Travel Advisor vs. Travel Agent: What Do They Do?

The terms “travel advisor” and “travel agent” are often used interchangeably, but their roles consist of two distinct levels of service. 

A travel agent handles reservations and ticketing for set packages. In contrast, a travel advisor crafts the entire experience, utilizing firsthand knowledge to arrange visits to hidden wine villages or secure dinner reservations that seem impossible to obtain.

The difference between a travel advisor vs. a travel agent is evident in everything from their day-to-day services to how they’re paid and knowing those details will help you find the right pro for your next getaway.

Getty Images/AleksandarNakic, bymuratdeniz, StockPlanets, NANCY PAUWELS, and Diamond Dogs

In a nutshell: The classic travel agent was a go-between, earning a commission to book the flights and package trips that suppliers put on the shelf.

Travel agent roles began as a sales arm for airlines, hotels and cruise lines. The title “agent” wasn’t decorative. They acted on behalf of suppliers, earning about a 10 percent commission on every ticket sold, which kept storefront agencies thriving in nearly every town through the late 20th century.

In the 1980s, families heading to Disney World would meet with local agents who provided paper tickets and hotel packages, handing over folders packed with glossy travel documents. Brochures from Thomas Cook and American Express Travel adorned shop windows.

Agents booked the trip, collected the commission and moved to the next client. It worked in a world where travelers had no direct line to airlines or hotels, but it left little room for shaping a trip.

In a nutshell: A travel advisor is your personal trip designer, using insider knowledge to build a unique trip from the ground up and handle any bumps in the road.

A travel advisor’s role evolved from the collapse of the traditional commission system. When airlines reduced payouts in the 1990s, many agents shifted to charging fees and building trips around personal knowledge and connections, rather than relying on supplier-driven packages. The internet has made basic booking simple, but it has also highlighted the value of a true consultant.

Today, an advisor works as a trip designer. They might arrange a wine blending workshop in Bordeaux that a travel agent doesn’t have access to. Alternatively, they could book a private sunrise tour through Angkor Wat or plan a relaxing family rail journey across Europe. 

Their role also involves stepping in when plans unravel, rerouting flights or adjusting hotel stays before a traveler even reaches the counter. Additionally, they can even provide great know-before-you-go travel tips rather than leaving you with generic advice.

In a nutshell: Agents work with booking systems to lock in the basics, while advisors work with people to unlock special perks, upgrades and custom tours.

Travel agents still handle standard arrangements through booking systems like Sabre or Amadeus. A couple planning a five-night Caribbean cruise with flights included or a resort stay in Mexico can count on an agent to lock in those basics. It’s a model built for predictable trips where airlines, cruise lines and hotels already bundle everything together.

Those booking systems can also reveal charter flight blocks or discounted resort rates that don’t show up on public travel sites, giving agents a way to secure value that travelers might miss on their own.

Instead of working only through booking systems, advisors lean on connections with hoteliers and local guides to secure upgrades, private transfers and after-hours museum tours. An advisor might design an eight-day train tour of Switzerland that stops in Geneva with stays that fit a family’s pace, weaving in expert insights, like those from the best travel tips for families. They might also design an international safari or cultural trip by providing customers with tips for international travel to a specific destination. 

AAA

In a nutshell: An agent saves you the headache of booking a trip, while an advisor gets you an experience that money alone can't buy.

When travelers wonder why they should use a travel agent, the answer usually comes down to saving time and avoiding booking headaches. An agent can piece together a helicopter tour above Orlando’s theme parks, tack on a resort stay and line up a cruise without the traveler spending hours clicking through sites. 

In fact, agencies still process more than $70 billion in airline sales every year. For many people, that efficiency is the draw and using a AAA travel agent can save you time and money.

For travelers who seek more than the basics, an advisor ensures you have access to the perks and benefits that usually stay out of reach for anyone booking online. An advisor might line up a villa in Tuscany during harvest season, secure private entry to the Vatican before the doors open or stitch together a honeymoon that moves from Bali’s beaches to Lombok’s quieter coves. 

Many advisors work through luxury networks like Virtuoso, which unlock extras such as complimentary breakfasts, spa credits and late checkouts. 

In a nutshell: You see an agent for a single booking, but you build a relationship with an advisor who learns what you love for every trip.

Travel agents have traditionally worked at scale. In the 1980s, a strip mall agency in Chicago might’ve handled hundreds of bookings each week, from Cancun packages to Disney trips. The relationship usually ended when the tickets were printed and the folder of documents slid across the counter. 

With so many bookings each week, agents rarely have time to learn if a family liked aisle seats or if a couple always wanted quiet rooms away from the elevator.

Travel advisors prioritize quality over quantity. Many build long-term relationships, learning the quirks and preferences that shape each traveler’s experience. An advisor may recall that a couple consistently requests higher-floor rooms with quiet views or that a family prefers to avoid red-eye flights due to having young children. 

Some track milestones like honeymoons or graduations and suggest trips that fit those occasions. That, in turn, creates loyalty, especially when an advisor anticipates the next adventure, such as booking a private truffle hunt in Piedmont one year and a food-focused stay in Emilia-Romagna the next.

AAA

In a nutshell: An agent’s price is built into the package, while an advisor often adds a separate fee for their custom planning work.

For decades, travel agent commission was mainly earned through airlines paying a flat 10 percent on every ticket. That model started to unravel in the mid-1990s as carriers cut payments to 5 percent and then eliminated them by the early 2000s. Today, cruises, hotels and tour companies still pay commissions that typically range from 10 to 16 percent, which make up the main income from a modern-day travel agent. 

Booking a seven-night Alaskan cruise through an agent is a clear example of this structure in action, as the cruise line pays the agent while the traveler sees a single package price that includes everything.

Travel advisors also collect supplier commissions, but they rarely rely solely on them. Many now charge planning fees that typically range from $100 to $500, depending on the trip's complexity. A couple asking an advisor to design a honeymoon across Greece might pay a $250 fee for the custom planning. At the same time, the advisor also earns commission from the hotels and local tours included in the itinerary. 

In return, the couple might find themselves in upgraded rooms with spa credits or private transfers that’d have cost far more if booked independently.

The conversation around agents and advisors often raises a few practical questions that are crucial when planning a trip.

Advisors can unlock extras, such as complimentary breakfasts, spa credits, late checkouts, private transfers or even after-hours access to museums, all through their connections and networks.

Agents earn supplier commissions, often ranging from 10 percent to 16 percent, on cruises, hotels and tours. Advisors may also charge planning fees, which usually range from $100 to $500, depending on the trip.

Instead of spending hours hunting for flights, sorting through cruise options or comparing hotels, travelers can hand the work over to an agent or advisor and have the details settled with a single call or email.

When comparing a travel adviser vs. a travel agent, the difference shows up in the kind of trip a traveler ends up with. Agents can book the flight to Orlando or a bundled resort stay in Cancun. Advisors take it further, arranging things like a private vineyard visit in Tuscany or a sunrise tour of Angkor Wat. 

At AAA, members get the best of both worlds. Tools like AAA TourBooks and maps lay out trusted recommendations and the real value comes when those resources are paired with someone who knows how to match them to an individual trip.

Through your AAA membership, you get free access to AAA travel experts who can secure a discounted cruise package one day and craft a multi-country rail journey the next. Find a AAA travel expert to start planning your next trip today.