Your Travel Specialist On: Why Use A Travel Agent?

I attended a conference recently of 400 travel agencies owners from around the country, all members of the Signature Travel Network and everyone was talking about the great article in Travel & Leisure Magazine, September 2014 issue under Trip Doctor.

I thought I would share the highlights with my readers, and add my own comments about this important topic.

“The rise of online booking and DIY travel resources such as Airbnb and Uber has in many respects made travel easier. We can compare fares, book hotel rooms at the last minute via an app and find local guides all on our own. But….. here are ways that a travel professional can still save you time and money not to mention a lot of heartache on your next trip.

Travel agents can deliver insider information and access. They can tell you how to avoid the crowds at major sights, and where the locals eat. They can even pair you with designers and architects who moonlight as walking tour guides, get a local artist to open his studio to you, and direct you to hidden corners of a city. They know how to put together a seamless itinerary.

I was reminded of this a few months ago (travel editor Wendy Perrin) when I foolishly tried to arrange my own flights in Africa before a safari. I learned I was about to book with an airline that was notorious for last minute, safari ruining cancellations. Lesson learned.
Even if you are not planning a particularly complicated or exotic trip, it’s worth considering the additional value of professional travel advice. Much of the travel industry is built on relationships and if your travel advisor has the right ones, it can pay off for you.

Many of the top advisors belong to a large consortia that leverage their members collective buying power (billions ) to deliver guaranteed rates as well as perks for their members. What that may mean for you….if you book a night in a luxury hotel through the right person, you can get an upgrade, daily breakfast for two, a $100 restaurant credit, late checkout, along with a welcome amenity of wine and treats.

On a seven night cruise, it could be a cabin upgrade and $500 of shipboard credit. Since the travel advisor is making a commission off the booking, you won’t be charged a markup.

The largest luxury consortia – Virtuoso or Signature Travel Network – each have contracts with over 1000 hotels, cruise lines, tour operators which translates into even more perks for clients. 57% of all cruise bookings are made by travel agents.
The most affordable rates and fares aren’t always found online. Hotels and cruise lines offer special deals to members of a consortia who alert their clients.

These can be anything from four nights for the price of three, to an upgrade to business class tickets on an airline-cruise package. Travel advisors frequently have access to lower prices than those available to the public for business and first class seats usually as a result of consortium contracts.

That sold out hotel that you waited too long to book is not always sold out. Many properties will hold inventory in reserve for consortia members. For Amalfi in August, Danube cruises in September, or
Hawaii over the holidays, top advisors are known for clearing out space for their clients. They are also skilled in putting travelers in the right rooms, avoiding the misleading named “garden view” that overlook parking lots or cruise cabins set right below the fitness room with early morning classes.

Every trip has its share of hiccups. Last winter helped log a record 126,000 cancelled flights and the value of a travel advisor really kicks in. They’ll rebook your flights sometimes via a VIP phone line with the airline, finding seats on planes that appear to be full or springing you up to the top of the waiting list for ones that indeed are. They can also get you last minute hotel rooms and file insurance claims on your behalf. Lost luggage, they can track your bags and even have been known to keep a local store open late so you can buy replacement clothes in the meantime.”

One of my staff at All Horizons Travel had a client who came into the agency and wanted a cruise to Greece on a certain date on a specific cruise line. The agent told her, there will be 9,000 passengers from several cruise lines in Crete the day you will be there. An impossible situation on a tiny island. I suggest you move to another date, when this ship with 200 passengers will be the only one there.

When the volcano blew in Iceland a few years ago, we got all our European passengers home by various routes and got them hotel stays if necessary. Our business travelers were thrilled at the fast handling by our agents. One company president on his cell phone to our agent was told, go to Gate 4, we have you booked on a flight to Madrid which still had overseas flights operating, then non stop to the U.S. Our contacts paid off. If you had been trying to do that on your own, it would not have been possible.

I just got a valued client who is in Rotary with my husband upgraded to a suite in London, a savings of $6000 for three nights, six free breakfasts $600 savings, a bottle of $150 champagne as a welcome gift, plus a cabin upgrade on his cruise, limo to the ship, dinner with the captain, and a $500 shipboard credit, all because we are a member of the Signature Travel Network.

We have 1000 hotels in 87 countries where the General Manager jumps to attention when he sees the booking from a Signature agency and will throw in extras such as a free spa treatment, restaurant credit, The hotel savings are substantial.

Our staff can explain the possible problems when you use a code share and fly on different international airlines and how it affected your frequent flyer mileage program.

It pays to deal with a specialist.

Maureen Jones

Maureen Jones is president of All Horizons Travel at 160 Main Street, Los Altos. Members of her staff are experts in business travel, cruises, and all types of leisure.

Previous columns by Maureen:

Your Travel Specialist Maureen Jones: On Assignment in Europe.

Your Travel Specialist On: The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

Your Travel Specialist On: Scotland, The British Open 2015.

Delectable Dining - Hawaii’s Farm Fresh Table Temptation.

Your travel specialist on: Themed River Cruises.

Islay, A whisky lover’s delight!

Your Local Travel Expert On: Different Perspectives of Australia.

Your Travel Expert On: Exotic Cruises.

The Kimberley, Cruising the Australian Outback.

Tips for the perfect family vacation.

Ciao Italy.

Four countries in harmony.

Latin Luxury.

Adventure Travel - With a Difference.