Photo: Chuttersnap on Unsplash
by Stephanie Kilson-Thomas
Why Hire a Travel Agent for Your Destination Wedding?
Destination weddings are a lot of fun but require a lot of planning! From guestlists, choosing your destination and what type of dress and shoes to wear on the beach, couples have SO MUCH to think about when planning a destination wedding, but how you’re going to get there, and where you’re going to stay shouldn’t be a part of it. Travel agents are now more consultative more than ever, providing excellent resources for you and your guests as you enjoy your wedding weekend. Here are a few reasons why you should hire a travel agent for your destination wedding.
- Knowledge of your destination and/resort: Many destination wedding travel specialists are also specialists of destinations. Agents can be a certified specialist for a particular country for travel or be a specialist through years of experience booking trips to that country. Regarding resorts, many agents are also certified with resorts either by passing a certification exam, or they have booked a lot of weddings to be certified agents of the resort. They have built excellent rapport and relationships with the on-site wedding coordinators and sales managers at the resorts, so they know who to go to take care of their clients.
- Booking accommodations: Travel agents take over the reigns once you have confirmed your date with your resort or venue and you have sent out save the dates. Making sure your guests have all the information they need regarding the resort, rooms they can select, pricing, and making payments on their trip are just a few of the things travel agents handle for you. Also, making sure that special requests regarding booking are handled is another service your travel agent provides, and its one less thing for you to worry about.
- Contract pricing versus Flexible Group pricing: Travel agents can work you through the decision of whether or not you should get a room block with locked in rates for your rooms versus giving your guests the flexibility to book any room they want at any time. Both options have pros and cons, and your travel agent can walk you through the process to help you determine which is best for you and your guests.
- Wedding perks: Working with a travel agent to secure your rooms also gives you access to wedding perks that can lead to cash back in your pocket, which is extremely helpful after paying for a wedding!
- Booking activities: When guests are traveling for a destination wedding, they want to make a vacation out of it. Travel agents can package together excursions for you and your guests to participate in while away for your wedding weekend.
Happy destination wedding planning!
Stephanie Kilson-Thomas, CTA is a certified destination wedding, honeymoon and romance travel specialist. She is the owner of KT Travel & More LLC, a destination wedding travel agency. Connect with her on Instagram @kttravelandmore, by email [email protected] or online www.kttravelandmore.com.