A professional travel agent takes all of the headache out of planning a trip and handles virtually all aspects of your travel, at ABSOLUTELY NO COST TO YOU! The combined experience of our team of proffesionals and the feedback from our past customers provides a valuable resource to the traveler planning their trip.
In recent years, all of the top travel suppliers have provided significant in person and webinar training to the agency community, so that we may be even more effective and efficient.
Additionally, with so many differnet travel and travel supplier options, it has becomes quite difficult for travelers to know which is the best vacation supplier, cruise line, destination or itinerary FOR THEM!
Without years of experience and the knowledge and access to information that those years bring, consumers run the risk of paying more than they need to, or getting less than they expected to!
That is where we come in! Our professional travel agents (we call ourselves travel COUNSELORS) average over 10 years experience selling travel one-on-one, NOT as an order-taker in a call center environment! Our services are provided by Smart Traveler, a family owned company celebrating 26 years online and 66 YEARS selling travel, and we connect you with the best PROFFESSIONAL travel counselor for your lifestyle, and budget!!!
Our service is 100% FREE!
In fact, we guarantee that, at the time of your initial reservations, you will never pay more than if you booked it yourself directly with the travel supplier you have chosen! In addition to absolutely NOT paying more using our services, for over 80% of our reservations, our customers pay less, sometimes MUCH less, than if they booked it themselves!
Absolutely! We work within any, and all, realistic budgets, and an honest sharing of ideas and goals helps us immensely when making recommendations and suggested options for YOUR travel plans.
No, NEVER! There is no fee for our services. The travel suupliers recognize our value, and compensate us from the gross amount paid (the same amount you would have paid TO THEM without our assistance). PLEASE NOTE: For more complicated international itineraries that require custom crafting and significant involvement of our international partners, we do request a small, intent-to-travel, deposit to begin the process. This deposit is NOT an additional fee, and is 100% applied to the reservations that are made on your behalf.
Each travel supplier has different guidelines on deposits, payments and cancellations. Your personal, professional travel counselor will advise you once your approval of a suggested option is given. Your credit card will be charged by the supplier.
WE CONSIDER OURSELVES FIDUCIARIES - FOR TRAVEL ARRANGEMENTS! We always do what is best for YOU! We work for YOU, not the suppliers!
Your itineraries and receipts will be emailed to you to the email address you have provided us. Since we are directly connected to many vendors’ inventory systems (airlines, cruise lines, hotels, cars, rail, etc.), you will also be able to retrieve your information on their unique client sites, many of which offer a wealth of information to help you prepare for the trip ahead.
Travel insurance is available and recommended to protect all of your travel investments. Many trips, such as tours and cruises, involve non-refundable funds paid months in advance, and for those types of travel, we REQUIRE you take travel insurance. Travel insurance protects you from losing this investment. Perhaps even more important is the ‘during travel’ coverage (medical, missed connections, lost luggage, repatriation) and global assistance that comes with the insurance companies we carry. For ALL travel of 7 days or longer, every quote from our travel professionals will INCLUDE travel insurance. In these uncertain times, the small premium you pay for travel insurance is THE key to a stress-less and worry free trip, and the peace of mind it gives is the best ROI (Return On Investment) you can ask for!
Without travel insurance, trip interruptions due to illness or unforeseen circumstances can be very expensive, and medical care abroad is often not covered by domestic insurance plans, with medical repatriation to the USA often costing over $100,000.00. Additionally, an increasing number of countries require proof of medical insurance for travelers entering their country.
Call us right away. If it’s after normal business hours, please contact the next involved travel supplier (airline, hotel, tour operator, cruise line) to cancel any reservations you will not be able to use. If you purchased travel insurance, please contact the insurance company’s 24-hour line to start the cancellation process and ensure your maximum refund.
Smart Traveler is extremely cautious when it comes to choosing our business partners and vendors. This vetting of travel suppliers and support of the ‘good ones’ over the past 65+ years has given us preferred access to the world’s top trusted suppliers. In turn, they trust us to represent and care for the reputations they have earned over the years and to deliver the same high standard of care to our mutual clients. We choose to work only with known, reliable providers in order to maintain a high standard of quality service.