Travel agents..waste of time

Diamond_Olly

Everyone shops around these days to try and get a bargain - so why not include a travel agent in this process. Most travel agents will be happy to deal with a client over the phone instead of in a shop. I'd personally prefer a client to give me the details of what they want and then research it with no pressure. If you've got someone sitting in front of you - getting bored with you ringing tour operator after tour op and checking website after website - the agent will feel pressured to just get a price out and often make mistakes. If you give us time and take the pressure away - just with a phone call - you'll get better results.

Please don't say all TAs are rip off merchants - its never deliberate, more to do with the pressure put on us by clients to get a price quickly.

OK rant over - must do some proper work earning a fiver on a booking!

DKLS

My travel agent is fantastic, am currently reading 4 itineraries he has prepared for me for my honeymoon, he must have put hours into organising this for me. Its service I simply couldn't get from the internet and I wouldn't dream of taking his itinerary and self booking, he deserves his commission.

bcl999

gabyjane
Can't you "innocently" go back to 1st agent and say you want to book the quote she gave you? If they then discover the mistake, at least it puts you in a possible negotiating position.

Moonchild

I'm sure all the thousands of people that 'DIY'ed through Freedom Flights, xscape with us, Freedom Direct etc etc are just ecstatic with the £10 they saved!

To be honest I can't understand the initial post, maybe if it was edited or re-written then you might get better help. But at least it has provided a good opportunity to provide opt-shots at travel agents, which makes people feel better about themselves every couple of months.

I feel we've heard this before "They are rip off merchants and profit off people who are not clued up enough to book things independently." and it's just as boring as the last couple of times.

Again grouping everyone in a massive industry together is an incredibly obnoxious comment, and i'm sure offensive to many people. Try using that type of generalisation on the police, mean, women, black people, gay people, the french..... it's just another form of ignorance.

After all 5% of the UK work directly in the travel and tourism industry, that's a lot of 'rip off merchants'! (And especially includes all the ones who tirelessly assist those in the Beat my Quote thread - maybe those who think these are rip-off merchants should be helping those who in post in the thread save money instead!).

Like all industries, the travel agents without the skills to adapt and service will die out. Like your plumbers, if you don't like the service and knowledge, find another one that genuinely helps.

hollydays

I do most of my own shorter breaks myself ,and some long haul,and do loads of research.

Last year i needed a shortish notice sun holiday. I Identified where i wanted to go,but couldn't find a deal in my price bracket.Armed with where i wanted to go,what star rating off tripadviser i would accept for my hotel,and a list of hotels I wouldn't touch-she (CO-OP) found me a perfect holiday-I knew what i didn't want which enabled her to cut through the !!!!.

Whilst I admit I am picky,I think I made her job easier-and we both got a result.I think it depends on the travel agent,and if they are not great-direct them to find what you want.I got mine to check out reviews on tripadviser and travel trade gazette while I was there.(think i am a bit of a nightmare really),but I believe I have no-one to blame but myself if I don't get what I want,and I will also tell them which floor I want my room on,if poss.

I couldn't have done this over the phone.

asda12

i book all our holidays with travel counsellors they are an independent company,they can book all holidays,cruises,car parking everything,every things the same as going into a travel agents except they check all tour companies and find you the best price, the lady i use takes all the information about my holiday requirements then comes back with lots of choices, the reason its much better is because she is a personel travel counsellor she has time to get the best for you unlike some travel agents that only have so long to spend with you.hope this helps

conradmum

Three times in the last 12 months I've managed to get cheaper flights through booking with a travel agent than I could going direct to the airlines - and this is with using all the screenscraper sites etc. Travel agents can get deals that aren't available to the general public, especially long haul flights, car hire etc.

isplumm

Hi,

I have been reading this thread with interest ...

We recently came back from a week (7 nights) in Cannes staying at the Carlton ... I checked with TC in Eastleigh & managed to get a deal for £1600 including flights - yet the cheapest I could find online was about £650 a night!!! + flights ... so a big saving.

I normally will get a quote from a TA & then attempt to beat them ... sometimes I can, sometimes not .... often I find that I cann't in peak season, when going to popular places.

Mark

littlestar1981

I think the summary of this is don't automatically discount travel agents on the widely made assumption that they are always more expensive... use them alongside all other means to price up what you want.

I admit I have never priced up a holiday with a travel agent before, but after reading this I will research all possibilities of booking it myself on the internet (DIY and package if possible), then try a couple of travel agents too.

gabyjane

Ok quickish reply for now as going out but just wanted to say i think i was right to have got annoyed having wasted my time going down...the quote from you Steph about wanting this that and the other at all different times and not having a preference etc is then contradicted by the fact you have said cruises have to booked at certain times of the month etc as of when they travel..which i understand so why was is it so difficult to sort 4 quotes out as those were the only ones i was interested in?? I am not generalising ALL travel agents as we have had some fab ones in the past as it goes.
I got a call back from her later on saying...'those quotes i did earlier have to have another adult added on' no apology or anything..considering we are looking to put a deposit down and book, a few thousand out is really really bad..one alone was £2100 out so yes i am annoyed as we could have sat and worked our finances out last night and had a shock this morning..as it goes we will not be going back!
I will reply to the rest later!