How to Pick a Travel Agency

The trip of a lifetime can take a lifetime to plan unless you know how to pick a travel agency.
A common misconception is that travel agencies add to the cost of your trip. In truth, finding and using a good travel agency to plan your trip usually saves you time, money, and frustration. So how do you pick a travel agency?


Ask around!
The best way to find a good travel agency is through word of mouth. Ask your family and friends who they’ve used and then ask them about their trip. How did they travel? Where did they stay? Was their trip enjoyable? Getting a few referrals from friends helps you to know in ahead of time what to expect from a particular travel agent and helps you weed out the good from the not-so-good as well.

Are you a member?
Many clubs and organizations offer travel services for their members and many corporations have established relationships with travel agencies that their employees can use. “Members only” travel plans frequently offer the best values.

Compare
Shop a couple of experienced firms. Travel agencies come and go like any other businesses. The ones that stay in business add experience and know-how to each trip they plan. Make your first inquiry with a travel agency a listening experience; judge how well the agent listens to you and how comfortable they make you feel.

A good travel agent will ask you to outline your trip. They’ll ask where you’re going and why, how you’d prefer to travel, how long you plan to stay, and what your travel budget is. Be open and honest with your answers. A good agent will readily put together a sample itinerary that describes availabilities in transportation, accommodations, and estimated costs.


If you feel like you’re getting the “hard sell” or the travel agency tells you there’s only package available, keep shopping. You can always go back if you find that they’re right!

In addition to finding the best rates in lodgings and transportation, an experienced travel agent can also give you some helpful tips about your destination and here’s the bonus— generally it costs nothing to use a travel agency! Because they can buy in volume, travel agencies get discounts on prices for both tickets and lodgings!

For travel made easy, use the services of a travel agency to make your outing a time to remember well!

How to Become a Travel Agent in 24 Hours

The travel industry has been going through some significant changes over the last few years. Mom and Pop travel agencies are quickly being replaced by online booking engines like Orbitz or Travelocity.

But there is one problem: 80% of all vacations are taken at the recommendation of a friend. Now of course this is a good thing, except that Orbitz and Travelocity don't have very many friends.

The travel industry came up with a good hybrid solution: give the consumer a chance to partner with these big booking engines and become a travel agent themselves, with all the benefits and none of the drawbacks, so they can refer their friends and family and everyone wins. This new type of travel agent is known as an Associate Travel Agent, or ATA for short.

ATA's get all the benefit
s of a normal travel agent, such as commissions, free upgrades and discounts, and FAM Trips (more on FAM Trips in a minute, they're fabulous!). But ATA's don't work at a traditional travel agency, don't work set hours, and don't have to go to years of expensive schooling to get their credentials. You can literally become an ATA in a single day, and you still get the same IATA and CLIA ID card that gets you all the same benefits.

There are lots of books and websites on how to become a travel agent, and they are well worth looking into. The benefits are absolutely incredible, not the least of which are lots of vacations and a good income.

I'm going to start with my favorite benefit: FAM Trips. These are "familiarization trips" that are hosted and subsidized by tour operators, government tourist boards, and private resorts at a fraction of the normal cost. They want you to come on the trip and have such a good time that you go home raving about it and send all of your friends, family, and clients back at the normal rate (remember, 80% of all travel occurs exactly that way).


In a word, FAM Trips are unbelievable. Consider this one from FAM News: 10 days in China, including all accommodations, transfers, flights, an english speaking guide, most meals, and the royal treatment, all for $666! The airfare alone costs over $1,000. And because they want you to send your friends and clients on the same trip, it isn't a stripped down, no frills excursion at rat-infested motels. They pull out all the stops to make sure you have a great time and get back home raving about it to all your friends.

There are thousands of FAM's going on at any given time, all over the world. Some are simple, like a weekend ski trip in Colorado including 2 days of skiing and rentals, a 2 hour lesson, meals, 3 nights in a nice lodge, and entertainment for only $199, and some go all out, like 11 days in Morrocco for $1,400.

FAM Trips aren't the only benefit of being a travel agent. You can also earn big commissions on travel that you book, and you're given a website to send people to so that when they order their travel you get the same commission as if you'd booked it yourself. You can also refer someone who can become an ATA themselves and you earn a $40 bonus, and can earn bonuses and commissions on what they produce, kind of like building your own virtual travel agency.

