In a world of instant access to online booking platforms and DIY travel planning, many people don’t understand the important role of a travel agent or how travel agents get paid. Many people mistakenly believe that requesting a quote or asking for a travel agent’s expertise is harmless. However, if you have no intention of booking through that agent, it’s both unfair to them and inconsiderate. Why you ask? Because you’re basically asking them to work for free.
There’s a lot more to being a travel agent than people realize, and understanding how we get paid is crucial to appreciating the value we bring. In this blog we’ll give you the rundown on how travel agents gets paid, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at an often misunderstood profession.
The Commission-Based Model
One of the most important things to understand about how travel agents gets paid, is that we are commission-based. This means that we do not make an hourly wage like many other professional industries. Instead, we earn a commission from travel suppliers like hotels, cruise lines, and tour operators after a client has completed their trip.
The commission structure works like this: when a client books a trip through a travel agent, the supplier (hotel, resort, or cruise line, for example) pays the agent a percentage of the total booking cost. We may also spend hours or even weeks researching, planning, and coordinating your trip, sometimes even months or years in advance, but we don’t see a dime of that commission until after you’ve returned home from your trip. Which leads us into our next topic…
When Do Travel Agents Get Paid? Not until After You Complete Your Travels
Unlike many other professionals, travel agents do not get paid right away. In fact, we don’t receive our commission from your trip until after you have completed your travel. This means that even if we’ve put in extensive work to plan a trip, we aren’t getting paid right away. And oftentimes it takes a month or more after you’ve returned home before that commission hits our bank accounts.
For example, if a client books a vacation for a year in the future, travel agents gets paid once the client has completed the trip, which could mean a long wait for the agent. This is another reason why some travel agents have adopted planning fees to ensure they’re compensated sooner in the process.
Airfare-Only Bookings Don’t Benefit Travel Agents
One of the biggest misconceptions is that we earn money on all aspects of travel. That isn’t true. Airlines stopped paying commissions to travel agents many years ago for air-only bookings. While we can certainly assist clients with booking flights, we do not make any money from booking airfare alone. This is why many agents charge a service fee for airfare only bookings, or don’t do air only bookings at all. Another important piece to know about how travel agents gets paid. With airlines…they don’t.
The reality is, most of our commission comes from other areas such as hotels, cruises, theme park tickets, rental cars, transfers, and excursions. If a client only asks for help with flights, we’re doing that work essentially for free unless a service fee is charged. We honestly book flights the same way you do online. That is why we often have you book your own flights if you only need flights and not other components that we can make commission from.
The Unseen Hours Behind Every Quote
Travel planning is not just about plugging a few dates into a website and getting instant results. It’s a process that requires time, expertise, and attention to detail. For every quote we provide, there’s research involved—whether it’s finding the best resort that fits within your budget and checks off all your wants and needs, to coordinating complicated multi-destination itineraries, as well as helping you pick the right excursions in your destination. Plus, we are constantly keeping up with ever-changing travel restrictions and policies.
When people ask us for a quote, then take all the work we’ve done and book it themselves online, this is not only frustrating, but it’s also extremely inconsiderate. As travel agents, we are putting in real effort and time when we create your quotes. I’m sure you don’t like to work for free, therefore it’s the same feeling for travel agents when this happens.
The Problem with “Picking Our Brain”
Another common issue we face is the request to “pick our brain.” People might reach out to ask for travel advice, recommendations, or tips without any intention of booking through us. While we love sharing our knowledge, it’s important to remember that offering travel expertise is part of our job—and if we’re doing it for free, we aren’t getting compensated for our time and knowledge.
Some travel agents have started to combat this issue by charging planning fees or requiring a plan-to-go deposit. What is a plan-to-go deposit? It’s a deposit that is often refundable once the client books their trip through the agent. This is how our agency operates. It serves as a way to protect us from being used while still providing clients with the assurance that their money will go toward their travel plans. Not all travel agents charge fees or plan-to-go deposits, but it’s becoming more common as a way to ensure that we are compensated for our time and expertise.
Why Fees are Becoming More Common
In recent years, more travel agents have started to implement fees or planning deposits. The reason is simple: it helps ensure that we are fairly compensated for the work we do. When someone reaches out to a travel agent for a quote or consultation, they’re benefiting from our industry knowledge, vendor connections, and experience—all of which have tremendous value.
Planning fees or deposits serve as a form of security for the agent. We’re essentially putting in work upfront, and the fee ensures that if the client decides to take our advice and book elsewhere, we’ve at least been compensated for the time we’ve already invested.
What Happens If You Cancel Your Trip?
Another aspect of the travel industry that many people don’t realize is that if a client cancels their trip, the travel agent loses their commission. Whether it’s due to an unexpected emergency or a change of plans, when a trip is canceled, the travel agent who booked it will not get paid. This is just one of the many risks travel agents face, as we often invest hours into trip planning without any guarantee of payment.
Why Using a Travel Agent is Worth It
Despite the complexities of how travel agents get paid, working with a travel agent is still one of the best ways to ensure a smooth and stress-free travel experience. We have access to promos, connections, and insider knowledge that the average traveler does not. We also keep track of important details like cancellation policies, travel insurance options, and alert you of any schedule or policy changes, all while helping you craft a memorable vacation.
We’re here to advocate for you if something goes wrong during your trip, and our job doesn’t end once your vacation is booked—we continue working behind the scenes to make sure everything goes according to plan.
In Conclusion
The world of travel agents is complex, and many people don’t understand the value immense we provide. As a commission-based profession, we rely on our clients to book through us in order to be compensated for the work we do. So next time you reach out to a travel agent, remember the time, effort, and expertise that goes into every quote, and consider the importance of booking through the person who helped make your trip possible.
We’re here to create the best travel experience for you, and being fairly compensated for our work ensures that we can continue doing what we love—helping people explore the world. If you’re ready to start planning your next trip, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We can’t wait to help you plan your next adventure!
