Travel Agent or Book Your Own Flights

[Bearbait1]

I see that some people research and book your own flights and others use a travel agent. Is using a travel agent cheaper or just more convenient? has anyone tried both and compared the two?

 

[Hogpatrol]

Travel agent here, gun permits, transfers, airline notifications, required documentation, meet & greet, smooth entry and departure from airports and last but not least, it's good to have a backup in the event of a travel disruption. Having said that, can one do it all on their own? Absolutely, just hope something doesn't go south.

 

[Tra3]

An agent is a small price to pay for streamlining things. You are paying for the time you don’t have to spend figuring something out.

 

[375Fox]

I would say using the travel agent is more of a convenience than necessity, but I wouldn’t consider not using one if I’m traveling with firearms, even though I’m quite confident I could do it for South Africa or Namibia. How many stories have you heard of problems traveling with firearms? How many of those booked themselves and how many of them used an agent? I’ve never had a single issue. I’ve used a couple travel agents that specialize in hunting travel, some have a bit higher fees than others, but for peace of mind $100-$250 is a really small cost to have someone arrange your trip properly for you and manage any changes that need to be made.
I’ll admit this is an unlikely situation to happen again (hopefully), but read what happened to me this March. I had no way working to get my flights changed and trying to get to town at the same time. I’m really appreciative of the work they did and glad I used an agent.

SOUTH AFRICA: Kingsview Safaris March 2020

I just returned back to US on March 22nd after finishing a hunt with Kingsview Safaris in the Eastern Cape with PH/outfitter Jono McHugh. This was my 9th African hunt between South Africa, Namibia, and Zambia. This was a really great hunt and was equal with any of my best hunts. I hunted from...

www.africahunting.com

 

[Red Leg]

For international travel, I always, always use a travel agent - hunting or playing tourist (and my spouse and I are on the road a lot). Both Gracy Travel and our own @TRAVEL EXPRESS are superb choices.

 

[outwestidaho]

Travel agents make sure you have enough time between flights as they understand gun clearing etc. If there's a problem along the way you have some one to call. I could easily book most of my flights but defiantly see the huge value of an agent if something were to go wrong. While transferering to another flight in africa a friend of mine was told his ticket to the cape didn't exist. Even though he had all the paper work that said it did. We had booked through Gracy travel and it was all settled In 10 minutes by there airport employee Bruce . Spend the extra cash !

 

[JimP]

Travel agent is well worth the cost.

Let them have the headache of getting your flights. Then if something happens when you can't be contacted it can get taken care of before you even know that it happened.

@TRAVEL EXPRESS are who I used and would recommend and use them again.

 

[Hogpatrol]

Travel agents make sure you have enough time between flights as they understand gun clearing etc. If there's a problem along the way you have some one to call. I could easily book most of my flights but defiantly see the huge value of an agent if something were to go wrong. While transferering to another flight in africa a friend of mine was told his ticket to the cape didn't exist. Even though he had all the paper work that said it did. We had booked through Gracy travel and it was all settled In 10 minutes by there airport employee Bruce . Spend the extra cash !

Bruce is like the mayor of O.R. Tambo. He seems to know everyone that works there and has fixed more than a few kerfuffles for me.

 

[sierraone]

I've went both ways many times. But if I am carrying guns or having multiple plane changes in route to my destination, I lean toward a travel agent and in recent years that has been Lori @TRAVEL EXPRESS .

 

[Royal27]

For me, it all depends. I think the agent is more about peace of mind than saving any money. In fact I've chosen not to use an agent because it was going to cost me significantly MORE money to book through an agent.

I've also had two instances to use the "peace of mind" that I paid for when flights were cancelled (actually took off and turned around for various reasons). The first time I was basically told by the agent "good luck with that, here is who you need to call, let us know how it turned out." The second time a year later in the exact same situation the agent (different one) went above and beyond to make sure I was taken care of, and this all started before I was even back on the ground! WhatsApp is amazing.

