In my last post I gave some advice about preparing for your adoption related travel.

One of my pieces of advice in that post was to get a good travel agent who has experience with adoption travel.

I have a lot of people that email me and ask if a travel agent is really necessary for your adoption travel. In this day and age, the internet gives anyone who has access to a computer the ability to be their own travel agent in a lot of ways. While it is true that you may be able to find very good rates online, there are many benefits to going through a travel agent and a few important reasons that it is wise to do so in most situations when you are traveling for an adoption.

- Price. Adoption agents often have "deals" or contracts with particular airlines and can get discounted prices. Some airlines (especially for domestic adoptions) even have special adoption fares.

- Experience and knowledge. A good travel agent can do a lot more for your adoption travel than just book your tickets. He can give you information and help you obtain your passport and visa, he can give you information about necessary vaccinations, he can make reservations for your accommodations, he will know how to book your child's one-way ticket, etc. Experienced travel agents also know how much time you will need to get through customs and immigration (if you are traveling internationally) and how much time you will need to safely make your connections. They also have the ability to "wait list" you for crowded flights, and get you on flights that would otherwise come up fully booked.

- Power to change. Perhaps the most valuable service a travel agent can offer is that most adoption travel agents are able to change your tickets with little to no penalties. Adoption travel is extremely unpredictable. We have not had a single adoption yet where we have not had to change our travel plans in one way or another. Even with our domestic adoption, we had to change our flight out several times because of "false alarms" with labor, and we had to change our tickets home several times because of paperwork issues. If you buy a ticket online you may get a good deal, but you will likely not be able to make any changes and will likely not be able to get any refunds if your plans change. Also, if there is a problem with your tickets, you will not have anyone to help you out and "have your back".

When choosing a travel agent for your adoption travel, you want to find someone with experience with both adoption travel, and travel to where you are going. For example, I recently called a travel agency that is well known for their adoption travel services. However when I spoke with them, I found that they had lots of experience with parents adopting from Asia and Eastern Europe, and very little experience with parents adopting from Africa. The rates they were able to get were not as good as others agents we spoke with and they did not have any knowledge about travel to Ethiopia. We chose another travel agent.

You also want a travel agent that will be easy to get in touch with, both before and during your travel. Many good adoption travel agencies have 24-hour (or emergency) numbers parents can call while they are traveling if needed. We called a travel agency with an excellent reputation, but when three days went by and no one had returned our call, I took my business elsewhere.

Don't be afraid to shop around, but do avoid having more than one travel agency put tickets on hold for you for the same flights. The airlines see that is a "double booking" and often cancel both tickets in that situation.

Adoption agencies and other adoptive parents are often great places to get recommendations for an adoption travel agency. I recommend you find a few possibilities and keep the phone numbers written down somewhere, so when you get the wonderful news that you can travel, you will be ready to start making your plans to get to your child.

* Picture from Liquid Library