Written: 09/25/09
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 Travel Agents: Yea or Nay?
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 Poll: Do You Use a Travel Agent?
 Last year, a good friend took an international trip with a two-stop flight itinerary. Afterwards, he reflected on how beat up he felt when it was over: "Adding that third airport into the mix seemed to add a ton of extra travel this year; it was rough."
I asked how he booked the flights. He said that he'd used one of the big travel booking sites, and that the itinerary he purchased was the best combination of duration, flight times and price he could find. My response: "Next time, call my travel agent first. You'll feel a lot better when it's all over."
The following year, he did just that, and the agent came up with options that he could never have found himself using a single booking site -- specifically, a short and affordable Southwest flight that put him in an airport with countless options for direct flights to his final destination. What would have been another expensive, six-flight endurance test was replaced by a far less demanding trip.
I use my travel agent on about 50 percent of all my trips, so when CNN marvels that travel agents may be making a comeback, I have to agree.
The Return of the Travel Agent
Why now? Personally, I've found that the likelihood of using a travel agent increases in direct proportion to the abundance and complexity of travel options you can find on the Internet. Many travelers are discovering the following:
In offering more options and amenities, online travel sites have actually made it more confusing to figure out what they are selling, not less so.
The explosion of restrictions and fees -- many of which are not obvious to the casual travel buyer -- further muddies understanding of the bottom line on any itinerary.
The absence of a number of popular airlines from major booking engines -- the juggernaut Southwest being the most glaring -- eliminates what could well turn out to be a specific traveler's absolute best itinerary.
The big online travel sites got too smart for their own good; by tidying up and repackaging all the data each according to their own assumptions about travel purchasing, they show us what they think we want to see, but not always what we really want to see. That is, by becoming "online travel agents," rather than mere booking sites, they end up in competition with real travel agents, who can usually do the work better than computers can.
Despite being "smarter" and more comprehensive than ever, the typical travel booking experience has way too many dead ends. Whether it be the inability to get seats together, or disappearing fare sales, or the inability to lock in a fare for a short time, booking online is like being trapped inside a bad video game with countless trapdoors and false exits.
And my number one reason to use a travel agent: the reduction in flight capacity by the airlines has resulted in significantly more full flights on the routes I fly. At the same time, the booking sites have gotten only marginally better at offering seat choices and at seating companions together. Just try to book your family on a multi-flight trip and you'll see what I mean. Travel agents can hack their way through all this stuff.
It has gotten to the point that many travelers truly dread the moment they have to sit down at the computer to research travel. Seems like a good time to call in a pro, no?
If this describes you, or even just your next trip, here are some tips and guidelines for choosing, communicating with and evaluating a travel agent. For more info, including finding an agent, when to use a professional and when to do it yourself, and some potential conflicts of interest to consider, see Travel Agents: Yea or Nay?
 Choosing a Travel Agent
To deserve your loyalty and money, a travel agent must provide a service that is better, faster and more affordable than you can do yourself -- or naturally you would, in fact, do it yourself. When searching for a travel agent, I suggest asking the following questions:
What are the fees? This will help you figure out for which types of travel you might need help, and for which it will be worth the investment of time to do it yourself. See below for more on fees.
Is the agent comfortable working entirely by e-mail? Part of the point of having a travel agent book your trip is that you are freed up to do other things while the itinerary research is taking place. As such, you need a travel agent with whom you will not have to sit on the phone while she's researching your trip, or to have to make multiple phone calls to nail down the flights or hotel that you prefer. She should be able to do all of this by e-mail, with response times measured in minutes or hours, not days. My own travel agent has almost come to expect nearly instantaneous e-mail replies from me in return.
Is the travel agent open to suggestions from you, the customer? For example, if you go out and find a decent fare and flight combination, but for whatever reason want some of the services a travel agent can provide, does he check into the flight you suggested or simply ignore your input?
Is there a 24-hour solution line you can call if you get in a jam? For example, say you're flying on a Sunday night redeye from west to east, and your flight is delayed or canceled. Is there someone you can call at 10:30 p.m. to try to get you on the best next flight, or at the very least into a convenient and affordable hotel? Note: Not all travel agents provide this service, so if you find one, consider yourself lucky.
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