# Travel agents for travel/vacation planning/reservations

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/travel-agents-for-travel-vacation-planning-reservations/688931>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [May 21, 2014, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/travel-agents-for-travel-vacation-planning-reservations/688931 "2014-05-21T15:02:01Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Incubus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c68b51/32.png) [@Incubus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Incubus)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/travel-agents-for-travel-vacation-planning-reservations/688931/21 "2014-05-23T16:50:10Z")

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My mom insists travel agents get access to discounts a person can’t get themselves. She argued with my wife (who is somewhat of an amateur travel agent for her family/friends).

Mom: “They have access to rates and fares you cant get by yourself!”

Wife: “And who told you that? The person getting paid to do all this for you, right?”

Mom: :mad:

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**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/travel-agents-for-travel-vacation-planning-reservations/688931/22 "2014-05-23T17:12:25Z")

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I don’t know about others, but when I use a travel agent at work to book airline tickets, it is functionally equivalent to what I do at home with a travel site. Select date and destination, click a button, and click on the reasonable flights shown. No people involved. I think there is a penalty for talking to a person. So if by travel agent we mean actually speaking to someone who helps you, this hardly counts.  
It would be good for an emergency, I suppose - never have had one.

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**Author:** ![TheLoadedDog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/35a633/32.png) [@TheLoadedDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheLoadedDog)\
**Post date:** [May 23, 2014, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/travel-agents-for-travel-vacation-planning-reservations/688931/23 "2014-05-23T23:00:24Z")

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> [@Incubus](#):
>
> My mom insists travel agents get access to discounts a person can’t get themselves. She argued with my wife (who is somewhat of an amateur travel agent for her family/friends).
> 
> Mom: “They have access to rates and fares you cant get by yourself!”
> 
> Wife: “And who told you that? The person getting paid to do all this for you, right?”
> 
> Mom: :mad:

I flew home from Hong Kong once, and there was a Hong Kong travel agent (Not airline employee) sitting in one of the little jumpseat things the cabin crew use for take off and landing - the entire eight hour journey. I daresay it was an industry deal of a free or dirt cheap flight, and the cabin crew seemed to give her a bit extra attention, but it can hardly have been a comfortable ride.

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