Experience w/ Travel Agent vs. On your Own

[modernscarlett]

Anybody have any experience here, good and bad, with a travel agent. I am, sadly, a Disney novice, but learning much here. Wondering if it would be good for someone like me to let a pro handle things.

TIA!

Lori

 

[oldschooledge]

we always used to use a agent but the last 2 trips we booked got some minor things messed up( no park hopper pases even though we requested them, airport trans. not set up.) from this point on we plan on booking our packages right through disney.

 

[KimberlyC]

I use a Disney TA. I'm not a novice, but she was able to get me a good rate last time (versus Travelocity) and checked for all discounts I may qualify for. My TA books my ADR's so I don't sit on hold growing old and makes any changes to them that I decide later I would like. Now since I know what I want, I say please book ADR's at such and such restaurant at X time or nearest to X time, but if I had questions about a restaurant, it would be nice to have someone to ask in addition to the DisBoards. Plus there are other advantages. For example, our upcoming trip is in September so I booked travel insurance (just a cheap policy) through insuremytrip. Rental car coverage is included but only if I book through my travel supplier. My TA is considered a travel supplier and can book my rental. If I booked direct with Disney, I would have to book my rental car through Disney also in order for it to be covered under my policy.


PM me if you would like the name of the TA I used. I mostly e-mail her but unlike some other TA's that ONLY have e-mail she has a phone number and I can call her if I want. I have been very happy with her services which is a huge compliment since I'm one of THOSE people who thinks things are only done well if I do them myself.

 

[jlatina32]

On our first trip last october 2005, we did the planning on our own. We did consider a TA but decided not too. We did so much research and printed so much information from the time we booked (April '05) till the time we actually went (Oct. '05). For a first ever trip that we planned on our own, I say we did damn good!!!

I guess it depends on the individual person.

 

[Tam1067]

I did one regular TA (DH knew her family), one on our own and one AAA. I'd say the least help was the regular TA who didn't give us any real suggestions or advice or offer to do ADRs for us. I wouldn't use a non-Disney expert TA again because they tend not to know that much.

On our second trip, I did it all on our own and had no problems at all. I knew the package I wanted to book and called Disney direct--no problems. This time, we went through AAA and saved over $300 for 8 nights at the Poly earlier this month. The TA knew Disney pretty well (she specialized in WDW vacations at AAA) and offered to do our ADRs, but I'd already done them. She was helpful, and if I hadn't done so much research before even choosing the resort, I would have gotten more input from her--I just didn't need it.

On our trip next year (yeah, I'm already planning and we've been home just 2 weeks), I'll use the same AAA agent again really because we saved a few dollars that way.

 

[Quinn222]

If you look at my sig you'll see that I have frequent trips planned. I used Small World for our December trip and it's been such a relief. I haven't had to worry about a thing. Any changes, ADRs, activities I want I just e-mail Lauren and she takes care of it. She'll get me any special rates as they come out.

 

[MickeyMonstersMom]

I used a local travel agency for our first family trip and was not impressed - she did not try to save me money through discounts (said Disney's prices were basically fixed in stone), and had never been to WDW so she couldn't offer any advice or tips. Since then, every trip I've used Sue Ellen from Dreams Unlimited and have been very happy. If I want to make ADR's myself I can, but if I want to leave it up to her I can do that too. DU keeps an eye out for discounts and codes, and if I find something I just e-mail Sue Ellen with it as well. I had considered booking my shorter trips myself, but DU has provided such great service that I see no reason to go through the hassle myself!

 

[EnnEss]

We tried to use AAA but it was a disaster, we had to inform them of all the promos available which meant they were having to call disney multiple times to confirm things such as free dining and so on.

We ended up booking through disney and then having a travel agent that lives near us taking it over, simply so we could pay through them. It was the same price as Disney gave us and we still get the convenience of having a travel agent near by and the options of different travel insurance etc.

 

[iluvpiglet]

I used to use AAA for all my travel needs but they were never very helpful after I made the reservations for the hotel. Recently, I discovered MEI Travel and they are wonderful! My agent has done everything to make my disney vacation fabulous! She has made all my dining reservations, given me tour plans, made suggestions of which parks to visit on which days to avoid crowds and kept track of everything including how many days until we leave. This will be my DS's 1st trip. He will be 10 months. She has told me of her personal experiences with a small child to make the trip easier and more fun.
Her name is Angela Kroon and she's wonderful! I can provide direct contact information to anyone who PM's me.
I would highly recommend her and her agency!

