I found the below article that says that travel agents do in fact save travelers money and thought it was an interesting read. I work hard to cover all bases when a traveler asks for help planning a trip. If I can't save them money, often times I will tell them which portions of their trip, they can do themselves. I'm in this to have repeat clients and to achieve that means I treat them well. I've always felt that I'd rather keep a client as a friend than lose them over $50 difference. Last June I took a group on a Mediterranean cruise with a 3 day stop in Rome. I saved my group lots of money using my expertise and connections. The ones who traveled from the west coast saved on average about $1200 per person! When you are spending your hard earned money and have a limited amount of time to travel, trust it to someone who knows what they are doing.

Consumers report that travel agents save them an average $452 per trip plus four hours in travel planning, and help them avoid costly mistakes, according to new research about to be released by the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA).  

When looking back on their past travel experiences, 63% of consumers polled said using an agent makes their overall trip experience better; 69% said agents save them time in planning and booking; 66% said agents help them avoid costly mistakes, and 64% say agents find the better deals.
According to the survey, travel agents lead all other booking channels for selling river cruises, and are tied with online suppliers for selling ocean cruises and tour packages. Agents also scored well for selling all-inclusive resorts and travel insurance, again nearly tying with online suppliers.
"This study dispels the myth that booking direct with suppliers or spending hours online yourself gets you a better deal, or gives you a happier travel experience," said ASTA President and CEO Zane Kerby. 
The study, "Best of Both Worlds:  Quantifying How Travel Agents Save Consumers Time and Money," was funded by Carnival Corporation and conducted by market research firm TNS Global. Detailed findings and a final version of the survey will be available on ASTA.org by May 30.
In the past 12 months, nearly half of consumers polled (47%) booked travel through supplier websites, followed by 25% who used online travel agency websites, and 23% who booked through travel agents. That 23% was the highest share in the past three years.
Nearly half (47%) of consumers who have not used an agent in the past 12 months said they would if the agent could save them money.
ASTA is releasing the results in honor of National Travel and Tourism Week May 1-7. In addition, ASTA's sister brand, the National Association of Career Travel Agents (NACTA), is declaring the month of May "National Travel Consultant Month."
http://www.travelmarketreport.com/articles/New-Study-Finds-Travel-Agents-Save-Consumers-An-Average-Of-452-Per-Trip?utm_source=TMR+5%2F6%2F2016&utm_campaign=TMR+Newsletter&utm_medium=email

Passports and ID’s

Take out most credit cards that you won’t need while traveling. Photo copy your cards that you do take with you and store in a separate place in case you lose them. Take a photocopy of your passport and store that copy separately as well. If asked for your ID while traveling for hotel check-in or renting equipment, show your passport instead of your Driver’s license. Your passport does not have your home address on it.

Your home

Stop newspaper and mail delivery while you are gone or have a neighbor collect daily for you.

Parking at the airport or cruise terminal

Lock the glove compartment or take any documents out of your car that link to your home address. Cars left for several days in a lot are easy targets for home invasions. If renting a car, take the agreement with you and lock in the hotel safe.

Using the hotel safe

Lock extra money, jewelry, passports, car and home keys, plane tickets and your trip itinerary. Anything that gives information about your home, your vehicle, or your travel plans should not be left out in the open.

Web Connections

Don’t announce your travel plans on social media ahead of time. When connecting to the internet on public wi-fi, do not go into your financial accounts or websites with sensitive information. Use the latest password protection and encryption software. Back up your photos in case your phone or computer gets lost or stolen. Password protect these devices as well. Install an app that lets you track your phone in case someone finds it, may also be a good idea.

**This is an email forward someone sent me a while back. I'm not sure of the accuracy but I hope it gives you a chuckle or two.
 

A DC airport ticket agency offers some examples of  'why' our country is in trouble!

1. I had a New Hampshire Congresswoman ask for an aisle seat so that her hair wouldn't get messed up by being near the window. (On an airplane!)

 2. I got a call from a Kansas Congressman's staffer who wanted to go to Capetown. I started to explain the length of the flight and the passport information, and then he interrupted me with, ''I'm not trying to make you look stupid, but Capetown is in Massachusetts.'' Without trying to make him look stupid, I calmly explained, ''Cape Cod is in Massachusetts, Capetown is in Africa.” His response- “Click”.

3. A senior Vermont Congressman called, furious about a Florida package we did. I asked  what was wrong with the vacation in Orlando. He said he was expecting an ocean-view room. I tried to explain that's not possible, since Orlando is in the middle of the state. He replied, 'Don't lie to me, I looked on the map and Florida is a very thin state!'' (OMG)

4. I got a call from a lawmaker's wife who asked, ''Is it possible to see England from  Canada?'' I said, ''No.'' She said, ''But they look so close on the map.'' (OMG, again!) 

