The human touch…….flight booking.

Thank you for the information Sago.
I shall be passing the company name on to family and friends.

We’re going to Australia next year for a month and moving around . We used Flight Centre as recommended by friends.
Our guy is an Australian and new Zealand expert and has been so helpful in planning our trip . He’s sorted out international and internal flights plus some hotels and given us ideas regarding our itinerary.
One interesting point is that because some hotels are included , it’s classed as a package and we get ATOL protection. Plus if we have any issues flight centre will deal with it .
Like the OP we normally book everything independently online , but with a more complicated trip we wanted to use a TA .

Always use Dial a flight, even just for flights, first class service, always answered quickly and call back if necessary. Top class company been with them for over 15 years.

We also found that with Travelfinders when we wanted to do a tour through USA and Canada. They were really excellent and very understanding when I wanted to change things.

I've been lucky enough to visit my cousin in Oz a few times since 1994, staying in Singapore and Dubai, also US twice - I have always used Trailfinders. They are also excellent and can see all flights at once so any connections etc + stopovers, hotels, pick ups can be booked. They also rang me at my cousins in Oz in March as it all kicked off when I got there and they were sorting out out to get me home. Unfortunately I didn't get my stop over in Dubai but they got my hotel money back.

wow! a real human being, that makes a change from the usual AI customer service - EXCELLENT!!!

I second Trailfinders. We used them for various aspects of the trip (not the flights, we did airmiles bookings) and they were great. A friend has used them for a magical trip to see tigers in India and is off via them to Namibia and South Africa soon.

I am a massive fan of Dial a Flight especially this week. They'd organised my special trip to Cape Town very efficiently and with a big reduction in price compared to another firm. I was very pleased.
However, when I got to Heathrow the night flight was cancelled. At 20 minutes before boarding. Panic. It was late at night very hot and 300 of us displaced and distressed. Because I'd booked via Dial Flight I phoned their emergency line and got just the sort of person you'd want at such a time. A kind, calm lady just took over. Long story short I had a night in an airport hotel (well 3 hours sleep) . The lady found me a flight home (not without added stress) and I got home minus my case the next day.
Since then my case turned two days later. Dial a Flight are giving me a full refund for the flight and hotel. Ian, the agent, is in constant touch keeping me informed all the way. As BA charged me £471 for my ticket home they are also pursuing BA on my behalf for that to be refunded.
Thank goodness I went with Dial a Flight. Please, use them!

Another vote here for Trailfinders. (They're consistently ranked highly by Which, the consumer association.) We've used them quite a lot and had great service.

Another shout for Dial a Flight! I’ve used them for about 4 years and always had great service.

My son started a travel agency 20+ years ago now has 6agencues in the south of England and his company pride themselves in proper customer service. Since Covid they have seen a rise in customers who are voting with their feet and using these shops , people want a human. To talk to and they are value for money .

We use Trailfinders. They're knowledgeable and give helpful suggestions.

Booking online is fine until things go wrong, then the travel agents are the ones who sort it out. If you book online you are generally on your own, even travel insurance probably won't always be able to help. I booked to Japan earlier this year through Flight Centre and had to wait for some details because my agent was urgently trying to get some people home from Iran when Trump's war broke out.

Dial a Flight have 24/7 helpline.

The lady on that hotline is wonderful! Just what I needed in a stressful situation late at night.

Another vote for DialAFlight. Have used them for 15 years for flights/holiday itinerary all over the world. Can’t praise them highly enough

We are fortunate to have an independent travel agency on our High Road, they have been trading for many years, and get to know their clientele.

They are always helpful and welcome feedback.

Have used Trailfinders in the past for our Australia trips, and Virgin Travel when spending our Virgin Air Miles.