When To Book All Inclusive Group Travel Packages From Canada

[csho]

@@Maggietron that sounds beautiful! I actually am trying to convince my parents to go there this year! The resort has really great reviews!! Have you gotten quotes yet?

[Maggietron]

@@csho Not yet, still getting recommendations for local travel agents.

[csho]

Awesome! I am a travel agent who specializes in destination weddings, let me know if there is anyway that I can help you!

Edited July 14, 2014 by csho

[maredith]

Hey ladies!

 

I'm from Toronto....I would definitely recommend waiting until you're closer to your date!

 

We're getting married November 2014 and we originally got quotes in August 2013 - more than a year before BUT thought the prices were extremely HIGH!

 

Basically they don't know how much fuel is going to go up so they take prices out of a book! At least that's what I heard.

 

My fiance and I then got quotes a year before in November 2013 and they were STILL high....

 

We waited until February 2014 to book the group rate and it's gone so well!

 

I have 51 people (53 plus Fi and I) with deposits in with Sunwing - final payment is due in September!

 

Another thing that helped us is Sunwing was having a tax sale at the beginning of 2014 so we paid $265 tax instead of $425 for Jamaica! Doesn't seem like a lot but it really makes the difference from $1,500 OR $1,800.

 

My fiance and I really didn't want to go over $1,500 because we wanted as many ppl to come as possible!

 

Our guests got a great deal! $1,478 for 7 nights at the Royalton White Sands!

 

Good luck planning ladies!

 

Pam

 

I am wanting an august 2015 wedding, and the rates right now are SO high! I just came back from my SIL's wedding, and it seemed like the best rates for her resort was 6 months prior. I'm hoping I'll find a good deal before the holidays, but if not, 6ish months out seems to be the time they have the best rates. Did you set your wedding date with the hotel before you booked your transportation?

[csho]

@@maredith fuel taxes have gone up and will likely be going up even more this year, so that is potentially why the rates could be higher. The one good thing, is that most charter suppliers like Sunwing and Transat offer one time price drop guarantees if you've booked early. So if you want to ensure that your resort/hotel/flight aren't going to be booked up (which could happen if you wait until 6 months out if its a high demand season) you could always book and use that one time price drop guarantee, but you'll want to make sure that your TA is looking out for those drops for you or keep an eye on it yourself and let your TA know when you see a drop so they can get it for you.

 

In my case, we booked 12 months in advance and honestly ours only went up. I always kept an eye out on the price and it was significantly more expensive as the months went on.

 

Which resort are you looking at?

[maredith]

@@csho I'm looking at the resorts In cancun and riviera maya. I LOVE the barcelo properties, but am also considering the PALACE, NOW, and dreams resorts

[csho]

@@maredith that's awesome! I haven't been to any of those properties in Cancun yet but the Moon Palace looks amazing and I know a number of people who have been to NOW and DREAMS resorts and have really loved them!

[shelikespink]

I've been driving my TA crazy too! haha. The rates are still high for Aug 2015 @@maredith, but have lowered since March/April when I first started looking. I'm hoping to get rates under $1500 for Moon Palace... I'm expecting to book between Sept 2014-Jan 2015! 

[calgarybride2015]

I booked with 9 months to go, and then they changed their schedules and cancelled my flight. As of yesterday I think we have it all sorted out, but that was stressful. My TA told me that this is common if you book in one season for another, schedules aren't firm. When I booked in May for January I thought we were safe, because we also got quotes for May 2015 -- and even the carriers said 'these aren't firm dates' but never heard about that for my January package. Ah well, par for the course. Even 9 months in advance my group rate, thru Air Canada, is about $120 less than any listed price I can find. Which rawked, and helped encourage our guests to book with us Only one person is booking alone because they know someone who works for another carrier. Also remember time of year! And -- what the current dollar is. Prices were coming back soooo high for anything I had ever paid before. I was told because they have to base their rates on the past years and the current dollar, so prices are starting to go up. A good TA can steer you in a good direction on resorts, because she is continuously pricing them for other people. We choose one I would have thought was WAY out of our price range that isn't. Good luck

Edited July 24, 2014 by calgarybride2015

[KAT2015]

I've been looking at travel for myself and my guests for May 20, 2015 to Punta Cana.

 

We're coming out of several gateways (Calgary, Toronto, Houston, England...) so we are focusing on the highest numbers (Calgary and Toronto).

 

My TA is a friend's husband and he is hunting down quotes for us.  It is difficult right now, because I can't find any direct flights listed so we are looking at transfers in TO if we are booking now.

 

Complicating the fact is that as of April 2015, SunWing will no longer fly from Calgary direct to Punta Cana!

 

However - my TA is also getting 'ground only' (so hotel only) quotes which are quite good - so if necessary we can book the rooms and then look at package deal flights later.

 

The whole thing is quite stressful!!!  I want a good price for my guests as soon as possible, and then I need to make sure they all put their deposits down to secure their quotes!