aztech- we haven't used a travel agent to book our air for several years now because we generally use "miles" though one airline or another to cover at least part of the fare and we have to do that direct with the airline. Besides, travel agents make virtually nothing on booking flights these days and it really isn't worth their time. But many will still do it if they are booking the hotel too.
Putting the issue of air aside though, we believe there are some very good reasons to book with certain travel agents instead of direct with the resort. Being new to the forum you have not seen this whole discussion before so we'll give you a couple of the key points from our point of view.
Desire resorts are rate controlled. That means that any agent who books Desire must sell it at the rate Desire sets (exactly the same rate you see on the website including any specials.) If they discount off the rate they lose the right to make future bookings. Occasionally you see someone selling a Desire week on sky auction cheap-and Expedia or another of the monsters in the business have had special Desire/air bundle prices once in a while till they were stopped. But for the most part you will pay exactly the same rate for Desire no matter where you book it. If you book direct with the resort you just allow them to keep the whole wad- if you book with an agent you pay the same but the agent gets a commission. Often these agents who are big with Desire also throw in free airport transfers with your booking (about $80 value) that you don't get when you book direct. More than just the free transfers though, what you get when you go through one of these select travel agents is an advocate in case of any issue that may come up concerning your stay. Rare as any issues may be, they can happen. If they do, these agents know all the people behind the scenes and they'll handle the issues without it costing you a dime.
We also think that, if you are or will be Desire regulars like us, you need to look at the long view. This handful of travel agents who do big business with Desire- from dozens to hundreds of bookings per year each- have a tremendous amount of influence with the people who own and run Desire. Obviously they want to keep their clients happy and continuing to book trips, so they use that influence to let Desire know what their customers want- what they are unhappy with-what needs to be changed.
Desire has to listen to them and put far more weight on their opinions than you would on those of any individuals- and that is good for all of us. We need that to help keep Desire honest, keep the rates down, and the services improving. Further- if you are a fan of groups at Desire and what they add to the experience as we are- these travel agents are critical to allowing groups to exist and be successful because they put out the cash in deposits that are required to reserve the rooms the groups need.
We have already listed the agent we use, and someone else listed another of the major players. We aren't going to list the others here- we aren't in the business of promoting one over another except to recommend our own choice. But again- visit the forum groups/events calendar here:
http://desireresorts.19.forumer.com/viewtopic.php?t=322Click on several of the individual events listed and you'll quickly come up with links to a group of less than 10 agents who are among the biggest with Desire.