Why use travel agents?
Because their knowledge and experience save time and money!!

By Sheri Leigh

Mega online travel sites have changed the way we plan travel. But have they improved it?

A simple round-trip ticket, in and out of the same city pair, appears bookable by “point- and-click” technology. But just try to return from a different city, or have a multi-part itinerary!

Now, to order that simple round-trip ticket could take as much as two hours and up to five separate ticketing attempts to complete, thanks to the inefficiency of the web site. It can get even worse: your credit card may be charged two or three times if the site allows you to keep thinking your submissions haven’t gone through. In the end, you may well pay $100 or more per person for tickets that you could have gotten in one five-minute call to a travel agent..

These things happen routinely to even the most computer savvy people I know. If they have such problems, what can the average Internet user expect? Probably a nightmare. With the abundance of options out there, the time and energy required to sort through them all is overwhelming. Just because you can “do it yourself,” should you really?

Now to be fair, I just spoke with a neighbor who was flexible enough to use Priceline. He paid $380 in October to go round-trip from San Francisco to London via USAir. I don’t know how much time it took him to book, but as an ex-agent I could have done at least as well, giving him a choice of airlines and times. He then flew from London to Barcelona, paying more than $300 round-trip. I told him he could have saved up to 70% on his intra--Europe flights by flying from any of London’s three lesser-known airports. 

For example, most companies will quote you more than $300 to go from London (Gatwick or Heathrow) to Pisa, Italy. But by flying from Lutton or Stanstead, you can get a round trip for as little $80 on at least two discount European airlines I know of. The same general savings apply to Madrid, Barcelona, Rome and other popular destinations.

While you can research almost any possible travel plan online, from discount air tickets and hotels to cars and special-interest tours, the fact remains that most Internet users still want the option to use the phone for additional information and final bookings on complicated itineraries. That fact has disproved the myth that the Internet would be the death knell for traditional travel agents. In fact, a number of agents I’ve spoken with have told me that their business has increased because of the Internet.

That’s because rather than antiquating travel agents, the Internet has had the positive effect of allowing them to focus on their special interests. Many tourist boards now offer education and certification to agents on their specific destinations. Industry organizations also offer training. Whether an agent’s interest is in a specific country or region, or subjects such as cooking, art or tropical rain forest fauna, the best agents have hands-on, ‘been-there-done-that” experience. That means you are dealing with highly knowledgeable consultants, not just order takers.

Working with a travel agents gives you access not only to their hard-won personal knowledge, but the combined experiences of all their associates, clients and friends.

The result is that Internet-savvy clients who research trip information and then contact an agent for booking advice – usually at no additional charge – can expect a trip that far surpasses in quality anything they could have discovered online alone,

How does Cultural Travels help you enjoy the services of this new breed of travel agent? By helping you do your research. With our specialty-tour database listing more than 1,000 travel companies offering tours to more than 40 countries – the largest of its kind on the Internet – it’s a snap to research the trip of your dreams.

Then, if you become overwhelmed with deciphering the differences among safari companies, or Tuscan hill towns or South African national parks, Cultural Travels can lead you to a professional travel agent. We list them by their areas of specialization, just like tour companies, right from within our Theme and Destination macro categories.

What could be easier? Instant research on our big database and assistance from professionals you choose.  Welcome to the Cultural Travels difference!