Travel Agents?

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Travel Agents?
DevilsPGD 17 May 2008 11:59:01
	I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on my own for arranging everything. Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle? I know basically what I want and where I want to stay, but my dates are flexible (plus/minus a couple days), so I'm wondering if I should bother or if I should just do my own thing? -- You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me.
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PTravel 9 September 2005 01:48:34 [ permanent link ]
	"DevilsPGD" <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote in message news:5g91i151i2kb6ofg0ee1r32gk3sf91i8l8@4ax.com...> I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in> October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on> my own for arranging everything.> Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on> flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle? If it's the right travel agent, it's considerably less hassle. My travel agent knows my preferences for airlines, seat selection, aircraft type (there are some I will not fly on), airports, hotels, room configurations, etc. I just give her the departure dates and times and she does the rest. I get an itinerary which, more often than not, I don't even look at 'til I get to the airport. If I need a change mid-trip, I just call her office (it has a 24 hour number) and tell them what I want, and it gets handled. Of course, I've been working with her for years and travel quite frequently. I don't know whether you could expect this kind of service on a one-shot basis. I know basically what I want and where I want to stay, but my dates are> flexible (plus/minus a couple days), so I'm wondering if I should bother> or if I should just do my own thing?> -- > You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me.
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PTravel 9 September 2005 04:04:05 [ permanent link ]
	"Frank F. Matthews" <frankfmatthews@houston.rr.com> wrote in message news:LO3Ue.48824$Nx.43226@tornado.texas.rr.com...> For the most part you are probably better off doing the reservations> yourself. A TA will charge significantly for not much information. My TA charges me $39/ticket. I just booked a three-city, 6 leg trip with her. If I had to do it myself, laying out all the different permutations and flights, it would have taken me hours. My billable rate is $425/hour. By paying her $39, I saved $900 or more. They do have to charge for their time these days. It doesn't sound as> though your trip is complicated enough to need a TA.> PTravel wrote:> "DevilsPGD" <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote in message> > news:5g91i151i2kb6ofg0ee1r32gk3sf91i8l8@4ax.com...> > I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in> >>October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on> >>my own for arranging everything.> >> Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on> >>flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle?> > If it's the right travel agent, it's considerably less hassle.> > My travel agent knows my preferences for airlines, seat selection, aircraft> > type (there are some I will not fly on), airports, hotels, room> > configurations, etc. I just give her the departure dates and times and does the rest. I get an itinerary which, more often than not, I don't even> > look at 'til I get to the airport.> > If I need a change mid-trip, I just call her office (it has a 24 hour> > number) and tell them what I want, and it gets handled.> > Of course, I've been working with her for years and travel quite frequently.> > I don't know whether you could expect this kind of service on a one-shot> > basis.> > I know basically what I want and where I want to stay, but my dates are> >>flexible (plus/minus a couple days), so I'm wondering if I should bother> >>or if I should just do my own thing?> >> -- > >>You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me.> >
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Frank F. Matthews 9 September 2005 07:13:21 [ permanent link ]
