If you read nothing else I write, read this. Hiring a travel agent is FREE! No scams or gimmicks or upgrades. Why wouldn't you at the very least call and speak to one. Having a travel agent isn't just a luxury. It's the smartest thing you can do for yourself and your trip.
My personal experience:
Skip helped us put together a FABULOUS dream vacation to Italy for our 10 year anniversary. From the first phone call to start planning to the day we got home everything went smoothly. He was always quick to respond, personal and worked with the budget we gave him.
I'm a wedding and event planner so I'm a very detailed person and used to planning our small family trips but there are so many things to consider for your first international flight. Getting our passports, knowing which airports to fly in and out of, how long of a layover is enough time, how to travel between cities, setting up tours in a city where you don't speak the language, what to do when you're there. Skip sat down with us before we left to go over our itinerary and each activity along the way. Could I have planned this trip by myself? Maybe. But knowing the ins and outs of traveling is what he is an expert in and he can save you time and so much stress along the way. For example:
Passports: We were going to just go to the post office to get our passport. When I told Skip our plan he stopped me and suggested a few passport services. As he pointed out, the post office is a government agency. Enough said. They can move slow. They can lose mail. Maybe it's not common but do you really want to take the chance of a single delay and you missing your trip? We took our applications to one of the recommended offices and they immediately caught an error on our form. Had we taken it to the post office, they would have never noticed the error and our application would have been returned and delayed getting our passport.
Traveling: When I questioned the long layover there and back Skip advised me that I would need the time to get through customs. Boy was he right! We were never rushed but had it been up to me and I had moved the flights to what I thought were best, we would have missed our flights. Experienced travel agents know what to expect, are familiar with different airports and airlines. Have you ever booked a flight or hotel with an online discount company only to have an issue arise? You are at the mercy of someone on the other end of the line after waiting to get through to customer service and that doesn't guarantee the issue is resolved. $$$ and time wasted.
Once we were in Italy, Skip had arranged for concierge services from the moment we grabbed our luggage. We had private drivers and even a private boat that took us from the airport to our hotel. No waiting in line for taxis. No fumbling for directions. We were treated like VIPs from the minute we touched down in Italy until we left.
Skip arranged for private tours for the sights we most wanted to see. We avoided lines that wrapped around the block just to get in and were escorted through each area with an informative tour guide. Made the experience so much nicer and allowed us to have the rest of the day to do what we wanted.
We visited three cities in total and used the train to travel between them. Skip had an agent waiting for us at the hotel each time who not only got us to the train station but also walked us through the station to our seat so we knew exactly what to do and how to travel. Then when we got off the train our driver was waiting for us to take us to the next hotel. Could you figure it out on your own? Possibly. But again, why have that added stress if you don't speak the language or understand what to do. While on one of our train rides, we watched a young girl get on only to later argue with the conductor, cry and ultimately have to move because of an issue with her ticket. Misunderstandings happen. But a travel agent knows how to guide you through all of that.
Our second stop could have been a disaster when we got out of our car and went to check-in to the hotel. Only after having been there for about 5 minutes we realized we had left a bag in the car that had just dropped us off. The bag had all our electronics and most importantly, our passports. I calmly reached into the suitcase and pulled out the 2nd copy of our itinerary Skip had put together for us before we left. I called the number for the car service and within minutes they returned with our bag untouched. That small lapse in judgment could have been a nightmare had we taken a city taxi.
We saw some of the most amazing pieces of history, immersed ourselves in the culture, ate some of the best foods and had such a relaxing experience the whole time. Truly it was a dream vacation and one we will never forget and we have Skip to think for that. I have no reservations in recommending him to my clients and brides and using him for every trip in the future! read more
