How to Work With a Travel Agent

Do you wonder when and how to work with a travel agent? With the ability to purchase airline tickets, car rentals, and hotels online, why pay someone else to do these things? For those with some travel and internet experience, there are times to make your own arrangements, while, with more complex plans, a travel agent may be very useful.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Understanding of what you want
• Travel agent
• Money or a credit card

1. 
   Bicyclists on a Tour of France

   Know about travel agents: what they do, how they get paid, and what services they provide.
   What they do:
   Travel agents fall into two categories of corporate and leisure. If you travel on business, your company may have an arrangement with a corporate travel agent that handles tickets, hotel and car rental reservations for their employees. The trip is (usually) billed through the company.
   Leisure agents handle individuals, for whom they make flight reservations, arrange car rentals and hotels. In addition, they book cruises and tours.
   The rest of this article is about leisure travel agents.

2. 
   At Giverny (Monet's Home in France)

   Know how agents are paid. For airline tickets, car rentals, and hotel reservations, the agent may charge the client a fee. Each agent determines how much and when to charge for these services. Agents booking cruises and tours receive payment from the cruise or tour company. The client doesn’t pay any more than if they booked it directly. Any reputable agent should have a printed explanation of costs you may incur.

3. 
   Barges Taken by Tourists in France

   Know what service you should expect from a travel agent. Based on the information you give, the agent should provide you the best travel arrangements at the best price. An agent should be an expert. She should know more about travel than you do and provide you with the information necessary to have a successful trip, such as if you need a visa or inoculation, how to get from airport to hotel and something about the weather and culture. Ask a prospective agent how much they have traveled and to where. You have an advocate if any problems arise or changes are needed. A real person! If a problem does arise with anything an agent has booked, she should take care of it for you. If you’ve made arrangements through an online service, fixing a problem can be difficult and slow.

4. 
   Visiting Lascaux II in France

   Tell your agent everything necessary for you to have a good trip. No, you don’t have to give her your family history, unless you are taking a trip to trace your roots, but say you want to attend Octoberfest in Munich but are allergic to beer and don’t like loud singing and bratwurst. Maybe you can figure that one out for yourself. The point is tell the agent the sort of personal information that will impact you on the trip. Food allergies or preferences, for example or physical limitations. If she’s booking hotels for you, would you rather be in the center of town (where you may pay more and it may be noisier but what you want to see and do is close) or would you rather stay on the outskirts of a city and take public transportation? Know what you want and communicate it clearly.

5. 
   Oh! That's Where It Comes From

   Interested in group travel such as cruises and tours? Probably 70 to 80 percent of a leisure travel agent’s business is booking cruises and tours. Some do that exclusively. A good agent will know the quality and reputation of the various companies and should assist in finding something that suits you. She will make sure you get the accommodations you want. If you decide at the last minute, for example,that you don’t want the late seating but would prefer anytime dining, she’ll handle it.
   Knowing what you want is important. Do you like huge cruise ships with gambling, partying, and eating available 24/7? Would you prefer smaller, quieter accommodations? Do you want an “if this is Tuesday, it must be Belgium” quickie tour for your first trip to Europe or do you want to see a small region such as Normandy or Tuscany in depth?

6. 
   Unusual Rock Shapes in New Brunswick, Canada

   Are you an independent sort, the one who finds adventure in facing a strange world on his own? Travel agents can arrange (and will charge you) to arrange a custom tour. You tell the agent where you want to go, for how long, what stops you want to make and about how much you want to spend. (After she falls off her chair laughing, the old adage being take half as many clothes and twice as much money), she will make the individual hotel, plane, train, car, and entertainment reservations.

7. 
   Birds Gather On Ile Bonaventure, Quebec, Canada

   Measure how your travel agent did, once the trip is over. Assess objectively any problems and who was responsible. If you were caught in a downpour with your umbrella dry and tidy back in your hotel room, well, that’s not the agent’s fault. If flights were booked too close together (agents try to allow at least an hour between flights), that is the responsibility of the agent. Discuss your trip with your agent after it’s over. Thank her if all went well. Mention what didn’t. This will help you in deciding whether next time you will use the same agent, a different one, or do it on your own.

Tips & Warnings

• Travel agents have access to consolidators which may enable the agents to get a better price for you.
• Some agents specialize in particular kinds of travel or specific destinations.