Way Back in the Olden Days

OK, kids, gather ‘round and let this old-timer tell you a tale about the good old days! You see, back in the Olden Times there was no internet. Yes, it’s true! People had to get all their information from paper sources like books, magazines, and newspapers. Often, they would turn to actual live people to find something out. Shopping was not possible on-line, so people bought everything from bricks and mortar stores or from salespersons who came to their homes.

I adapted early on to the computer age. I have been a writer off and on my whole life, so I found my way into home computing in the days of DOS. When my wife was in graduate school a professor suggested she do her research on this new computer accessed information system called the internet. At that time, one needed a dial-up access service for access so I signed up with Compuserve. Soon there were other services available and they all offered a free one month trial, so I tried them all. At that time AOL had the most to offer and the most reliable connections. I became an AOL regular.

In those days, Yahoo was a new service which was totally text-based (meaning no pictures or graphics at all). It was the best source of links to other sites, and a decent directory of information. As more features came on-line and more news and information became available, I could see that this new-fangled internet might just grow up to be something special. As graphics became more common, the dial-up speed became a major issue. As soon as I could I went cable and never looked back.

I have used the world wide web for information since it started, but have rarely used it to buy things. I shop on-line, but most often buy at the store. There is something about actually seeing and touching what I am buying that appeals to me. When it comes to travel purchases, I have always used a good travel agent. Even though I liked to research my own trips, I found it extremely helpful to have a knowledgeable professional to bounce my ideas off of.

When the internet travel business stormed onto the scene with huge advertising budgets they quickly grabbed a big chunk of the market. The premise behind all internet sales concepts is cost savings, and travel is no exception. Sometimes they do save people money on travel purchases. What they always deliver is self-service. Often people are doing the work a travel agent would do for no savings whatsoever! They are after all only booking engines, not customer service providers. A good travel agent will act as an advocate for their customers. A good travel agent is also a consultant who can offer advice that is unbiased and informed by training and years of travel experience.

The best sources of information about travel are not the sites that sell travel. Consumer review forums can be extremely helpful when one is deciding where to go or where to stay when one arrives. A general forum like trip advisor or a destination specific message board is a good place to learn from others’ hits and misses. These postings should be read with a grain of salt. It is important to find postings that are specific to the issues most important to you, rather than ones that just say “this place sucks!” I use these type of sites as a travel consultant to help guide my clients to the resort or hotel that will best fit their needs and desires. I also use professional reviews that are not available to the general public. My favorite source of information? Other travel agents who have recently visited the place I am researching or sent valued clients there.

Before I made the jump into the travel business, I had planned a number of multi-generation family trips with the help of a professional travel agent. It was this experience that made me see the value of having a knowledgeable guide with good connections to the vendors we needed. All of our family trips were fantastic experiences for all involved. I couldn’t wait to plan the next one. Now I fill the time in between helping other families and couples and individuals make their travel dreams come true!

Next time: "Hey I'm becoming a travel agent too!"