5 Reasons to choose a travel agent
I’ve got to be honest! Before I became a travel agent, I thought it was an antiquated concept. With the advent of the internet and online sites, I thought the middle man had been cut out and booking trips was as easy as pie. As a matter of fact, I kind of stumbled into this work. I started planning and hosting trips out of the sheer enjoyment of doing them, and later realized that this was something I could actually be paid to do! And best of all, it doesn’t cost the traveler any more money! Sounds too good to be true? I promise, it’s not and I’ll explain why.
Here are some reasons why you should use a travel agent (particularly me) to book your travel:
Time: If you’ve ever had the task of planning a trip for your family or friends, you know that it can be a time consuming and nerve wracking process. Finding the perfect location, accommodations and especially flights (because who wants to take 18 hours to get from Atlanta to Cancun?) to suit everyone’s needs and preferences is hard work! A travel agent takes the fuss out of it. This doesn’t completely relieve you of everything, but using an agent helps weed through a lot of riff raff and narrows your choices down for you. An agent can do as much or as little as you’d like. It’s a personal relationship that you cultivate.
Personalized service: Speaking of developing a personal relationship… I’m not sure if you know this or not, but online booking engines are nothing more than online travel agencies who make you do all the work. You often have to weed through 20-30 hotels to find what you’re looking for. They have no idea who you are. There is no nuance when booking online vs with a person. They have filters but they usually suck. When you use a travel agent, your agent knows you prefer Marriott to Hilton, a balcony room on cruises and that you absolutely prefer Adults-only resorts! Again, this saves time and effort when planning a trip.
Expertise: Planning a trip to a place you’ve never been can be scary. You’re not sure if the hotel you’re thinking of booking is in a safe area. You’re not sure which cruise line to book to get the experience you’re looking for. This is an excellent reason to use an agent. Some agents do travel a lot and have actual in destination experience. But even if we haven’t been, we have access to training and education, other agents with experience or have planned similar trips for other clients in the past and gotten feedback. We can help you pin down exactly what you want to get out of your vacation and use our knowledge and network to make sure it happens!
Support: Things happen. Travel can be very unpredictable. Not knowing what to do or who to call when things go wrong, especially if you’re out of the country can provoke a lot of anxiety. Travel agents can help by first, using our experience to avoid/prepare for problems in the first place and secondly, to help troubleshoot issues if and when they do arise.
Deals! I mention this last, mostly because while we do get access to some promotion and sale prices, this is probably the least valuable use of an agent. Most sales we get, you could get all on your own (I probably shouldn’t tell you that, but it’s true). Here is where your agent comes in handy. I can’t even count how many times I’ve been sent so-called sales or deals and when I investigate it further, it’s either not a deal at all or not conducive to the travel needs of the client (i.e. blackout dates, subpar accommodations or hidden fees). Your travel agent can help you spot the pitfalls of these deals before you invest any money or make plans only to find out later that they won’t work. But yes, we often are informed about upcoming sales and promotions before they are released to the public, which can help you be ready to snatch it up as soon as it drops.
One last thing I’d like to point out is that many people don’t use a travel agent because they think it will cost them. Let me let you in on a little insider information. Travel agents are paid in commission. The price of a hotel or cruise, for example, is the same whether you book on your own or with an agent… that commission is built in. All of the sale offers you receive with cruises, any agent can get you those same rates and STILL get commission. The brand just pockets the amount they would’ve paid out in commission. So if you are considering using an agent, do me a favor and DO IT! It costs you nothing, but helps us stay in business.
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