I'M eally starting to dislike my travel agent vent and long post ahead

[gator75]

Back in sept my now former travel agent decided to persue another career , so she turned us over to another agent whom we've never met and also because we are two hours from each other. We leave for disney in feb and this t a has done nothing. she didn't send me an email introducing herself i have had to initiate all contact. I didn't know how to get a hold of her so i sent a letter still nothing. I even had to spend months searching for low airfare even though i told her it wasn't booked , and yes it was me that booked it not her. Finally get her email address and tell her i need her to book scooters for my elderly parents she acted like i was from mars she had never done it before i mean really your a travel agent and you've never reserved a scooter? so again i did it.

Then yesterday was it we had a snowstorm yesterday and i was supposed to have a dr app in the same town as the agent well.. i couldn't make it due to the storm so i tell her this and she comes back with yeah but payment is due on the 28th yeah i know this , b ut i just told you that i can't make it and will be there on the mon the 27th to pay it off. then she tells me give me your credit card number uh thatsn a big no i'm sorry i don't give my number to someone i don't know. At that point i wanted to knock her to the moon she has been a travel agent for 20 years and is reall ythat incompetent?

sorry about the long post just had to vent

 

[disney_mommy]

Wow, sorry you're so unhappy with your agent. Is it possible move your itinerary to another agent? Can you cancel with her and book it on your own?

 

[gator75]

I wish that was an option but it isn't because we also went in may of 2010 and we had issues withour resort so they are giving us 2 free nights and free park hoppers and our original travel agent was the one that dealt with them so we are stuck with her. our old ta just turned it all over to the new one.

 

[mckryan]

I'd be looking for a new travel agent for any future trips.

 

[Anna_Marie]

I'm sorry you have had such a frustrating time with her. I understand, I booked through a well known agency and I had to do almost everything. Our dining dates came and went so I had to resort to making them online thru Disney's site. She wouldn't return emails - I always had to send a second email before she would respond.

This year I am doing it myself.

 

[Northstar]

Back in sept my now former travel agent decided to persue another career , so she turned us over to another agent whom we've never met and also because we are two hours from each other. We leave for disney in feb and this t a has done nothing. she didn't send me an email introducing herself i have had to initiate all contact. I didn't know how to get a hold of her so i sent a letter still nothing. I even had to spend months searching for low airfare even though i told her it wasn't booked , and yes it was me that booked it not her. Finally get her email address and tell her i need her to book scooters for my elderly parents she acted like i was from mars she had never done it before i mean really your a travel agent and you've never reserved a scooter? so again i did it.

Then yesterday was it we had a snowstorm yesterday and i was supposed to have a dr app in the same town as the agent well.. i couldn't make it due to the storm so i tell her this and she comes back with yeah but payment is due on the 28th yeah i know this , b ut i just told you that i can't make it and will be there on the mon the 27th to pay it off. then she tells me give me your credit card number uh thatsn a big no i'm sorry i don't give my number to someone i don't know. At that point i wanted to knock her to the moon she has been a travel agent for 20 years and is reall ythat incompetent?

sorry about the long post just had to vent

Your old TA is at fault for not giving you any options. Clearly this new TA regards your reservation as a burden and does not think you're going to bring her any profit now or in the future... you two were wished on each other by the old TA.

But about the credit card... I don't really see the difference between giving her the number on the phone, and giving her the physical card while you're sitting in her office? If you don't trust her with your credit card, it makes no difference whether she gets it now or then. Her office will have your number on file one way or the other.

 

[gator75]

I'm not giving her a credit card number in person either we are paying by cahiers check she just wanted a credit card to make things easy for her.

 

[Piglets Mommy]

I'm not giving her a credit card number in person either we are paying by cahiers check she just wanted a credit card to make things easy for her.

I would consider using a credit card. Most credit cards offer some sort of travel protection, lost luggage coverage, etc, and can be there if something else were to go wrong. (like she never submits the payment at all and your reservation gets cancelled) Since you have had issues with her already, I'd go the credit card route for the added safety. Just make sure you use a credit card and not a debit card. I hope everything goes smoothly from here on out and you have a GREAT trip!

 

[RitaE]

I guess I don't understand exactly why you are upset?

Your payment is due on the 28th and she's incompetent because she is concerned that you might miss the deadline with the bad weather and the bad roads that are impeding your being able to drive? And you want to knock her to the moon because she offers an easy over the telephone option that won't require you to drive over to her office?

 

[Northstar]

I'm not giving her a credit card number in person either we are paying by cahiers check she just wanted a credit card to make things easy for her.

