Travel Agents that understand the SC game

XavierP

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G'day,

Just wondering if folks here use travel agents or recommend particular ones that understand maximising status credits while keeping the airfares somewhat economical.

I know that some routes travel agents have better visibility than oneself hence this question.

My experience with the last two was like..

"That's the longest route to <insert place> i have ever dealt with"
"Why do you want to do that? Take the quickest route if you ask me"

Anyways, so to avoid this from the start, any good recommendations would be kindly appreciated.

Thank you.
 
Just wondering if folks here use travel agents or recommend particular ones that understand maximising status credits while keeping the airfares somewhat economical.
What are you trying to achieve, just day to day flying the long way round or maximising a DSC promo?
 
Just wondering if folks here use travel agents or recommend particular ones that understand maximising status credits while keeping the airfares somewhat economical.

I know that some routes travel agents have better visibility than oneself hence this question.

My experience with the last two was like..
"That's the longest route to <insert place> i have ever dealt with"
"Why do you want to do that? Take the quickest route if you ask me"

Anyways, so to avoid this from the start, any good recommendations would be kindly appreciated.
TA's get very little to nil commission on air tickets. So you would need to pay the TA by the hour/fee. [= SC not economical for domestic-short haul]
My thoughts are AFFers would be "bad" customers and would be demanding for endless options
 
My thoughts are AFFers would be "bad" customers and would be demanding for endless options

It works best if you know what you want to achieve and it’s something you can’t do yourself, such as a complex DONE4 or combining tickets onto a single PNR. The savings that can be made by using codeshares to avoid fuel fines etc can offset the extra commission costs, as can hotel commissions.

In that regard I think AFF members would be good customers. It’s the lazy ones who don’t do their own research and expect the TA to do it all that would be bad.
 
TA's get very little to nil commission on air tickets. So you would need to pay the TA by the hour/fee. [= SC not economical for domestic-short haul]
My thoughts are AFFers would be "bad" customers and would be demanding for endless options
I think you’ll find good travel agents - the bricks and mortar type (usually) - charge a standard fee based on the value of the itinerary. For that they do all the work that’s required for that trip, including all the pre-ticket issuing investigations, any problems along the way and any changes that need to be made along the way.

Of course if you’re totally unreasonable in the early stages, they may elect to charge an additional fee 😊

I’m pretty high maintenance for my travel agent, but I know she doesn’t mind because I book heaps and heaps of travel including a number of cruises a year.
 
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I think you’ll find good travel agents - the bricks and mortar type (usually) - charge a standard fee based on the value of the itinerary. For that they do all the work that’s required for that trip, including all the pre-ticket issuing investigations, any problems along the way and any changes that need to be made along the way.

Of course if you’re totally unreasonable in the early stages, they may elect to charge an additional fee 😊

I’m pretty high maintenance for my travel agent, but I know she doesn’t mind because I book heaps and heaps of travel including a number of cruises a year.
do TA get better commission from cruises than they do from airline travel?
 
For complex international travel I always use qflyer - based in Adelaide. Consistently great service and they aim to maximise sc for QF. Domestic and simple international trips, and all accommodation and activities, I book myself.
 
do TA get better commission from cruises than they do from airline travel?
Not sure, but I suspect they do. In fact they seem pretty generous.

As you know, many cruise lines give a discount on the cost of a future cruise if you book it on board your present cruise. Before I did this once, I checked with my travel agent to make sure they would get the commission on it if I book direct. I was a bit surprised when the answer came back yes. You nominate a travel agent when booking and the travel agent gets the usual commission.

I ended up not doing it, but it was an interesting thing to discover.

But just getting back to the OP a bit, my own travel agent isn’t so good at maximising SC or points earn on various flights. But then, neither am I, flying QR as I do. 😂. But they all add up in the end.
 
Cruises can be pretty high commission, at the low end 10% and 15-20% at times. Hotels tend to be 10 though 8 is possible.
Airfares can be often 0% for international origin and 1%. Plus they are way more hassle in the first place, and liable to change regularly and last minute with no recourse and taking even more work. I tend to not even offer to book economy flights and have a minimum $250 for business fares.
 
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