A little transparency on the travel industry, travel agencies,

and the risks of booking online.

• Get the low price you found online with the great service of a real-person agency by booking with a company that offers a price match guarantee. 

• Travel agents’ services are free. Properties and vendors pay us for the business we bring them. We don’t charge for helping to plan your trip.

• Travel agents save you money when possible by not asking you to pay all at once. If prices for your travel package fluctuate downwards, a travel agent can adjust your  prices accordingly.

• Check their record with the Better Business Bureau.

• Make sure they have a real office.

• Ask if they have 24/7 service. If trouble finds you abroad, you have to be able to call someone who will pick up the phone day or night.

• Make sure they are insured, licensed & bonded so that if a vendor goes out of business, your travel plans are protected.

• Ask if your agent has actually been to the property, or has recent reliable customer feedback. 

 

• Travel review websites can be a great resource, but competing businesses often plant comments trashing the reputations of their competitors. If a review sounds fishy, it probably is.

• Read the fi ne print. Online booking sites say they can change the price you agreed to pay if they “made a mistake,” and they are not responsible to help if your trip is delayed, canceled, overbooked, re-routed, etc. That wouldn’t happen with a travel 

agency. 

• Travelers who booked online are the fi rst to get bumped if a property is overbooked. Travel agents advocate for their customers, but online buyers have little recourse. 

EliteTravelGroup.net

TammyLevent.com

(866) 726-9090

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