5. An aide for a cabinet member once called and asked if he could rent a car in Dallas. I pulled up the reservation and noticed he had only a 1-hour layover in Dallas. When I asked him why he wanted to rent a car, he said, ''I heard Dallas was a big airport, and we will need a car to drive between gates to save time.'' (Aghhhh)

6. An Illinois Congresswoman called last week. She needed to know how it was possible that her flight from Detroit left at 8:30 a.m., and got to Chicago at 8:33 a.m. I explained that Michigan was an hour ahead of Illinois, but she couldn't understand the concept of time zones. Finally, I told her the plane went fast, and she bought that.

7. A New York lawmaker, called and asked, ''Do airlines put your physical description on your bag so they know whose luggage belongs to whom?'' I said, 'No, why do you ask?” He replied, ''Well, when I checked in with the airline, they put a tag on my luggage that said (FAT), and I'm overweight. I think that's very rude!'' After putting him on hold for a minute, while I looked into it, (I was dying laughing), I came back and explained the city code for Fresno, CA. is (FAT – Fresno Air Terminal), and the airline was just putting a destination tag on his luggage.

8. A Senator’s aide called to inquire about a trip package to Hawaii. After going over all the cost info, she asked, ''Would it be cheaper to fly to California and then take the train to Hawaii?''

9. I just got off the phone with a freshman Congressman, from who asked, ''How do I know which plane to get on?'' I asked him what exactly he meant, to which he replied, ''I was told my flight number is 823, but none of these planes have numbers on them.''

10. A Senator called and said, ''I need to fly to Pepsi-Cola, Florida. Do I have to get on one of those little computer planes?'' I asked if she meant fly to Pensacola, FL on a commuter plane. She said, ''Yeah, whatever, smarty!''

11. A Senator called and had a question about the documents she needed in order to fly to China. After a lengthy discussion about passports,  I reminded her that she needed a visa. 'Oh, no I don't. I've been to China many times and never had to have one of those.'' I double checked and sure enough, her stay required a visa. When I told her this she said, ''Look, I've been to China four times and every time they have accepted my American Express!''

12. A New Jersey Congressman called to make reservations, ''I want to go from Chicago to Rhino, New York.'' I was at a loss for words. Finally, I said, ''Are you sure that's the name of the town?'' “Yes, what flights do you have?'' replied the man. After some searching, I came back with, ''I'm sorry, sir, I've looked up every airport code in the country and can't find a Rhino anywhere." The man retorted, ''Oh, don't be silly! Everyone knows where it is. Check your map!'' So I scoured a map of the state of New York and finally offered, ''You don't mean Buffalo, do you?'' The reply? ''Whatever! I knew it was a big animal.''

Now you know why the Government is in the shape that it's in!         

    If you click on my page entitled W.I.N.G.S. you will notice that I've started a division in my business dedicated to women traveling in groups. I had the priviledge for the last year of helping a fabulous group of ladies plan  a trip to Italy. We called them the Bellas. They had monthly planning meetings, they took Italian classes, they attended lectures about Italy....they were ready. I'm just not sure if Italy was as ready for them.
    We had pre-arranged all flights, hotels and car rental. They departed for their two week adventure with no husbands nor kids.... only a couple of travel guide books in hand. They had all my contact information in case they ran into a problem. I will mention that planning trips for family is not easy and in this particular group I had my oldest sister Denise (first one on the right side) and my sister-in-law Annmarie (3rd one on the left) to please. Admittedly, I did think about turning off my cell phone and email while they were gone....just in case but I had full confidence in the tour operator that I had chosen for them. Daily I checked my messages and nothing...... they didn't call once! There were a couple of Facebook messages but even those stopped after a couple of days. I was beginning to worry. What would I tell their husbands... that I had sent them off to Italy and they weren't coming back? I happened to be online one afternoon and I noticed Denise was logged into Skype. We connected and they passed the laptop around so all could say hello. It felt like a scene from Charlie's Angels where the Angels would all sit around with Charlie on the phone giving them their next assignment.  
    They visited museums, they rented bikes, they ate gelato in every city (apparently basil gelato is excellent), they said they only drank wine one time? It appeared to be a bit more often from the pictures I saw but .... I'm not judging....just saying! What happens in Italy.... doesn't get shared on a blog.  They were serenaded. They attended the opera in Venice along with the musician Sting and his wife, Trudie Styler who were in attendance. 
    For me, it was an honor to help share in the planning of this once in a lifetime trip for these women. They commented that it was exquisite, trip of a lifetime, ranked in the top 5 of life experiences. I'd like to take the credit for this experience for them but I must be honest. Sometimes, the travel destinations and the traveling companions make all the difference in the world. I'll let their photos do the talking....

  I had an absolute fantastic trip with lots of relaxation and I am refreshed, eager and ready to dive back into work. HAHA.....Are you kidding me? Who is ever ready to dive back into their work? Let me know cuz I want that job!!!

