A Different Travel Agent Question

My definition of booking on my own is using an Internet TA that rebates me a portion of their commission either in the form of cash or substantial OBC. We've typically saved 10-12% over the published fare so I'm not talking a "buck or two" for our typical booked category and longer cruises. We have absolutely no problem, and actually enjoy, researching and planning our own cruises, flights, and hotels. i have yet to find, and I've tested it a number of times, a TA that could do as well much less better than we can do.

And that's fine.

About the "buck or two" I was referring to what Ky Colonel said in his earlier post, not my thoughts. ;)

We've been using a local TA for 12 years and will continue to do so as long as he is in business. I decide on all the details of a cruise and send them to him for booking. I give a general idea of what flights we want and leave it to him to find good prices and connections. He often gives us some discounts, OBC, or gifts of a PG dinner or similar.

 

However, the main reason we go to him is to have help in case of any problems, and the convenience of him handling any changes. If I see a price drop, I send an email to have him negotiate with HAL for either OBC or a free upgrade. If a flight gets changed to something iffy I leave it up to him to straighten it out. Once he called with a special deal before I heard about it on CC. Once when we had to cancel a trip (non-cruise) I just sent him an email to take care of cancelling everything, and getting my insurance refund.

 

In other words, he is my "headache" insurance.

 

... well said ... in fact, if you would've referred to your TA as "she" and "her" (instead of "he" and "him"), I would've suspected that we are using the same TA.

Smooth sailing,

Rod

I love how my husband and I when we travel for a long period of time enjoy doing all our research over the weekends together. We document,as well as put together all our findings and are able to travel knowing every where we are and never lost since Google earth is our friend!

TA's can not do that for us, and that is the fun of traveling and saving.

At least for us!

But as stated from another CC some people either do not have the time,or are not with the technology to do things for themselves so a good TA can be ther for them.

Denise😄

We always book our cruises using a large online TA, mainly because we can go to their website and see cruise prices much easier than dealing with the cruise line websites. But sometimes we use TA's for other things. If we need a China visa, we go to a Chinese TA in Seattle and she is able to get us one good for two years instead of one. When we flew to Shanghai last year I checked air fares online and then called a local TA. He got us a less expensive flight on Delta with two free checked bags. If we had gone directly to Delta or thru a website, we would not have two free bags. So basically, it is a matter of doing your homework and looking at all the alternatives.

We were in Australia recently and booked (on the web of course) a domestic flight on Virgin Australia from Perth-Sydney.

A few days prior to departure, I forgot how many, we had an email from Virgin Australia inviting us to bid for an upgrade to business class. Highest bids win the available seats.

Just imagine if HAL could do this with their upgrade offers.

Before doing so however, they would have to bring their outdated IT systems into the 21st century. Then again, maybe they should just leave things as they are.

We've been using a local TA for 12 years and will continue to do so as long as he is in business. I decide on all the details of a cruise and send them to him for booking. I give a general idea of what flights we want and leave it to him to find good prices and connections. He often gives us some discounts, OBC, or gifts of a PG dinner or similar.

 

However, the main reason we go to him is to have help in case of any problems, and the convenience of him handling any changes. If I see a price drop, I send an email to have him negotiate with HAL for either OBC or a free upgrade. If a flight gets changed to something iffy I leave it up to him to straighten it out. Once he called with a special deal before I heard about it on CC. Once when we had to cancel a trip (non-cruise) I just sent him an email to take care of cancelling everything, and getting my insurance refund.

 

In other words, he is my "headache" insurance.

 

I like that ,.. "Headache Insurance"

We use our TA much the same as you - for the traveling part. We normally know what we want when we go in to see her. One of our hobbies IS planning our trips :D. Having our (excellent) TA book the travel is like having help only 1 phone call away if something screws up.:eek:

As to Hotels, B&B's, and tours - we do all of that on our own with the help of the internet. We've found places like a quaint boutique hotel in the heart of the Latin Quarter in Paris and a charming, antique filled B&B in Inverness with a view of the water. We spend enjoyable hours researching places of interest and tours in the places we visit. If the lodging and/or tour works out well I pass the info along to my TA who has checked them out when leading a tour in that area and even stayed in some. It's a warm and comfortable relationship.

I do live in the South and when we go in to places to do business we normally chat a bit :D Ever been in a Southern grocery store? You might have 3 new friends by the time you check out ... LOL

I value a service (individual) that can bring additional information to a situation.

