has confirmed with me that she is in possession of my travel-documents, she mails them to me VIA Priority Mail. This type of ala carte service is unheard of by all the big-boys, and could make the difference between you being on that cruise, or watching it leave from the pier. Doing business with an individual who works for an independent travel-office rather than a faceless monolith is by-far the way to go; especially when it doesn’t cost one thin dime more, first cruise or one hundred-first cruise.

     

  6. fllady61

    June 6, 2010 at 6:22 pm

    well, it depends on which cruise line you are going on. Most are getting away from the “paper” tickets and going to electronic. IF you go electronic, on carnival i know this for sure, you fill out all the information on line, and print the funpass and then when you check in, all you need to do is show ID, fun pass, Passport, and credit card. and you are on the ship.

    Luggage tags are also printable.

    Hope this helps.