Brian Durbin’s destination wedding is off to a bad start. His travel agent isn’t returning his calls and he and his fiancée are afraid everything isn’t going to run smoothly? What do you do when your travel agent goes AWOL?
Question
My fiancée and I are planning our destination wedding in Jamaica this summer and are using a travel agent. We’re also using the travel agent for our honeymoon at a different resort on the island. We will be in Jamaica for two weeks. There are about 40 people booked at this time, with only a couple more to book. She has been going through Apple Vacations to help book the flights and hotels.
Our problems began back at the beginning of this year. Our agent had a couple of relatives pass away. We have tried to call and email the agent several times with little or no response. Eventually, we even went to her house (she works from home) and talked with her in person, voicing our concern of the lack of communication.
We also have asked her, on a couple of occasions, to charge part of our stay to our credit card, she has not done this yet. It will be easier to space out the charges so we don’t get hit with it all at once.
We have also requested that we be included on correspondence with our guests so we know who has booked and who has not. The lack of communication from her is very frustrating.
What can we do? How would we go about firing her? — Brian Durbin, Terre Haute, Ind.
Answer
I’m sorry to hear things aren’t working out with your travel agent. A honeymoon is probably one of the most important vacations of your life, so you want everything to be perfect. That’s why you use a travel agent to make arrangements.
For years, I’ve recommended using a competent travel agent for a honeymoon. But that doesn’t mean every agent will do a good job. In your case, unfortunately, the agent appears to have had a series of personal problems that sidetracked her from doing her job. That can happen.
You did the right thing by bringing your concerns to the agent first. She should have realized that she couldn’t provide the level of service you needed for a destination wedding and honeymoon, and offered to transfer your reservation to a colleague. But that didn’t happen. (Related: My online travel agency never sent me a confirmation. Do I still have to pay?)
(Travelers are facing hefty fees for non-refundable airline tickets and nonchangeable hotel rooms, the question arises: Why doesn’t it work the other way around?)
Your next step would have been to appeal to Apple Vacations. It could have also transferred your reservation either to another agent or turned it into a direct booking, which doesn’t use an agent. (Here’s how to find the best travel advisor.)
I asked Apple about your reservations. It reviewed your file and contacted the agent on your behalf. Your agent has since then “stepped up” according to Apple Vacations and is taking care of your reservation – an assessment with which you agree.
Enjoy your honeymoon.
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