Sadly in the case of MOST travel agents I have found myself more informed than they are. Even direct cruiseline reps have given me some woefully incorrect info.

I have booked my last six cruises with a large warehouse TA. I basically get OBC for doing this.

So essentially I see no value in a TA unless they 1)bring info which I have yet to find or 2) save money which is the reason I use them.

So I agree TA's are a dying breed as are stockbrokers and car salesmen.

JMHO

... But sometimes we use TA's for other things. If we need a China visa, we go to a Chinese TA in Seattle and she is able to get us one good for two years instead of one. When we flew to Shanghai last year I checked air fares online and then called a local TA. He got us a less expensive flight on Delta with two free checked bags. If we had gone directly to Delta or thru a website, we would not have two free bags. So basically, it is a matter of doing your homework and looking at all the alternatives.

Agree 100%. Using a TA and doing travel arrangements/reservations without a TA are not mutually exclusive ... in fact, IMO they are complementary and should be used in parallel ... the more a traveler knows, the better his/her chances of getting a TA who will provide good results and who will be there when things go wrong ... Likewise, since not all TAs are competent to handle all types of travel in all areas of the world, TAs need to specialize and travelers need to choose a TA who has the appropriate expertise for the desired travel.

Rod

Happily, we have a wonderful long time TA who provides us with excellent service. :)

Poor TAs give the good ones a bad name. :o

LuLu

This is simply not true. I have had situations where I needed to make changes because an airline cancelled a flight, and the airline representative refused to talk to me directly because I had booked through a travel agent. HAL does the same thing.

Booking directly is often the best way to go, and not just to save a buck. Times have changed.

igraf

Abraham Lincoln once said, “A person who represents himself has a fool for a client." and I would add, "and a fool for a lawyer." IMO this also applies to people who do their own travel arrangements in order to save a buck or two. ..Rod.

We've been using a local TA for 12 years and will continue to do so as long as he is in business. I decide on all the details of a cruise and send them to him for booking. I give a general idea of what flights we want and leave it to him to find good prices and connections. He often gives us some discounts, OBC, or gifts of a PG dinner or similar.

 

However, the main reason we go to him is to have help in case of any problems, and the convenience of him handling any changes. If I see a price drop, I send an email to have him negotiate with HAL for either OBC or a free upgrade. If a flight gets changed to something iffy I leave it up to him to straighten it out. Once he called with a special deal before I heard about it on CC. Once when we had to cancel a trip (non-cruise) I just sent him an email to take care of cancelling everything, and getting my insurance refund.

 

In other words, he is my "headache" insurance.

 

Ditto. As a solo traveler of a certain age, I rely on my TA, who also is a solo traveler of a certain age, for her advice, experience, and problem solving abilities. Once I landed at the Athens airport during a strike with ongoing, sometimes violent, demonstrations. After waiting nervously for a length of time for my car and driver (who never did show) and making many futile phone calls, I called my TA, who was travelling in India at the time. She had a replacement car and driver to me in less than an hour, no small feat considering blockades and crowds of protesters.

In the past, I very rarely used a travel agent. I was very capable of looking for cruises/airlines/resorts and booking my own. Things have now changed, though, in the past six or seven years.

I still do my own research, decide on a destination and check availability; at this point I contact my TA and turn the booking over to him. He can usually secure a lower price AND give me great OBCs for cruises! Does it get any better than that? It certainly does, when he telephones the day before departure to wish bon voyage, and the day after returning to see how things went on a cruise.

I can be a pest from original booking till departure, with questions about changing destination or just staterooms on cruises, but he still has that smile in his voice. I won't give him up for anything!

igraf,

Sorry you took umbrage at my comment but it was not stated as a FACT, rather as MY OPINION ... as indicated in my Post # 33 above, I think travelers would be well served to use a TA (which IMO includes HAL PCCs) in parallel with their own independent research - to do otherwise IMO is foolish ... just my opinion!!!

Rod

Obviously there are advantages to booking one's own holiday and advantages to using a travel agent. When it comes to our travel within Canada, I book it all myself. Trips overseas always involve a cruise or at least a one-way Atlantic crossing by sea.

Our TA has four decades of experience as a cruise specialist. His knowledge, including contacts, has been invaluable. I do my own research, but without this man's assistance there were two ocean voyages that simply would not have been possible if we attempted it ourselves. Also, I feel secure knowing that if I have a problem overseas there is someone I can rely on to help us if it's not something we can easily handle ourselves.

