Wednesday, December 29, 2010

The End of 2010

Hello to everyone out in cyberspace! This week is a time of reflection, resolution making, and dreaming about the future. It’s also about cleaning up from Christmas, taking down the lights, and returning ugly sweaters. (See?? Wouldn’t it have been awesome if you’d gotten a cruise instead? Just sayin’.)

Speaking of, my next blog series is going to be all about cruising. Here are a few topics:

·         How to Pick the Right Cruise Line
·         Ship Happens
·         The Unknown Cruising Facts
·         Which Shore Excursions Are Best?

See you in 2011!

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Gifting Travel

The holiday season is among us! No matter what feeling that conjures up from within, it’s inevitable... it’s time to buy gifts. For some people that’s easy. They’ve known the perfect gift for everyone on their list since September. But for most of us this is the most stressful part.

There’s the homemade gift route… but not all of us possess the spirit of Martha Stewart. I know my first attempt at making a cake for my husband did not turn out as planned. (Note to self: Strawberries juice when they come in contact with sugar. Like, say the powered sugar in my homemade icing. I’ll leave the visual up to you. Not pretty.) Another avenue is the “coupon book.” It’s sweet when your Kindergartener makes one at school, but sorry honey. A year of folding your own laundry does not count as a Christmas gift (not to mention that the promise will fade after just 2 weeks). And then there are the people that have everything. And your in-laws. Or your boss. What do you get for these people?!   

What’s the one thing that everyone needs, but doesn’t have enough of? VACATION! I know it can be hard to justify spending money on yourself sometimes. Blame it on the bad economy, student loans, or that new gadget you just “had” to have. But people don’t have enough money leftover after the necessities to take their deserved vacations anymore. Why not help out by giving the gift of travel?

One popular trend among engaged couples is a honeymoon registry. This is where they plan their ideal honeymoon and their guests donate to a fund that helps pay for their trip. This is one way to give travel. (Psst! We can do this at Resorts & Ports.) Another way is to give a gift card or gift certificate. Or if your budget is a little bigger you can purchase a weekend cruise. There are lots of options! And it’s a gift that keeps on giving. People like “experiences.” Have you noticed the overnight sensations like gastro pubs, interactive gaming systems, and shows (Blue Man Group, Cirque de du Soleil, etc)? People like to DO things. They need new fodder for their blogs, Facebook pages, and Twitter feeds. Give them something to talk about. I promise, this is something that won’t get returned. Give the gift of travel!

And Merry Christmas! 

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Common Misconceptions About Travel

I love my job! Mostly because I get to work with people. However, working with people can also be the reason I want to pull my hair out. Anyone that works with the general public knows this. Police officers who deal with people that “weren’t speeding," store clerks on Black Friday, and those poor people that work at Baggage Claim in the airport. But among the frustrating, the normal, the calm, the crazy… you get the weird and funny. I’ve received some strange requests throughout my years in this industry and I’d like to share a few and also correct some common misconceptions about travel.

The Funny

These are actual requests that my coworkers and I have received over the years. We didn’t make these up and we didn’t find them on a website.

  1. A customer from Arizona wanted to take a cruise leaving from Las Vegas. Now perhaps she hasn’t visited Las Vegas, but based on my knowledge there’s no water nearby unless she wants to go out of the Hoover Dam!
  2. Someone wanted to get away to the Caribbean for a short weekend. However flying from their home in the Midwest US meant they’d only be at the beach for 24 hours or less. Instead he wanted to know if he could fly someplace closer like Europe. Umm, no.
  3. We had someone that wanted to go someplace "different". They had traveled a lot so they knew their geography (unlike person #2). They wanted somewhere touristy, so they could buy souvenirs and have great restaurants but they wanted it to be a place that no one else knew about. So a touristy place with no tourists?! Oh boy.
  4. I do NOT suggest this next option if you work front desk, but it did happen. One of my coworkers used to be a hotel concierge. One time a woman checked in at the front desk and requested a hotel unit with a boardwalk view. The front desk agent said the hotel didn’t have any of those left, but he could get her a park view. That was obviously not what she wanted and quickly became very agitated. The line of people waiting to check in started to grow and grow. It had gotten to the point where the woman was almost screaming at the agent, but short of kicking someone else out of their room he couldn’t do anything. Eventually, he leaned around the irate woman and asked everyone in line to get out their hammer and nails so they could build this woman and “a **** boardwalk room”. I promise you this, if you’re willing to pay then the hotel will allow you to have a boardwalk view room if it’s available. They’re not holding out on you.

The above examples are not the norm. Most people have seen a map and they understand that sometimes you may not get exactly what you want. That being said, there are some questions that we get asked often enough to where I thought it helpful to address them.

Misconception #1: Infants do not count as people.

If you can hold your child (under the age of 2) on your lap then you don’t have to buy them an airline ticket. If your child is under 3 then you don’t have to buy them theme park tickets. These things are true. However, when it comes to the occupancy limit in a timeshare or hotel unit, the rules are not the same. The maximum occupancy limit (provided by the fire marshal) includes every breathing human being. This includes the little ones. We strongly recommend our clients stick within the occupancy limit. This isn’t set by the hotel trying to make more money by forcing you to book more rooms. It’s a safety measure determined by the fire marshal. If you go to check in with more people than you should, do not be surprised if the hotel kicks you to the curb. And don’t expect a refund. They have rules they have to stick to also.

Misconception #2: It’s always beach weather in FL.       

We get a lot of requests for Florida year round, but we tend to see a peak during the winter months. We search for possible resorts and when we recommend Orlando, Daytona Beach, or St. Petersburg they say no because they want to go someplace warmer like Ft. Lauderdale. Just out of curiosity I looked up the temperatures today. At 11:31 AM on 12/2/10 according to http://www.weather.com/:

Orlando 55˚ F
Daytona Beach 55˚ F
Ft. Lauderdale 68˚ F

Now I have to admit, I thought the temperatures were going to be closer than this, but when you’re leaving negative temperatures, does 13 degrees really make that much of a difference? As someone who has visited all of these places, if you can save a few hundred bucks by sacrificing 10 degrees, you should.

While I do recommend most of Florida during the wintertime because of the low temperature variance, I would not recommend staying north of Gainesville.  Believe it or not, it does get chilly in FL. We do not walk around in Bermuda shorts and tank tops year round. Especially in the Panhandle!  During the winter months expect to bring long pants, coats, . 30˚F can feel colder because of the humidity which turns into tiny little icicles in the air. That may not be the technical term, but you get the picture. We do get freeze warnings and ice on our windshields. Just no snow (except on rare occasions). J 

Misconception #3: Cruises are for the newly wed, the nearly dead, and the over-fed.

My first blog was on the facts and fiction of cruising so I won’t stress this point too much, but don’t miss out on this fantastic vacation experience because you think it’s for old people and Spring Breakers. There are so many different types of cruises: family cruises (think Disney), singles cruises (think Carnival, Royal Caribbean), enrichment and cultural experiences (Europe, Panama Canal, Asia, Australia, Alaska, etc.), adventure cruises (South America, Antarctica), small, yacht-like experiences (feel like a celebrity), and business conferences at sea. Why not combine your annual sales meeting with the company retreat? It’s possible and affordable. Everyone fits into one of the above categories. Try cruising! Once you go, you’ll get it.      

This will not be the last time you see this blog topic. As I come across more misconceptions I’ll address them. And as always, if you have a question hit me up! amy.stark@resortsandports.com