Regent Seven Seas' Mark Conroy responds on commission complaint
Thank you for the opportunity to respond to the letter "Unhappy surprises lurked in tour organized by Regent Seven Seas" from Maria Balenzano of United Tours Corp. in the Oct. 12 issue.
First of all, we offer our sincere apologies to Ms. Balenzano for the additional work and frustration caused by her negative experience with her RSSC bookings. Our sales team has since spoken with her, extended our apologies and made good on her perceived commission shortfall.
There is no doubt that the booking, both at the reservation stage and postcruise, could have been handled better. Due to a miscommunication at the time of booking their Alaska land program, the guests were not charged for insurance coverage, even though the reservation in our system reflected the charge, resulting in the discrepancy and the shortfall in commission.
While we recognize the limitations in terms of infrastructure and facilities in Alaska's interior, we deliver an excellent land-based product in conjunction with our cruises in Alaska. The agent was fully apprised, in excruciating detail, of the equipment and services that were provided to her clients.
I hope that all our agent partners, especially those at United Tours Corp., recognize that this set of circumstances is a rare exception. At RSSC, we pride ourselves on our passionate support of the travel agency network and our agent commission policies. In fact, we go above and beyond most cruise lines in terms of paying agent commissions on items such as gratuities; soft drinks and alcoholic beverages; and most shore excursions, all of which are included in RSSC's fares. Starting in 2010, we will be paying commissions on government fees and taxes that will also be included in the cruise fare.
We recognize and appreciate the hard work and depth of product knowledge that our travel agent partners demonstrate each and every day in order to make the sale, and we are happy to reward them accordingly.
Mark Conroy, president
Regent Seven Seas Cruises
A fee-based model works 3 ways for specialized Africa tour service
Thank you, Richard Turen, for your very thoughtful column [Reality Check: "The $100 relationship bond," Oct. 12]. We love reading your columns because they assure us we are doing the right thing and have been for the last 12 years. We use a model similar to the one described in your column.
In fact, as a highly specialized Africa tourism service, destination planner and tour operator, our fees work on three levels:
They produce only serious clients who wish to use our services.
They encourage clients to use travel agents for the same service that they would otherwise have to pay for.
They provide a no-risk obligation for using our services, since the "planning fees" are refunded to the client when they book their services through us.
This has been an incredible success, especially for the travel agents who regularly use our services.
Raza Visram, safari and tour planning director
AfricanMecca Safaris, Tours & Beach Vacations
Allentown, Pa.
Maryland agent warns of dealing with a Toronto-based limo service
This is a warning to agents about using A1 Worldwide Limousine in Toronto. We booked two airport transfers plus a full-day Toronto-to-Niagara Falls. We advised them that we were travel agents and expected the commission. We were given a quote, which we then gave to our client.
Six weeks after the tours, we called to inquire when commissions would be paid. They said there would be no commissions since the rate they gave us was a low rate. When I asked to speak to the manager, they said the owner does not take calls from clients.
Bob Targan, CEO
Targan Travel Marketing/Cruise Alert
Montgomery Village, Md.
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