Everyone who likes to travel and could use a little more money should look into the opportunity of becoming an Associate Travel Agent provides. For many people its the ideal lifestyle, combining the perfect blend of freedom and travel with money and business.

Herbal Remedies To Prevent Travelers Diarrhea

Travelers visiting many tropical, sub-tropical and developing countries run an increased risk of suffering a gastrointestinal illness. These are usually caused by bacteria, parasites and viruses. The microscopic bugs at the top of these rather gut wrenching (for all the wrong reasons...) charts are E Coli, the staphylococci, shigella and salmonella species, campylobacter jejuni, cryptosporidiosis, and hepatitis A.


Infected food is the biggest culprit, with water coming in second. Ice cream, cocktails served in re-used coconut shells, raw seafood, ice, and food from street vendors are potential risks that can interrupt your adventure with less salacious memories to pass on to family and friends.

The nausea, stomach cramps and diarrhea from such acute infections usually sorts itself out after a few days (unless of course you have contracted hepatitis A, or something like giardia). Certainly, if you are unlucky enough to be sick after a few days, you should see a doctor.

Fortunately, there are remedies you can take that will strengthen your immune and digestive system and hopefully give your body a better chance at dealing with its new environment. The herbs I describe below would make an excellent travelers mix. The best form to take them in would be as a tincture, which can be made up by going to a local herbal dispensary if you have one in your area, or alternatively, a local herbalist.

Astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus)
Astragalus is a good anti-viral, anti-bacterial, and anti-microbial. The polysaccharides in it support the immune system. Astragalus increases the activity of phagocytes, natural killer cells, and the levels of antibodies in the blood.

Picrorrhiza (Picrorrhiza kurroa)
This is an Ayurvedic herb that is best given in low doses, as higher doses can cause diarrhea and flatulence in more sensitive people. Its a bitter herb, so it stimulates the digestive system. It is also anti-malarial, supports the immune system, and protects the liver. Picrorrhiza encourages all aspects of the immune system, such as B and T cell activity, and the activity of phagocytes. This herb is used in Ayurvedic medicine for liver related problems and immune problems.

Goldenseal (Hydrastis Canadensis)
Goldenseal is a gut antibiotic, which for example helps reduce adhesive e coli, and encourages some immune functions of the body. For example, berberine, which is one of its active constituents, has been shown to increase the activity of macrophages, which digest bacteria and viruses. Barberry also contains berberine, so more information on this very valuable constituent is below. Goldenseal, being a bitter herb, it is also good for the digestive system. If you are pregnant or suffer from hypertension, however, you should not take goldenseal.

Barberry (Berberis Vulgaris)
Berberine, one of the active constituents in this herb is an anti protozoic, which helps protect travelers against giardia, leishmania, and treponema pallidum. Other notable effects of berberine are its activity against giardia, dysentery, and candida, as well as the cholera vibrio. The active constituents berberine and palmatine are also anti-bacterial. And berbamine, which like berberine is an alkaloid, is a strong anti-bacterial which seems to work by increasing white blood cells and platelets. The constituent palamtine is a uterine stimulant, however, and as such pregnant women shouldn't take this herb. Barberry is another gut antibiotic, but it is also anti-malarial (though no self-respecting herbalist would recommend anything other than doctor's treatment if you do contract malaria).

Echinacea (Echinacea purpurea or augustifolia)
Echinacea is an immune stimulant. Its main active constituents are the polysaccharides and the alkamides (especially the isobutylamides), which are both immune stimulating, and the polyaceytlenes, which are antibacterial, anti-viral, and anti-fungal. Echinacea supports the activity of phagocytes, which are part of the immune system, and is also considered anti-viral and anti-microbial. One of the ways echinacea appears to work is by inhibiting the action of the enzyme hyaluronidase. This enzyme is used by micro-organisms to break down the connective tissue that prevents them from entering and spreading through the body. For these reasons, it is excellent as part of a travelers remedy mix.


These remedies are not designed as a prophylactic, like a vaccine. They work on the principle of giving your body an increased chance at staying healthy. But nothing replaces common sense. Wash your hands before eating. Don't drink ice or from water bottles where the seal has been broken. Drink cocktails in glasses, not cute but probably old coconut shells. Don't eat anything fresh that you can't peel. Don't eat ice cream or drink unpasteurized milk. Be wary of eating from street vendors. Some people do, and are fine. But they are a risk factor with gastrointestinal upsets. Its a good idea to pack some oral hydration salts as a precaution.
But above all, enjoy your holiday!