Looking for a travel agent in Seattle

February 17, 2010 8:59 AM

Can someone recommend a travel agent in Seattle for a trip to China?

I'm planning a trip to China and am looking for a travel agent that can help with booking a flight to Beijing as well as visa services. Yelp and other searches have yielded only a couple options. I'd like to find someone in the greater Seattle area that can streamline some of this.

Initially I was going to just order the tickets online and find a visa service, but then I talked to one agent that had tickets for about $80 less than what I found online (but no visa service). Most other companies I've found have focused on the cruise/"getaway" side of travel. Also, it's tough to know who's reputable and will securely handle our passport info.

Any suggestions? Thanks!

posted by yukonho to Travel & Transportation around Seattle, WA (3 answers total)

When I needed to arrange my trip to Yunnan and Sichuan provinces, I had a good experience with Asia Travel on S. Jackson in the International District. The prices were good, and they took care of visas and so on. This was several years ago, so YMMV, but they might be worth checking out.
posted by dacoit at 10:47 AM on February 17, 2010

I don't know specific business names, but I would second the recommendation of any travel agency in the I District. They're like the old-school travel agencies used to be, and they primarily serve Asian and Asian-American customers so they know their stuff about China. Here is a Yelp search to start with.
posted by matildaben at 5:46 PM on February 17, 2010

Response by poster: A follow-up: I went with ETravel in the International District, who booked the flight and handled our visas. There was a $300/per person savings on airfare (compared to online), and the visas took just under two weeks.
posted by yukonho at 2:05 PM on March 4, 2010