We are going away in a few weeks and basically we are having to book a last minute flight from Santiago to Mendoza as the border has been closed due to snow.

My husband went into Marlin Travel on Monday to inquire about a price and got just over $300 for 2 adults plus a baby, so they held the seats while we checked a few things overnight.

Me, being me went to the Lan Chile site and saw the fare was $50 cheaper, $50 is $50!, so my husband decided to book this on Tuesday night after cancelling the Marlin Travel reservation.

He does that on Tuesday and they were a little funny, but why hold the seats, if you can't?

Then the biggie, we are ready to book the flights the price has increased dramatically:curse: :curse:

We should have booked first and then cancelled the Marlin Travel reservation, we know, we were stupid.

So my husband calls them today just hoping they have a similar price to Monday and the woman's checks and of course it has increased and they ask him if he wants to buy it, he says no, we will wait and then she says that next time he inquires about fares he will have to pay an inquiry fee!!!! As he wasted her time! Couldn't believe it! You think a travel agents wouldn't be turning customers away like that!

NOw, who was in the wrong here?

Airlines, hotels, etc., do not pay anything like the commissions that they used to pay to travel agents.

In addition to that, travel agents have lost a lot of revenue from the fact that many travellers make their on reservations directly, online.

I became e-pals with a travel agent in California. She told me that she used to do heaps of research for people, only to have them walk away and not buy a single thing through her.

After getting her fingers burned several times, she instituted a policy. Before she'll even lift a finger to find out any information on your behalf, you have to pay a deposit. If you book travel through her, the deposit that you've paid goes towards your travel. So, if you do end up using her services, you essentially get her time and labour for free (she earns her income from the commissions). However, if you do not book through her, she gets to keep the deposit.

She said that, since she has instituted that policy, tire kickers don't waste her time any more.