Mystery Shopper: Great Yarmouth travel agents sell Cancun

Mystery Shopper was a couple looking for a two-week holiday to Cancun next year, with time on the beach as well as sightseeing.

They were also a bit worried about swine flu – could the agent reassure them? They wanted a minimum three-star hotel and had a budget of £2,000.

Global Travel Lounge and The Co-operative Travel provided great customer service, but the two other agencies would have got much better marks had they given some advice.

• Location: Great Yarmouth, Norfolk
  
• Shopping for: A two-week break to Cancun

Read this week’s Mexico feature for some alternatives to Cancun on the Caribbean coast

Thomas Cook

Palmers Store, 37/39 Market Place
Score: 42%

This shop had the best window display out of the four – it was eye-catching, clear and attractive.

The consultants weren’t busy but showed little interest in this request. An agent offered to help and then directed me to browse the brochures while she finished the call she was on. Although friendly, she seemed to have little knowledge on Cancun and the surrounding area, not being able to tell me about any tours or ruins.

She said the Thomson, Thomas Cook and First Choice brochures were the best and I should come back to her when I had made a decision.

It would have helped if she had done some research and come back to me with her thoughts. There was no hard sell; the consultant was laid back. She did not really seem to want to help me and did not offer to look up anything that she did not know.

First Choice

14 Theatre Plain
Score: 47%

This shop looked bland and was in a back-street location. I walked past it on the opposite side of the road before I realised it was a travel agency.

I was acknowledged straight away, but the agent came across as off-hand. I didn’t feel she was interested and she appeared tired and bored.

However, the more enthusiastic I became about the holiday, the more interested she then seemed to become.

When I insisted on knowing more about Cancun, she tore a page out of a brochure for me to read. When I asked her about swine flu, she said it didn’t appear to be a problem. However it would be up to customers to decide.

I was given First Choice and Thomson brochures and the agent said she would email me recommendations and a quote.

Global Travel Lounge

123-124 High Street
Score: 81%

When I entered the shop, I was greeted and offered a coffee.
 
Two agents looked after me and one of them had been to Cancun. They were both friendly and knowledgeable. It was encouraging that they wanted to know a lot about me to book the right holiday.

They said I needn’t worry about swine flu as they hadn’t received any directives advising people not to travel to Mexico. They provided helpful advice about everything from visas to the weather and were able to advise on tours. What they didn’t know, they were happy to research.

Quotes varied from £1,886 to £2,008 for properties including Barcelo Hotel Cancun and Oasis Palm Beach with Thomson. They tried to upsell, pointing out the premium seats with extra leg room. They were excellent in building up a personal rapport.

The Co-operative Travel

58-65 Market Place
Score: 88%

The consultant greeted me and offered me a coffee.

She was full of enthusiasm. She quoted £1,925, staying at the Catalonia Riviera, and recommended tours we should not miss, including Chichen Itza, Tulum, and Xel-Ha.

She mentioned the best time of year to avoid the hurricane season and gave me masses of information regarding activities such as diving and shopping.

The consultant tried to upsell by upgrading me to seats with more leg room if my budget allowed, adding she would email me if she thought of anything else. She had plenty of brochures and offered to look through them to find the most suitable options.

When I asked about swine flu she said that it is a worldwide problem and changes month to month, but at the moment there was no reason not to go to Cancun.

The agent was good at her job, with fantastic customer skills.

Have you got driving ambition?

Our latest Mystery Shopper star is Vicki Wood of Colchester Travel, who wowed our reviewer on a safari booking.

Vicki won the chance to drive a Porsche Boxster S, worth £46,000, for a month, courtesy of Elite Island Resorts.

Watch clips of other winning agents receiving the car on Elite Island Resorts’ TWacademy page…

Tips on selling Cancun

• Cancun has great beaches, all-inclusive hotels and historical ruins. Tulum has stunning Mayan ruins, with more than 60 structures.
  
• For a mix of nature and ancient Mayan culture, suggest two theme parks. Xcaret eco-park at Xcaret.com has a Mayan village, and activities include snorkelling with rays and dolphins, tasting wines and exploring forests. The Xplor park at Xplor.travel has cavern rafting, ziplining and jungle treks.
  
• The Riviera Maya stretch of coast is becoming Mexico’s tourism hotspot, offering environmentally friendly new hotel developments, including the Barcelo Maya Beach Resort, which has been awarded Gold in the Green Globe sustainable tourism programme.
  
• According to Foreign Office advice at the time of going to press, travellers to Mexico may be required to complete a health questionnaire. Travellers are also required to pass in front of a thermal imaging camera to check body temperature. The World Health Organisation says there is no reason to delay travel.
  
• Try Gazetteers.com for more information on hotels and resorts in Mexico.