*Planning Fee Announcement*
Important Update Regarding My Travel Business
Today forward, I will be charging an upfront, nonrefundable research/planning fee for my services. This was a very tough decision to make, but please hear me out for the reasons I am making this change:
1) First and foremost, my priority is to find the best value for your dollar & needs, and provide the best customer service that I can—before, during, and after your travel. I believe this fee will help me prioritize clients who are serious about their trips and serious about working with me. We have seen an uptick in “window shoppers” who ask for quotes, but don’t book. While I certainly understand changing your mind, pulling a quote is much more than just clicking a button; there’s quite a bit of research and analysis that goes into each one, and I usually provide a clients with at least three.
2) Travel agents are paid a commission, but not until travel is completed. That means if you don’t book with me, or if you book and cancel, I will not be compensated a penny for the time and effort I took to research and quote the trip for you. Ultimately the fee just ensures that I still will receive SOME kind of compensation for my time and effort on your trip.
3) Additionally, as I mentioned in my last blog post, the Covid pandemic has changed the travel industry in many ways. There’s is a LOT more for us agents to research and keep track of now, so even when you do complete your travel, we’re spending a lot more time on your trip overall than what the commission will cover.
Since this is not my full time job, I want to make sure I am using my time wisely and devoting the majority of my attention to those who value my expertise.
If you are interested in booking a trip, I will always do a complimentary consultation with you to learn more about what you’re looking for and make sure we each think I will be a good fit for you before charging a fee. The fee will typically be between $50 to $250 on average, depending on the size and complexity of your trip.
My services to you include personalized trip quotes, with recommendations on anything from best properties to stay at, best tours to take, restaurant recommendations, travel tips, destination tips, recommended insurance plans, and more. I will help you navigate the ever changing rules of travel, and help you understand any updated protocols and terms and conditions from the tour operators and the resorts and the entry requirements per destination, and you will have 24/7 in-destination emergency support.
If you have any questions about this change, I would love to discuss it further with you. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to me directly – katie@lovelandandsea.com. As always, thank you for your ongoing support — wishing you all health and happiness in 2022!