eac@drux3.UUCP (CveticEA) (06/11/84)
Does anyone out there know how to locate a good travel agent? I have
had nothing but miserable experiences:
1. I used to think travel agents went out of their way to get you
the best fare. WRONG!!! On every occasion that I have used a
travel agent, I have gotten a better fare later on my own. Cases
in point:
I wanted to fly to Oakland airport (not SF) since Oakland is more
convenient. I also wanted to match Continentals SF Fare. Continental
doesn't fly to Oakland. Anyway, the travel agent told me I couldn't
come close, that I had better fly to SF on Continental. I was
also travelling with a small child and they told me none of the
airlines with the super discount fares offered a children's fare.
WRONG AGAIN. Being suspicious, I called Frontier, who does fly
to Oakland. I saved $100 dollars with a lower fare and a
children's ticket and I got the most convenient airport.
A similar thing happened on a trip to New York (before the big
Continental fare wars). We were quoted $425 round trip on United.
I called around and got $305 round trip on USAir. Thats 240
dollars difference!!!
2. Besides not getting decent fares, I have had car rental reservations
and hotel reservations screwed up. I am beginning to wonder about
the hotel reservations I got for the Olympics now. I am
afraid that is probably too late to do anything about that.
How do you find a good travel agent, one you can trust and don't have
to double check?
Betsy Cvetic
ihnp4!drux3!eac2141smh@aluxe.UUCP (henning) (06/13/84)
**** **** From the keys of Steve Henning, AT&T Bell Labs, Reading, PA aluxe!2141smh YOU, yes you, are your own best travel agent. Even the best agent does not have time to check out each inquiry for the best fare; they use their experience to guess at the best deal which is constantly changing. Two things work; 1) Call the airlines and see who is cheapest yourself. Of coarse, you have to call all except Delta twice because they don't agree with themselves. 2) Go to several travel agents and shop for the best deal. This usually takes longer than doing it yourself.