Are you looking for some inside information on cruise travel agents? Here’s an up-to-date report from travel agents in Philadelphia; the experts who should know.
Travel agents usually don’t cost you anything directly, but of course most work on a commission basis for airlines, etc., so you might as well use the best. Most travellers are unaware that anyone, particularly in the USA, without a scintilla of training, can pay a modest fee and become a ‘travel agent.’ So, to be safe, check to see, for example in the USA, if the agent is certified by the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) or ARTA (Association of Retail Travel Agents). Airlines have caused an uproar among travel agents with plans to force them to the pay credit-card fees when their customers buy tickets with plastic. The agents say it’s an unfair move by United to shift a cost of its business on to their backs. Travel agents are paid by commission on trips they book. If you ask three travel agents to quote packages to Bora Bora and Moorea, complete with sightseeing tours and maybe a layover in Honolulu, you will receive three different package quotes.
ATTA members include tour operators, destination marketing organizations, tourism boards, specialty travel agents, guides, accommodations, media and service providers. Host of the annual Adventure Travel World Summit executive conferences the ATTA provides professional support, development, education, research, marketing, career building, networking and cost-saving resources to its members. Asking travel agents about their favourites is a delicate question, a bit like asking restaurant chefs where they like to eat out. However, the results for 2009’s agents’ awards are in, and Canada is the cream of the crop again in the “Summer Destinations” category.
I trust that what you’ve read on cruise travel agents so far has been informative. The following section should go a long way toward clearing up any uncertainty about travel agents in Philadelphia that may remain.
Booking travel online is becoming more complex all the time. I love what TravelAgents2U did in showing the total price of a hotel booking, including taxes and fees, in initial display results. Booking through a travel agent is similar to having travel insurance to help make sure that everything on your vacation goes smoothly.
Booking a voyage with a guidance agency also affords the vacationer the power to full make their vacation. Booking a simple trip online is a snap, but if your itinerary is complicated, a travel agent is the better option. In fact, the more elements added into your travel plans, like hotel, air flights, tour packages, stay-overs, and multiple destinations, the more should consider using the services of a travel agent.
By talking with hundreds of travellers day in and day out, travel agents tend to have a unique perspective on travel. For example, a travel brochure will never tell you if the beaches tend to get incredibly crowded during the summertime but a disgruntled traveller most certainly will! Good travel agents will always help you in resolving all your problems about cruise vacation, if you are a first timer. They also help you to negotiate with the cruise liner’s executive. Putting a face to a name is proven to help build the relationship between travel agents and consumers.
Those who only know one or two facts about cruise travel agents can be confused by misleading information. The best way to help those who are misled is to gently correct them with the truths you’re learning here from travel agents in Philadelphia.
Jason Rock is the author of this article. TravelAgents2U.com helps you search and compare holidays, flights and hotels. Find your local travel agent in Philadelphia plus info on cruise travel agents. You may reprint this article provided the hyperlinks are kept unchanged.
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