Travel agencies: how to choose and book safely
A travel agency may sell you its own package, act for an airline or hotel, or simply pass a booking on. Which of those roles it plays decides your rights, so here is what to check in each market.
- Markets
- US · UK · UAE & GCC · International
- Criteria
- 6 (v1.0)
- Official sources
- 14
- Reviewed
- October 2026
What travel agencies do
Travel agencies range from high-street shops and home-based advisers to online agencies selling flights, rooms and holidays at scale. The label hides very different roles. Some put packages together and carry legal responsibility for every part of the trip; others act for an airline, hotel or tour operator and may hold your money briefly or not at all. That role decides who refunds you when a flight is cancelled, who protects your payment if a company fails, and who answers when a hotel or transfer falls short. Before comparing prices, find out which role the agency is playing in your booking.
Top8Reviews will assess agencies on whether they hold the registrations and financial protection their market requires, how clearly they name the organiser and the total price, and how they handle changes, cancellations and refunds. Evidence includes register entries, booking documents and dated price checks. Customer reviews will appear separately from the editorial assessment, and no agency can buy a ranking or a better score.
Flights, accommodation and other services sold together at an inclusive price, with the organiser answerable for the whole trip.
Airline tickets sold as agent or as merchant of record; that role decides who processes refunds after a cancellation.
Trips built around one traveller's dates and interests, often combining several suppliers in one booking.
Websites and apps selling rooms, flights and bundles, where the trading company and governing law may sit abroad.
Booking, travel policy control and traveller support for organisations whose staff travel regularly.
Trips built on a cruise line or rail operator, sometimes bundled with flights and hotel nights.
Help with visa applications and entry requirements, while the traveller remains answerable for the accuracy of documents.
What to check in your market
Rules differ by country. Choose a market to see the licences, registers and complaint routes that apply there.
United States
Several states regulate sellers of travel. California requires registration with the Attorney General and the registration number on all advertising. Florida's Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services registers sellers annually, typically against a surety bond, and each advertisement must carry the Florida registration number. Washington's Department of Licensing licenses sellers of travel, and Hawaii licenses travel agencies and charter tour operators. At federal level, a ticket agent that is the merchant of record must promptly refund airfare when a flight is cancelled or significantly changed and the traveller declines the alternatives offered.
In California, search the Attorney General's seller of travel registrations and check the expiry date on the registration acknowledgement.
oag.ca.govIn Florida, match the registration number printed in the advert against the department's business licence lookup.
fdacs.govIn Washington, confirm the seller of travel licence with the Department of Licensing, which also takes reports of unlicensed activity.
dol.wa.govIn Hawaii, use the state's professional verification service to confirm a travel agency licence and search its complaints history.
cca.hawaii.govIf an agency charged your card for a flight that was cancelled, ask it for a refund to your original form of payment.
ecfr.gov
Complain to the agency in writing first. If a seller registered in California fails to provide the travel you paid for, the Travel Consumer Restitution Corporation may repay you in certain circumstances. Florida's department and Washington's Department of Licensing both accept complaints, and Hawaii publishes complaint histories for licensed agencies.
United Kingdom
Under the Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018, the organiser of a package is responsible for performing every travel service in it and must protect travellers' money against insolvency through bonding, insurance or trust accounts. Amendment Regulations made in 2026 take effect on 6 April 2027; they remove linked travel arrangements, widen the definition of a package and add rights to a refund and to redress. Flight-inclusive packages and flights sold by a licence holder are protected by the Air Travel Organisers' Licensing (ATOL) scheme. An agent need not hold its own ATOL, but your documents will name the holder protecting you.
Ask for your ATOL Certificate as soon as you pay anything towards a flight-inclusive trip, and read who it names as protecting you.
atol.orgAsk a package organiser whether it protects your payments by bond, insurance or trust account, as the 2018 Regulations require.
legislation.gov.ukFind the agency's dispute resolution body on the Chartered Trading Standards Institute list; ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) runs a members' scheme.
tradingstandards.ukFor contracts made from 6 April 2027, check that the terms reflect the amended package rules rather than the old linked arrangements.
legislation.gov.uk
Complain to the organiser first, since the 2018 Regulations make it responsible for the whole package and set out price reductions when services fall short. If it belongs to ABTA, that members' scheme offers dispute resolution. If a company holding an ATOL fails, the scheme may refund replacement costs or arrange your flight home.
