Travel agent fees vary based on the products sold, level of advice given, and experience. With reduced commissions from providers, agents set fees to stay in business. Rates may be waived if sufficient commission is earned from other purchases. Some fees compensate for research time and expenses.
Travel agent fees depend on the types of travel products they sell, the amount of advice they offer clients, and their experience. In situations where a travel agent sells customers travel products that pay little or no commission, such as airline tickets, rates are usually set to ensure that the travel agent is fairly compensated for her time. Commissions and fees for advisory services are more likely to depend on a travel agent’s experience in providing travel services or their knowledge of a particular geographic region or type of travel. Travel agent rates can also be set based on the cost of living in the area where the travel agent operates.
With the advent of Internet-based travel services, many travel providers such as airlines, hotels and package operators have reduced or eliminated the commissions paid to travel consultants and agents. As a result, these travel experts had to set up travel agent fares to stay in business. In some cases, these rates are in place to compensate a travel agent who provides commission-free or low-commission travel service to their customers. These fares and commissions may be waived in situations where a travel customer purchases other travel products that provide the agent with sufficient commission. For example, if a customer books overseas travel and purchases an airfare, resort package, and ground transportation services, the travel agent may waive their standard airfare reservation fee as they will receive a broad commission from other travel purchases.
Some travel agent rates are intended to compensate experienced travel agents for their time researching travel options and providing recommendations to customers. These rates are typically charged as a way to protect the travel agent from spending time advising a potential customer on travel options only to lose any commissions when the customer books his or her travel directly or with another travel agent. Rates vary depending on the type of research the travel agent will be carrying out on behalf of his client and whether the travel agent incurs additional expenses to secure travel options such as making international phone calls or sending faxes to various travel providers . As with airline ticket fares, a travel agent will sometimes waive these charges if a customer makes a significant purchase.
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