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Monday, June 1, 2009

Travel Agents and Their Expertise.

I have a travel agent that I use.  It's not that I can't do everything myself on the internet, it's that I enjoy having someone else's opinion on things.  It's that I like having someone do some of my work for me.  Again, this isn't saying that I can't do everything myself.  It's that I have other things to do.  

But seeing as my travel agent works for me, planning my trip and doing research, whether it's to book a $400.00 Westjet flight from Vancouver to Montreal, or a $4,000 holiday to Sandals, they do the work.  And I realize that they have to get paid for this work.

Although we know this in the back of our minds (We all get paid for the work that we do as well), we still don't want to pay them for their hard work.  I was sitting in Flight Centre the other day waiting for my consultant, and wondering where I was going next, and of course, over hearing the conversations that were going on in the office.

There was one lady on the phone, trying to explain to a client that the flight was booked, and non refundable, and that unfortunately, prices can change - which they can.  If that client had booked her flight online one day, and then the prices went on sale the next day, she would have had to deal with it.  But because she had a travel agent, she called to complain and ruin her day.

Another consultant was sitting with a couple for about 30 minutes going over the benefits of going to one all inclusive destination over another.  Once the undecided couple had decided on their destination, the agent spent another 20 minutes going over resort options with the couple.  At the end of all that, they stood up, and stated that they could find better prices online.  

I couldn't believe it, and I still can not believe how well these agents deal with their clients antics.  So in writing this blog, I hope to point out that if you want the cheapest price, do it yourself, but be prepared to deal with every little thing that goes wrong yourself.  If you like having someone deal with all the little pain in the ass details that we usually screw up (I'm a master of booking wrong days it seems) then pay a little more, and be thankful for the exceptional service that a good travel agent will give you.
I have never felt my feet firmly planted on the ground.  When I was a child, I would dream of far away places filled with jumping kangaroos and gladiators.  I took my first trip when I was 19, running away from my issues and neglecting to deal with skeletons in my closet.  

Since then I have returned to my first home, and have found that while it has a special place in my heart, it is no longer home.

So I roam the planet, looking for a place for me to plant my feet, and find a home.  Will I find it in this life time?  I'll never know until I find it.  But I will continue looking for it, until my last breath.

These are my journeys.