UAE & GCC
Dubai's Regulation No. (6) of 2006 forbids any establishment to carry on a tourist activity in the emirate without a licence, and names travel and tourism agents, outbound tour operators and inbound tour operators as separate licensed activities. Abu Dhabi's Department of Culture and Tourism issues travel agent and tour operator licences through its tourism licensing system. UAE consumer protection law covers purchases on the mainland, in free zones and through UAE-registered e-commerce platforms, but not purchases from e-commerce businesses registered abroad, which matters when you book through a foreign website.
Ask a Dubai agency for its tourism licence and check that the licensed activity matches what it sells, such as outbound tours.
dlp.dubai.gov.aeIn Abu Dhabi, ask for the travel agent licence issued by the Department of Culture and Tourism and note its number.
dct.gov.aeCheck where an online agency is registered, because UAE consumer law does not cover e-commerce businesses registered outside the country.
u.ae
Take an unresolved booking dispute to the emirate's consumer protection authority, such as Dubai's Department of Economy and Tourism or the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development, or use the federal ministry's complaints line on 800 1222. Keep the booking form, receipts and every message from the agency.
International
In the EU, Directive (EU) 2015/2302 decides whether a booking is a package. An organiser selling one is liable for every service, may raise the price only for cost changes stated in the contract and not later than 20 days before departure, and must let you cancel without a fee if the rise exceeds 8%. Payments are protected against insolvency. Outside the EU, rights depend on the agency's home country, so check which entity takes your money, which law governs the contract and which currency you pay in.
Use the EU's package travel guidance to see whether your combination of flights, rooms and extras counts as a package.
europa.euAsk the agency for the standardised EU information form before signing; it explains your package rights and names who is liable.
europa.euFor a dispute with an agency based in another EU country, Iceland or Norway, ask the European Consumer Centre in your own country.
commission.europa.eu
Write to the organiser first, because EU rules make it liable for the whole package and require problems to be fixed at no extra cost. If that fails, the European Consumer Centre where you live can help settle a dispute with a trader in another EU country. If the organiser becomes insolvent, claim from the protection scheme named in your contract.
How we assess travel agencies
These are the editorial criteria behind every travel agency we rank, with the weight each carries in the editorial score. The editorial score makes up 60% of a ranking and adjusted customer ratings the other 40%, as set out in how we rank.
| Criterion | Weight | What we look at | Evidence we accept |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration and licensing | 20% | Whether the agency holds the seller of travel registration, tourism licence or ATOL its market requires, and shows the number where rules demand it. | Register entries checked on the date of assessment, licence certificates and registration numbers printed in advertising. |
| Financial protection | 20% | How customer money is protected if the agency or a supplier fails. We weight it as heavily as licensing because a failed agency can cost travellers everything they paid. | ATOL Certificates, bonding or insurance confirmations, trust account arrangements and insolvency scheme details named in contracts. |
| Organiser and price clarity | 20% | Whether the agency states who the organiser is, which company takes payment and what the total price includes before booking. | Dated booking journeys, pre-contract information forms, card statement descriptors and written terms. |
| Changes and refunds | 15% | How the agency handles schedule changes, cancellations and refund requests, including the speed and form of refunds. | Refund timelines in terms, outcomes of test requests and patterns in complaints to regulators or dispute bodies. |
| Advice and support | 15% | The accuracy of advice on entry rules and itineraries, and the help available before travel and while abroad. | Mystery enquiries, emergency contact arrangements and the quality of written itineraries. |
| Value for the whole trip | 10% | What the total price buys, including protection and flexibility, compared with equivalent trips from other sellers. | Like-for-like quotes recorded with the quote date and travel dates. |
Before you hire
Questions to ask
- Are you the organiser of this trip, or are you booking it as agent for another company?
- Which ATOL holder or insolvency scheme protects the money I pay you?
- What is your seller of travel registration or tourism licence number?
- If the airline cancels, will you process my refund, and to which payment method?
- Is the quoted price the total, including all fees, and can it rise after I book?
- Which company name will appear on my card statement?
- Which dispute resolution body handles complaints you cannot settle?
Red flags
- The agency cannot say whether it is the organiser or an agent for someone else.