	The OPs travel was quite simple and shouldn't take 15 minutes. If you billed the time that you saved by using the TA then you are ahead. PTravel wrote: "Frank F. Matthews" <frankfmatthews@houston.rr.com> wrote in message> news:LO3Ue.48824$Nx.43226@tornado.texas.rr.com...> For the most part you are probably better off doing the reservations>>yourself. A TA will charge significantly for not much information.> My TA charges me $39/ticket. I just booked a three-city, 6 leg trip with> her. If I had to do it myself, laying out all the different permutations> and flights, it would have taken me hours. My billable rate is $425/hour.> By paying her $39, I saved $900 or more.> They do have to charge for their time these days. It doesn't sound as>>though your trip is complicated enough to need a TA.>> PTravel wrote:>> "DevilsPGD" <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote in message>>>news:5g91i151i2kb6ofg0ee1r32gk3sf91i8l8@4ax.com...>>> I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in>>>>October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on>>>>my own for arranging everything.>>>> Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on>>>>flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle?>>> If it's the right travel agent, it's considerably less hassle.>>> My travel agent knows my preferences for airlines, seat selection,> aircraft> type (there are some I will not fly on), airports, hotels, room>>>configurations, etc. I just give her the departure dates and times and> does the rest. I get an itinerary which, more often than not, I don't> even> look at 'til I get to the airport.>>> If I need a change mid-trip, I just call her office (it has a 24 hour>>>number) and tell them what I want, and it gets handled.>>> Of course, I've been working with her for years and travel quite> frequently.> I don't know whether you could expect this kind of service on a one-shot>>>basis.>>> I know basically what I want and where I want to stay, but my dates are>>>>flexible (plus/minus a couple days), so I'm wondering if I should bother>>>>or if I should just do my own thing?>>>> -- >>>>You're just jealous because the voices only talk to me.>>>
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DevilsPGD 9 September 2005 13:19:09 [ permanent link ]
	In message <1126215865.930504.303460@f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com> "PeterL" <po.ning@gmail.com> wrote: x-no-archive: yes> DevilsPGD wrote:>> I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in>> October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on>> my own for arranging everything.>> Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on>> flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle?>> I know basically what I want and where I want to stay, but my dates are>> flexible (plus/minus a couple days), so I'm wondering if I should bother>> or if I should just do my own thing?>> Are you in the US? Why not use one of the many web sites to book your>hotel? No. The issue is simply that I don't know the tricks for getting better flights, and I know my parents have sometimes gotten better prices through a TA then by calling hotels and asking. -- DevilsPGD - A spews parrot and a member of the spews lunatics of n.a.n-a.e. (AKA spews fanatics)
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Juliana L Holm 9 September 2005 15:57:22 [ permanent link ]
	DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote: No. The issue is simply that I don't know the tricks for getting better> flights, and I know my parents have sometimes gotten better prices> through a TA then by calling hotels and asking. YMMV. I don't think that you can get a better airfare via a travel agent than on the web. Check out expedia, travelocity, orbitz, qixo, to compare then go to the airline's own site to book. Hotels you can often do yourself, but it does take work. If you are a member of AAA, their travel book is going to give you good rates, otherwise, you might find a TA worthwhile. If you go to a TA try to find one you have some connection to, maybe your work uses a TA and the same TA can get you hotels personally (everywhere I have worked that had a travel office/travel agent they could do it, until my current employer.). Otherwise ask friends and family. A TA does more if he/she has a relationship than for a one time person out of the blue. Julie -- Julie ********** Check out the blog of my 9 week Germany adventure at www.blurty.com/users/jholm Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm
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Shawn Hirn 9 September 2005 16:42:33 [ permanent link ]
	In article <5g91i151i2kb6ofg0ee1r32gk3sf91i8l8@4ax.com>, DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote: I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in> October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on> my own for arranging everything.> Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on> flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle? Its up to you. Travel agents do not charge fees to their customers, so call around and see what prices they can come up with, then go to the individual hotels' web sites and see what rates you can get by booking the rooms directly, then also compare those rates with travel related web sites such as Orbitz, Expedia, Hotels.com, and Travelocity. Frankly, I think the days of independent travel agents are quickly coming to an end, but you really have nothing to lose by calling two or three agents in your area to see what they can come up with.
