• What is the main benefit of being a member of Travel Network/Vacation Central?
• Why doesn't Vacation Central charge membership fees or have a cost to join?
• What vendors and tour groups can I book with Vacation Central?
• I have a host agency already. Do I have to switch to Vacation Central?
• How does Vacation Central keep me up to speed on the latest happenings in the travel industry?
• Does Vacation Central offer training programs, FAM trips, and seminars?
• As a member of Vacation Central, am I allowed to sell my customers insurance?
• Is there any special certification or bonding I need to be a member of Vacation Central?

• What commission rates are available through Vacation Central?
• How and when does Vacation Central pay commissions to its members?
• Can I make any money on airline tickets since airlines are no longer offering commission?
• I have a host agency. Do you pay commission to me or to my host agency?
• What is a CBS form and how does Vacation Central keep track of my bookings and commissions?
• Can I make a change to my CBS form once submitted?

• How long have you been in business and has your Website been in existence?
• What is the Vacation Central Website's address?
• What features are on Vacation Central's Website?
• What is your street address?
• What days of the week are you open and when are your hours of operation?
• How can I contact someone at Vacation Central?
• Is Vacation Central registered for the "Sellers of Travel Law?"

• What CLIA/IATAN/ARC/IATA number should I use as a member of Vacation Central?
• Does Vacation Central give agents IATAN and CLIA ID cards?
• How does using Vacation Central change how I normally do bookings?
• Can bookings be paid in net?
• When I make a booking, should I give my name or Vacation Central's?
• Will I have to give up my identity in order to book through Vacation Central?
• Are members of Vacation Central able to retrieve their supplier confirmations electronically?
• What methods of payment can my customers use when I book using Vacation Central?
• Am I allowed to mine out business to other travel agents and still book through Vacation Central?
• Do I need any special types of insurance in order to make bookings through Vacation Central?

• Does Vacation Central offer agents use of a Global Delivery System or a GDS?
• What is Vacation Central's policy, regarding paying for mailing tour and cruise documents?
• What is Vacation Central's policy, regarding cruise lines' documents?
• Can I tack on an agent's fee through Vacation Central without my customer's knowledge?
• What kinds of discounts and travel benefits are available through Vacation Central?
• How do I order gifts for passengers on cruises?

Higher commissions and faster bookings--Vacation Central consolidates the best booking engines into one easy to access Website, and we have leveraged our sales volume to offer you the benefits of higher commissions.

We pay 85% of the full commission to you the travel agent.  For example, we have a 16% rate with Carnival, RCCL, Holland, and Norwegian, so on these cruise lines you could earn around 14%.  You start earning higher commission from your first booking!

Vacation Central's business model is based on meeting the travel agents' community's need and paying them the highest levels of commission while controlling our overhead, so everyone prospers.  Our profit is derived from the overall sales volume.

Although we now give agents the option of two higher commission level programs, which involve a sign up and membership fee, we continue to maintain our original no sign up fee and no membership fee program.

We are constantly updating our list of vendors and tour groups, but the following are the ones currently available on Vacation Central:

List of Vendors:

Cruise Lines:

• Azamara Cruises
• Avalon River Cruises
• Carnival
• Celebrity Cruises
• Costa
• Crystal Cruises
• Cunard
• Disney Cruise Line
• Holland America
• Norwegian Cruise Line
• Oceania Cruises
• Princess Cruises and Tours
• Regent Seven Seas Cruises
• Royal Caribbean Cruise Line
• Silversea
• Seabourn
• Star Clippers
• Viking River Cruises
• Windstar Cruises

Tour Operators:

• Adventures by Disney
• African Travel
• All About Hawaii
• AA Vacations
• Apple Vacations
• Beaches
• Brennan Vacations
• Central Holidays
• Club Med
• Contiki
• Couples Resorts
• Delta Airline Vacations
• Disney
• Funjet Vacations
• Globus & Cosmos & Monograms
• GOGO Vacations
• MLT Vacations
• Pleasant Holidays
• Rama Tours
• Sandals
• Ski.com
• SuperClubs
• Tahiti Legends
• Tauck
• Trafalgar Tours
• Travel Bound
• Travel Impressions
• US Airways Vacations
• United Airlines Vacations

Insurance:

• Access America
• CSA
• Medjet
• Travel Guard
• Travel Safe
• Travelex
• Travel Insured

Other Vendors:

• Breezes
• Mayflower
• Rail Europe
• SuperClubs
• Universal Studios

It's not necessary to "switch" to Vacation Central from whatever host agency you are using now.  Your relationship with Vacation Central is non-exclusive.  That means you can book with us and continue to book on your own or with another host agency.

There are no minimum quotas on Vacation Central, so you won't have to worry about your usage of the site.

Use VacationCentral.net for cruise lines and tour operators where you can experience a commission increase and use your current host where it is benefiting you.

In addition to our emailed newsletter, Vacation Central also keeps its members up to date with our blog, which features information on Vacation Central and the travel industry.  The link for the blog is located at the upper left hand corner of the Website.

Yes, and these items are updated according to availability.  More information is available on Vacation Central's Website (http://www.vacationcentral.net/).

Yes, and Vacation Central has many vendors for travel insurance.

