Mci Uruguay

Contacting a Travel Agency

The original concept of communication among travel agencies is; being on familiar terms with the destination prior to contact. If contact is made prior to your recognition of the destination, the agents’ original business deals are cruises. For the trouble-free reason, cruises are the number one vacation in the Travel Industry. Fortunately you’re not obligated to accept the suggestion, however extremely recommended to safeguard the expense within your mind.

Acquire the Estimate in Writing

The Agent you are communicating through will remain your permanent agent pending the departure date. Remember to retain information, obtain his/her name in addition to the agent number for future contact. A beneficial rule of thumb is to request your estimate to be set to assure the rate will not increase prior to deposit. An additional rule of thumb, request the quote is, emailed, faxed or mailed to your residence by the close of the conversation. The documents you take delivery of are your proof of the quote. Majority of agents are honest, although your subsequent contact may possibly be a different agent and a different quote.

The Importance of an Agency

The importance of using an agency is; the agency completes the entire backbone process or else you would be completing the whole thing physically. The agency contacts the destination and arranges everything for you. The agency reserves the room(s) of the hotel, provided one is necessary and completes the reservation. Then the agent determines and requests the down payment. Upon receipt of the deposit, the balance is set up in payments with the final payment being due ninety days prior to departure. The only thing the agency does not complete for you, they don’t reserve your food, souvenirs or gasoline, provided that you chose to drive instead of fly. In accordance, if you choose to fly, the agency books that as well. Basically everything to do with reserving and paying for is completed and paid by you to the travel agency.

The Vacation

Prior to the departure date, it is necessary to pack your baggage and make certain all is situated for the journey. Subsequently the final thing you ought to complete prior to, for the duration of and following the vacation is remain safe and HAVE FUN.

Most travel agencies are honest and reputable. Using a travel agency not only has the advantage of taking care of all your travel planning for you but it also there when you need assistance during your trip.

A good indicator of an agency’s reliability is if it is a member of the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA). ASTA has strict rules and regulations regarding a travel agent’s membership. If, by chance, you do have a problem with the agent or agency it is by far easier and more likely you will have your problem resolved with an ASTA travel agent.

In addition, reputable travel agencies list all of their contact information. If an online agency only lists an email address this may be a red flag. A reputable agency will have not only an email address but have a mailing address and a telephone number where you can reach a real live person to talk to in the event you have questions or concerns regarding your booking.

Hidden fees may not be evident with agencies that are not reputable. A trustworthy agency will spell out all the fees and surcharges involved with your vacation booking. You should get all the fees in writing. Be wary of too good to be true low rates for a vacation. This could be a lure to get your business and then you have the extra fees presented to you after it is too late.

A reputable agency will go above and beyond to satisfy your needs for your vacation. If needed, a reputable agent will make sure handicap access or other disability accommodations are available, to make sure the trip is enjoyable. A disreputable agency is only interested in collecting your money.

Another factor to consider is if the agent provides some sort of travel tips and guidelines to make your trip enjoyable, especially if you are planning to visit an international destination. Before traveling to a foreign country one should be prepared to deal with that country’s culture and have some sort of understanding on the do’s and don’t s to not only to make the trip more enjoyable but to also as a safety factor . A good agent will alert the traveler to dangers as far as weather or crime to prevent injury or worse.

Just in case you aren’t lucky to have one of those helpful friends to recount some of their personal holiday travel insurance stories, we’ve compiled a list of a few of the more unusual ones.

Bag Overboard!
A man was on a three day trip aboard a small pleasure boat in Thailand. As they were on the return journey, everybody’s luggage was up on deck ready to disembark. Unexpectedly, the seas became extremely rough and the boat was in danger of capsizing. Some quick thinking by the local Thai captain and crew averted a disaster, but not before the entire boatload of luggage had slid overboard with one final terrifying lean! The gentleman in question had thousands of pounds of video equipment in his bag, as well as an engagement ring he planned to present to his girlfriend on the last night of their holiday. But while his bag went to a watery grave, his story had a happy ending. His travel insurance paid for everything including a new ring, and they lived happily ever after, with a great tale to tell! (Some of his new friends from the trip however, who hadn’t purchased holiday insurance, did not fare so well.)

Stop Police!
A hapless tourist on the trip of a lifetime to Israel, was minding his own business crossing the road. Out of nowhere a police car moving at over 80 km/hr came careering over the crossing and struck him. Horrified onlookers watched as he was thrown ten feet into the air before landing on a traffic island. Miraculously his injuries were not life threatening, but he was in hospital for weeks. The local Israeli police were extremely quick in assisting with the police report (surprise surprise!), and his travel insurance paid for a private room, all his medical expenses and his travelling expenses back to the US. Two years later, when the man was fully recovered he returned to Jerusalem to continue his tour of the city – by bus!

Hands in the Air
Two young friends were backpacking through South America on a gap year holiday. Before they left, all their uni friends had clubbed together to buy them some cheap travel insurance. The boys had announced publicly that they had thought it was an unnecessary expense – but luckily their mates disagreed. Half way into their three month holiday, the boys were crossing the border from Belize. They got a taxi from the border at Guatemala to take them to their next town. As the taxi crawled along the heavily potholed road, two masked gunmen leapt from the roadside brandishing their weapons and firing shots in the air. They demanded the driver steer the taxi into a ditch, and made off with the boys’ bags. After a few hours of pushing, the boys and driver managed to extricate the car and drove straight to the police station. Due to the foresight of their friends’ the boys’ considerable expense to replace everything was covered by their travel insurance – and they lived to hear the immortal words – “We told you so!”

Once bitten, twice shy, three times….?
This is a combination of several stories, but a classic example that animals really will bite the hand that feeds them! While in rural India, a girl was patting a gorgeous little puppy that suddenly turned on her and bit her finger and wrist. Although it wasn’t a bad wound, when four days later it was revealed that the puppy had bitten several other people and then had died – she immediately took herself to the nearest big city hospital for a rabies shot. After several anxious days she was given the all clear, and her travel insurance paid for her travel and medical expenses including antibiotics.

In Thailand a man stopped to pet a local man’s pet monkey on a leash. The man handed over the monkey for a cuddle, and as it nestled into the tourist’s arms it suddenly turned vicious and took a large chunk out of his face! Rabies shots, antibiotics and some minor surgery later, the man returned the UK to lodge a rather large claim on his travel insurance.

On a “walk with the lions” tour in Zimbabwe, an elderly woman could not help reaching out to stroke the head of a young lion cub – although she had been told not to. The cub reared its head and caught her arm with its teeth. Twelve stitches and an overnight stay in hospital later, the woman was so shaken she cut short her travel plans. Luckily her travel insurance paid for her hospital and flight expenses, and she returned home to continue her safari at the city zoo!