Looks like we may be in the minority but we only use our TA for our cruises. There are many reasons such as:

1. he can get us fares equal to or lower than anything I can find

2. he can arrange for anything we need and works for an agency that is part of the largest consortium that has FT HAL interaction people, who can smooth out any ripples we may encounter. Once we booked a last minute cruise and they were able to get us early seating for dinner

3. we get HAL OBC, plus TA OBC plus consortium OBC and often get a rebate when we disembark as we have not used all their credit

4. we tend to get frequent upgrades

5. he will match or beat anything (fare or perk) I can find

6. he has made arrangements for his agency to pay for a cruise for us until we could move money around so we could get the fare paid in time for the early payment discount

7. he can get better rates on travel insurance than I can find

8. He usually gives us 'presents', such as free Pinnacle dinners, internet packages, soda and drink cards.

He books the cruise, we handle the rental car or airfare on our own as still have points to 'spend' but he can get better rates at hotels than I can find anywhere now that all my hotel points have been used and we have to pay as we always go to the port city at least a day early. I still research rates, etc. on an ongoing basis, just in case. Okay, he did miss one price drop but felt bad so gave us an bigger internet package.

He did share with me that they had just hired 2 new agents as the travel arrangements for their large corporate customers are growing. When I worked for a mega-corporation, we also had to use an agency for our travel. Cannot see them disappearing for quite a while.

To each their own on how you want to arrange your travel - whatever works best for you is best for you.

Thanks everyone for the responses. I find the whole subject very interesting. Cruise Critics has posted an article as well

What to Expect on a Cruise Booking a Cruise with a Travel Agent.

I do take exception with two statements in the article

1. The statement, when talking about cruise line agents, that most have not cruised on the ships they are selling.

2. Travel agents -- cruise specialists, in particular -- have been onboard many cruise ships.

I don't think that either generality fits. Those working for the cruise line may not have been on a cruise, but I don't think that MOST of them have not. And, in the same way, not all travel agents have been on a cruise. Maybe all cruise specialists have, but not ALL travel agents.

Amen to that, although I think it's closer to a 50-50 split of opinion!

Smooth sailing,

Rod

We've been using a local TA for 12 years and will continue to do so as long as he is in business. I decide on all the details of a cruise and send them to him for booking. I give a general idea of what flights we want and leave it to him to find good prices and connections. He often gives us some discounts, OBC, or gifts of a PG dinner or similar.

 

However, the main reason we go to him is to have help in case of any problems, and the convenience of him handling any changes. If I see a price drop, I send an email to have him negotiate with HAL for either OBC or a free upgrade. If a flight gets changed to something iffy I leave it up to him to straighten it out. Once he called with a special deal before I heard about it on CC. Once when we had to cancel a trip (non-cruise) I just sent him an email to take care of cancelling everything, and getting my insurance refund.

 

In other words, he is my "headache" insurance.

 

This poster states quite well why I use a travel agent and my relationship with the person. I find a relationship with an agent to be quite valuable as a resource for information.

But, very recently, I think I am detecting a change in what they will do. I am interested in the Costa 2015-2016 Winter sailings from Fort Lauderdale. No brochures are available; the web site is difficult to impossible to use. I contacted my two most recently used agents, both confirmed no brochures and web site issues, and neither offered any help in obtaining information for me. Rather surprised at that. One made the statement that "Costa does not do much to support them (i.e. the agent)". Does that mean: little to no commission? If so, we're not interested in selling them?

We started using a TA back in the 1990's, when just about everything was done through a TA. She was great. She helped us find our first cruise and explained what we would encounter. She answered our questions and made suggestions. When we came back we gave her a debrief, for which she was grateful. One year we booked a Caribbean cruise and air through the cruise line. When the airline tickets came in they were for the wrong day and it was less than a week until we were supposed to leave. She worked with the cruise line to get things straightened out and when that failed, she used her own resources to get us on the correct flight. We continued to book with her for many years until she retired.

The next TA was a great disappointment. By this time we knew more about cruising and travel than she did. Needless to say, we dropped her quickly.

Our friends invited us on a cruise done through an online travel agency. Compared to going into an office, telling someone what we wanted, and then having it happen; the online TA was a disappointment. Yes, everything happened as it should, but it felt like you were putting your hands through a dark curtain and hoping that you grabbed the winning ticket.