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Juliana L Holm 9 September 2005 17:00:48 [ permanent link ]
	Shawn Hirn <srhi@comcast.net> wrote:> Its up to you. Travel agents do not charge fees to their customers, so > call around and see what prices they can come up with, then go to the > individual hotels' web sites and see what rates you can get by booking > the rooms directly, then also compare those rates with travel related > web sites such as Orbitz, Expedia, Hotels.com, and Travelocity. Frankly, > I think the days of independent travel agents are quickly coming to an > end, but you really have nothing to lose by calling two or three agents > in your area to see what they can come up with. Most travel agents do charge fees on the sale of airline tickets now, at least domestic ones in the US, since the airlines are no longer paying meaningful commissions to them. Mine charges $10, about the same as Travelocity. They do not use Orbitz, Expedia, Travelocity. Indeed thoste three Booking sites are, in fact, travel agents. Julie -- Julie ********** Check out the blog of my 9 week Germany adventure at www.blurty.com/users/jholm Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm
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PTravel 9 September 2005 19:05:17 [ permanent link ]
	"Shawn Hirn" <srhi@comcast.net> wrote in message news:srhi-108F81.08423309092005@news.giganews.com...> In article <5g91i151i2kb6ofg0ee1r32gk3sf91i8l8@4ax.com>,> DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote:> I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in> > October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on> > my own for arranging everything.> > Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on> > flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle?> Its up to you. Travel agents do not charge fees to their customers, Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the airlines eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel agents charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be working for free. call around and see what prices they can come up with, then go to the> individual hotels' web sites and see what rates you can get by booking> the rooms directly, then also compare those rates with travel related> web sites such as Orbitz, Expedia, Hotels.com, and Travelocity. Frankly,> I think the days of independent travel agents are quickly coming to an> end, Not for corporate/business TAs. Many people who travel for business frequently depend on corporate TAs -- they're real time and effort savers. but you really have nothing to lose by calling two or three agents> in your area to see what they can come up with.
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George Max 9 September 2005 22:00:54 [ permanent link ]
	On Fri, 09 Sep 2005 15:05:17 GMT, "PTravel" <ptravel@travelersvideo.com> wrote: Its up to you. Travel agents do not charge fees to their customers,> Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the airlines>eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel agents>charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be working>for free.> Well, I can't say for other TAs, but the travel agent I used for my recent vacation did not charge a fee for her service. Somebody must have paid her, but it was not I.
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Juliana L Holm 9 September 2005 22:20:28 [ permanent link ]
	George Max <lazarus@removethis.rr.com> wrote:>>Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the airlines>>eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel agents>>charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be working>>for free. Well, I can't say for other TAs, but the travel agent I used for my> recent vacation did not charge a fee for her service. Somebody must> have paid her, but it was not I. Travel Agents get commissions for Hotels, non-domestic airfare, other transport, tours and the like. If you get enough of the commissionable stuff, many TAs will waive fees on airline tix. If they buy things as a set, they may get a commission. If you go out of the country, they may. Also TAs who have a relationship with you will sometimes waive fees as a cost of doing business. Any of these apply in your situation? Julie -- Julie ********** Check out the blog of my 9 week Germany adventure at www.blurty.com/users/jholm Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm
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George Max 9 September 2005 23:04:29 [ permanent link ]
	On Fri, 9 Sep 2005 18:20:28 +0000 (UTC), Juliana L Holm <jholm@osf1.gmu.edu> wrote: George Max <lazarus@removethis.rr.com> wrote:>>>Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the airlines>>>eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel agents>>>charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be working>>>for free.> Well, I can't say for other TAs, but the travel agent I used for my>> recent vacation did not charge a fee for her service. Somebody must>> have paid her, but it was not I.> Travel Agents get commissions for Hotels, non-domestic airfare, other transport,>tours and the like.> If you get enough of the commissionable stuff, many TAs will waive fees on >airline tix. If they buy things as a set, they may get a commission. If you>go out of the country, they may. > Also TAs who have a relationship with you will sometimes waive fees as a cost>of doing business. > Any of these apply in your situation?> Julie Absolutely. Having looked over the situation with selecting a hotel, airline, when to go and the rental car, it was just simpler to talk to a TA. The price she came up with was at least comparable, and likely cheaper than I was going to come up with. Plus, she lives in my neighborhood. I think in my case, it was a win - win situation. Your mileage may vary.
