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Costco offers these benefits to their customers on select cruises; executive-level Costco members usually receive even greater credits. Booked direct through the cruise line, a the lowest-priced balcony cabin came to $1,894 per person, including a $100 onboard credit offer. Something else to consider when booking hotels through Costco Travel is loyalty program rewards and elite status.
Award vs. cash calculator
A few examples of limited-time deals for January include Hotel Wailea from the example earlier in this guide, all-inclusive resorts in Mexico's Riviera Maya, and Disney and Universal theme park packages. Even when you do find availability, you should always price-check what you can find by booking directly or through your credit card travel portal and hotel programs. If you know where to look and are willing to price-check the deals you find, you can save a lot of money with Costco Travel deals.
Cobranded Cards
My favorite thing about booking trips through Costco Travel is the Digital Costco Shop Card I get after booking. The card's value varies from trip to trip (generally depending on how expensive the package you book), but you can get hundreds of dollars back to use at Costco. You'll also have to use Costco customer service if you run into any issues rather than going directly to the brand. This is especially important when considering booking a vacation package that includes flights, given the higher potential for delays or cancellations.
Learn About Credit Cards
The company does not sell some of the more upscale or boutique lines, such as Oceania, Silversea and Windstar, but Costco is definitely looking to expand its selection of cruise lines, according to Zegers. "They aren't active travel agents, they don't proactively check for price drops," noted kleptn. However, Costco does have pre- and post-travel support departments, as well as an after-hours phone number for travel emergencies, to assist travelers once they've booked their cruise. I'm often the travel planner in my friend group (which makes sense, considering what I do for a living), but not everyone is an avid points and miles user like myself. For group trips where we're splitting the cost of hotel rooms among multiple people, it often doesn't make sense to use points and miles to book.
What is the benefit of Costco Travel? - USA TODAY
What is the benefit of Costco Travel?.
Posted: Tue, 04 Apr 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
If you're new to cruising or unsure of what you want, Costco might not be the best travel agency for you. "I think a first time cruiser would be better off using an agency that walks them through everything," says NoVa Mimi, who books all her cruises exclusively through Costco. "Costco is usually the best deal," says KirkNC, who is careful to compare multiple outlets before locking in a fare. "We get around 8 percent back in onboard credits, which are refundable, so if we don't use them we get a credit back on our credit card." Although we know (and love) Costco warehouses for their bulk bargains, not all categories at Costco require plus-sized buys. (Think jeans, mattresses and wine, which can be purchased individually.) Cruises are the same.
Costco Cruises Can Be a Great Deal
While Costco had a deal available for the same resort, we happened to be booking when the resort chain was having a Mother's Day sale for anyone booking directly. We were able to try out a new TRS resort closer to Playa Del Carmen, TRS Yucatan; we saved more than $100 on an even nicer suite than Costco Travel offered by booking directly (even when considering the Digital Shop Card we would have gotten by booking with Costco). "We had already decided on where we were going, but we were flexible on the travel date and ship," said Ostrander. While the disadvantage of a cash card over a shipboard credit is that Costco hangs onto your rebate for a month longer, the payoff is usually greater.
There are a lot of hotels available to book through Costco Travel that are part of major loyalty programs, from Hyatt Honors to Marriott Bonvoy to IHG One Rewards and more. But booking through Costco Travel — just like booking through most other third-party services such as Expedia — means you likely won't earn loyalty rewards, elite night credits or have any elite night benefits honored. Zeger explains that Kirkland Signature deals need to represent a value at least 20% better than offers you'd find elsewhere in the market; this applies to travel or anything you'd buy in the warehouse.
I've booked direct with cruise lines, used traditional brick-and-mortar travel agencies and gone through online travel suppliers like Expedia, Vacations To Go and American Discount Cruises. But more often than not, when shipboard credits and other incentives were tallied, Costco Travel came out as low as, or lower than, other options. First-time cruisers who need a little more handholding to understand cabin and dining options might benefit by working with a traditional travel agent.
Learn About Reward Programs
" Typically these required values are achieved by negotiating exclusive amenities with the cruise lines such as specialty dining, spa treatments, private events, etc.," she says. Costco Travel vacation packages offer a way for all of us to save money, and it makes narrowing down potential destinations and hotels easier. When I'm looking at booking a hotel stay at a brand like Hyatt or Marriott, I generally choose to book directly in order to earn elite night credits and points. However, when looking at properties not part of a major loyalty program, Costco Travel is often a go-to anytime I can find a deal.
However, comparing the prices and benefits at a few of the resorts proved my initial reaction wrong. Because the cruise industry aims to enforce pricing parity across all booking channels, discounts don't usually appear in the upfront cruise fare. If you're curious about how to use Costco Travel to find deals, here's everything you need to know about Costco Travel — and why I love it for saving money on travel.
I actually got a Costco membership to book the deal since the cost of the membership was less than what we'd save by booking through Costco. We saved around $300 on a three-night stay at TRS Coral near Cancun (one of TPG's best all-inclusive resorts in Cancun), not including the free hydrotherapy spa circuit and the $241 Digital Costco Shop Card included in the package. That's been my experience when booking my own cruises, as well as sailings for family and friends.
Even without including the additional benefits, you're already saving more than $400 via the Costco deal. Add in the value you get from the card, daily breakfast and resort credit (which is more than $1,000 in value if you maximize all benefits), and you're looking at $1,442.45 in savings by booking through Costco Travel versus directly. Trips booked through Costco Travel are often discounted and/or include perks and benefits you may not get by booking directly or through other booking portals. Usually, a trip booked through Costco Travel will also include a Digital Costco Shop Card (essentially a type of Costco gift card) of varying value.
I've personally had a lot of success booking friends getaways to popular destinations like Mexico through Costco. Using the service has helped me save on other expenses with the Digital Costco Shop Card I've gotten with my bookings. At the time of writing, Costco is currently offering a hotel and rental car package for Hotel Wailea, a Relais & Chateaux affiliated property and one of TPG's favorite Maui hotels. Like the warehouses, to access Costco's cruise discounts, you'll need to pony up for membership -- $60 per household at the basic level.
Meanwhile, discounts on more expensive cruises or multiple cabins can amount to hundreds of dollars. However, one thing to note is that you can't book stand-alone flights via Costco Travel. There is an option to book flights through some vacation packages, but if you're only looking for airfare, you'll want to head to Google Flights to check out your options and book. When planning our annual beach trip back in 2022, my best friend found a few options for Mexican all-inclusive resorts on Costco Travel and shared the links with me. I promptly told her we'd probably be better off booking directly and brushed off the idea of booking through Costco — neither of us even had a membership at the time. But for experienced cruisers who have a good idea of the ships and cabins they want, Costco Travel is worth checking out.
