I am sorry that one poster has had issues with local travel agencies and their agents.. I appears that many also have issues with online bookings, too.

Maybe it’s the location? I live in NEW YORK CITY and dealt with many of these agents over the phones. Confirming fares, ticketing rules. Building itineraries that dealt with foreign currencies. Checking waitlisted flights. Booking vacations, car rentals, etc.
In fact, my FIRST CALL was from a travel agent. She blurted out her clients name, asked me to pull up the record, separate one person from it, cancel the return. A few seconds later, she says, “done?” I said, “one moment, please. It’s my first day on the job”. She demanded another Reservations agent.
That’s also your choice when you walk into an agency. ASK for the most experienced one. You’re intelligence level with travel seems high, Bill. I have no doubt that you compare it with those you’re willing to do business with.

What exactly did you have to pay for to fix it? And, you actually got CREDIT for your inconvenience in another case. The same thing an airline will do for you, issue compensation.

The travel agent industry does a poor job of filtering the incompetents out.

Every few years, I give it a shot by trying this travel agency or another, and I am seldom disppointed. More often than not, when there is a problem I’ve encountered when using a travel agent, I’ve been stuck paying to fix it as they do not generally take ownership of the problem.

I know there must be good travel agents out there, but I never run into them, I suspect they are too busy. However, they have to stop letting people who barely know anything about travel run the terminals.

The last time I had an issue with a travel agent being a complete idiot, it was in fact the manager of the travel agency. Their home office offered me a credit for the next time I used their agency, which was nice of them, but I declined, preferring to be far away from the place.

I then went to another travel agency where the agent was completely unfamiliar with well known travel products to obscure places like London.

They need to cull the herd.

A GOOD TRAVEL AGENT would of avoided this mess IN THE FIRST PLACE. A GOOD TRAVEL AGENT is knowledgeable on ticketing issues and keeps up on the industry changes, etc. And, I bet, a GOOD TRAVEL AGENT has contacts within some airline companies…..ie. sales reps to resolve complaints. This person thought an EMAIL would resolve the issue. Wishful thinking.

Back in the commission days, I worked with many GOOD TRAVEL AGENTS via a Reservations job. Many worked very HARD to accommodate their clients. Joe, I find your comment to be an exception, not the rule.

Most of you know us until the check clears – then its our problem.

I cannot tell you how many times agents have not paid attention, and either screwed reservations or did not complete them properly, or, booked a far in coach that was higher than the first class fare. This was back in the old days when they were paid a commission. . . . it has not gotten any better.

Websites have enabled the flyer to not only plan, but purchase their itinerary online. By doing so, you accept the responsibility of what you click on and purchase.
The problem I find with these sites, Expedia, is that when something goes wrong, they pass the blame to the airline. Or visa versa.

Years ago, my brother booked a weekend trip to the Bahama’s. Upon arriving in Freeport, he tried to locate the HOTEL that came with the package for the weekend. To his surprise, it wasnt in FREEPORT. It was on another Island.
He located another hotel, paid out of his own pocket and spent HOURS on the PHONE trying to remedy the mistake. Typical, airline versus Travel site wouldnt accept blame.

Good Article and thorough response, Mr Elliot. =)