Question about using placeholder assigned to Costco

[PTX]

I think I already know the answer to this after searching the site, but wanted to ask specifically.

I have a placeholder that is assigned to Costco. Do I have to call Costco to use the placeholder for booking? Or can I call DCL directly myself and book it since the placeholder already has Costco assigned to it?

I figure that it's probably the former otherwise Costco would have no record of it being booked and it won't show up in my Costco Travel account to be eligible for the cash card rebate. But I'm wondering if it's possible to get the trip booked with DCL with the placeholder then call Costco later to have it transferred to them, just like I think can be done without placeholder.

It's been annoying to get through to Costco Travel at the same time DCL is taking calls because of my work schedule and DCL's darn East Coast bias closing their lines at 7:00PM Pacific time. I've tried a few times over the past couple of weeks and it's always a >1 hour wait to talk to a a Costco agent, whereas DCL picks up right away. Costco's automated system takes my number but by the time they finally call back I'm always in the middle of doing something else and can't talk to them.

I guess this would be a reason to use a different agent in the future, but the Costco cash back is just too good to pass up.

 

[FigmentSpark]

Wow, is that new? I've never had much trouble getting through to Costco Travel.

Yes, you have to call Costco and get them to book the placeholder. You can't do it yourself. If you're wanting to use it on your opening day, they might take your number and sailing details and call you back when they get a booking for you. Or they might have you stay on the line while they call DCL. It will depend on how they are handling the business.

I know for our last opening day booking they had one agent on line making all the bookings for DCL, rather hand having several agents calling at the same time. As a result, my 8am phone call didn't get booked until 12:30pm that day. It was fine for me, but if I'd been looking for Hawaii or something really desirable, it might have been a problem.

Yes, that cashback perk has a small penalty. You have to use their agents their way.

 

[cvjw]

Yes, Costco has been terrible to get thru lately. Call first thing in the morning. I did that this week and got right thru, when every other time I called since Christmas, the wait was over an hour.

Yes, you have to call Costco to use your placeholder if you assigned it to them.