When To Book All Inclusive Group Travel Packages From Canada

[shawnandellen2015]

Hi,

 

We are planning to get married in March of 2015.  I've spoken with a few travel agents and have gotten mixed reviews of when we should request flight/hotel package quotes from WestJet / Air Canada / Transat / Sunwing ect in order to get the best prices.  Some say to book ASAP and others say to wait until about 10-11 months out when the flight schedule comes out. 

 

I'd really like to plan ahead and book early, but if it ends up costing less to wait a little longer in order to save ourselves and our guests some money I think it would be worth the wait.  We expect about 35 guests, so I wan't to arrange a group rather then try to have everyone book on their own.

 

Brides who have already booked their group - when did you get quotes and put your deposit down with the travel agent?  Did you book the actually wedding ceremony with the resort before you booked the travel?  

 

Thanks!

[csho]

Hey! I booked about a year in advance of our wedding. I think we booked it in May 2013 for May 2014. I originally asked my TA for quotes and she said since its so early they may be a little higher then normal but the quotes were sooo good that we decided to book right away with them! I am sooo happy we did because our rates never did go down, they went up pretty significantly. Depending who you plan to travel with (we went with Sunwing) some tour operators will offer a one time price adjustment. So that basically means if you book and then the price goes down and they are able to rebook the entire group you can get the reduced price. Our TA checked on a weekly basis and the prices just kept going up. So we were really pleased with our decision. I'd check around and see what other people paid from the same departure gate at the same time of year to get an idea of what its realistically going to cost and then request quotes from your TA. If they seem within your range and you are happy I'd book. I had wanted to keep the prices below $1200 incl tax for our guests and ours was just under so we thought for the resort we picked we wouldn't get a better deal.

I also did book the wedding before actual travel because I knew the dates we wanted to travel and knew the dates and times can book up quickly at the resort. If you have an idea of your travel dates and the date you'd like definitely book it earlier so you get your top choices!

[acw271011]

Hi. We got married in Jamaica in October and our travel agent put our package together in March. The rate was terrific, and we were also allowed a one time price adjustment if the rate went down. I'm now investigating something for October 2015, and have just been told that they won't even have any rates for that period next year until almost the end of the summer this year.

 

The other thing to consider is that if you're looking at March, you're considering the most expensive travel time of the year almost for winter travel, between march break and university reading weeks, be prepared for high rates. Having said that I would start to inquire now and see what you get but ask about a price drop if the rates change. Check with more than one agent if you can. Some of them have a bit more pull than others. We used Marlin Travel and went with Transat and were very happy with what they gave us. And yes - flight schedules can most definitely change! Plus there are resorts that are more popular than others for weddings so you've got that to consider too!.

 

Good luck and happy planning!

[Mrsktobe]

We are checking with 9 months out. Prices don't seem to be too bad right now.

[jackshayne0123]

Hello, congratulations! I echo what the other ladies have said, wait and see when the flight schedules and pricing comes out, and then compare travel agents and prices. It's better to wait, in your case it's only a few months anyway at this point, right? I also think it's a good idea to ask about a price adjustment should your trip become cheaper after you book. Ours went down, and we were able to grab that price for all of our guests, it saved everyone $300 per person, quite significant!

 

I think we booked our travel and wedding date with the resort at the same time, or within days of each other, once we knew our travel dates things just fell into place! Good luck!

[LissaSou]

We have already booked most of our group and our wedding is 11 months away. Because it's such a busy time of year, and with some airlines the price of the flight goes up the fuller the plane gets, we wanted to lock in a price asap.

 

My travel agent requested quotes from different travel companies for the resort we wanted, and once we got the pricing and picked the date, we checked availability with the resort. So for us, everything happened around the same time.

[FutureMrsStone]

Hi! Nov 2014 bride here. Started pricing resorts in Jan. March now, still haven't made a decision, but prices haven't drastically gone up either. In fact had some go down about $50 CAN. Get your TA to keep an eye out for airline fuel tax rebates & for sure get the one time price drop guarantee. Good luck & congrats!

[Meandhim]

I'm glad I found this thread....I'm starting to panic I feel like I should be booking something!! We want the date of April 1st 2015 at specific resort...I'm trying to book the date myself with the resort...most of the TA's I talked to wont do that part....but will a TA get a better deal for the wedding package? So Confused!

[jackshayne0123]

I'm glad I found this thread....I'm starting to panic I feel like I should be booking something!! We want the date of April 1st 2015 at specific resort...I'm trying to book the date myself with the resort...most of the TA's I talked to wont do that part....but will a TA get a better deal for the wedding package? So Confused!

In my experience, from what I understand, the wedding packages are offered by the resort, and your TA probably won't have much pull on what they offer. The TA mostly deals with your travel arrangements, group booking, deposits, discounts, your guests can direct their travel questions to them, etc. Your TA might have information on the types of wedding packages, and what the resort can do for you, what they include, ask for the big travel books by Air Canada, Sunwing, etc, whoever your carrier will be, those books have all the info,  but anything wedding day related will probably go to your resort and WC. Good luck!

[acw271011]

And a reminder as well that a lot of the brides on this site are in the US, and the way things are booked in the US is quite different than Canada. I spoke with one of the Wright Travel agents because we're so close to the US border and could easily have a US departure if it would be to our benefit. I was very surprised! The rates were unbelievable, and that was without airfare! And we're going at what is commonly called "low season".

 

So keep shopping around for a travel agent that will work with you. A good relationship with your agent is important.

 

Good luck and happy planning