While countless travel-booking sites have been hitting the market over the years, anyone who has ever utilized one of them will tell you how painstaking the process can be. DIYers the world over are convinced that taking the time to do everything themselves will be worth it in the end, but when you add up all the factors, you see that this isn’t exactly the case.
According to an article from U.S. News Money, a survey from the I.B.M. Institute for Business Value has stated that nearly 20 percent of more than 2,000 travelers worldwide say that it has taken them more than five hours to search and book travel arrangements online. As a result, more and more of them are turning to travel agents for help. Travel Weekly’s editor-in-chief, Arnie Weissmann claims that this is due to the fact that people are beginning to realize that there is a great difference between price and value when it comes to quality travel. Here are a few particular examples of how booking with an agent can make your travel experience much better:
Save Yourself Time – Instead of wasting five hours bouncing from one DIY travel site to the next, your travel agent can do all of the hard work for you – and probably find you a better deal to boot. The more you look around, the more confused you may get when it comes to deciphering the best overall option.
Save Money – It seems as though many travelers get nervous over the thought of working with a travel agent for fear that it will cost them more in the long run, but that’s incorrect. According to American Society of Travel Agents president, Nina Meyer, travelers can save big on airfare when working with the right agent – sometimes even saving themselves hundreds of dollars in the long run.
Travel Agents Have Connections – As professionals in this industry, travel agents are bound to make a few friends over the course of their career. Having access to a pool of insiders can help to enrich your travel experience by getting tips on all of the fun, cultural, hidden gems of your destination, rather than embarking on a typical touristy vacation. Additionally, you may find that those sales reps who have strong relationships with travel agents are more willing to help their clients get the deals that no one else knows about.
Knowledge – Your travel agent has made a career out of knowing the best ways to travel, where to stay and what to see when you get there. By utilizing her knowledge, you open yourself up to seeing and experiencing things that you may not have even known to exist if you had chosen to do the planning process on your own. Your agent will also be able to tell you the best time of year to visit your desired destination and steer you away from any sketchy areas you’ll want to steer clear of. Everything they know, you’ll know.
Here at Blue Horizon Travel & Yacht Charters, it’s our goal to make sure that you have the trip of a lifetime when you make arrangements with our agents. Check out some of the other ways that a travel agent can benefit you by reading the rest of this article on Money.USNews.com and call us today for more information – we’d love to help!