So back to "it depends":

1. No guns and I will book on my own, unless an agent can get me an equal or cheaper price, which I haven't found to be the case all the time
2. With guns and a straight forward flight like ATL/TAM and I will now also likely do it myself unless I can save money
3. Multiple stops or new countries and I'm most likely going to use the experts that have saved me before

I've found Gracy to be excellent. They are the one mentioned above that went above and beyond.

 

[Royal27]

Bruce is like the mayor of O.R. Tambo. He seems to know everyone that works there and has fixed more than a few kerfuffles for me.

Bruce saved my butt once too, separate from the issue I mentioned above.

 

[Hank2211]

Add me to those who say travel agent.

First, travel agents can often find flights which would be difficult for non-professionals to find. If you have one flight or one easy connection, then this might not be a deciding factor, but for many of us, getting to where we need to be in Africa can involve multiple flights.

Second, a good travel agent can save you money. I have looked at prices for flights and for some reason, my travel agent can always find something cheaper if not both cheaper and better - and I usually travel business class. My travel agent will often come in a few thousand dollars below what I can put together. If you have access to something like SABRE, then have at it. For the rest of us, a travel agent is well worth it.

Third, and this is the reason which cinches it for me, if you have a problem while flying - flight cancels, you miss a connection, etc., there is a world of difference between trying to fix things yourself from the middle of nowhere and sitting back and waiting for the travel agent to email you a new itinerary. Like insurance. You might not need it, but when you do, you're glad you have it.

All of this depends on having a "good" travel agents. There are plenty out there who do the bare minimum and aren't really worth it (when you see how much they make . . . it's a wonder anyone does the job anymore). Word of mouth, experience, etc., are all good ways to find someone who's prepared to go the extra mile (no pun intended!) to get you where you need to be, when you need to be there, at the lowest possible cost. But in well over a dozen trips to various parts of Africa, I've never second guessed my decision to use a travel agent (and I make all of my own North American and European bookings, so it's not that I don't know how).

 

[Randy F]

Domestic I will book. I booked once for international, then started using an agent and I’ll never go back. Peace of mind alone is worth the cost.

 

[Cam Moon]

I've only done it myself. I assumed (maybe incorrectly???) that booking through a travel agent would cost more, and didn't even look into it. Now, reading some of the comments, I may look into using one!

 

[Tanks]

Travel agents when I am not using miles.

 

[375Fox]

I've only done it myself. I assumed (maybe incorrectly???) that booking through a travel agent would cost more, and didn't even look into it. Now, reading some of the comments, I may look into using one!

I always check the flight routes and costs myself before I call the agent. It’s always been the same price as if I had bought it direct (for economy) then you pay them their fee on top of that. I think there if potential to save money if you have to change your flights by using an agent. When you went did you travel with a firearm or did you rent? That’s usually my biggest consideration when choosing to use an agent.

 

[wesheltonj]

I used an agent a couple of years back because I was traveling with a gun. I doubt that I would do that again, it’s just too easy to do it yourself and most importantly you have control of the ticket and not the agent. That means you control the seat you pick on the plane, it also means you can make changes through your airline app.

That said, I always check with AMEX travel to see if they have a cheaper fare through their Platinum Card benefit. So far, I have found cheaper tickets then AMEX.

You have Google Flights, that’s fairly good at finding cheap tickets, and ITA Matrix which will find every fare combination and flight route.

 

[Buffalo1]

Anything going off the mainland of the US, I'm using an agent.

 

[fourfive8]

For time sensitive, locked-in dates with possibly guns in tow and for sure deposits paid and plans made- use an agent! Two very good ones have been mentioned in this thread.

Back in day, I used a local agent who had the boarding pass printer right in the office- those were the good old days!! When that changed it became a catch as catch can world of travel. I've booked plenty of domestic and certain international flights myself but not for something as expensive and time sensitive as an African Safari. Too many small abnormalities can pop up. And finally, those DIY super cheap fares you occasionally run into, especially if it requires manipulating multiple connections... look out! They're not always what they're cracked up to be!

 

[meigsbucks]

Definitely a travel agent. They know the ins and outs. I used Travel With Guns on both my trips. Excellent service. Step by step thru airports. Well worth the few extra $$$.