Own bookings or use travel agent?

[Tinkerbella001]

I find a TA to be a pain when it come to WDW. Prices are the same and you are not able toile any changes to your reservation. TA plays middle man and Disney is not much easier on them for bookings either. To get the deals when they come out you must be paying attention to dis-boards, Disney and Disney visa rewards sites. When something comes up call in or book online ASAP. Calling a TA and hoping its as much of a priority to them as it is to you is a gamble.

A really good agent will be monitoring the discounts for you, and calling YOU to let you know when they're available! No, agents can't usually get you a better deal, but they can take some of the headache away, don't charge you a penny and most throw in gift cards or souvenirs with your booking Plus, you're helping someone EARN an honest living!

 

[becpee]

I book pretty much everything myself.

I enjoy the research, I enjoy being able to decide when I'm booking what, and I enjoy it shelling out massive amounts of money all at once...

 

[WanderlustNZ]

I book pretty much everything myself.

I enjoy the research, I enjoy being able to decide when I'm booking what, and I enjoy it shelling out massive amounts of money all at once...

I enjoy the research too. I even find it fun helping friends and relatives plan their holidays.

Handing this task to someone else would be robbing myself of hours of fun

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Plus, you're helping someone EARN an honest living!

Regardless of whether you go with a TA or not, the good thing is that every part of a vacation helps keeps workers in jobs. From the airline staff, to the shop attendants, to the people who sell travel insurance.

 

[becpee]

I enjoy the research too. I even find it fun helping friends and relatives plan their holidays.

Handing this task to someone else would be robbing myself of hours of fun

Funnily enough my sister and her DH are planning a trip and her DH said "we'll have to speak to the travel agent about a few things" and my sister said "Don't be stupid, we'll speak to my sister" to which he replied "Derrrr, that's who I mean"

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Funnily enough my sister and her DH are planning a trip and her DH said "we'll have to speak to the travel agent about a few things" and my sister said "Don't be stupid, we'll speak to my sister" to which he replied "Derrrr, that's who I mean"

That sounds like me and my family.

My mum is planning a trip to the States for her and her friends in 2014. She was running ideas past me today, and trying to decide between a cruise or Hawaii. I said that really she should run these options past her traveling party to see what they want to do. Her reply, "They don't care where we go in the world, or what we do, as long as they don't need to plan anything". Eeek! The only way I could hand over this much control, is if we were talking about a day trip around Auckland.

 

[Kiwifan]

She was running ideas past me today, and trying to decide between a cruise or Hawaii.

Tell her to try a cruise!! I've been to Hawaii & loved it but after going on the Dream last year I'm hooked on cruising

 

[hjd0411]

I'm another who loves the planning and do it all myself! I have never used a travel agent (even though I used to be one in a former life!!), although I did use DU to book my Wonder cruise last year. I chose them because they offered the largest on board credit. Honestly, they didn't have to do anything except book! I booked all the tours myself, and asked very few questions!!!
Also, I mostly go direct to airlines/hotels, because I have found that that is where the best prices are. Having said that, webjet do have good deals on hotels - they had the best rate for a LAX hotel last year, and also for Kingscliff accommodation for next week!!

 

[WanderlustNZ]

Tell her to try a cruise!! I've been to Hawaii & loved it but after going on the Dream last year I'm hooked on cruising

I've been trying to convince her to do a cruise. She's done a couple of P&O cruises and loved them. I'm trying to convince her how much she'll therefore love cruising on a ship that isn't decades old. Admittedly though, I'm biased. I LOVE cruising, but I wasn't a fan of Hawaii when I visited many years ago. The crowded beaches and tall buildings didn't fit with my mental image of a tropical paradise. I think perhaps I needed to get away from the majn tourist hubs.

Despite this, I think she'll probably opt for Hawaii. She doesn't want to fly any further away than Las Vegas, and 1 week long cruises between here and there are quite limited for her dates. I think she also wants a place with lot's of shops, so Hawaii will fit well.