Oh, now it makes sense why she was fussing over the delay until the 27th!
If you give her a cashier's check on the 27th, that's really, really cutting it fine to get a payment made by the 28th. The bank has to process it, and even with a cashier's cheque, the money may not be available in the travel agency's account instantly.

If you're making the cashier's check out to the travel agency, I'd rather give them my credit card. It seems weird, but you have much, much more protection handing over your card than handing them cash. Especially if you don't trust them.

 

[erincon23]

I agree totally about the credit card vs. the cashier's check. If the TA doesn't make the payment, you pretty much have to go the small claims court route to get it settled, and even then you may end up losing your money. Where if you use your card, you can probably sit with her while she makes the payment over the computer or phone if you're concerned, and if you can't do that, you can confirm the next day with Disney that it was made, and if not, you can do it yourself. And if it does get misused, you have protection against that as well. This is really the type of thing that credit cards are best for! Then save that cash that you would have used for the cashiers check and pay the credit card right away, if you're concerned about incurring debt.

 

[gator75]

I guess i didn't think going the credit card route for one because we have cash for the trip and i guess the other was last time we paid the same way it wasn't any big deal at all with the old agent. you guys are right about the added protection though i agree with that.

 

[shortbun]

Why would you expect an email from a travel agent when you had been given her name and information from the old agent? Are you a VIP customer, big ticket items, etc?
Sad to say but travel agents have had to learn to prioritize their time to clients who are earning them money. A scooter rental is not commisionable, therefore you should do it yourself or expect to be charged for the call and given a service fee. You've already been told that you should use your credit card to pay for ANY travel and the reasons why. You call this t.a. a stranger and yet you've spoken several times and he/she was recommended by your old agent that you supposedly trusted.

Free park hoppers, free hotel nights. This is a non revenue booking and travel agents work on comission. Consumers need to educate themselves about how service businesses work. If you are a 'I need the cheapest thing I can get and by the way, I want you to do extra work for me even though you are not making a red cent' every time, a travel agent just won't be interested. They can't afford to be. Make the payment before it's due and find someone local. Be prepared to do more of your own bookings from now on unless it's a tour or something for which the agent can charge you based on their expertise and relationship in that area. Anything this girl does for you, she's doing gratis in her free time. Instead of being on the defensive, thank her for her work and let her know you appreciate her time. She's done you a favor. Seriously.

 

[allison443]

Then yesterday was it we had a snowstorm yesterday and i was supposed to have a dr app in the same town as the agent well.. i couldn't make it due to the storm so i tell her this and she comes back with yeah but payment is due on the 28th yeah i know this , b ut i just told you that i can't make it and will be there on the mon the 27th to pay it off. then she tells me give me your credit card number uh thatsn a big no i'm sorry i don't give my number to someone i don't know. At that point i wanted to knock her to the moon she has been a travel agent for 20 years and is reall ythat incompetent?

sorry about the long post just had to vent

I don't get the part about "knock her to the moon"....you were supposed to be there yesterday and couldn't because of the storm, so maybe she is afraid you won't make it there next week either? How do you know the weather won't be bad next week? Sounds reasonable to me that she would ask for a credit card.

 

[cm8]

Back in sept my now former travel agent decided to persue another career , so she turned us over to another agent whom we've never met and also because we are two hours from each other. We leave for disney in feb and this t a has done nothing. she didn't send me an email introducing herself i have had to initiate all contact. I didn't know how to get a hold of her so i sent a letter still nothing. I even had to spend months searching for low airfare even though i told her it wasn't booked , and yes it was me that booked it not her. Finally get her email address and tell her i need her to book scooters for my elderly parents she acted like i was from mars she had never done it before i mean really your a travel agent and you've never reserved a scooter? so again i did it.

Then yesterday was it we had a snowstorm yesterday and i was supposed to have a dr app in the same town as the agent well.. i couldn't make it due to the storm so i tell her this and she comes back with yeah but payment is due on the 28th yeah i know this , b ut i just told you that i can't make it and will be there on the mon the 27th to pay it off. then she tells me give me your credit card number uh thatsn a big no i'm sorry i don't give my number to someone i don't know. At that point i wanted to knock her to the moon she has been a travel agent for 20 years and is reall ythat incompetent?

sorry about the long post just had to vent

Find a new one when this is over

 

[tigercat]

I have used Dreams before but I must say my new agent has been fantastic. I am very happy with the service I have had from her. I used CAA the last time and basically after booking I did everything myself as they didn't seem to know how to do anything.
tigercat