How to Find the Right Travel Agent..?
Posted on | November 22, 2009 | 18 Comments
In today’s Hi- Tech world, we have easy access to all kinds of information. We’re able to research, compare, and book travel right in the comfort of our own home. But the question arises – Who needs a travel agent anymore?
Fewer of us do, apparently. In last one decade the travel agents statistics had fallen by about 30%.
“They are an outdated remnant of past practices that add virtually no value to any transaction today,” says one of the employee working for Michigan airlines. After my recent recommendations of travel agent in various columns, I’ve been on the receiving end of the feedback – How could i..?.
So, here let me discuss about this common query. I believe that travel agents today still offer services and information that we can’t get on Internet. Granted, some things such as booking a simple flights, most people can successfully manage on their own. A travel agent however, can recommend smaller, alternative airports that the discount carriers use. This alone can save you quite a bit of money. However, the key thing that travel agents today offer is their first hand knowledge and right information. In planning a trip or vacation, one wants to find information about the places and regions suitable to them. Here the role of a travel agent comes into act considering the fact that they have traveled to many different places, they can provide much more insight than a brochure or web page can. Thus, finding the right travel agent is inevitable. The same thing goes for tours and specialty travel such as luxury, adventure, villa rentals, etc. A competent travel adviser can be your greatest asset when you’re planning a trip. The key word here is “competent.” And let me also define what I mean by agent: I’m not necessarily talking about an offshore call center worker reading from a script or a hobbyist who paid a few hundred bucks for bogus agency credentials. I mean a bona fide, certified travel professional. Once you decide to book a trip through an agent you must go through few quality check of an agent. These few measures include:
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Understanding An Agent And Using Your Intuition – It’s important to feel out a prospective travel agent to see if you can build a rapport with them. This can be done even when you’re dealing with an Internet agency, through phone calls or e-mails. Face-to-face meetings are not necessary. The choice of right travel agent comes from knowledge, not words. The correct answers to your direct questions are what count. Before you even ask for a price quote, probe the knowledge and personality of the agent you may be putting in charge of your hard-earned vacation. If you get the right feel about this person, you then ask for a price quote. If a travel agent quotes you a price that is not the same as, or lower than the cost of booking directly, or doesn’t offer incentives like free insurance, or even a pre-cruise hotel room, they are choosing not to compete — a choice some agents do make. They hope to attract uneducated consumers. This not the kind of agent we recommend, unless the service is so fantastic you don’t mind missing out on a few perks. But price alone may not always be the best factor to find the right travel agent. We want the best price, but we also want assistance and service when we need it. Hence, when your skull asks this “ How to find the right travel agent”, the above mention criteria should strike you first.
- Look For Certification – A right travel agent must be certified from some travel body or institution of his nation. This proves to be more promising or as the elderly travelers say “a certified travel agent is the right travel agent”.
- Stay Local And Interview The Agent – There’s no substitute for the personal touch. My best experiences with agents have been one-on-one. The ability to meet — to look the agent in the eye, to shake his or her hand — is something online agencies can’t match. (Note: not all agents work in an office, but home-based agents can and do make personal visits.) The only exception to this rule is if you’re out to find an agent with a sought-after specialty. But even then, a trusted voice on the phone is preferable to the often unintelligible, script-reading customer service associate you’re connected to when dealing with a large agency. Mind this- a professional travel agent makes personal visits. Don’t pick the first agent you find. Talk to the travel pro. Pay close attention not only to the way your prospective agent responds, but also at what’s going on in the office around you.
- Pressure Check – The only way to know for certain if your travel agent is a keeper is to see what happens when you run into trouble. A right travel agent would run through your foot steps in trouble. You must conform the services provided by the agent under such circumstances.
Good travel agents have an edge over almost any other seller of travel. They know what you want. They speak your language. And they’re there for you when you run into trouble.
In other words, travel agents aren’t obsolete. Only the bad ones are.
Related posts:
- Time For Travel Insurance?
