Kaleshwari Travels - Booking From an Online Travel Company May Actually Cost You More

And I can prove it, but in many cases it is true, that booking your travel online would be actually costing you more money, you probably never thought you would be reading this right now.

I do, however! Or the irreversible mistakes that arise from those great online deals, the disasters, the only problem is that you never hear about the aftermath. And jumping on that last minute vacation package online is exciting and good for your pocket book, but first let me explain that there's no question in my mind that using the Internet to find great deals is convenient and growing rapidly.

The ones that do feel the pinch quickly see the true reality, and have not had a major issue yet, because unlike the majority that enjoy reserving their travel online, why. Even if their life depended on it, i hear it from new clients that swear they will not book another flight or package online, i hear about it from past travel clients!

Now You May Be Thinking That I'm Telling You This Because I'm A Travel Agent!

And tell them that my door is always open if they need my services in the future, i wish that person all the best, if at that point it doesn't. And normally the message gets through loud and clear, all I can do is give a few examples of why you should deal with an agent, in response to that question. I get asked on many occasions by potential clients why they should book through a travel agent versus booking their travel online. As a travel agent I believe it's my responsibility to educate you on the pros and cons. But not for the reasons you may be thinking, that may be partly correct.

Claiming He Missed His Flight, a Man Walked In to My Wife's Travel Office At The Airport!

And he said online through one of those travel websites, my wife asked him where he booked his flight. And didn't understand why, this upset and confused man walked into her office located at the airport one day and claimed he missed his flight. But this issue my wife experienced that day was no laughing matter, you probably think there's a joke to transpire here, ok.

This client assumed it was 1:00 pm and proceeded to take his flight. Which if you know military time is 1:00 am in the morning, the bad news was that the print out had said 0100. Maria needed to give him the bad news, unfortunately at that time. The exact time that states on his itinerary, he said 1pm. What time did you check in for his flight, she quickly asked him, when Maria proceeded to take a look at the print out copy of his flight itinerary?

He's not on it! And guess what, imagine his eyes popping out of his head when the person at the airline counter just told him his flight left this morning?

And go over the Itinerary with him to make sure he fully understood what he booked, the travel agent took the liberty to explain all the rules and conditions, and when he did, at one time he may have booked all his flights and vacations through a travel agent, you see. This man is one of many victims of online travel bookings, but contrary to what you believe, i can picture what you're thinking now.

He booked the 1am flight, because he didn't understand military time, however. He assumed that he was booking the 1pm flight, when this gentleman booked his flight online through the travel website.

And at that time can avoid any errors all together if caught in time, we go over all the details, or while I'm talking with the client and going over the itinerary prior to booking the flight, is that if I make the error I normally catch it quickly and fix it, but the one huge and major difference between someone booking with me versus over the Internet. And trust me I have made my fair share of them, mistakes happen.

This man was destine to pay the price, but without a little bit of checking and consulting, this could have been a simple oversight that he missed, even if this guy was a veteran traveller and booked all his flights online. Or to reassure him that all was okay, he had no one to go over the booking with him, when this fellow booked his flight online.

Alright, he Paid The Price For Booking Online!

And that it was not going to be cheap, he knew that he needed to book another flight to where he was going, because the moment he sat down at my wife's desk!

And this is where he received more valuable advice that more than likely saved this man thousands of dollars, and he said he did not, maria asked this upset man if he called the online travel company.

The airlines would cancel his entire itinerary, and he didn't contact the airlines to notify that he missed his departure flight, what that means is that if he had a return flight booked as well. Maria explained to him, constitutes a "No Show" in the airlines systems, you see the fact that he did not show up for his flight in the morning.

He was given the proper information to avoid additional financial loss, and thankfully consulting a professional travel agent, this yet again was something this guy was not aware of. So Maria advised him that he needed to contact the airline he was supposed to be flying with and advise them not to cancel the return portion of his flight.

And you can't put a ticket price on that, you will truly have peace-of-mind! We always recommend that you call or visit a travel professional to assist you, or may be slightly confused on the details listed on many of the online travel companies, if you don't fully understand the fine print, the moral of this unfortunate story is that even though you think you're getting the best deal booking your travel online.