A student travel agent doesn't necessarily mean a person specialized in locating travel tours for students, or a student working for a travel company tagged as an agent. A student travel agent directly refers to travel companies that handle tour and travel packages for students. These travel agents, or agencies, as they are popularly known, do not sell just airline tickets, they also sell cruise tours and automobile rentals to students. They arrange for almost all the activities and itineraries of the whole trip. They handle hotel bookings, complimentary meals, and even stopovers to souvenir shops. These agents or agencies are dedicated to bringing in a-top-of-the-line service for students, or so they promise. They offer adventure packages, cultural packages, educational packages, and even the simplest sightseeing package tours for those on a very tight budget. Adventure packages will bring you close to nature travel tours, involving white water rafting, mountain trekking, and even wild animal sightings. Adventure tours also include extreme sports such as bungee jumping and skydiving. This kind of trip usually requires the student to sign a waiver or release form. Cultural packages will let you explore other people's cultures. They usually cover historical and scenic spectacles of the place as well as allowing the traveler to experience firsthand how the people go about their daily routines by socializing with them and even spending the night away from the comforts of their hotels. Educational tours are usually trips to museums and other historical landmarks of a certain town or country. Some museums in Rome only allow tourists from tour groups to enter. Sightseeing tours are those trips wherein a tourist guide usually educates you, and you visit scenic attractions while riding a bus. One example is the tour in New York to see the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Fifth Avenue, and even restaurants and shops from famous Hollywood movies. In searching for a travel agent, make sure that the agent is affiliated with ASTA or American Society of Travel Agents. You can be sure that an ASTA-member agency will give you a stress free and worthwhile trip. |
