Is it Worth it to Use a Travel Agent?

The cost of using a travel agency is usually minimal, as they make money from hotels and tours. If you know when and where you want to go, what you want to do and where to stay, you can save time by booking it yourself.

Travel agents

are great at creating solutions. For example, if a customer wants to visit Paris for a week, the agent can plan the trip by selecting accommodation, tours and transportation.

Travel agencies are great for booking most trips, but there are 8 good reasons why you should not use a travel agency and instead book your own travel arrangements. A lot has changed in the last eight years and many things have stayed the same, so there are more reasons than ever to use a travel agency (for the record, good travel agencies prefer to be called travel advisors or, sometimes, travel consultants, and both are totally accurate, but since most people still think of the industry in terms of travel agencies, I'm mixing and combining). Travel agents don't require expensive, specialized training. People who ask these questions are usually interested in joining the travel industry and want to know the benefits that come with it.

For example, every year, travel guru Wendy Perrin prepares a surprise list that includes experts in the field of travel reservations. But if you're organizing a large group, you need dozens of plane tickets (for which we use a travel agency), a honeymoon, a complex itinerary or an expensive trip - then a travel agency is probably a good idea. If you're looking for a beach villa on a Caribbean island, look for a travel consultant who has experience booking this type of trip. Travel planning is time-consuming and you don't really know if you're making the most of your vacation time or planning experiences that fit your interests and travel style.

When friends ask me for travel advice - and they always do - one of the first suggestions I always make is to look for a good travel agent. You can perfectly plan everything from pick-up, mode of transport, destination to travel concierge services to ensure that your customers are satisfied. Travel agents are even more important for luxury travelers who ironically often think they know a lot about travel and rely on their own misguided sense of experience. Before I was able to book online it was quite challenging to find competent and flexible travel agents who would adapt to my quirky travel bookings.

Even better, if you decide to make the job of being a travel agent your main job it will allow you to have another additional job with ease. Consumers can choose when planning their trips one of the most important being whether to use a travel agency or book themselves. All you need is some research on how to become a travel agent from home and you're good to go. Becoming a travel agent is a career path that offers the flexibility of owning your own business.

Sebastián Vanbebber
Sebastián Vanbebber

Hardcore coffee enthusiast. General internet maven. Extreme travel evangelist. Avid twitter expert. Subtly charming beer advocate. Extreme food fan.