The travel industry experienced unprecedented disruptions during the first half of 2020 due to the COVID—19 pandemic. Vacation plans were ruined and had to be either canceled or rescheduled for a later date. As the United States, and the rest of the world, begin to reopen for travel, those interested in planning a future vacation to somewhere other than their house would find it in their best interest to reach out to a travel professional. Here are the top 6 reason to use a travel planner for your next vacation!

1. EXPERTS IN TRAVEL

The internet makes it so easy for people to book their own vacations, but do they truly know what they want or what they are looking at? In most cases, the answer to this is no, not without spending countless hours researching the destination and numerous hotels that exist there!

Travel planners are experts in their field. They have put in countless hours learning about different destinations and suppliers through various trainings – both virtual and on-site. There have been quite a number of changes in the travel industry recently. Travel planners continue to stay up to date with all these changes by attending webinars, staying aware of policy changes, and researching as needed. All the hours of training that travel planners receive make them experts in the field of travel. Work with a travel planner for your next vacation so you have their expertise available to you!

2. POINT OF CONTACT FOR ALL QUESTIONS & CONCERNS

Wouldn’t it be nice to have a point of contact for any and all questions/ concerns related to your vacation once you have booked? This is just one of the perks you get when using a travel planner! Gone are the days of waiting on hold to talk to someone in a call center that is not intimately familiar with your vacation. Any questions or concerns can be sent directly to your travel planner, should you use one. Chances are your travel planner already knows the answer to your question or is able to address your concern. If by some miracle you stump your travel planner, they follow up with the appropriate party on your behalf to get a resolution to your question or concern.

3. PERSONAL CONCIERGE SERVICES

Travel planners are your one stop shop for all of your vacation needs. They are not done working once their client books. In fact, they are just getting started planning the vacation of their client’s dreams! Besides booking a hotel for a client, travel planners can also assist with:

Flights
Airport transfers
Theme park tickets
Excursions
Dining reservations or recommendations
Travel insurance
Recommendations for additional add-ons for the client based on their personal preferences

It should be noted that for those clients who like to do things themselves that they still have complete control over their vacation plans. Travel planners are there to assist their clients with their vacation planning, as much or as little as the client wants!

The client is presented with all the information needed for their vacation, and even some things that they didn’t realize they needed! Better yet, travel planners are available to their clients for any issues that may arise before, during, and after travel.

4. CLIENT ADVOCATE

Travel planners will go to bat for their clients if there is an issue. This has never been more important than now! For instance, I personally had a client who had a vacation package which included roundtrip flights and a hotel stay. The flight they were booked on was a non-stop flight which was scheduled for less than 4 hours. The airline canceled the original flight and moved my clients to a flight which had a layover and was scheduled to last over 12 hours. Needless to say, my clients did not want to travel any longer with this major change. After spending over 6 hours on the phone advocating for my client, I was able to secure a full refund for them. The best part is that my client did not have to spend that time advocating for themselves.

5. SPECIAL PERKS

Although special perks shouldn’t be the only reason you book with a travel planner, sometimes there are some! These mainly exist for select cruises and can be anything from reduced deposits due to onboard credits to special surprises delivered to your stateroom. Booking through a travel planner can definitely have some perks for their clients!

6. SUPPORTING A SMALL BUSINESS

All throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a major push to support small business. Believe it or not, travel planners are a small business. Booking your next vacation, no matter how big or small, once you are ready to travel is no different than supporting your local restaurants and stores.

Do yourself a favor and reach out to a Royal Treatment Travel Planner once you are ready to begin dreaming about your next vacation. There are plenty of reasons to use one!

Are you ready to begin thinking about your vacation? If so, Royal Treatment Travel is ready to help you plan it! Reach out to your Travel Advisor or fill out our quote request form below.

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