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Juliana L Holm 9 September 2005 23:57:16 [ permanent link ]
	George Max <lazarus@removethis.rr.com> wrote: George Max <lazarus@removethis.rr.com> wrote:>>>>Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the airlines>>>>eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel agents>>>>charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be working>>>>for free.>> Well, I can't say for other TAs, but the travel agent I used for my>>> recent vacation did not charge a fee for her service. Somebody must>>> have paid her, but it was not I.>> Travel Agents get commissions for Hotels, non-domestic airfare, other transport,>>tours and the like.>> If you get enough of the commissionable stuff, many TAs will waive fees on >>airline tix. If they buy things as a set, they may get a commission. If you>>go out of the country, they may. >> Also TAs who have a relationship with you will sometimes waive fees as a cost>>of doing business. >> Any of these apply in your situation?>> Julie Absolutely. Having looked over the situation with selecting a hotel,> airline, when to go and the rental car, it was just simpler to talk to> a TA. The price she came up with was at least comparable, and likely> cheaper than I was going to come up with. Plus, she lives in my> neighborhood. I think in my case, it was a win - win situation. Your> mileage may vary. Yeah. Mine is great, too. But I don't usually buy domestic airfare from her as she knows I can do better or as well on my own, and her time isn't worth the tiny $10 fee she usually charges. She books all my cruises and assists when I do independent travel. For my upcoming trip she booked car, rail passes, and airfare for my husband. Julie -- Julie ********** Check out the blog of my 9 week Germany adventure at www.blurty.com/users/jholm Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm
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Brian K 10 September 2005 10:41:40 [ permanent link ]
	On 09/09/2005 7:57 AM Juliana L Holm while holding "court", exclaimed: DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote:> No. The issue is simply that I don't know the tricks for getting better>>flights, and I know my parents have sometimes gotten better prices>>through a TA then by calling hotels and asking.>> YMMV. I don't think that you can get a better airfare via a travel agent>than on the web. Check out expedia, travelocity, orbitz, qixo, to compare >then go to the airline's own site to book. > Hotels you can often do yourself, but it does take work. If you are a member >of AAA, their travel book is going to give you good rates, otherwise, you >might find a TA worthwhile. If you go to a TA try to find one you have some >connection to, maybe your work uses a TA and the same TA can get you hotels>personally (everywhere I have worked that had a travel office/travel agent>they could do it, until my current employer.). Otherwise ask friends and >family. A TA does more if he/she has a relationship than for a one time >person out of the blue.> Julie> I always check things out and then call my TA. She has consistently beat web prices and gotten me better flights, hotels and cars for my dollar. An experienced TA is worth her/his weight in gold. Plus, there is the human touch that you don't get from a web travel bot. When was the last time a travel bot sent you a bottle of champagne or fresh fruit for your cruise? It's also true that TAs at a larger agency with a lot of clout have access to unpublished fares and hotel rates. When was the last time a travel bot was able to get the airline to waive the change fee? Has Travelocity and the like been able to pull in some favors from the manager of an All Inclusive resort and get them to not charge a Single Supplement for a client? No. But a good TA that you have a steady relationship with can do these things. -- ________ To email me, Edit "blog" from my email address. Brian M. Kochera "Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once!" View My Web Page: http://home.earthlink.net/~brian1951
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Brian K 10 September 2005 10:44:32 [ permanent link ]
