How Using a Travel Advisor Can Level Up Your Next Vacation

If you love travel, a great travel advisor is a tool and advocate that you absolutely should consider working with to get the most out of any trip. Finding the right partner should bring you peace of mind and add value. Read on to learn more or reach out to Sherman to see if he’d be a good fit for your travels.

Maybe the words “travel advisor” or “travel agent” evoke memories of being handed vacation pamphlets at the mall. Or you feel like you have everything you need today through websites like Amex FHR or Expedia. But what if we told you working with a travel advisor could mean tailored recommendations, VIP perks, easy booking engines – and best of all – no additional costs to you? Sounds like the best of all worlds right?

What is a modern day travel advisor?

In today’s hospitality landscape, you’ll find travel advisors (aka TAs) who offer fee-free services. They have strong partnerships with hotels and are part of exclusive, often invite-only programs, which allows them to extend better perks to you. In turn, TAs get paid commission by hotels they book clients at, and pass on no markups to you.

This means that just by booking the same rate at a hotel through a TA instead of directly on their website, you automatically get an added layer of benefits. Plus, your travel advisor books you directly with the hotel, so there’s none of the risk like when you through third parties.

It’s worth nothing that not every TA operates under the same business model, and you’ll find a scale of offerings and specializations out there. Many TAs will charge you a consultation or itinerary fee, and in turn you may get a different type of service to match. Find what works for you.

Travel advisor perks that add value

With a TA booking, you’ll often get VIP perks like:

• Free daily breakfast
• Property credit for your stay (often ~$100)
• Complimentary room category upgrades (subject to availability)
• Early check in / late checkout (subject to availability)
• Access to various promos like Stay 3 Pay 2, etc. that you won’t find on Expedia

And a really really great TA gets you to the top of a hotel’s list for things like upgrades, which is handy if there is list of guests who qualify for similar perks.

It’s also important to mention the intangibles. Vacations are all fun and relaxing until you hit a hiccup or plans change. Or maybe you have a trip that just needs a little extra prep work. This is where your TA really shines as your advocate. They’ll be one more voice reminding the hotel of your needs ahead of arrival. And they are your hotline to hotel upper management to help you turn things around ASAP if something starts to go downhill.

Having a TA you trust is just one more (free!) layer of security to help ensure smooth travels.

One type of travel that travel advisors generally cannot help you with are points bookings. A well-versed TA can still help you decide where to stay or even give you input on how to maximize points usage, but ultimately they won’t be able to handle those bookings or add additional perks.

Where can I find a great TA?

If you’re looking for a place to start, feel free to reach out to Outside Exposure’s contributor Sherman. He is a luxury travel advisor with all the hotel affiliations offered above and loves to chat travel. He’s also able to get you access to his booking engine, if you want to check out all the rates, dates, and perks for yourself.

Look for a TA on Virtuoso – Virtuoso is a network and affiliation that many legitimate advisors will be a part of. Hotels are also Virtuoso affiliated and advisors get you perks through this network. You can read reviews on the site too.

Understand their affiliations – Beyond Virtuoso, many hotels offer more exclusive TA programs that have even better benefits. For example, booking a Four Seasons with a Four Seasons Preferred Partner can land you better upgrade status, or larger $ amounts of property credit. Marriott has Stars & Luminous, Hyatt has Hyatt Prive, Rosewood has Rosewood Elite, etc.

Ask about their expertise and relationships – Ultimately you want someone who can offer first-hand experience for the destinations you want to book, and have the contacts to get you best in class service. Whether it’s through a team they are a part of, close relationships with hotels/local operators, or personal travel experience, this is the type of person that you’ll want in your corner.

Find an offering that works for you – If you love planning your own trips, then using someone with an itinerary creation fee maybe won’t make sense, as you’ll rely on a TA mostly for bookings. But if you need a TA who can also double as a personal assistant, understand that may be a level of service that is not free. Regardless, every great advisor should be able to understand your preferences and make recommendations for your travel.

Happy travel planning 🙂