In 2001 I booked a flight to New Orleans for a convention that was happening at the end of September through Ex.... As you will remember the World Trade Center came down earlier in the month and travel was disrupted. My convention was cancelled, but Ex... would not refund my ticket. All they would do was extend the time that I could use the ticket out for a year. I never did get to NO.

When we moved to the Pacific Northwest, we found a local TA, who has helped us with our plans. We really enjoy working with her because she keeps on top of things. Last year I was talked into organizing a cruise to Alaska after a convention that was held near Portland, OR. I went to our TA and she was a wealth of information. She has done many of these types of cruises and knew what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. She was the one that made sure everyone had their travel documents in order (including the two non-US citizens), she was the one that arranged for all of us to eat together, she is the one who arranged transportation from the convention to the pier, she is the one that managed to get most of us in adjacent cabins. She even came to my rescue when one of my party dropped the bombshell on me (two days from the end of the cruise, I might add) that she thought I was taking her back to Portland (we had plans to visit with my sister before going home).

So although we are perfectly capable of making my own travel arrangements, we still use a TA. As someone wrote earlier, it's "headache insurance".

Today on Yahoo finance you will find an article about jobs that are in a decline. The second one listed is Travel Agents. The article concludes with "Job prospects should be best for travel agents who specialize in specific destinations or groups with special interests or agents for corporate travelers."

 

It was not that long ago that the Travel Agent provided a service. When you went to one it was very likely that someone in the office had visited your destination and could give you information about it. While this may still be true now, it seems that most entities that are billed as Travel Agencies are essentially booking agents that want to book your cruise and have little or no responsibility after the fact.

 

So the question becomes "Is there still a place for Travel Agents?" or should the Cruise Lines follow the example of the Airlines and drop the commission to them and allow those who want or need the services of a full service agency to pay that agency separately?

Bite your tongue Rich!:D As you know we normally book the longer cruises.. Our TA always gives us a 8% to 12% discount on all our cruises & can even get us a discount on insurance.. He too belongs to a consortium of TA's, gives us both OBC from his Agency & HAL.. I was in the Airline business & am perfectly capable of booking our cruises, hotels, air, cars etc.. In 2006 I booked two cabins to the Amazon...But thanks to Randy & Heather on Cruise Critic I decided to check out several Agents & found I could not get the fare which an on-line Agent could give us.. I still do all of the investigation of details & when we've decided on a cruise I call our TA to book it.. He too gives us Pinnacle dinners, OBC's or gifts..

We've been using a local TA for 12 years and will continue to do so as long as he is in business. I decide on all the details of a cruise and send them to him for booking. I give a general idea of what flights we want and leave it to him to find good prices and connections. He often gives us some discounts, OBC, or gifts of a PG dinner or similar.

 

However, the main reason we go to him is to have help in case of any problems, and the convenience of him handling any changes. If I see a price drop, I send an email to have him negotiate with HAL for either OBC or a free upgrade. If a flight gets changed to something iffy I leave it up to him to straighten it out. Once he called with a special deal before I heard about it on CC. Once when we had to cancel a trip (non-cruise) I just sent him an email to take care of cancelling everything, and getting my insurance refund.

 

In other words, he is my "headache" insurance.

 

Agree with you! I too check for price drops & then will e-mail our TA to have him negotiate OBC.. Like your idea of the "headache insurance"..;)Hope our TA stays in business for a long time.. Also like the fact that we can phone him if we have a question..

Bite your tongue Rich!:D As you know we normally book the longer cruises.. Our TA always gives us a 8% to 12% discount on all our cruises & can even get us a discount on insurance.. He too belongs to a consortium of TA's, gives us both OBC from his Agency & HAL.. I was in the Airline business & am perfectly capable of booking our cruises, hotels, air, cars etc.. In 2006 I booked two cabins to the Amazon...But thanks to Randy & Heather on Cruise Critic I decided to check out several Agents & found I could not get the fare which an on-line Agent could give us.. I still do all of the investigation of details & when we've decided on a cruise I call our TA to book it.. He too gives us Pinnacle dinners, OBC's or gifts..

I am always biting my tongue. The reason I said that was because of the article. I appreciate that several responses have been from members who have found fabulous travel agents. My problem is that the one that I spent the most time with really turned me off to using one. When I asked her several questions, her answer was basically to try google. I was sitting in her office when she answered the phone and told the person she was talking to the same thing.