	On 09/09/2005 12:03 PM Frank F. Matthews while holding "court", exclaimed: Juliana L Holm wrote:> DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote:>> No. The issue is simply that I don't know the tricks for getting >>> better>>> flights, and I know my parents have sometimes gotten better prices>>> through a TA then by calling hotels and asking.>> YMMV. I don't think that you can get a better airfare via a travel >> agent>> than on the web. Check out expedia, travelocity, orbitz, qixo, to >> compare then go to the airline's own site to book. >> Hotels you can often do yourself, but it does take work. If you are >> a member of AAA, their travel book is going to give you good rates, >> otherwise, you might find a TA worthwhile. If you go to a TA try to >> find one you have some connection to, maybe your work uses a TA and >> the same TA can get you hotels>> personally (everywhere I have worked that had a travel office/travel >> agent>> they could do it, until my current employer.). Otherwise ask friends >> and family. A TA does more if he/she has a relationship than for a >> one time person out of the blue.>> Julie> With hotels it will shift all over the place. When travel magazines > have done comparison studies I have never seen a study where one of > the choices (usually TA, internet, 800 number, hotel number) wasn't > best for one of the situations. Nor was one of the choices > consistently very good. Since you can usually do very well with the > last three on your own the money for a TA is usually not worth it. > Especially if you can afford to waste billable hours on Usenet.> A TA that charges a fee is not a very good TA. My TA makes all her money off commissions. I have never been charged a fee and my TA has consistently gotten me better deals than I could find on the web. -- ________ To email me, Edit "blog" from my email address. Brian M. Kochera "Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once!" View My Web Page: http://home.earthlink.net/~brian1951
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DevilsPGD 10 September 2005 11:19:37 [ permanent link ]
	In message <dfsjpc$2bhm$1@osf1.gmu.edu> Juliana L Holm <jholm@osf1.gmu.edu> wrote: George Max <lazarus@removethis.rr.com> wrote:>>>Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the airlines>>>eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel agents>>>charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be working>>>for free.> Well, I can't say for other TAs, but the travel agent I used for my>> recent vacation did not charge a fee for her service. Somebody must>> have paid her, but it was not I.> Travel Agents get commissions for Hotels, non-domestic airfare, other transport,>tours and the like.> If you get enough of the commissionable stuff, many TAs will waive fees on >airline tix. If they buy things as a set, they may get a commission. If you>go out of the country, they may. > Also TAs who have a relationship with you will sometimes waive fees as a cost>of doing business. > Any of these apply in your situation? I'll be traveling from Canada to the US, so I'm hoping that counts as international (in terms of getting fees waived)? -- Anatomy is something everybody's got, but it sure looks better on a woman.
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PTravel 10 September 2005 16:17:55 [ permanent link ]
	"Brian K" <brianblog1951@earthlink.net> wrote in message news:khvUe.10156$FW1.4326@newsread3.news.atl.earthlink.net...> On 09/09/2005 12:03 PM Frank F. Matthews while holding "court", exclaimed:> Juliana L Holm wrote:> > DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote:> >> No. The issue is simply that I don't know the tricks for getting> >>> better> >>> flights, and I know my parents have sometimes gotten better prices> >>> through a TA then by calling hotels and asking.> >> YMMV. I don't think that you can get a better airfare via a travel> >> agent> >> than on the web. Check out expedia, travelocity, orbitz, qixo, to> >> compare then go to the airline's own site to book.> >> Hotels you can often do yourself, but it does take work. If you are> >> a member of AAA, their travel book is going to give you good rates,> >> otherwise, you might find a TA worthwhile. If you go to a TA try to> >> find one you have some connection to, maybe your work uses a TA and> >> the same TA can get you hotels> >> personally (everywhere I have worked that had a travel office/travel> >> agent> >> they could do it, until my current employer.). Otherwise ask friends> >> and family. A TA does more if he/she has a relationship than for a> >> one time person out of the blue.> >> Julie> > With hotels it will shift all over the place. When travel magazines> > have done comparison studies I have never seen a study where one of> > the choices (usually TA, internet, 800 number, hotel number) wasn't> > best for one of the situations. Nor was one of the choices> > consistently very good. Since you can usually do very well with the> > last three on your own the money for a TA is usually not worth it.> > Especially if you can afford to waste billable hours on Usenet.> > A TA that charges a fee is not a very good TA. My TA makes all her> money off commissions. I have never been charged a fee and my TA has> consistently gotten me better deals than I could find on the web. What a stupid generalization. Either your TA isn't in the US, or your TA doesn't book domestic business travel. US airlines don't pay commissions anymore. How do you think a TA stays in business? --> ________> To email me, Edit "blog" from my email address.> Brian M. Kochera> "Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once!"> View My Web Page: http://home.earthlink.net/~brian1951
