Day in and day out, I see folks, especially on facebook,
asking friends for travel advice. I'm not here suggesting someone doesn't know what they are talking about ... I am only reminding folks ... Be careful what you advice ! What about ...Are you covered by advice-insurance like a travel agent ?
Reminder ... Travel agents don’t usually charge, when
you buy something from them ! It only makes sense to use a travel agent, and get your advice from the experts (but again, you need to find an expert agent - see below, what makes an expert) ! And truly, I fear folks confusing my advice, with that of what they heard from someone else ! I don't even want my staff giving my clients advice !
1.How do you know, that person will like (or react to) everything
you like ?
2. Experience is not all about, how many times you have done
something. It’s about how many times have you run into
problems and crawled your way out !
Ever heard of claustrophobia (restriction or suffocation)? Or cleithrophobia (fear of being trapped) ? How would you know if someone else has this ? Many folks don't know they even have, till the situation happens.
I bring this up, because I once took my father
on a Cruise West … Due to unforeseen circumstances, my room was downgraded from
balcony to inside (an agent thing). He
took one look at that room, and almost ran everyone over, to get back outside
(no exaggeration) !
ChaCha says, “Anywhere from 2-5% of the world population is affected by
severe claustrophobia”.
MNT says, “It is not necessarily the small spaces that
trigger the anxiety but the fear of what can happen to the person if confined
to that area, hence the fear of running out of oxygen”.
I’ve also heard folks say … It’s your first cruise, so 3-4-5
nights will do you fine. I would never
tell a customer they would be satisfied
with a short cruise, again, unless this is all the amount of time a person has,
or limited funds !
Know that a 3 night is like a party boat. Most folks stay up all night and many are
there just to gamble and party. And a 4
or 5 night … You barely get unpacked before you are coming home.
A short cruise is like a “tease” vacation … And most
folks, once there, do NOT want to leave !
What I hear from most folks ... Why didn't you talk me into choosing longer ! And my bigger thought, after you have driven or bought airline tickets, why come home so soon,
if you don’t have to !
According to the industry, Cruising has the highest customer
satisfaction and value, than any other vacation. So we’re not talking boredom here ! There’s always something to do on a cruise
! Matter of fact, here are some myths
about cruising:
http://cruises.about.com/od/tipsforfirsttimecruises/tp/cruise_myths.htm
I’ve been on 127 cruises.
This is not what makes me an expert in cruising. It makes me an expert in what “I like” !
And since I like to save on the “all mighty dollar”, for my
own cruises, then yes, I may know quicker, a deal when I see it. And I know how to get myself by train or bus,
to cities with low airfare cost. That
makes me my own travel agent ! But it
doesn’t make me the travel expert.
Travel expert comes with knowing how to "get yourself out of a problem”
!
In my travels, I’ve had to climb out of a disaster several
times:
1. Once I was in
South America and Delta forgot to give me a return ticket (they put me on
another airline) and the airline would not let me fly back without buying
another ticket. There were 3 of us, and
I was the only one with a credit card !
Took me 3 months to get my money back !
But I also had Trip Cancellation Insurance that covered at least $300 pp
of the air cost !
2. I was in Seattle
once, prior to a cruise. I bought a
pre-package from Greyline. I wasn’t to
pick up tickets till I got to the airport.
The woman failed to give me the transfer vouchers. I had to pay, out of pocket too get
everywhere. She apologized when I
returned to the airport, coming home, however, Greyline never returned my money
!
3. Again in Seattle,
after a cruise. I bought a reasonable all
day private tour. My driver stayed
lost. What was to be an 8 hour tour,
turned into 11. I barely made it to the
airport before my flight.
It’s one reason I don’t like to provide hotel to clients. Remember … Folks don’t always really mean “cheap”
when they talk of hotel ! I prefer
clients buy hotel on their own; they can only blame themselves if they don’t
check it out first !
Cruises Inc sells over 100,000 cruises a year. The average agency sells 200-300 a year. The more packages sold … The more problems
one encounters … The more experience ! Sometimes
I feel I get every problem (a different kind each time) !
So it’s not personal experience that makes the expert … It’s
encountering and resolving PROBLEMS ! Be
careful giving travel advice ! How would
you feel, if your advice hurt a friend !
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