Travel Agents Importance?

Question

Do you work with a travel agent? Have you had a good or bad experience with one (please share the details).

What are advantages and disadvatages of hiring a travel agent? Do you feel that anything a travel agent can do, you can do and better online alone?

Have you heard of any nightmare mistakes by doing online travel and basically being "Your own Agent" and therefore responsible for the mistakes?

Curious on stories/experiences members of Yahoo Answers have had in the past, both positive and negative.

Answer 1

I have definitely been burned by not using a travel agent in the past. I have booked flights and hotels online, checked out, and then my credit card would be charged more than I was told it would. One time I was using a site and it told me the total and then asked for my credit card. I payed, and on the next page it said the total my card had been charged and it was $20 more! I called the customer service line and they said it was the charge for using the website (which was never disclosed before).

Now, to be fair, not all my experiences have been bad. I travel a lot and a lot of the time things are fine. However, I have had friends get better deals going through travel agents. This led me to do some investigation and I started using them as well and now I am one!

I used to think that using an agent would cost more and I think a lot of other people feel the same way. However, once I started looking into it I was shocked at how much savings can be had by using an agent! Also, a good travel agent will take care of every detail for you, making your trip hassle free. Beyond booking the trip they can make dinner reservations, spa reservations, if it's a special occasion a lot of times they can get you special treatment. The service when using a travel agent is just better. You're dealing with one person instead of a website where if you have a problem or need to change anything about your reservation you're calling customer service, getting put on hold, getting transfered to a supervisor, getting transfered back to the last department you spoke to and so on. With a travel agent you tell them what needs to be done and they get it done. Another thing to note is that a full time travel agent demands more of their suppliers. You are more likely to get better service from the hotel, airline, etc. if you book through an agent (yes it is noted on the reservation how the reservation was made!) If a travel agent gets a complaint from one of their clients they aren't likely to send people back to that resort or airline, and the resorts and airlines know this. Travel agents bring them a lot of business and they want to keep it that way.

So, all things considered, I always think it is better to use an agent, you will always get the cheapest price you can find online, or cheaper, so why not let someone else take care of it for you? It costs you absolutely nothing to use an agent! I recently got a client half off of their airfare. They had looked all over the internet and the cheapest they could find was $600 round trip. Within 5 minutes I had it booked for them for $300!

If it's just a matter of simple airfare then you are probably fine just doing it yourself (but it's worth at least asking an agent for a quote to see if you can get it cheaper) but if you're wanting a vacation, do yourself a favor and make it a real vacation free of stress and let your travel agent take care of everything!

Answer 2

As a travel agent, I agree with the first post. If you have the time and it's a piece of a package such as just airfare, basic car rental, or 1 night at a hotel, then you can do it yourself without too much grief.

Remember that a travel agent is free to you. Even if you do the research yourself, contacting an agent doesn't hurt you.

You asked for a nightmare mistake. This really could have been a mistake. My aunt and 5 ladies from her church reserved a cruise. I insisted that they purchase the insurance. As the customer, they have the right to say no but I explained it to her and they listened to me. Their flights were delayed and they missed embarkation. The cruise line arranged for private transport to the ship via helicopter.

Before I became a part-time agent, I always declined the insurance b/c I didn't know the benefits. That's an advantage of speaking with an agent. It can be small things such as offering vouchers and show tickets that make the vacation more memorable.

Answer 3

Most likely geography. Perhaps a few general business courses. And maybe even a few cross cultural studies.

Answer 4

When travling I do it online heres a good website to try to use!

http://www.ytbtravel.com/tmg52

Answer 5

I joined this and love it !! www.idl-travel.com