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Frank F. Matthews 10 September 2005 19:21:34 [ permanent link ]
	PTravel wrote: "Frank F. Matthews" <frankfmatthews@houston.rr.com> wrote in message> news:kpiUe.245381$gL1.8113@tornado.texas.rr.com...> PTravel wrote:>> "Shawn Hirn" <srhi@comcast.net> wrote in message>>>news:srhi-108F81.08423309092005@news.giganews.com...>>> In article <5g91i151i2kb6ofg0ee1r32gk3sf91i8l8@4ax.com>,>>>>DevilsPGD <spamsucks@crazyhat.net> wrote:>>>> I'm planning a trip to Dallas and then to Phoenix for a few days in>>>>>October. In Dallas, my hotels are taken care of, but in Phoenix I'm on>>>>>my own for arranging everything.>>>>> Think it's worth bothering a travel agent? Will I get better rates on>>>>>flights and/or hotels? More or less hassle?>>>> Its up to you. Travel agents do not charge fees to their customers,>>> Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the> airlines> eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel> agents> charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be> working> for free.>>> call around and see what prices they can come up with, then go to the>>>>individual hotels' web sites and see what rates you can get by booking>>>>the rooms directly, then also compare those rates with travel related>>>>web sites such as Orbitz, Expedia, Hotels.com, and Travelocity. Frankly,>>>>I think the days of independent travel agents are quickly coming to an>>>>end,>>> Not for corporate/business TAs. Many people who travel for business>>>frequently depend on corporate TAs -- they're real time and effort> savers.> Effort savers, perhaps. With our TA I could usually save the place money>>and make more convenient choices. I suspect that they put it out to low> bid.> My TA doesn't. She follows my hotel preferences, just as she follows my> filght preferences. Note, however, that I NEVER book solely based on price,> and would NEVER tell her, e.g., "get me the cheapest hotel available in> Atlanta" or some such.> but you really have nothing to lose by calling two or three agents>>>>in your area to see what they can come up with.>>> Most corporate TAs follow corporate policies not those of the traveler.
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PTravel 10 September 2005 22:14:15 [ permanent link ]
	"Frank F. Matthews" <frankfmatthews@houston.rr.com> wrote in message news:2SCUe.1110$S26.42@tornado.texas.rr.com... Most corporate TAs follow corporate policies not those of the traveler. Corporate TAs follow corporate policies when they're contracted to a specific business. As it happens, my firm has such a TA. I don't like them, so I use a different corporate TA. _My_ policies are the policies followed by the _my_ TA. I realize that not all business travellers have the luxury of selecting a personal TA, but many do. At my firm, most of the people using the firm's corporate TA do so because they don't realize there's a benefit to using someone else.
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Brian K 10 September 2005 23:18:42 [ permanent link ]
	On 09/10/2005 3:19 AM DevilsPGD while holding "court", exclaimed: In message <dfsjpc$2bhm$1@osf1.gmu.edu> Juliana L Holm><jholm@osf1.gmu.edu> wrote:> George Max <lazarus@removethis.rr.com> wrote:>> Unfortuantely, that stopped being true several years ago when the airlines>>>>eliminated commissions paid to travel agents. Since then all travel agents>>>>charge a "ticketing fee" or "research fee" -- otherwise, they'd be working>>>>for free.>>>> Well, I can't say for other TAs, but the travel agent I used for my>>>recent vacation did not charge a fee for her service. Somebody must>>>have paid her, but it was not I.>>> Travel Agents get commissions for Hotels, non-domestic airfare, other transport,>>tours and the like.>> If you get enough of the commissionable stuff, many TAs will waive fees on >>airline tix. If they buy things as a set, they may get a commission. If you>>go out of the country, they may. >> Also TAs who have a relationship with you will sometimes waive fees as a cost>>of doing business. >> Any of these apply in your situation?>> I'll be traveling from Canada to the US, so I'm hoping that counts as>international (in terms of getting fees waived)?> Provided you are doing business with a Travel Agency on the US side. It depends, some agencies consider Mexico and Canada to be domestic, others don't. -- ________ To email me, Edit "blog" from my email address. Brian M. Kochera "Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once!" View My Web Page: http://home.earthlink.net/~brian1951
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PTravel 10 September 2005 23:46:52 [ permanent link ]
