av

What do you think better - to plan trip ourself, using email and internet or to enroll help of good travel agent. I understans that we better of with agent for exotic location, but we were thinking Italy...

kathy

You'll save money if you do it yourself using the internet. I am planning a vacation to Europe. A friend of a friend who is a travel agent offered to help me find cheap airfares. She quoted me a price that was much higher then what I was able to find myself on the internet. When I told her I was the internet bargain hunter from hell she admitted that she probably couldn't find me anything cheaper then I could find myself. As far as hotels are concerned just email them or fax a request. <BR>

Bill

Ditto Kathy's thoughts. <BR>I haven't used an agent in years. Most aren't very imaginative in the first place and want to steer you to package tours. And the good ones are never going to be as dedicated (some whould say "anal") as you will be. Admit it... you could sit at your computer for hours looking for the perfect hotel in the perfect little town or big-city neighborhood. And agents aren't any good at all with little places - inns and B&Bs. <BR>As for plane tickets, check the consolidators on the Web and you'll almost always beat what the agent can find. (I got tickets for my next trip on flights.com)

Jim Rosenberg

There is no "one-size-fits-all" answer to this question. While I would be very comfortable making my own arrangements for a trip like you describe, I know many people who would be better off working with a travel agent. It's a matter of having insight, access to information and the ability to evaluate it. Many of us travel junkies on here are probably as capable as many travel agents -- and even more so for our own trips because of the time and focus that we dedicate to our own planning. An agent just can't do that and stay in business. Still, my PARENTS should use a travel agent. Many of my friends and acquaintances should too. They'll just do better in the end in terms of their overall experience. And while I am happy to plan and arrange my own travels, I am extremely reluctant to do it for others except the most straightforward, fool-proof types of arrangements. I can take responsibility to my own results, but I don't want to do that for others. Travel agents ARE valuable people to a very large segment of the traveling public.

Rex

I still find it useful to purchase through a trael agent - - I use one about half the time. I do my own research about 99% of the time, and then take what I have found to her (over the phone). About 10% of the time, she finds me something even better, and about 10% of the time, she helps me in some other way, that only a good travel agent can do. <BR> <BR>I just wish I could do something about the small (and getting smaller and smaller) commissions she receives for the overhead and expenses she has in selling me tickets. <BR>

BOB THE NAVIGATOR

Travel agents are OK to use for airline tickets--if they are good---but are less than adequate for planning your trip timing and destinations, and do not use them for hotels. They cannot get paid by the smaller hotels in Europe and you end up paying double what you can get on your own. You can do it better yourself with the help of the experienced people on this forum.

Bob Brown

I guess I am lucky because my travel agency is good. For US travel, the co owner consistently comes up with air line ticket prices and rental car rates that I cannot find on the web, even though I search.

Tina

There are instances or people who need their services, but overall if you've got the time to conduct the research then you're more likely to come up with a vacation suited to your exact needs. I prefer smaller budget priced hotels or B&B's, which lend themselves to a 'do-it-yourselfer'. <BR> <BR>Unfortunately many travel agents are not as "travelled" as one would imagine --- they spend majority of their time at a computer and it's not a lucrative paying profession. So their knowledge of what a city of country is actually like often comes from feedback of their clients rather than alot of firsthand experience. <BR> <BR>Rex --- do you have a regular agent that you've used when opting for their services? Anyone you can recommend? If you've worked with them, then I'm guessing they've learned from YOUR experience & knowledge.

Rex

Yes, I do have a long-running with one (owner-operated) travel agency. I will provide her name in private correspondence, but I have never sought her permission to use her name on a public forum, and would prefer not to do this. <BR> <BR>There was a time when I purchased a lot more air travel than I do now (I had my own consulting business (not travel-related) - - my employees and I traveled a lot - - more domestic than international, and yes, my travel agent and I both learned from each other. She taught me at least as many inside tricks to the industry of selling tickets as I learned from her. <BR> <BR>I do believe that she has cultivated and earned my business with a very "can-do" attitude. Many of the things I have heard here as "you can't do that through a travel agent" (for example, buying tickets on RyanAir), she has succeeded in doing. If she had to overcome great obstacles to do it, she never told me about it. <BR>

Ger

I have found that my travel agent (that I use for business)gets me better deals for hotels than I could possibly get on my own. She knows the type of place I like to stay in, she never steers me wrong and she saves me a lot of time. <BR> <BR>Example: She books me into a four star hotel in Paris, year round, for about $150 per night wheh the rack rate is over $600 per night. When I check into my boutique hotel in London, I get upgraded from a single room to the best they have available - a two room suite (for about 130 GBP!!). <BR> <BR>Any "deal" I find on the internet, hotel or flight, she can deliver or tell me why I don't want it (the times when she has told me NOT to stay at certain hotels ... she has been right). If she does not have the information I need then she gets it for me from her network of friends. She always gives me options for hotels and I always check her recommendations on the internet, and we discuss. <BR> <BR>I have found that you can't expect a travel agent to go out of their way for you if you are just price shopping. However, if you travel a lot and stick with the same travel agent, one that is willing to get to know your needs, then I think it is worthwhile relationship. <BR> <BR>Get a friend to recommend a good agent; guarantee the agent that you will use them in the future if you are satisfied. Do your own research on the Internet and share it with your agent. <BR> <BR>

maryc

I've arranged everything myself with the help of the internet. That's half the fun! To become more informed! To become totally obsessed with your travel plans. Take charge of your destiny; there's a lot of good info on the net and you can save a lot of money. I personally don't believe that a travel agent has the same vested interest in your good times as you do.