Laura Townsend Elton wrote a good post on Tripso about what she’s looking for in a travel agent. And her requirements sound pretty ideal.
The problem is, such a person doesn’t exist.
One of the first contradictions is the knowledge-access paradox. Many travel agents used to joke in the BB (Before Blackberry) days, that the perfect agent had been everywhere in the world, but did all their travel between Friday night and Sunday night.
Now, with the Internet and many people being online 24/7, most really good agents I know are often available outside of business hours. And we still get the occasional person who is upset when we don’t answer at 11 p.m. Friday or 7 a.m. Sunday.
And yes, there are after-hours services. But let’s be real. Many after-hours agents do a great job, but it’s not a career position. And the best after-hours agents “graduate” to day jobs, or just burn out and do something else after a while.
Which means that while the human on the other end of the phone will probably be better than standing in line at the airport, you will probably not be talking to the equivalent of your regular travel agent.
As to knowledge, most people who stay in this business for any length of time end up knowing a lot of details about a lot of places. But no one knows it all, and unfortunately personnel changes and cost-cutting measures can even mean that a place you’ve seen last year isn’t quite the same place you remember.
Although reading and talking to fellow agents helps, it’s still secondhand knowledge. And as anyone knows who has read a travel review or magazine, we don’t all have the same standards.
Plus, most agents have places they love and things they love, and places and things they don’t. Which means we aren’t likely to be as up on those things.
For example, can I send someone on a ski trip? Yes. Do I really know ski resorts, no. And I never will have the knowledge about them that I have say, about New York City or London.
Regarding options and research. Most reasonable people are willing to pay an agent for their time. But agents work at different speeds. And with different styles. An agent who can whip off a number of great fare choices to Europe may well not have the knowledge or time to go over tiny hotels in small villages in France.
On the other hand, an agent who may be clumsy booking an airline ticket, may be happy to spend the afternoon with a client poring over a map and giving advice on everything from inns, to driving routes to restaurants.
And of course, depending on how busy and what kind of travel an agent books, their fees can vary dramatically. Some agents, even now, are in this business mostly for fun and because they love travel. Some are as business and money oriented as any entrepreneur.
As with many things, the “best” travel agent for you will depend on what kind of traveler you are. Do you want super-personalized service where you may have times when that person is unavailable, or would you rather have an agent in a large agency where you will sometimes talk to a backup, especially after hours?
For that matter, do you want a travel agent who might spend weeks of the year checking out exotic off-the-beaten-track places, or an agent who never goes that far from his or her computer?
Do you want someone who works at warp speed, or someone who will regularly spend hours with you? Do you want a corporate specialist, a specialist in cruises, family or adventure travel, or would you rather have one jack-of-all-trades who compensates by knowing you really well?
And if and when you find the best match, will you treat them in a way that your calls and emails are the first they respond to?
Janice Hough is a California-based travel agent a travel blogger and a part-time comedy writer. A frequent flier herself, she’s been doing battle with airlines, hotels, and other travel companies for over three decades. Besides writing for Travelers United, Janice has a humor blog at Leftcoastsportsbabe.com (Warning, the political and sports humor therein does not represent the views of anyone but herself.)
