Choosing the Right Travel Agent
By Shelley Lake
The ad in the newspaper offers a great discount on flights. So you wander into the travel agent, purchase the flight, and let that agent book the rest of your travel needs. This is fine if the travel agent is the right one for you. But if they're not, you may not end up with the best value, even with the cheap flights.
Here's another method that will often work better. Take note of the deals that each travel agent is offering, but still go and talk to lots of agents until you find one that wants to help you.
I did exactly this recently. I went into the first travel agent's office and asked him about the cheap deal advertised in the window. He gave me a sheet of paper with the details of the deal on it and then moved on to the next customer. That was it. No personal attention whatsoever. I decided to look elsewhere.
When I walked into the second office, the consultant greeted me and asked me a series of questions. Did I have a date in mind? Did I want car hire? Did I mind which airline? Since my date of travel was open, she used that to source cheap flights.
In the end, not only did I get a good price, I also got my whole trip planned exactly as I wanted it. When I said I wanted my hotels to include a free breakfast, she arranged it. When I said I didn't want high-rise hotels, she arranged it. Considering how much travel costs, I'd rather spend a little more and have a great trip, than save a few dollars and have an average one.
Ask yourself these questions when choosing your travel agent:
- Are they willing to really look after me? Try them out. Make a special request and see if they say "I'll look into that" or "sorry, this is all we offer."
- Are they interested in what I want? Remember, a travel agent is supposed to provide you with a service to make your travel planning easier. If they're not interested in what you want, you can probably do better elsewhere.
- Are they flexible? Some travel agents have deals with certain providers and this stops them from offering what is best for you. If your travel agent can only offer you a choice of three hotels, look elsewhere.
- Are they friendly and understanding? Planning your travel isn't easy and a good travel agent will understand this. They'll be friendly so you feel like you can ask all your silly questions, they'll be approachable so you'll feel like you can make requests, and they'll be understanding when you ring up three weeks before your trip because you've changed your mind about everything. Judge if they seem friendly and understanding early on, so you will always feel comfortable planning your trip and making changes. After all, it is your vacation and you should enjoy it.
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