A couple of years ago a friend told me his mother was a cruise specialist. I called and talked to her for a few minutes and she basically recommended a cruise I had already pretty much decided on. She was disappointed when I told her I would book it thru my PCC and transfer it to her (I guess she thought I wouldn't do it). When I did transfer it - no thanks, no gift etc.

Agree with you! I too check for price drops & then will e-mail our TA to have him negotiate OBC.. Like your idea of the "headache insurance"..;)Hope our TA stays in business for a. long time.. Also like the fact that we can phone him if we have a question..

I am glad that you and JTL513 (and others) have a Travel Agent that you like. For me, the PCC I have is great and I will continue to book that way - and transfer to a TA if the transfer is warranted.

Today May 06 is Travel Agent Day.

Thanks to all the Travel Agents out there for all the work they do.

Today May 06 is Travel Agent Day.

 

Thanks to all the Travel Agents out there for all the work they do.

I didn't know that - thanks :)

going to send my TA some good wishes.

Why do I use my TA? aside from OBC, service counts.

I know a lot but she knows a lot more and has successfully gotten me upsells on several occasions.

when I had an issue with OBC she was right there and went to Seattle on my behalf.

My friend turned to her TA when HAL wanted us to do a legal document (Canada Customs and Immigration) too early. We were allowed to submit a correct document in San Diego because of that.

A good TA (or PCC) is worth their weight in gold. Value them accordingly.

In response the original question I believe that it is a dying profession but one that will be around to some degree for a while at least. Folks I see using them still are:

1. Corporations who have many staff moving constantly and either have a contracted TA or an in house travel department.

2. Speciality agents for when you want doors opening in some place that you have no hopes of getting opened on your own ( private after hour tours of museums etc). In many cases this is for those of well above average wealth because this service is never cheap. In some cases those individuals may value their own time more and be willing to pay somebody else to do the legwork.

3. Those who do not have internet access or have not used it much. This tends to be an older demographic for the most part. My MIL for example , when she wants to visit us from the UK goes to a travel agent and books a fare. She has always way overpaid. She was not aware that when booking flights certain days of the week are cheaper, not only to fly but, believe it or not to book. The airline that we use in preference, for example, always releases its 'sales' on Tuesday mid afternoon and my wife has saved us huge amounts by being patient and waiting/ watching till the fare we want drops. My MIL, however, just goes in and pays whatever she is asked to do that day. My sister is the same and she was shocked to learn that you can save hundreds usually but thousands on occasions booking yourself.

4. Those for whom money is no object and convenience is paramount.

I suspect very few folks under 35 or even 40 use them with any regularity, so that with time the need for them will continue to become smaller, unless some agent comes up with a great new innovation.

In response the original question I believe that it is a dying profession but one that will be around to some degree for a while at least. Folks I see using them still are:

1. Corporations who have many staff moving constantly and either have a contracted TA or an in house travel department.

2. Speciality agents for when you want doors opening in some place that you have no hopes of getting opened on your own ( private after hour tours of museums etc). In many cases this is for those of well above average wealth because this service is never cheap. In some cases those individuals may value their own time more and be willing to pay somebody else to do the legwork.

3. Those who do not have internet access or have not used it much. This tends to be an older demographic for the most part. My MIL for example , when she wants to visit us from the UK goes to a travel agent and books a fare. She has always way overpaid. She was not aware that when booking flights certain days of the week are cheaper, not only to fly but, believe it or not to book. The airline that we use in preference, for example, always releases its 'sales' on Tuesday mid afternoon and my wife has saved us huge amounts by being patient and waiting/ watching till the fare we want drops. My MIL, however, just goes in and pays whatever she is asked to do that day. My sister is the same and she was shocked to learn that you can save hundreds usually but thousands on occasions booking yourself.

4. Those for whom money is no object and convenience is paramount.

 

I suspect very few folks under 35 or even 40 use them with any regularity, so that with time the need for them will continue to become smaller, unless some agent comes up with a great new innovation.

Bolding is mine. Many of us with internet do use a TA. I ,am capable of researching, etc. on my own, but if I want someone who has my back and it costs less than booking directly with HAL (when you take obc into account), what's the harm?

Many of the world cruisers use a TA for that very reason and the knowledge and ability to get certain rooms, perks, whatever.

TA's are used by a LOT of people that have internet access. Thanks to the internet I can use a TA of my choice and not restricted.