    So let me start by telling how and why I went on this trip without husband or children.I was a travel agent way back when and got out when the girls were old enough to

need me at home and the internet killed all of our airline ticket commissions. I got
back into it a couple of years ago as a side job/hobby. It's getting better now that
people are beginning to see that there are too many choices available to do it on
their own and they need someone to help get the best deals. (How's that for subtle
business plug?) I’ve been working on my cruise accreditation certificate (completed now)
which says that I’m more knowledgeable than most travel agents when it comes to cruises. I’m
nearly done but one of the tasks I had to complete was to go on a 3 day cruise and
also a 7 day cruise. It’s a tough job but somebody has to do it, right? Princess
Cruise Lines offers their own cruise accreditation and when you complete it they will
let you travel at a “greatly” discounted rate. So….. two weeks prior to my trip, they
released space on a few of their sailings that were not full and I just “had” to take
advantage. My husband couldn’t go so I took my good friend, Connie. We told
everyone that it was a trip for two (nearly) empty-nester moms and we would be
spending our time grieving for our children that are no longer young. Ok, so I’m not
sure our husbands bought that story but it made us feel less guilty.

    We flew up to Seattle a day early. We boarded the ship the next day.
We had an incredible balcony stateroom. I said it in my last post but if you are
going on a cruise to Alaska….. a balcony stateroom is a must! The morning we sailed
to the glacier was very cold but we were able to run down to our cabin when we got too
cold and sit in our stateroom and look out the sliding door and not miss a thing.
Balconies are a little more expensive but soooooooo worth it on longer sailings.
The whole sailing through the inside passage is beautiful with wonderful waterfalls
and we got to see lots. I would sit mesmerized by the view for hours in the afternoon.

    The Sapphire Princess is a beautiful ship but I was told not even the best of what
Princess offers. Here’s a couple of shots of the ship. The pools (5 I think) and hot tubs
(at least 4) are heated and they felt wonderful after a long day of hiking the glaciers.
I spent nearly every morning walking the fitness track. It was a bit cold but I needed to
walk off the calories so I could eat the wonderful multi-course meals. I often hear the
objection from travelers that all you do is eat while on a cruise and yes, you can gain
weight but I ate (a lot) and with all the walking I did….I did not gain a pound (didn't
lose either). Connie found out the hard way that if she did not eat all her meal, our
waiter, Mario, would give her no dessert. He told her that his momma said if you don't
eat it all, you get nothing for dessert. So he opened the lid on her dessert plate to
show an empty plate with the word "Nothing" drizzled in chocolate sauce. 

    We walked the Mendenhall Glacier which is about the only glacier that you can walk
up to. It was beautiful. We shopped and learned a bit of the Tlingit Indian culture of the area. 
I loved the quaint little towns…. Reminded me of the places we would vacation in New
Hampshire, Maine and Vermont when I was a child. I enjoyed the flowers blooming
everywhere.

    Victoria BC has over 800 hanging baskets in their city that someone has to go around
watering every night!  Connie treated us to a pedi-cab tour of Victoria which was
wonderful. We had this Australian tour guide pedal us around the city for 2 ½ hrs and
he really knew his stuff and told us lots of little tidbits of facts. 

    So.... I'm no Rick Steves when it comes to travel blogs but I hope you got an
idea of the tough job that I have. If you've never been to Alaska, think about
going. It was beautiful.

  

I can't believe it's already been a year since I took this fabulous trip to Alaska. This is the post from my original blog dated July 1, 2011

Hello from Alaska!

I’ve had the opportunity to travel some in my life (not as much as I plan to) and I’ve seen some beautiful sites. This week I’m privileged to have had the chance to cruise to

Alaska and see my first glacier. I’m speechless. Truly an amazing sight!!

We arrived at the entrance to Tracy Arm Fjord at 6am. Waking up, I pulled the curtain

back of my cabin to see chunks of the most beautiful blue green ice floating by. The

closer we traveled into the glacier, the more chunks of ice we saw. I put on my jogging

clothes and went up to the top deck to of course, multi-task…. Jog and take in the

sights. I quickly found myself so distracted by the beauty that I was stopping more to

take the pictures than actually exercising. I went down to change into more layers of

clothes and to get my friend and traveling partner Connie to come up on deck with

me. We joined the others gathered at the bow of the ship and took in the most

breathtaking sights. We stood mesmerized for over 2 hours. I loved hearing the

chatter of so many different languages as we all experienced this together. No one

pushed or shoved but took our time enjoying the 360 degree views. There was enough

for all to see. Sea lions were plentiful laying on the chunks of ice while we held our

breath that they’d get out of the way of the ship in time. I have to say, I did have a few

brief thoughts of Celine Dion singing as we drove through those chunks of ice…but our

hearts boat went on. Connie and a few others spotted a bear through the trees.

As I sit here writing, we are traveling en-route to Juneau. I’ve been sitting in front of

the sliding door of my cabin (travel tip---a balcony cabin is an absolute must on this

trip) writing a sentence and then pausing to stare at the mountains and shorelines that

is my view. Wish you were here enjoying this with me.