Conquer Vacation Information Overload with 1 Click

You've been planning for days… maybe weeks (seems like F-O-R-E-V-E-R). This vacation is supposed to be just a straightforward trip. Perhaps you bought a couple of books (or maybe e-books) about your destination. You've spiraled down that rabbit hole of websites and social media -- where to vacation, when to vacation, how to vacation, why to vacation, and now you're feeling some 

INFORMATION OVERLOAD! 

This fatigue makes planning your travel not only time-consuming but stressful and frustrating. 

What if you needed to plan for a multi-destination trip? Where do you start? What do you look for? So many questions!

You are just one click away from eliminating that stress and anxiety. 

Many begin their vacation planning online. People use online booking sites regularly to plan their travel and vacation. The booking sites have made it easier for anyone to book any or all aspects of their trip.

That's not the click I mean. 

The click I'm talking about is the one that connects you to a Travel Advisor. 

Travel Advisors are in hot demand after all the issues and problems travelers experienced with online booking engines after the pandemic brought vacations to a halt. Plus, while there's a lot of information and options available, it can become confusing to see what is relevant and what is not.

Using a Travel Advisor like myself will save you time, energy, money, and stress before your departure and during your trip. I watch trends and keep up with the constant changes in the travel industry. I know what to look for, where to find it, and how to use it to YOUR advantage. I make sure I listen to your needs and wants and customize your travel to suit you and only you. I am all about making you happy, and that is something a booking engine cannot do. 

11 Benefits of Using a Travel Advisor: 

1. Less anxiety. The stress of planning your trip can be exhausting. 
2. Close all those browser tabs and reclaim time for your family and friends. 
3. Cost savings. As you've already discovered, finding places that fit your exact needs can be difficult and time-consuming. Lost time is lost money!
4. More cost savings. You may end up paying for stuff you don't need, which could be better used elsewhere (like souvenirs!).
5. You are more organized. Know exactly where you have to be and when. Have everything you need at your fingertips with personalized e-docs provided by your travel advisor. 
6. You will make more informed decisions so that your trip goes more smoothly, giving you the best experience possible. Travel advisors provide accurate information about your destination, including the quality of hotels, restaurants, and other attractions. Yelp and Google reviews may contain skewed reviews. That hotel on Expedia has a terrific price, but is it in a reputable, safe area? Are the rooms dated?
7. You will save time and money by avoiding unexpected problems that may distract you when you should be enjoying time with your loved ones.  
8. Travel advisors have relationships with destination liaisons and can reach out directly to the appropriate reps for assistance if necessary. 
9. You may likely end up with better or exclusive options because of those relationships.
10. A travel advisor can help you find the perfect trip for you that not only fits within your budget but how to work it into your family's style. 
11. Peace of Mind. Travel agents must adhere to a code of conduct and have professional liability insurance.

The world is big and ever-changing, and you need up-to-date information about your destination. I want to help you explore the world and create incredible memories for you and your loved ones. I care about you, and I will go that extra mile to make this a unique experience for you.

Your friends and family will be impressed with your trip and want to know how you did it. Think about the peace of mind you will have: knowing that all details are taken care of before you leave and that trip is arranged and on track. You can relax and enjoy your vacation.

Are you traveling soon and would like to have a stress-free vacation? See just how I can help you with your plans.

Just click!

What Savvy Travelers Need to Know

What Savvy Travelers Need to Know

Marsha Mowers,
Managing Director, Canadian TravelNews.ca, March 2021

Flights are grounded. Borders are closed. Coming back home is quite the ordeal with testing and quarantines.

Travel will eventually come back, and my personal thinking is it’s actually going to bounce back so fast that the industry won’t be able to keep up with demand (but that’s a whole other story coming soon).

Right now, travelers have the upper hand. It’s almost like they’re first time home buyers during a housing collapse. We’ve saved up money during the pandemic and we need to travel. And we want to get out of Dodge the minute it’s safe to do so.

With that in mind, here are my must-do travel tips for anyone even dreaming about a trip right now.

USE A TRAVEL AGENT

I cannot stress this enough. A good agent will literally make the difference in your trip.

You’re not just a number like you would be with an OTA (online travel agent such as Expedia). Your travel agent likely has a very good rapport with the manager on site at your hotel and can easily accommodate special requests – like adding a crib or setting up a room nicely for a proposal.

They’ll also have your back should rules change last minute for some reason – as they did many, many, many times during this pandemic.

Bit of back-story – agents are paid on commission, by the tour operator you book with. For example, if you book a one week all inclusive to Cancun, you pay for your trip and the agent gets a commission from tour operator.

The reason agents have been so upset during this pandemic is because commissions are paid (for the most part) at time of travel. So that trip you booked in August for travel in December? The agent doesn’t get paid until you go. And with the pandemic and all the cancellations, those commissions were lost. All the work agents did for your booking went unpaid, not to mention the income they had counted on was gone.

As a result, you’ll likely see a reasonable service fee moving forward when you deal with an agent. Their expertise is invaluable and paying someone to be your private travel concierge is very savvy and smart.

BOOK NOW

There is no other way to say it. Do not pass go – go directly to book now.

Particularly if you aren’t sure about traveling this coming winter season but definitely will be comfortable traveling Fall/Winter 2022/2023, book now. Rates for Mexico, the Caribbean and Dominican Republic winter season for example, are already starting to rise as people book.

There are a lot of great deals now, but you have to move fast.

It’s basically like riding a wave; know what’s coming and get ready to jump on a deal.

Also comforting is the fact that pretty much every single tour operator, airline and hotel are offering incredible cancellation allowances should travel restrictions change.

DO A MULTI-GENERATIONAL AND / OR CELEBRATION TRIP

Back when I worked in destination marketing, this was an emerging trend. Now?

Multi-family groups are leading the way in terms of booking numbers and are fore-casted to be even stronger into 2022. It makes sense.

We haven’t seen our families. We haven’t been able to relax on a beach somewhere. We haven’t been able to celebrate milestones.

Do it.

Celebrate the 50th birthday with your closest friends in a villa. Have a big celebration for an anniversary.

Heck, just grab your friends, family and go and celebrate the fact that we can. There are also amazing deals with private villas for example, around the world that pre-pandemic were out of many people’s budgets. You can even rent a private jet, which, depending on the number of people traveling and where you’re going, actually is competitive price wise, with the per ticket costs for a commercial airline. Talk about a COVID safety bubble – you and your family and friends take a jet to a villa? How safe and memorable is that?

There are of course so many other options – book a block of rooms at a resort. Rent out a boutique hotel. Whatever your fancy, just do it.

TELL YOUR FRIENDS

Travel shaming is an unfortunate new lexicon in our vocabularies and as per an earlier article, really needs to stop.

Tell your friends what you’re doing. Don’t be scared. Get excited. Know that traveling is among the safest activities you can do (safer than going to the grocery store for example, but I digress).

Get everyone excited. Stop the shame.

The sooner we can all get back to the skies, the better we’ll all be. 

(link to original article: https://canadiantravelnews.ca/2021/03/06/what-savvy-travellers-need-to-know/)

The High Price of Booking Travel Online - An Infographic