Are travel agents worth it?
>>1234761
No, it's the year 2017
>>1234761
is it even worth visiting? I heard it's a two hour trek from chiang mai to the middle of bumfuck nowhere. all the locals i spoke to said it's a tourist trap
>>1234761
For group or large family travel or travel to put of the way places with little tourist infrastructure, when booking with the travel agent also includes tours, like Gate 1 Travel
>>1234761
Are you 75 years or older?
>>1234761
If you have money (at least 10grand to throw at your trip) yes. They will find the very best places, and remove all the tedious bullshit planning that comes before trips.
If you're on a shoestring budget I don't know if they can help you because they don't have experience finding accommodations for people who hitchhike and eat from a giant bag of rice everyday.
>>1234761
Not at all
Unless you are going to somewhere like north korea or somalia
>>1234919
Wot, in the UK you can get cheap deals through travel agents but these days most people just do it all online.
>my friend used a travel agent and visited 2 cities in Italy (from the east coast USA) for a 10 day trip for a total cost of $4000
>I planned, and visited Rome, Prague, Krakow, and Kiev for 16 days for a total of $2000
And people tell me I am rich because I travel. Its not because im rich its because im not a fucking idiot who lets someone else plan my trip and overcharge me while planning the most boring cookie-cutter itinerary imaginable.
>>1235941
But if you have ever booked though Expedia or any other online site not directly owned by a carrier or lodging provider, you are using a travel agent
>>1234761
I used to travel internationally for work a lot, and usually used the corporate travel agent. They were on some occasions able to find connections that I could not, and saved me some hassle--I had to book a few weirdly complicated itineraries. I think for most people who like poking around online there is little reason to use a professional travel agent, but it's harmless to check with one if you don't like the results you've found yourself. And the difference in price is minimal.
>>1235999
Oh, I've also used travel agents when backpacking a couple of times, mostly to get visas.
>>1234761
No.
Obviously not.
You have /trv/ and various informed expat forums to consult.
Don't pay someone to do this for you.
>>1236022
>Don't pay someone to do this for you
What about a group of people?
>>1237307
More dicks to suck. Best get started, OP
>>1234761
>Are travel agents worth it.
Short answer: No.
Longer answer: Sometimes.
If you are traveling with a large group, and don't want to be the goat when things get fucked up -- and something always gets fucked up -- or if you just can't be arsed to take on the work of organizing everybody else's stuff, a travel agent can take all that on for you, which can be a fine thing. I also think they have some value if you have to organize a complex multi-ticket routing, but don't trust them to know what your comfort level with layover-times-to-clear-customs and such, unless you tell them. And I guess if you are doing the resort/cruise thing, maybe they can find you a deal, though special-deals-offered-to-travel-agents-only seems to be a thing of the past, maybe.
Oh, and I have used an agent who had a lot of experience in an area where I had none, where English is scarce and where time was short, just to make something happen when I was floundering.
But yeah, in general, you can do most things yourself without them now.
>>1234761
Q. How valuable is your time to you? Busy life?
Q. Are you a skilled traveler and does it matter if you make mistakes (this time around)?
Q. Are you going to a place that is largely offline, and will you need to spend a day on the phone (or online) doing your arrangements?
Travel agents are invaluable from a corporate sense. Their skill can save a corporation actual $$$ when someone else is footing your bills.
From a personal standpoint, I've watched less need for them over the decades, but I use them in some conditions. When I take a cruise, I probably 75% of the time use them. A travel website often gives you the unused, then, refunded later (ie free) travel insurance. I would not set foot on a ship without airlift and other travel insurance. This can save you $80-150 per trip. You'll get the balcony upgrade, but maybe not the onboard credit of booking direct with the cruise line. You pick your preference. I pick insurance.
I about 25% of the time use a travel agency to book multi-day trips somewhere that has high credit card crime, like most of eastern europe. I lose my flexibility of newest hotel choices, but I prepay all my nights on a single transaction and exchange rate on my credit card. I notice when I use europeanvacations.com that most of my rates beat the online best posted rates and includes breakfast for free which saves about 15euro/day surcharge at most of these places and to me, gives me instant caffeine and food in the a.m. time while I get back to plan a day's sights over my local food. I almost always get 4star selections at 2star prices. But, like I said, the coolest most new boutique hotel won't be on the hotel choice options with them.
If you book with groups, its nice that there is a 3rd party to field the novice questions, and provide a central phone number and email versus all your own hassle, esp if you are a busy person and you want to avoid petty conflicts and control freaks. Travel agents are customer service.
>>1235949
Did your friend seriously go on a guided tour to Italy from the US and only for 10 days? Wew
>>1237920
Probably one region. USA is way too large for that.
>>1234761
Every time you don't book direct with lodging or an airline you are using a travel agent.
>>1234847
Can't speak from experience, but pretty much everything I've heard suggests this. I've been pleasantly surprised by some tourist traps, but it just doesn't even look good besides the heavily edited pictures. Any pictures I've seen not pitched at tourists were unimpressive.
>>1234761
Want a package holiday? Maybe
Want to do separete flights and book your own hotels? no
Old? Probably
Incompetant? Yes
Can't use internet? Yes
Have plugged in a printer and got it working on a network? No
More than 2 braincells? No
Need special conditions? Yes
Going as a party? Maybe
Only travel with national airline carrier because you've not heard of anything else? Yes
Does this statement sound like you?: "I can go anywhere with my passport and no-one can stop me" Yes or no?
If you answered no: Well done, you know what a visa is, congrats, you don't need an agent
If you answered yes: You're an idiot who thinks too highly of themselves and should probably be shot. Ask your travel agent for visa information. Feel free to shoot yourself.
>>1234761
It depends on how weird is the destiny and your necessity of an interpreter.