Use a Travel Agent or Book it Yourself? Part I: Undercurrent 06/2025

Use a Travel Agent or Book it Yourself? Part I

it's hard, rewarding work to arrange a trip

from the June, 2025 issue of Undercurrent

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Book your own dive trip or get a travel agent to do it? There's quite a difference between going to Grand Cayman for a week compared to Raja Ampat, Indonesia. Cayman, as Americanized as Miami, is easily accessible via non-stop flights from many airports, and once you arrive, it's a simple cab ride to your hotel.

Reaching Raja Ampat typically requires three or four flights, often with small national airlines, where scheduling and on-time departures can be challenging, and an overnight stay near the airport may be necessary. Seasoned travelers may handle it easily, while others may find it daunting.

We asked Undercurrent readers whether they organized their own trips abroad or preferred to have a travel agent handle them. Replies were varied, with some preferring to take complete control, while others appreciated the convenience and expertise that travel experts provided, as well as their attention to the traveler's safety and well-being. Here's part one of our report, with tips that may help any dive traveler.

Planning Your Trip is Hard Work

Divers who design and book their own trips like the challenge and the research required and seem to enjoy adventures on the Internet, poring over websites and researching distant destinations.

As Ryan Neely (Akeley, MN) wrote, "One advantage of being your own travel agent is the adventure of going to a new place without being beholden to someone else's itinerary. You're required to research all of the possible and potential places to visit. Even those off the beaten path. That requires you to make connections with and rely on locals to help make your travel as safe and as enjoyable as possible....

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