Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

FH and I are looking into our HM now and I got some quotes from a travel agent.

But we checked online through Expedia, and for the same exact packages, I found cheaper prices on Expedia!! And some were about $500 cheaper!!

Is this possible that because everyone books online nowadays, that her price is more because of the commission??

And are there any drawbacks to planning your HM yourself as opposed to through an agent?

TIA

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

less stress if you go through an agent. Our travel agent was much less than Expedia or anything els! Did you try Dawn from cruise one? SHe did ours. Look into her. She does other trips besides cruises.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

Cool I'll have to look into her...we can't do a cruise, FH gets badly seasick, which would not make for a good HM!!

Right now we're checking into some places in the Carribean. I'm in love with Curacao, but there's no direct flights!!

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

my travel agent is amazing. she got us a great deal on hawaii.

FM if you want her #

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

We're booking our HM on our own b/c I got better rates & to be honest feel I did more thorough research.

I already booked our Mediterranean cruise, I'm looking into the Ireland portion now.

I agree a travel agent gives you ease of mind in case there's a glitch.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

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Posted by BKtoLI

FH and I are looking into our HM now and I got some quotes from a travel agent.

But we checked online through Expedia, and for the same exact packages, I found cheaper prices on Expedia!! And some were about $500 cheaper!!

Is this possible that because everyone books online nowadays, that her price is more because of the commission??

And are there any drawbacks to planning your HM yourself as opposed to through an agent?

TIA

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we did it all ourselves - we saved almost $800 off what norwegian wanted directly - as long as you do the research there is no drawback to self planning

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

Actually, we ended up getting a better quote from the travel agent (random stop into Liberty Travel in our neighborhood) then Expedia. Expedia looked cheaper first, but the TA only gave us prices for direct flights, which we wanted. When we put the same flight onto expedia, it was over $100 cheaper. Plus I think, but this is just what I've heard, that if you book with Expedia you will not necessarily get the room you want...
but I have had friends who have had great experiences with Expedia.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

I did it myself thru American Express Travel- I can call them if anything happens- but I did it online- I wanted the double points

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

I used expedia. they have been very good so far. And, they have contacted me and answered any questions that I had, I actually feel like they are my travel agent, lol.

If it is a signifigant price, I say go for it.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

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Posted by SweetCin704

We're booking our HM on our own b/c I got better rates & to be honest feel I did more thorough research.

I already booked our Mediterranean cruise, I'm looking into the Ireland portion now.

I agree a travel agent gives you ease of mind in case there's a glitch.

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I agree, but Expedia is like a travel agent in that respect. They are responsible for the glitches....after all, they don't want to ruin their reputation. IMHO

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

Our honeymoon will be in St. Lucia at the Sandals Grande, we booked directly with Sandals.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

We used my parents time share, so I handled that directly with Mayan Palace. And then I used miles for our airfare and dealt directly with the carrier.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

Before we went to a travel agent, I looked up flights on expedia to get an idea of the prices. When we went to the travel agent, she found flights, but wouldn't tell me how much they were-she made some excuse about how we're getting a whole package and she'll give me the entire price. I insisted on getting the price and I'm glad I did b/c the one she found was $1100/person and I found them for several hundred dollars cheaper. I told her I'd book the flights myself since they were so much cheaper. Then, she 'searched' again and somehow found a flight for around $700. I think there are a lot of benefits to going through a travel agent, but make sure you've done a lot of research beforehand. That way, you have an idea of what flights and hotels typically cost and you can determine whether or not they're trying to get extra $.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

we booked ours through AAA (Automobile Club of America) - they have travel agencies too. They were great...

Worth lookin into if you're an AAA member.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

I did...but then again...I'm only going to VT.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

Yeah something is not right...usually it is less expensive through the travel agency...get quotes from more than one agency.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

I love doing thorough research on wherever we go, and since we know what we like best (we could be a little picky we did it ourselves. We used our frequent flier miles for first class & did the airfare & hotels ourselves. Worked out great!

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

We are taking a cruise, so we booked directly with Royal Carribean.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

We found our HM online and then booked with a company. In the past I have booked several trips with Expedia and I have always had good results.

Re: Anyone book HM without a travel agent??

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Posted by M&S Sept292006

Yeah something is not right...usually it is less expensive through the travel agency...get quotes from more than one agency.

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I tried booking our HM through several agents and they wanted around $600 more. I have always found better deals online.