Don't pay a travel agent!!

Don't waste your money on a travel agent!!

We have done several international and around the world trips as a family of four and now five!!

We have saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by not using a travel agent.

It doesn't matter which travel agent you use. They all have a very limited number of products that they can offer. Once you venture further than Australia or your home country there are very limited options when booking through a travel agent.

We used a travel agent to book a trip to Disney World in 2005 and found that they didn't know half of what I had already discovered by spending a few hours on the internet. This is especially true if your group is greater than two adults and two kids. There are way better accommodation deals in just about every location in the world where you can rent an apartment or house which will work out cheaper than staying at a hotel where you are forced to stay in two rooms which may or may not be able to be adjoined! I know our family prefers to stay together especially when the three kids are younger than 10. If we go on a holiday as a family why would my husband and I sleep in separate hotel rooms as there is no way we would put the kids in one room on their own considering what could happen to them.

If you really want the security of a travel agent as opposed to purchasing everything yourself online then do your research online, compile your quotes and challenge the travel agent to match it. Chances are they won't even come close or at the very least will match it.

If you don't know where to start, use a travel agent to do the hard work for you ie get you quotes and suggested itineraries. Then go online and see if you can beat their quotes. I did this recently for our impending trip to America and I managed to get every single accommodation suggestion cheaper by booking it direct with the hotel online!!

Check out the links on my blog page for more tips and tricks when it comes to travel!