- How to Save Money When Booking a Vacation Through Your Travel Agency
- Are Discount Travel Web Sites Really the Best Deal?
- Cheap Travel Insurance: How to Find It
- Travel Agent Tips for Planning a Family Vacation
- Cheap Air Travel
- Is Your Cheap Travel Insurance Legal?
- How to Find Cheap, Convenient Air Travel
- How Cheap Budget Travel Online Experts Can Help You on All of Your Travel Needs
- Best Agent flight Ticket For You
Tags: Finding Right Travel Agent > Hiring A Travel Agent > How To Find The Right Travel Agent > india > Right Travel Agent > Tour > travel > Travel Agent > Travel Agent Hiring
Comments
18 Responses to “How to Find the Right Travel Agent..?”
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November 22nd, 2009 @ 9:19 am
I work in the field and it's not easy at all to explain how you can find one. There are many good ones but for the normal tourist all what he can do is to check how they deal with tourists or clients. If they keep the word or not. If they are always careless or not.
I have many ways to judge reliable travel agents, but it can't be available for tourists.
November 22nd, 2009 @ 9:58 am
lemme just say… you are my new hero.
November 22nd, 2009 @ 10:08 am
You're likely going to get a cheaper rate by going online and booking it yourself. Unless you're such a novice that you'd need guidance in every aspect of your trip, skip paying the mark up for the agent's fee. Are you American? Going to Hawaii won't be a big task, but if you're traveling out of the country, then it is better to consult an agent. That is the only time I do it, because they may have been to the place I'm traveling to, and can offer insight that the websites can't. He or she can also give me tips, and I won't have to bother with the hassle of finding out all of the international requirements on my own.
If you insist on getting one, make sure he/she is well versed in the area you're going to. Ask for discounts or deals on excursions. Check their prices against online competitors – be sure you're being treated fairly. Ask what incidental services they provide, such as calling your hotel in the event of a late check-in, or being a go-between on any disputes with the hotel/airline, etc.
November 22nd, 2009 @ 10:55 am
hermosisimooooooooo !!!
November 22nd, 2009 @ 12:58 pm
Beautiful video!
November 22nd, 2009 @ 6:50 pm
Find a travel agent that specializes in adventure Travel. Contact Adventure Cycling Association, State Travel Agencies, or google adventure Travel.
November 22nd, 2009 @ 7:47 pm
yes yes yes!
go to ytbnet.com/onlinetravelstop
you can own your own travel business and work from home!!!!
any questions..just call me
November 22nd, 2009 @ 10:29 pm
look in ur phonebook or use the internet and good luck!!!! have fun
November 23rd, 2009 @ 8:19 am
I always love your art. Now I love your music
November 23rd, 2009 @ 12:14 pm
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November 24th, 2009 @ 12:59 pm
We are happy to organize special tours to China including flights, transfers, hotel booking, meals, tours and car rental arrangements as per your demands. We are not restricted to the areas which appear in our web site. We always welcome the opportunity to quote for tailor-made packages of any grade, in any of China’s areas. For any enquiry, please log on our website:www.chinatours365.com
November 24th, 2009 @ 4:32 pm
AAA is very good and they offer many travel services, my wife and i have used them for years.
November 24th, 2009 @ 5:15 pm
Well with those credentials you should have no problem finding your dream job. Make sure your resume isnt holding you back. I have a B.A. in Spanish and the only way I could get interviews was when I changed my resume. check out Postlingua.com Good luck!
November 24th, 2009 @ 6:58 pm
superb!!
November 24th, 2009 @ 7:50 pm
Book local use your own agent, if he or she can't find what you are looking for , advise them to check into the company you want to use, if they don't pay them commission they can or may add a mark up on the price.
=)
November 24th, 2009 @ 8:54 pm
You are amazing!
November 25th, 2009 @ 12:27 am
wow!
November 25th, 2009 @ 6:43 am
Omfg, it just looks like a picture