How It Works

With the busy-ness of life and the complexity that comes with planning a vacation these days, working with a travel agent is a true necessity. Plus, all vacations booked with us automatically qualify for our concierge planning services.

One of the most commonly asked questions we receive is “How does working with a travel agent work?” Well…here’s how!

How To Get Started:

The first step in planning your dream vacation is to request your no-obligation quote here. Once you submit your quote request form, we will be in touch with you via email, which is when we start the beginning stages of planning your vacation.

Unlimited Quotes:

Our goal is to provide you with the most information we can and help educate you on the different destinations and hotels so that you can make the best possible decision for your family. We also understand it takes time to sort through the many options. We are happy to send over as many no-obligation quotes necessary in order to help craft the most perfect vacation package for your and your family.

Booking Your Vacation:

Once  we have worked together to perfect your family’s personalized vacation, and your reservation is secured with the deposit, we will send you the deposit amount and an invoice. Most vacations require a small deposit (anywhere from $49-$400) to secure your reservation. All Disney vacations require a nominal Vacation Design Fee. When you are ready to move forward,  you will receive a link to our secure payment authorization form, where we safely and securely capture your payment information and process your deposit.

Payments:

All reservations are booked through a travel agent portal, which means all funds are applied directly to your reservation. We never accept payments directly and always provide you with payment confirmations after each and every payment.

We also offer “vacay layaway” so you can pay off your vacation over time! Once your deposit is in place, we are happy to help you create a payment plan that works best for your family’s financial situation. We ask that all payment plans are set up on a monthly or quarterly basis. (Weekly payment plans are not offered at this time.)

All final payments are due 30-120 days prior to your arrival, depending on your destination.

Once You’re Booked:

Once your vacation is secured, we will then provide you with all the proper confirmation details, as well as the next steps in the planning process. This is when the fun begins!

Managing Your Vacation

You always have control of your vacation. Remember: we are here to hold your hand throughout the entire process and are here to help as much (or as little) as you’d like. (Though we really love being a part of the fun!)

For all Disney vacations, you will manage your vacation through a variety of different sites/apps depending on your destination:

All Sandals & Beaches vacations are managed through the app here.

All Royal Caribbean Cruise Line reservations are managed online here.

For all other destinations, we will inform you of any vacation management tools that may be useful for you.

Communication

Communication is a big part of a successful vacation and is also a huge priority for us. For any requests, questions or travel needs, email is the best form of communication (not Instagram or Facebook). Please direct all emails to stephanie@travelingears.com. We ask that you please allow up to 24-48 hours for a response as we have many clients and process all requests in the order in which they are received.

As a Traveling Ears Vacations client, you are our main priority. We want to be sure that your questions and needs are met first. Additionally, our Facebook and Instagram messages are not monitored or checked as frequently as our email is. Again, all requests are processed in the order in which they are received, with the exception of urgent requests that need immediate action (last minute modifications, cancellations, travel emergencies, delays, etc…).

Finally, as you might imagine, we work with many families all over the globe and in many different time zones. We also have scheduled client calls daily to go over each of our families’ final itineraries and plans. If you prefer communicating via phone, we ask that you please schedule a call in advance.

If you are actively traveling, please call or text – do not email.

During Your Vacation

Our clients traveling are of utmost importance. If you need anything during your vacation that is not able to be accommodated for or met directly through your resort/destination, please contact us as soon as possible via text or phone call as we make ourselves readily available to all of our traveling clients to ensure your vacation is as seamless as possible.

Important Dates

Each vacation has specific important dates that will be lined out to you at time of booking. While we constantly monitor each and every vacation deadline, we also ask that you please add these important dates to your calendar as well and be mindful of them as they approach.

Important dates for each vacation vary, but may include the following tasks:

  • Advanced dining reservations
  • Magic Band Orders
  • Stroller Rentals
  • Transportation
  • Airport Transfers
  • Airfare Purchase
  • Final Payments
  • Cruise Activities
  • Spa services
  • Tours/Excursions
  • VIP Tours
  • Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique
  • Adult Dining Experiences
  • ..and more!

Hours of Operation

Business hours are as follows:
  • Monday-Thursday: 9am-4pm CST
  • Friday: 9am-4pm CST
  • Saturday-Sunday: Closed
Calls are by appointment only. All email requests are processed in the order in which they are received.
We are so excited you are considering Traveling Ears Vacations to be your Certified Vacation Planner! There is nothing we love more than partnering with a family such as yours and we can’t wait to help you plan all the fun details of your vacation!