Travel is the transfer of individuals between different, often far away, geographical locations. Travel can either be one-way or round trip, performed with or without luggage, and is one way or multiple ways. Some forms of travel require that you travel by air and some by sea. Other forms of travel include hiking, mountain climbing, cave rafting, white water rafting, scuba diving, parasailing, mountain biking, and skating.
One way to find your way while traveling is to use a travel guide or directory. A travel guide can point you in the right direction as well as make you familiar with local customs, laws, and routes. They are also great for learning new things about a particular area you are visiting. This helps you arrive at your destination with a more informed knowledge of the area, making it easier for you to plan ahead when you are looking for new friends or business partners.
For travelers on a budget, a smartflyer is a good travel advisor. Smartflyers offer airfare for travelers to their destination at a reduced cost. There are many different types of smartflyer programs that can save travelers money, including flight, hotel, rental car, breakfast or dinner reservation, airport shuttle and car service. The best part is that most of these programs require only pre-booked seats, saving you the time and effort of searching for a seat and making reservations. If you book a flight, hotel and rental car through a smartflyer program, you will receive a statement upon arrival at your destination and will not need to worry about remembering anything else about your trip.
Another great travel agent is a travel advisor. Travel agents can do a number of tasks for travelers. They can help with booking hotel rooms, finding transportation, foreign currency exchange and setting up tours. Most travel agents work independently, but some work for larger companies as well. A travel agent can also provide many useful tools and resources to help you plan your trip such as travel guides, passports, international airline tickets, itinerary, local transportation, shopping guides and other tools.
If you travel often, a travel agent or advisor may be your best friend. A travel agent can offer advice on how to get the most for your money when traveling in the first class or business class section of a plane. Many first class tickets are not fully owned by the airlines and are given out by frequent fliers who must travel first class to earn the reward points or certificates. A travel advisor can help you find out what first class seats are available and also assist you with purchasing your ticket. Some travel advisors may even help you upgrade from economy to business class for an additional fee.
On the flip side, there are travel advisors who may actually be con artists. These are often travel agents that have only been doing business for a few years. As such, their main objective is to make a quick buck at your expense. Often they will try to charge you an arm and a leg for air fare, ticket costs and all the extra items. Some will even try to sell you other things such as golf or spa tickets when they know you do not need such a thing.
Do not be afraid to check with your local state or county government agencies. Some states and counties have official online travel bite charts to help you get a good idea of what is reasonable to expect when traveling. Also, check with your personal travel agency. They should have a travel policy that outlines what is not included in their packages. A good travel advisor will have a list of items that are included in all travel packages and what items are not included. You should review this with your travel advisor to make sure you are getting what you actually need for the price paid.
It is unfortunate that many travel advisors will tell you what they think you want to hear. Unfortunately, these travel advisors may be affiliated with one or more airlines that are trying to get you to sign up with them. These travel advisors can earn a nice commission on any airline, they manage to get you to sign up with. It is best to use travel advisors that have access to the latest airline rates and offer you the opportunity to negotiate a good deal.
