Travel Adventures

Cruising is a great vacation value. Many meals and services that would cost extra on an land based vacation are often included in the price of a cruise. Cruises tend to be more “all inclusive” than most land based vacations. In fact, higher end cruises may include gratuity, beverages and even shore excursions. Everyone has their own style. Some are high rollers and big spenders, rewarding themselves with extravagance because they deserve it. Other cannot enjoy themselves if they feel that their hard earned money is wasted. Whatever your approach is, if you want the best value from your vacation, it doesn’t hurt to do some advanced planning. Have a Plan.

Start your planning with a full quote of the cruise fare and taxes. Don’t try to develop a budget from an advertised lead-in price. Get a full quote from an agent that can explain the detail. This is the starting point.

When I budget my vacations, here are some of the expenses I take into consideration:

Gratuity. Some cruise lines will say that gratuity is included in your fare. In general, though, allow for a minimum of about $10 to $11 per day gratuity. Whether the cruise line automatically adds the amount to your onboard account, you prepay the gratuity or you hand cash over in little envelopes to the service staff at the end of the cruise, service staff rely on (and deserve) gratuities. Gratuity of about 15% is generally added to each beverage order.

 Flight, transfers, baggage handling: Airline flights are often offered by cruise lines as part of a package. If you purchase a flight from the cruise line they will generally provide transfers to and from the port as well. However, there are exceptions. Be sure to check. Transfers can sometimes be purchased separately if you are providing your own air. (more…)

Dr. Marc Mancini begins with the question, “What is a “tour?” in his free seminar: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Selling Tours (..and Cruises, Too!) , sponsored by Carnival Cruise Lines and The Leading Travel Companies. If you can’t attend, order the DVD from The Leading Travel Companies.

There was an in depth exploration of escorted, independent and hosted tours and a comparison of the types of clients who take tours and who book cruiss.  The most valuable part of the training was the success strategies to sell escorted tours and cruises.

Dr. Mancini designed the curriculum for CLIA. You may have seen him in some of the CLIA videos. I was lucky enough to have him as the instructor for one of the CLIA seminars last year at Cruise3Sixty.

The first 90 minutes of the seminar teaches you how to prospect for tour and cruise customers and helps you be more comfortable and skilled at selling both tours and cruises. Dr. Mancini shares “insider information” and promises to help you make more money in less time. (more…)

Last month, Royal Caribbean International® and it’s partner cruise lines–Celebrity Cruises® and Azamara CruisesSM announced they “have begun terminating our business relationships with certain travel-related companies that we have concluded are in the “card-mill” business (selling ordinary consumers access to benefits designed for actual travel agents). We have a fundamental concern with the business practices of these companies.”

Almost everyone in the industry cried out that it’s about time.

There are legitimate strategies for reducing the cost of travel. Travel during the off season.  Book early to take advantage of early booking discounts.  Book late to fill excess inventory.  Travel with groups to leverage buying power.  Your local travel agent can help with legitimate strategies for keeping the cost of travel affordable. (more…)