They are just glorified Travel Agents in my opinion. You can use them as you would a travel agent and take their opinions and be pushed towards those they have been greased by or have friendships with. Nothing wrong with it, and for those who don't want to do the leg work themselves they can definitely make it easier.

As for getting you a "deal", you'll find much better deals on your own but you will do5 times the work.

As far as being one, sounds WAY sexier than the reality. You have to pound phones, troll web sites like this and 100 other things looking for people who don't want the hassle of making the calls themselves. I would suggest you keep your day job!

Remember this though, Booking Agent is just another name for Sales Man. Nothing wrong with sales, I do it for a living.