Historically, if you booked your flights through the cruise line (any cruise line) you had very little choice in schedules, airlines, seat assignments, etc. This is one reason I have never booked air through a cruise line. Royal Caribbean must have been listening to our complaints because they are rolling out a much more flexible air travel option on August 3rd called ChoiceAir.
ChoiceAir options can be booked with Royal Caribbean, your travel agent, or online at a special website, which according to Royal Caribbean, has the look and feel of online booking engines you’ve become accustomed to. And better yet, ChoiceAir staff will have full access to your itinerary on travel day to assist you with alternative arrangements for getting to the ship should you run into any travel difficulties. This is the primary reason many book their flights through the cruise line, assurance that they will eventually get to the ship if they run into flight problems. (Note: I always recommend you travel to your port the day before your cruise to avoid any issues.)
Fees for the service will be $15 dollars per person for domestic trips and $25 dollars for international. Not unreasonable at all. Royal Caribbean’s sister lines, Celebrity and Azamara are participating as well. You can read more about the program here.
