We've used one for advice, experience. How do they make their money; is it better to research yourself and book flights, hotels, etc yourself?

8% on airfares with a $50 cap, usually split with the agency.<BR><BR>Around 15% on most cruises.<BR><BR>Most agencies now charging a booking fee, typical range $15-$35.<BR><BR>Not much incentive to find the best deals for customers.

Travel agents make their money in commissions they earn from the airlines, railways, hotels, etc.<BR><BR>These commissions have been dropping, and some agents charge some sort of service fee.<BR><BR>The two big advantages of travel agents are 1/ that they have experience and know where to look on the web and how to read codes in airline reservation services, etc., and they'll do this for you, saving you time and 2/ It is very likely that reservations made by agents will be honored, prices will not increase, etc.<BR><BR>there are horror stories, of course, but more often than not, agents do a good job. And if you pick an agent that knows the place you are going to, you'll get good advice tailored to your requirements.<BR><BR>Many commissions have caps, so there's no benefit to an agent booking you into an expensive place rather than a less expensive one.<BR><BR>If you don't have an agent, ask froneds for names of agents that have provided good service.<BR><BR>On the other hand ....<BR><BR>If yo want to spend a long time doing the reserch, you can track down interesting places that agents don't know about, and can't afford to take the time to find.<BR><BR>If you want packages, like air fare, rental car and hotel all in one, you'll have to determine if the packageers will even sell to you. Some restrict sales to agents.<BR><BR>If you want to plan your own trip, day by day, and if planning is a big part of the fun of the trip, you might want to use the agent to make your airplane reservations, and then spend a couple of weeks setting up your own itinerary.<BR><BR>In other words, there's no straight answer to your question. On my last European trip, an agent sold the airt ticket, and made the hotel reservations, but only two cities were involved. Train tickets were bought over there, and some other hotels were bought once the traveller was in Italy.<BR>BAK

As far as I know, they make their money in several ways: commissions from hotels, cruises, tour bookings; small commission now on airline tickets; and some charge fees for doing things (ranging from small fee for airline ticket up for some plans or itineraries that might cost a lot). I don't think there is any definitive answer to what is better, it depends on you, your time, what kind of trip you want, how experienced you are in traveling, how good you are with details and research (ie, some people can't use a search engine on the internet), and whether you can find a decent agent. I have not used one in about 20 yrs as it has become so easy now to find out information via the internet (used to be all you had were guidebooks and newspaper ads) and I know what I want and know more about things than they do. I have only had terrible experiences with agents when I did use them 20 yrs ago so was really glad when I could stop. In general, it appears to me that travel agents are best for luxury travel, tours or cruises (some require you use an agent), or uncommon destinations that are not exactly tourism friendly or where it pays to know someone, etc (ie, some ccountries in Africa, Asia, etc)--assuming you can find an agent with good experience and expertise in that country. I've read a few interesting articles on that subject in Conde Nast Traveler magazine within the past year (by reporter Wendy Perrin) and I think she did find agents preferable for some places in the Middle East, and maybe Thailand or China, some places like that. However, again, it depended on the agent.

Don, I think your information is a bit dated. The commission for airfares is now 4% with a 10 cap one way/$20 round trip. Cruises are variable, depending on the line; most other services are 10%.<BR><BR>The incentive in finding the best deal for the customer is return business. Personally, if a travel agent didn't work to find me the best deal, I'd find another agent the next time I wanted travel help. My agent spends time with me and helps me find what is best for me. I return to her time and again.

If you can stumble onto Fodor's via the net, you can research and plan your own vacation. Start with a few guide books, use a search engine, you'll find lots of info. Some of the best deals are those offered directly to the consumer by the company via the internet -- it cuts out the middleman (and commissions) and allows consumers to book direct. Travel agents are fast becoming dinosaurs.

Travel agents usually do not get comissions on air fare. For cruises and land sea packages, they do. There are three major benefits to using an agent. The first one is to make sure that the trip that you want to do is suited to your interests.
Second is to absorb any travel bumps in the road. If you use a TA, you never have any idea what problems may have occured that they took care of before you arrived and knew that they existed. When you arrive at your destination everything is great and if it is a cruise, you may have an upgrade.
The third depends on availability, but sometimes a travel agent can secure a lower price if the price goes own.Computers don't do that for you. Actually there is a fourth,if you return from your vaction and there was an unforseen problem, you have an individual to contact to help you... not an 800 number!
Travel Agents seem to get a bad rap. You don't pay any more and get additional services. How are they the bad guys?

This was the first time I booked a trip by myself- shopped for and bought my air tickets online, and booked some hotels and B&amp;B's from research here at Fodor's. I did quite well, and with the hindsight of 3 weeks since my return, I can say I was very satisfied with the results. Did I just get lucky? What if something had gotten bungled with the flights? I usually like to have an expert in my corner- an agent is someone who can act on your behalf, right? Well, with the loss of commissions to agents on airfare, and a lot of other fees getting capped, and the competition from the internet, I would think they would really nurture the repeat business. But my travel agent in this business over 15 years--has apparently dropped me. Stopped following up, stop calling with deals. And I have now moved on to book things without help. I imagine there will come a time when I want to have someone who can advise, call on my behalf, or share their booking expereince

If you have a lot of time to do research and planning, and are willing to live with the consequences of your mistakes, a travel agent is not necessary.

If you are busy and don't have the time to do all the research and planning, and want some level of certainty that the two connecting flights you are taking will actually connect, I think a travel agent is a good option, particularly as their services don't cost a lot. Of course, you have to get a good one, and I think their knowledge tends to be locked into touristy things. For example, they would likely have knowledge of hotels, but would likely have less familiarity with apartments. They would know more about Rome, for example, than about some remote ancestral village you might want to see.

When I was working, I never had the free time to adequately plan a trip. Now that I am not working, and have some experience travelling, I don't use a travel agent.

I like doing my own research and planning, but then I usually have my travel agent book my hotels for me. She also gives me input and suggestions, which are usually very good.

The important thing is to get a <i>good</i> travel agent, who knows what your interests are. My travel agent is also a friend of mine, which helps.

When I get back from a trip, I call my TA with sort of a &quot;trip report&quot; so that she has feedback that helps her in making suggestions for other clients.