Travel Agent Vs Search Sites

[THAIPHUKET]

We had a discussion here on the value of a good travel agent vs which search engine might be best. Yermanee argued that a good agent can often find the better deal. This is confirmed by the New York times article

http://tinyurl.com/7ewh5v8

It also shows that some of the quotations by search engines are moon prices, an experience that I have made rather frequently. the most neutral search is done with http://matrix.itasoftware.com/

But what no software will tell you that booking, even if you don`t use it, one night in a hotel, it may change the price for the whole trip.

[yermanee]

Since I'm mentioned I would like to elaborate on my findings.

Airlines pay commission to booking agents varying from 10% to 0% (Yes some don't give commissions).

Online booking agents are by nature inflexible regarding individual bookings.

A GOOD travel agent may drop some of his/her commission i.o. to get the booking, this usually for regular customers only.

Just my experience though.

The big problem is finding a good, reliable travel agent.

I'm fortunate to have found one.

Yermanee

[craigt3365]

Great article! I'll pin it in the travel thread.

I use to live in NYC. I agree there are a bunch of agencies specializing in trips to particular parts of the world. There are so many different ethnic communities there, it's easy to find one specializing in the particular part of the world you are traveling to. My first trip here was done that way. I did trips to Japan, Brazil and the Caribbean that way also.

But I don't really see those here. The few times I've tried with a local agency, I got better deals online. Or at almost the same price.

If you have a complicated itinerary, for sure an agency...or airline rep...can probably do better.

For my trip to Japan, there were no FF miles.

[trainman34014]

Good article and valuable info' if you are living Stateside but maybe not so valuable to those of us living in Thailand. I've grown frustrated with Thai travel agents who in most cases don't seem to be able to beat online prices and want extra dosh for booking with Cards etc. I find Matrix very good though and would recommend anyone to try them.

[WilliaminBKK]

Very good article indeed.

As Yermanee stated commissions have been cut and has forced most traditional agents to charge a "booking fee" or service fee-there is often some wiggle room in the fee as the agent in almost 90% of the cases will get an incentive from their GDS (Global Distribution System) ranging from $1-$2 a segment. NYC-NRT-BKK-NRT-NYC will generate income of $8 and a family of four on the same record will make them $32. Now for a twist, Vayama-budgetair now & expedia will in fact buy content from some of these consolidators but the online experience is not as good as dealing with a traditional agent as they will often waitlist a specific flight for you. Don't be afraid to ask to be waitlisted, often overnight the space will clear when the airline purges a flight and cancel non-ticketed records.

Consolidators were established by the carriers to work in a specific ethnic market, they will often have sub-agents and will take out ads in ethnic newspapers, be super cautious of dealing with them.

There are some mega consolidators in the US/CA/UK I am surprised everyday they don't advertise here on Thai Visa.

[THAIPHUKET]

I was hoping, that the astute art travel agent would be pulled out of the hat by someone, .. alas ....

What I am after is find better business class deals. May be tough to find, wait listing is normally not an option, seats are rarely sold out, I guess. Plus, if I spoil myself, I want to spoil myself rotten, i.e. lie-flat seats to make the expense worthwhile, which limit sthe airline selection severely.

[yermanee]

I was hoping, that the astute art travel agent would be pulled out of the hat by someone, .. alas ....

What I am after is find better business class deals. May be tough to find, wait listing is normally not an option, seats are rarely sold out, I guess. Plus, if I spoil myself, I want to spoil myself rotten, i.e. lie-flat seats to make the expense worthwhile, which limit sthe airline selection severely.

If you're not willing to do some homework to get what you want, don't expect us to do it for you.

I spent about half an hour a day to keep myself informed so could you.

But anyway once again , for business class (on board service and comfort) Oman Air can not be bettered but little bit more expensive than Qatar, the choice is yours.

Yermanee

Edited March 21, 2012 by yermanee

[SlyAnimal]

hmmm..... Personally I've always found travel agents to be much more expensive than just booking the flight myself online. In NZ I first found this, when I went to a travel agent to enquire about flights, they then rattled off me half a dozen options. However, when I checked the prices online for those airlines, their standard rates (when booking online), were cheaper than what I'd been quoted by the travel agent. I then returned to the travel agent, and took them up on their "If you can find it advertised cheaper elsewhere, we'll beat it!!" quote lol.

Likewise when I've enquired about accommodation, or had friends who have booked hotel packages etc with their flights using a travel agent, they have sometimes paid upto 20-30% more than what they would have paid if they booked their accommodation themselves online. In addition to this, the hotels which were selected, often weren't the ones which were the best value to begin with!!

Activities which I've seen friends book as part of their flight and accommodation package were also very expensive. They were paying those outrageous prices which are listed on the pamphlets in Phuket!! e.g. 2800 THB for a trip to Phi Phi island for the day, even in the middle of high season I think I only paid 1200 THB for this.

However, I will admit, that these aren't necessarily "good travel agents", and rather just ones who want to make a quick buck. My friends who have used them though, were completely unaware of how much they were getting ripped off, to the extent that I tried to not tell them how much extra they paid, because they were soo happy and I didn't want to sour it for them (Just advised them to call me next time so I could "hook them up". Funny part being, they were getting soo much enjoyment from saving 20-50 THB on a dress or bracelet, but turned a completely blind eye to the 20,000THB (or more) that they paid above market price for 10 days accommodation.

[Gone]

Let's also not forget that not everyone uses the internet so yes finding a GOOD travel agent can be good.

[rfukata]

as I remember there are 2 types of T/agencies:

A) retail sales: normally small agency - can not issue tickets and must purchase from a wholesaler/GSA and then

re-sell the ticket with a markup to the customers. (retail agents have access to the airlines system as well as booking

the flight with itinerary but can not issue the ticket) They usually purchase from several wholesalers depending on price.

wholesale: commonly referred as GSA (ground sales agent) IATA/ARC approved who can issue tickets to

retail T/agents by airlines or cruise ship, hotel etc. These wholesale agents then subsides the commissions to

smaller retail agents according to whatever percentage rates.

Normally GSA doesn't handle individual sales but If you have a friend working for a GSA, they can give you some

real good deals. I remember I had several 35% commission credits on my airline tickets back then.