Do I Really Need a Travel Advisor to Book a Cruise?

So you want to book a cruise. Where do you start?

Meet three completely fictional travelers whose names may or may not have been invented because I amuse myself while writing these things:

Ida Independent, Harriet Help-Me, and Nona No-Clue.

(Subtle names, I know.)

All three want to cruise. All three approach planning very differently. And believe it or not, I work with versions of all three.

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Ida Indipindint

Ida Indipindint knows exactly what she wants, thank you very much.

She has already been online. She has looked at the cruise line websites, compared ships and itineraries, studied cabin categories, and probably watched enough YouTube ship tours that she could tell me where the coffee shop is.

Ida knows when she wants to travel, approximately what she wants to spend, and whether she wants an inside cabin, balcony, or suite. She may even have a particular cabin picked out. (Yes, Ida has looked at the deck plans.)

By the time she calls me, she has done her homework. And that's perfectly fine! My job isn't to take the planning away from Ida. She enjoys it. My job is to take what she's found, make sure she's comparing apples to apples, look for anything she may have missed, and then handle the reservation and all those little details that come afterward.

Ida gets to research to her heart's content. Then she hands me the ball and says, “Okay, Becky. Take it from here.”

I like Ida. She keeps me on my toes.

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Harriet HelpMe

Harriet HelpMe knows she wants to go on a cruise. Beyond that? Well... that's why she's calling me.

She's seen her friends' vacation pictures. She's heard them talk about the food, the shows, the ports, and that balcony where they sat drinking coffee every morning. It all sounds wonderful.

But then Harriet starts looking online.

Which cruise line? Which ship? Which itinerary? Balcony or oceanview? What deck? Early dining or late dining? Are gratuities included? What about insurance? And why are there seventeen different prices for what appears to be the exact same cabin?

Harriet has questions. Lots of questions. And that's okay. Harriet doesn't need to become a cruise expert before she books a cruise. That's my job.

We'll talk about her budget, when she wants to travel, where she'd like to go, and what she enjoys doing. Then I can narrow down all those choices and explain the things that actually matter to her.

Harriet still makes the decisions. She just doesn't have to figure everything out by herself.

And somewhere along the way, that giant confusing cruise website with 47 open tabs turns into:

“Oh! Okay. Now I get it.”

That's my favorite part.

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Nona NoClue

Nona NoClue needs a vacation.

Actually, Nona doesn't just want a vacation. Nona NEEDS a vacation.

The problem is, planning one sounds suspiciously like work.

She already spends enough time staring at a computer. The last thing she wants to do at night is research cruise lines, compare ships, study deck plans, figure out cabin categories, read cancellation policies, and watch fourteen videos titled “10 Things You MUST Know Before Your First Cruise!” Nope.

Nona has a budget. She has some vacation dates. She may have an idea of where she'd like to go. That's about all she's bringing to the table. And you know what? That's enough.

Nona calls me and says something like, “Becky, I need to get away. I have these dates available, I can spend about this much, and I’d really like to see some blue water.”

I can work with that. I'll ask a few questions, narrow down the possibilities, and give her a couple of choices without making her earn an honorary degree in cruise planning first. Nona's favorite kind of vacation planning is the kind where somebody else does most of it.

Easy peasy.

I like Nona too. Some days, I am Nona.

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So... Which One Are You?

Most travelers are a little bit of all three.

You may be an Ida when you're planning a cruise you've taken before, a Harriet when you're trying something new, and a Nona when life is busy and you just don't have the time or energy to figure it all out.

And that's really the point. There isn't a “right” way to use a travel advisor. Do all the research you want. Ask me seventeen questions. Send me screenshots of cabins you're considering. Or call and say, “Becky, I need a vacation. Help.”

I can work with all of it.

You don't have to give up control of your vacation, and you don't have to hand me a three-ring binder of research either. My job is to meet you wherever you are in the planning process and make the part between “I want to go somewhere” and “My bags are packed!” a whole lot easier.

And if you're a Nona? Don't worry. I've got you.