- No ATOL Certificate after you pay towards a flight-inclusive trip sold in the UK.
- A registration or licence number that does not appear on the official register.
- Requests for transfers to personal bank accounts or payment in cryptocurrency.
- Only vouchers offered after a cancellation when you asked for your money back.
- Prices that rise after booking with no clause in the contract allowing it.
How pricing works
Agencies earn money in several ways: commission from airlines, hotels and operators, mark-ups on net rates, booking or service fees, and planning fees for complex trips. How an agency is paid can shape what it recommends, so it is fair to ask. Package prices are usually quoted per person with a total for the party, and that total should include unavoidable fees. Deposit and final-payment dates differ between sellers, and cancellation charges are often tiered by how close departure is.
Top8Reviews records each quoted price with the date of the quote and the travel dates, and compares totals rather than headline figures. A cheaper total that leaves out insolvency protection or flexible terms is not like for like, so assessments note what each price includes, which supplier holds the booking and what changing it would cost.
- Commission-based
- The supplier pays the agency; there is no separate fee, but ask whether commission shapes the advice.
- Booking or service fee
- A fixed charge per booking or ticket, which belongs in the total price shown.
- Planning fee
- Charged up front for designing a complex itinerary, sometimes credited against the final booking.
- Net rate plus mark-up
- The agency buys at a net price and sets its own selling price for the trip.
Top 8 travel agencies
Rankings for this category are being researched market by market. Each one will publish when enough businesses pass the eligibility checks and an editor has approved the assessment. A list is never padded to reach eight.
Questions about travel agencies
What is the difference between a travel agent and a package organiser?
An organiser puts the trip together and answers for every part of it under package travel rules. An agent sells another company's product and acts on its behalf. The same business can be either, depending on the booking. Your contract or ATOL Certificate should show who the organiser is; if it does not, ask before you pay.
How fast must a US travel agency refund a cancelled flight?
Where the agency is the merchant of record and you decline the alternatives, federal rules require a prompt refund of the fare, taxes and ancillary fees to your original form of payment. For credit card purchases that means within 7 business days of the agency receiving the carrier's information, and within 20 calendar days for other payment methods.
Are online travel agencies covered by the same rules?
Often the key difference is who you are contracting with. An online agency may trade through a company registered in another country, and in the UAE federal consumer law does not cover e-commerce businesses registered abroad. Check the company name, address and governing law in the terms, and ask whether the booking is sold as a package.
What changes for UK package holidays in 2027?
Amendment Regulations take effect on 6 April 2027. They drop linked travel arrangements, extend the package definition to separate contracts where one trader lets you choose and pay for each service during a single visit, and add rights to a refund and to redress. Contracts entered into before that date stay under the current rules.
How will Top8Reviews compare travel agencies?
Each agency will be scored against the six criteria on this page, with registration and financial protection weighted alongside price clarity because they decide what happens when things go wrong. Every price and register check will carry its date. Customer reviews will be shown separately from the editorial score, and placement cannot be bought.
Sources
Official sources behind this page, checked in October 2026.
- Seller of TravelState of California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney GeneralUS
- Sellers of TravelFlorida Department of Agriculture and Consumer ServicesUS
- Sellers of travelWashington State Department of LicensingUS
- Travel Agency ProgramHawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer AffairsUS
- 14 CFR 399.80 Unfair and deceptive practices of ticket agentsElectronic Code of Federal Regulations (US Department of Transportation rules)US
- The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018legislation.gov.ukUK
- The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements (Amendment) Regulations 2026: Explanatory Notelegislation.gov.ukUK
- What is ATOL protection?ATOL (UK Civil Aviation Authority)UK
- ADR Approved BodiesChartered Trading Standards InstituteUK
- Regulation No. (6) of 2006 Concerning the Licensing of Tourist Establishments and Travel AgenciesDubai Legislation PortalUAE & GCC
- Licensing & ClassificationsDepartment of Culture and Tourism Abu DhabiUAE & GCC
- Consumer protectionThe Official Platform of the UAE Government (u.ae)UAE & GCC
- Package travel, package holidays and linked travel arrangements in the EUYour Europe, European UnionInternational
- European Consumer Centres Network - ECC NetEuropean CommissionInternational