	"Brian K" <brianblog1951@earthlink.net> wrote in message news:MeGUe.9934$_84.924@newsread1.news.atl.earthlink.net... My TA writes domestic and international flights, along with corporate> group travel, vacation packages, adventure travel, auto rentals and> cruises. She has enough business to offset any loss from domestic air.> That's her company's policy - never a fee. The company had been an> adjunct of a major airline. It was recently sold to an international> German company. Granted Independent "Mom & Pop" agents may be forced to> charge a fee. The "Mom & Pops" don't have the resources my agent has.> Perhaps I should reword things. It is an unsavvy traveler who accepts> being charged a fee when he/she could be doing business with a TA who> doesn't. I don't work with "mom and pop" TAs. It appears, though, that you do -- business TAs don't write vacation packages, etc. "Saavy traveler." Yeah, right. --> ________> To email me, Edit "blog" from my email address.> Brian M. Kochera> "Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once!"> View My Web Page: http://home.earthlink.net/~brian1951
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Juliana L Holm 11 September 2005 02:05:44 [ permanent link ]
	Brian K <brianblog1951@earthlink.net> wrote:> A TA that charges a fee is not a very good TA. My TA makes all her > money off commissions. I have never been charged a fee and my TA has > consistently gotten me better deals than I could find on the web. Incorrect. Airlines no longer PAY commissions to Travel Agents, so they make zero. Most Travel Agents charge a small fee to do air travel, since that happened. I would count a bad travel agent as one who does not know enough to get you the best value for you, not limit it to whether they charge a fee for something that they don't get a commission for. -- Julie ********** Check out the blog of my 9 week Germany adventure at www.blurty.com/users/jholm Check out my Travel Pages (non-commercial) at http://www.dragonsholm.org/travel.htm
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Timothy J. Lee 29 May 2006 11:22:09 [ permanent link ]
	In article <1148868924.046446.168660@38g2000cwa.googlegroups.com>, Gale <gwells@journeysbydesign.us> wrote:>However, people get things mixed up, not intentionally. The problem is>that the airlines don't leave any room for error, make a mistake and it>will cost you at least $100. Southwest Airlines is an exception here -- no penalty for changing non-refundable fare tickets (but you'll have to pay any increase in fare, or take reductions in non-refundable fare as a credit that can be used only on Southwest flights). -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Timothy J. Lee Unsolicited bulk or commercial email is not welcome. No warranty of any kind is provided with this message.
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Greg Johnson 31 May 2006 08:47:24 [ permanent link ]
	A competent travel agent will ask a customer if their destination is Portland Oregon or Portland Maine. That is what they get paid for and they should be aware and make it very clear to the customer. Trying to blame this on a customer who relied on the agent rather than reading his itinerary is the kind of attitude that leads many customers to make their own arrangements.
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Frank F. Matthews 31 May 2006 19:27:27 [ permanent link ]
	Tchiowa wrote: JohnT wrote:> "Gale" <gwells@journeysbydesign.us> wrote in message>>news:1148784037.458842.306590@g10g2000cwb.googlegroups.com...>> I agree, there are times when booking online makes sense. Especially if>>>it's just air transportation that you need and the fare is cheap.>>>However, when it's an unfamiliar city, or country and your needing>>>accomodations, it really is a good idea to go through an agent.>>>Thanks for your 2 cents Michael,>>>Gale>>> Why use a TA when there are excellent hotel booking comparison sites such as>>http://www.hotelscomparison.com/> Why? Read this Usenet group. Half the threads that involve complaints> about airlines, hotels, travel connections, visas, you name it, would> not have happened had a competent travel agent been involved.> I'm not convinced any agent can do that much. In any case your comment is useless since there is probably no way to actually find a competent travel agent for a given trip.
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John McDonald 17 May 2008 11:59:01 [ permanent link ]
	http://www.sletoh.com Compare hotel prices before booking to find cheap rooms. One search on sletoh compares hotel rates from 8 hotel reservation web sites.
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	see also: The w word TNB: Man Shot In The Stomach By Niggers Re: ELDOG (Esham)		пройди тесты: Who are you?from anime Naruto( ??)		see also: Для Русалочек и просто для друзей... Так,ВСЕХ присутствующих русалочек прошу… Ну что,поболтаем??????

Travel Agents?

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