Why People are Starting to Move Towards Specialist in Country Travel Agencies Rather than Typical Home Based Walk in Agencies

Over the past 6 years Costa Rica Holiday has seen the shift in the way that people are starting to book and research their holidays.

San Jose, Costa Rica (PRWEB) June 16, 2007 -- Over the past years with the boom in people connected to the internet and also people buying from the internet, travel agencies have seen a shift in the way that people are now looking for and booking their holidays.

Typically people would walk into a travel agency request a brochure and then discuss the brochure and its offering with a travel agent. Now this is a very easy and simplistic way of doing things as the client can just choose a package that they like, pay for it and they are off on holiday. However as time has gone by people are demanding more and also expecting more. With the boom of the information on the internet it has meant that people can now book directly with hotels and can cut out the middle man. Costa Rica Holiday has seen its business double every year over the last 6 years and is fast becoming the leader is luxury travel to Costa Rica.

Below goes into more detail of the benefits of using todays modern on line incountry travel agency and what value that this brings to the customer and the local economies:

Why is an in country travel agency better than a home based agency? Many people think that a home based agency is great as they can walk into the shop and pick the package that they want, right out of the brochure. However most home based travel agencies do not specialize in one particular country, and therefore do not offer a flexible service to tailor make packages for their clients.

This is the first BIG advantage of smaller, in country agencies. They can work closely with hotels, resorts, tour companies etc, and can easily make reservations and bookings, as and when they want them, making the process of planning a holiday much more flexible for both client and agency.

Choosing a holiday out of a brochure may be ok for some people, but how much do these agencies really know about what they are selling, and how much of what they tell you have they actually experienced first hand? Very little I suspect. Where as, an in country Travel Agency has the advantage of being able to send its travel advisers to hotels, where they can review the rooms, service and the local area. They can take the tours, visit the local attractions, and overall get the feel of each particular area. Using this knowledge, the travel advisers can then make personal recommendations to clients when planning their holiday, based on their particular tastes. Therefore clients have a large knowledge base at their disposal, which they can fully utilize to find out what the best hotels are, who does the best tours and what the best local attractions are!

In country agencies will be dealing with each of the hotels that they use on a daily basis, which means that they can build up a great business relationship with them. Which then allows them, even during really busy periods, to secure rooms for their clients. They also have the ability to speak to hotels direct, the second that they get off the phone with their clients to check availability. Allowing any problems that arise to be sorted almost immediately, where as large agencies who do not provide a personal connection with hotels will find it much more difficult, meaning that they may not use some of the smaller hotels, which are often some of the best.

Another great benefit to the client of in country, specialist travel agency, is that they deal directly with the hotels, tour companies, etc. Meaning that they do not have to pay a third party to make their bookings and reserve tours for their clients. This then means that they can pass these savings directly to their clients and provide more economical holidays, or a better holiday for the same money, what more could anyone want from a travel agency?

Well what about always knowing that should a client get in to trouble with your holiday there will always be a representative that you can contact to help you out, and if needed come to where the client is. Do clients get this with a large home-based company? Think not, customers may be able to speak to them on the phone, but what good is that going to do when the customer is 5000 miles away on a different continent?

Another great advantage is that the Agency will normally meet the client the moment they step off the aircraft to provide them with important local knowledge, and a friendly face to help them get their bearings in a new country.

There is also the added bonus, that by using an in country agency, clients are supporting the economy of the country they are visiting, and helping to keep locals in jobs, where as large high street agencies work from your home country, therefore having very little benefit at all to developing countries and people who have more of a desperate need for a job.

So there it is, in country agencies have advantages that begin the moment a customer contacts them. They have better local knowledge to provide customer with the information they need, they have better local contacts to build and customize clients perfect holiday, and can provide this at a lower cost than home based agencies. Then once customers arrive they meet tem, give them information and help them on their way, and then give them the feeling of security as clients always know they can contact them for help should they need it!! And all whilst benefiting the local economy of developing countries, rather than plowing more money into the economies of the world's richest countries.

A great example of a specialist in country travel agency is Costa Rica Holiday. This rapidly growing agency provides extensive knowledge of Costa Rica to its clients in the UK, and has the local knowledge and contacts to put together dream holidays for all of its clients. Feel free to contact them for your Holidays to Costa or phone +44 (0) 207-193-3930.

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