Travel Agents

Example: On Iberia.com (the airline of Spain) click on Multiple routes. You may then stack up as many as 6 "open jaw" legs of your trip. i.e. you may fly form JFK to Madrid, then from Malaga (or lots of others cities) back home to NYC. Feel free to ask as many detailed questions as you like. We love to help fellow travelers!

Wonderful, thank you both :)

Most (all) of us here don't believe in paying an agent when we can do it ourselves. Planning the trip is great fun!

Everybody posts specific questions here for detailed answers from people who have actually been there, done that!

Chances are your agent has never been to Spain.

Happy Travels.

Hm, you make a valid point.
What airlines would you suggest then?
The thing is that I'm trying to flight into one city and out another and that's not so easy to coordinate online...

Sure it is, Angela. Just look at "multi-city" flights on whatever airline you are interested in. You might start with a search engine site like Orbitz or Expedia to find flights to/from the cities you are interested in. Then book directly with the airline website.

Try using sidestep.com to get a general overview of airfares and which airlines flight to/from your destinations.

I use this site and then I go directly to the airline website

See, this is why we don't use Travel Agents! It's easy to do it yourself and you can talk to people who have actually BEEN there instead of to someone who has only read a brochure and looked at pictures. Vastly different.

I have read some of the comments here and I think that you are doing travel agents a disservice.
There may actually be some who have been to Spain.
You will find that most people are in the travel industry because they actually like to travel.
While I don't disagree with the various post here regarding buying an airline ticket, I feel that casting aspersions on agents is being a bit
judgemental and portraying travel agents as
ignorant. FYI - I was a travel agent who did actually visit various parts of Spain.

Nadine, I don't think anyone here is "casting aspersions" on travel agents.

However, I don't think I have ever talked to a travel agent who knew (or cared) about a trip by my method of travel. They are there to make money, which means selling expensive packaged tours, rail passes, and expensive hotels which pay a commission. They can't make money off of discount rail tickets and family run B&Bs.

I once bought a flight to Europe and then wondered if I had got a good deal. I went to a local travel agent to see what they could find. Same thing I had found, but she wanted an extra $50 because the airline no longer paid a commission.

Bill,

"Most (all) of us here don't believe in paying an agent when we can do it ourselves."

Actually, the statement (all) is not entirely true. Have a look at my Post "It pays to follow Rick's advice", which is currently on page 2 of the General section. I still use a Travel Agent to arrange certain parts of my trip, including overseas flights and car rentals. Without repeating all the information in my previous post, I've found T.A.'s to be very helpful and well worth the small fee.

Even Rick uses a T.A. to book overseas flights and recommends them in his books. As mentioned in a previous post, T.A.'s travel also so they use that knowledge and experience in helping their clients.

Angela,

You might check the Yellow Pages or the net for travel agencies in your part of the NYC. For example, check www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=new+york+travel+agents&meta= for listings. Ask friends and collegues also, as they may have used T.A.'s and might have some recommendations.

Cheers!

Hi Lee,
I have been out of the travel industry for a number of years but I know about the fees imposed etc.
My issue is with the bit about the travel agent may not have been to Spain.
But I appreciate your point.

Angela,, my experience has been that using a ta will not get you a good airfare price , and will most likely have you booked into some American Chain hotel ... I prefer smaller locally owned places, and they are almost always better prices to be had doing it yourself.

I took a TA course years ago,, it was great as I did learn alot.. but frankly, I never persued a job in the feild,, they just don't make enough money unless they do alot of corparate travel,, and that would have bored me to tears.

These online forums( Ricks Steves and others, there are serveral excellant ones out there) are a huge help, and I am always learning a new tip from someone on the boards.. experience is a great reference I think!

I should add, TA's do have a place, as I said corporate travel, and travel with involved flights to Asia/Africa etc.. but for western Europe or North America, I wouldn't think of it.

You can do it,, and it is half the fun!

If you can find a good qualified travel agent who is experienced and committed to helping the customer and building a long relationship, then that person is worth his/her weight in gold. They can truly be a blessing.

However, in my many years working in the travel industry, I have come across so many unscrupulous agents who would say or do anything to make the sale. And then overcharge.

Thank you, everyone. Your tips have been very helpful and I've already started checking out several venues using the multi-city option.

A

I much prefer using travel sites like TripAdvisor and various travel forums like this one. I trust other travelers MUCH more than I would trust a TA.