When to Use a Travel Agent
Why use a travel agent? Good question. Your local Travel Agent has been impacted by the Internet perhaps more than any other business. The biggest travel companies in the world, Expedia and Booking.com , didn’t even exist 30 years ago.
Furthermore, Artificial intelligence (AI) is having a big impact on all aspects of travel planning. To learn more about how AI travel planning please see our post: Best AI Travel Apps [2024].
Traditional travel agencies, such as Carlson Wagonlit Travel (now called CWT) have been forced to change their focus simply to stay in business. The main reason for this disruption is the fact that the Internet and other factors have reduced the size of commissions that the carriers are willing to pay to the agencies. The only significant commissions that still exist are primarily between the cruise lines, and the travel agencies. Thus, most of the traditional vacation travel agencies (e.g., AAA) are focused primarily on selling cruises (see DIY Cruises).
Why use an Online Travel Agent
The biggest travel companies today are the online travel companies (see Reservations for more information about these companies). Therefore, the first question to ask is, “when use these travel companies to make a booking?” These companies are great for finding the lowest cost travel alternatives, and they can even offer bundled travel solutions that might save you additional money. But often booking directly with the airline, hotel or rental car company can result in additional savings that you might not get with the online travel agent.
In addition, while I hate to have to talk to call center agents with any company, sometimes you really need to have that conversation; we have found that the online travel agent companies do not have the best call center operations. This can become particularly troubling when cancelling or changing reservations. You will not be able to work directly with the carrier if you have booked through an agent.
Therefore, when possible, DIY Travel recommends that you book directly with the airline, hotel or rental car company. The one exception is with international reservations when you are not familiar with the carrier or lodging. In addition, sometimes you can get an additional discount with the online travel agent. It may make sense in those cases to book through them. Our preferred online travel agents are Expedia for airlines, and Booking.com for lodging, particularly B&Bs.