 

[goofy4tink]

First trip in '99 and I used our local TA. Figured she knew more about it than I did, but I was wrong. She made many mistakes and I got no discounts. Of course, I hadn't found any of these wonderful sites yet, so didn't know that you didn't have to pay rack rate!!! Anyway....found some AOL sites that gave me a ton of info...got some decent discounts on my own. Then, I went back to work and couldn't sit at the computer watching and waiting. So, I booked through Dreams Unlimited, a resort board sponsor. They know their stuff and did all the hard work for me..got me every discount I was entitled to. Now that we own DVC I do most of my own stuff. But, I just booked my very first DCL cruise, and used DU to do it. I have no idea what I'm doing so I'll let them walk me through the first one!!!!
If you feel more comfortable with someone else doing it for you, then sure, go ahead and use a TA. Just be sure to use one that is knowledgable in Disney vacations. There are some really good TA's that you will see mentioned here on the DIS or other well-known Disney info sites.

 

[AdventureGuru]

I love my TA and wouldnt go anywhere else!!!
Let me know if you want her name...

 

[iluvdizknee]

I used AAA for the first and last time . Not very happy. Bottom line.....stick with Disney Travel. They are great and you can pay off the trip little by little like all the other agencies.

 

[lustergirl]

I always use the disney website and book my vacation myself. I have learned enough on these boards to know what to do!!!!! I love the option of paying my vacation as if I had a layaway- little by little.

 

[jonbil]

I am a travel agent myself...I always go the extra mile by making sure clients always get the best rate possible as well as make all their dining reservations for them. Some TA's around here don't even take the time to do any of this. Sooo many ways to book Disney out there...have to have myself stand out a little

 

[Alicnwondrln]

I used to use AAA for all my travel needs but they were never very helpful after I made the reservations for the hotel. Recently, I discovered MEI Travel and they are wonderful! My agent has done everything to make my disney vacation fabulous! She has made all my dining reservations, given me tour plans, made suggestions of which parks to visit on which days to avoid crowds and kept track of everything including how many days until we leave. This will be my DS's 1st trip. He will be 10 months. She has told me of her personal experiences with a small child to make the trip easier and more fun.
Her name is Angela Kroon and she's wonderful! I can provide direct contact information to anyone who PM's me.
I would highly recommend her and her agency!

I know angela and shes great !!

 

[daMomma]

I always use a TA. When you are looking for a TA you should ask if they are Disney certified. My mom is my TA and has completed multiple certifications to become qualified as a Disney agent. My DH and I wanted to book a weekend get away a couple of years ago. I did a lot of the leg work. When I called my TA she was unable to see the same rate I was seeing on line. So she called Disney while I was on hold. She was able to get me an upgrade for 50.00 more. I would highly recommend using a TA for all travel. It's always nice to have someone in your corner when you run into travel issues.

 

[snow_white22]

I also recomend a travel agent, however when I was booking this trip I had the worst experience with a TA, and the company. I had booked a hotel, alsmost paid for it and then found she booked the wrong one, then when she tried to book the right hotel it was like 600.00 more- I was so dissapointed. I had already booked the flight so I was freaking out a bit! The company's manager made it seem like no big deal so I said give me my deposit back and I will go elsewhere. I went to CAA and got an amazing lady to help me and she got us a great rate. So just remember TA's make mistakes so look over all you paperwork and repeat yourself 100 times with what you exactly want! Although I don't know how you mix up a Disney hotel with a hotel near Universal Studios!!!!

 

[QueenGoblin]

I liked having the AAA agent handle the actual booking. I did my homework before I talked with her and she came up with the same numbers I did. But she pestered the Disney people for me, called back to get a different CM when she didn't ike the answers one was giving her, made ADRs and got our MNSSHP tickets. Like another poster said it is nice to have someone in your corner paying attention to the details too. You should still pay attention, and like any service industry some TAs will go above and beyond and others are just ho hum so you need to look for a good one; but it made me more comfortable to have the TA on my side.

 

[4Jays]

I did everything myself when we went on our first trip in March. This time I'm using Deb at themagicforless. She has been great! She took care of reserving my ADR's and ordering tickets for MNSSHP. She was even great when I kept changing my mind about tickets and ADR's!

 

[welovedis]

Well, I'll be the dissenter and say that I would not use a TA for a WDW vacation again. Our first trip in Sept 2000 we booked via AAA with a (supposed Disney expert) TA there. We ended up paying about $800 more than if we had booked things separately ourselves. I found the DIS boards less than a month before we left and kicked myself the entire time for not looking into this beforehand.

Fast forward to now, we've been back a bunch of times and I've just booked the room, bought the tickets and airfare and figured out ground transportation on my own. For me, I like having the control and not having to worry about someone else following thru with my requests and then being bummed if it didn't meet my expectations.

If you are the type of person who would rather have someone else handle things for you, then a TA may be a better idea. I like to save money and also don't mind a quick call here or there to book a room or make ADRs. My airline tixs and car rental are all done online anyway.

Also, while you are probably overwhelmed on your first month or so here, after awhile you'll begin understanding things more and more and it does get easier and less confusing, IMO. When I first came to the site I was really bogged down with acronyms and discussions, but in time I came to love it here.

Good luck with your trip planning & most of all--WELCOME to the DIS boards!