As a travel professional, I am often asked “Why should I use a travel agent?” “What do you do differently than the internet?”, or I hear statements along the lines of “I didn’t know travel agents still exist”. People are always surprised when I tell them that majority of vacation and leisure travel is still booked by travel agents. While the internet is good for looking, travel agents are for booking! The internet can be a great resource tool, but it cannot replace good old fashioned customer service or personal experiences. Also, there isn’t always a way to verify that what you see or read on the internet is factual. Just this week I read an article where an estimated 30% of online views are “paid” or “fraudulent” reviews. Personally, I read a review this week of a resort and the “reviewer” complained about the service in the kids program and the treatment of the kids. The problem with that is the resort is an adult only resort – there is no kids program! I don’t know how many times “the internet” has been to a particular destination or on a particular cruise / cruise line, but I know how many times I have been there or sailed. Also, as part of a large consortium of travel agents and agencies, if I haven’t been there, I can get first hand professional information from someone who has recently visited.
There are also certain updates that are not always widely distributed in the mainstream or social media. Often the best source of this information is your travel professional. We can also sort through what applies to you and what doesn’t apply to your specific vacation.
Did you know part of Mexico is changing time zones this weekend? That’s right! The state of Quintana Roo (Cancun, Cozumel, and Riviera Maya) announced earlier this week that they are changing time zones on February 1! The airlines are working on schedule changes and I will be notifying all clients that are affected as soon as I have confirmation of changes. Not all clients traveling to these destinations will be affected, but many in the next 2-3 months will be. Did you know that if you book your flights via certain online travel agencies that the airlines are not obligated to notify you? They are obligated to notify their customer, which is that online agency – not you. Will that online agency notify you? Some are better than this than others. What I do know is that any of my clients that are affected, I will be notifying them!
Do you book your cruises in advance? If you book directly with the cruise line, or with some of the online agencies, what happens if there is a price drop? Do they call you and tell you? Do they try to get something better for you? I do! I also sort through the marketing and media hype for you. Quite often, the price “reductions” that you see don’t apply to your particular ship and sail date, or to your cabin category. If they do apply, I will automatically make adjustments for you when possible. If they don’t apply, isn’t it better to have me do that research for you than to have to spend that time and energy doing it yourself? Just this week a client found a “cheaper” price – but guess what… there were strings attached to that price point that would not have been a benefit. The client would have risked $800 to save $50-$150…. Not exactly a great value proposition when you really look at it!
In addition to the personal experiences I can bring to you, I also provide very personalized experiences for your vacation. Here are just a couple of examples:
Have your vacation experiences planned to your exact specifications. You should be taking your perfect vacation – not the “picture perfect” vacation you see in brochures or on the internet.
Perhaps you are a honeymoon couple or a landmark anniversary couple and want to be recognized as such during your honeymoon or anniversary trip. I can arrange very special acknowledgements for you.
Do you want special activities or events planned during their vacation. How about that romantic dinner on the beach? Or that private, personalized guided tour in your destination? Are you not the “shuttle bus” kind of person – How about private transfers?
I could literally list 100 + reasons on why you should use a travel agent, but no worries, I won’t! Hopefully this has given you a bit of insight to what a good travel professional can do for you!
Happy Travels,
Kelley