Special certification and bonding are not necessary for Vacation Central members because they use our agency number.  Specific laws, regarding the travel industry vary per state, however, and we recommend reviewing your state's legislature.

Specific commission rates will vary, depending on the vendor, but our average commission rate for cruises is 16%, and Vacation Central members can also take advantage of 17% and sometimes even 18% rates on commissions, during a cruise line incentive sale.

Once we are paid by the vendor, commissions are posted on to your account on the 25th of the month (unless it falls on the weekend/holiday) and it is paid the next business day.  It may take a few days later to see the funds, depending on your bank's policies.  Our accounting department releases the funds on the 25th for payment to your account.  Through this streamlined process the monies will appear in your account in 2 to 5 days.

Commissions are paid by direct deposit, and so it is very important that you provide Vacation Central with your Direct Deposit information (on the left hand side of the homepage--the sixth item on the sidebar is the "Direct Deposit Form").

Your initial step to receiving your commissions is to enter your banking information.  Once you have submitted your information you don't have to enter it again.  It is on file, and the process is automatic.  If you need to update your account information, just repeat the process.  Be sure to enter your individual banking information so that we can process the direct deposit.

Yes.  While airlines have discontinued offering commission, we give the agents the option of tacking on a $10 or a $15 service fee.  Agents receive $10 when they tack on a $15 service fee and $5 when they tack on a $10 service fee.  These fees are also paid the 25th of every month through direct deposit.

We pay you, the individual agent who signs up with Vacation Central, and we pay according to the direct deposit information that is submitted.  Unless you specifically indicate that you want a host agent to be paid rather than you, VacationCentral.net pays you directly.

All Vacation Central members are required to fill out a "Central Booking System" form or a CBS.  By filling out this form, our members notify us of their bookings whether they were made by phone or even sometimes electronically.  CBS forms are always necessary for bookings by phone, and a new CBS form must be filled out for each new booking.  The form itself is available at VacationCentral.net (click the CBS link at the upper left hand corner of the site).

At this time you will have to delete your previous CBS and fill out a new CBS form with any new or updated information.  The most important piece is the booking number as the rest of the information is for your purposes.

Since 1982 as a host agency and a bricks and mortar franchise since 2002 as an Internet-based host agency.

http://www.vacationcentral.net/

The Vacation Central Website continues to be updated, but currently its major features include live booking engines, discount and special package deals, and information on cruises, group cruises, flights, hotels & condos, tour operators, event tickets, and cars/limos/rails.  We also offer our members a small business center filled with links to help both fledgling agencies as well as seasoned veterans.

Vacation Central's main office is at 560 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632.

Vacation Central's main office is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST.

Members can choose to call (201) 567-8500, fax (201) 490-1721, or email info@vacationcentral.net. 

Yes, Vacation Central has "Sellers of Travel" in all states as required or legislation changes.  Agents are advised to review their state's legislature, regarding the "Sellers of Travel Law" as well as other travel industry-related laws.

Once you become a member of Vacation Central, you will be provided with a CLIA/IATAN/ARC/IATA number.

Upon completion of the IATAN requirements, Vacation Central will assist you in obtaining an IATAN ID card.

Vacation Central is a non-exclusive host agency, so you have the option of picking and choosing when you want to use Vacation Central's services to help you with your bookings.  When you do decide to use Vacation Central, you will need to give our CLIA/IATAN number.  As a result, you will receive 85% of the commission for that particular booking.

No.  Vacation Central's policy requires all bookings must be paid in gross even if the agent is the traveler.

Bookings will be recorded under our agency, and telephone booking instructions are available to Vacation Central members.

When you do bookings through us, they are recorded under our agency and this is done for your benefit for commission purposes.  The use of Vacation Central is non-exclusive.  If you wish to maintain an identity with a given vendor, you can elect not to use Vacation Central for that particular vendor.

Yes.  Supplier confirmations will be uploaded to Vacation Central's Website and can be received there.

The vendors listed on Vacation Central's Website take major credit cards.  We can also autodraft your bank to accommodate cash payments.

Yes.  The best way to accommodate this is to put the agents' names under the "Extra People" when you set up your account so that their bookings will be recognized as belonging to your agency.

Some travel agents choose to take out Errors and Omissions Insurance, however, Vacation Central does not require its members to do so.  Agents who are still interested in obtaining this insurance for their business can do so from an Errors and Omissions insurance company such as The Berkely Group (http://www.berkely.com/).

No, but Vacation Central does offer many air and hotel live booking engines, including those ones available on Travelocity and Hotels.com.

Vacation Central members are charged $9.95 for the mailing of tour and cruise documents.

Vacation Central gets the documents from the cruise lines listed on our Website and sends them to you.

Yes.  Vacation Central has some booking engines that allow agents to do this, including VAX/Vacation Access.

Simply joining Vacation Central doesn't qualify you for benefits or discounts.  It's at the discretion of the vendors listed on our Website and will be based on production of sales.

We've recently added a feature where you can order gifts for passengers on any U.S. cruise ship.  The Well Wishers booking engine, which allows you to send an assortment of gifts, is located under the Cruises tab once you sign in to VacationCentral.net.  It is on the bottom left hand side of the page.