Travel Research Online | The voice of the travel agency community

Good bartenders are almost a breed apart.  Alternating between multiple clients, these professionals have developed a skill set useful to travel consultants.  The most accomplished bartenders deftly manage their many clients while effectively multitasking their way through the evening. Let’s look at the characteristics the most proficient resourcefully exhibit. Read the rest of this entry »

Add another caveat to “managing clients’ expectations” this summer. Travel advisors are reporting that the record heat in Europe is affecting river cruises on the Rhine and the Danube. It also caused the closure of the locks in the North Sea Canal, forcing Holland America Line to change the embarkation ports of the July sailings of its newest cruise ship, MS Rotterdam, from Amsterdam to Rotterdam, 90 minutes away. But properly preparing clients for what may come, combined with experienced suppliers who know the ropes and some travel insurance, can put a life preserver on your clients’ vacation plans.

At The Travel Nook in Queens, NY, Ria Maratheftis is “crossing my fingers and toes, locking myself in my room and praying like I never have before (to the mother dragons, breaker of chains, old Gods and the new) that my Ama family (three French balcony rooms, with air, pre & post and insurance and private transfers from PHl to JFK) does not cancel.”

Many travel advisors are experiencing the shifts first-hand—and reminding everyone that now is the time for up-front communications to keep clients informed.

For Marc Kavanagh, the founder of Journeys Connect, success in the travel industry is all about relationship.

“That’s how we built this business,” he told me earlier this week. “That’s the cornerstone. It’s built on relationships based on trust, and on making sure we deliver with integrity and trust. It’s different with B2B. The goal is long-term relationships.”

The 34-year veteran of the travel industry learned his trade through stints with a veritable hall of fame of travel providers in the Ireland travel industry. His career history includes years spent working for Ryanair, Brendan Vacations, Celtic Tours and Sceptre Tours, before founding Journeys Connect.

Kavanagh founded Journeys Connect in 2013 after building a group travel business called GCS Groups under DH Enterprise, the parent company of Sceptre Tours and operator of the Aer Lingus Vacation Store. Journeys Connect is all about custom group travel, creating itineraries and packages to order for groups as small as six or as large as thousands.

Travel trade insurance company Trawick International provided a useful snapshot of each major cruise line’s pre-trip health and safety requirements in a TRO webinar last week.  The webinar provided information current as of last week, though fast-moving protocols may potentially change tomorrow. The webinar will be posted on TRO’s Webinar Page on Monday afternoon, August 8th. Read the rest of this entry »

American Queen Voyages announced a free roundtrip air promotion on select voyages from 30 gateways in 2023 when booked by Aug. 31, 2022. Guests taking advantage of this offer can sail on any vessel in the cruise line’s fleet, with itineraries sailing February through December 2023.

In addition, the cruise line has also launched a new full-service air desk to provide consumer and agent support beginning with select 2022 and 2023 voyages. Overseen by Director of Call Center Operations Dana Horton and a team of cruise industry veterans led by Director Tonya Meyer and Manager Kevin White, who have a combined 35 years of experience enabling them to provide a seamless voyage experience for guests.

This marketing practice has many analogies or anecdotes to explain its logic. Going with the flow; swimming with the tide; sailing with the wind to your back; picking the low-hanging fruit. I am sure you have a few analogies of your own to remind you that it doesn’t make sense to spit into the wind or pull on Superman’s Cape.

As logical as these reminders are, you don’t have to travel far to see people banging their heads against a wall in an attempt to get things done. It is still true, that in many instances, less is more.

The word “radical” denotes the idea of getting to the root of a problem. When mathematicians want to find the square root of a number, they use the radical symbol to express the equation. For travel agents, getting radical on a problem means seeking out its cause. One of the best ways to do so is to work backward and ask, quite simply, “WHY?” Read the rest of this entry »

Isn’t it amazing how one little thing that happens at the wrong time can torpedo what was once a very solid relationship?  There are three businesses in town that I will need to think long and hard before I choose to support them once again.  No business is immune. It can strike anyone at any time. Each of the businesses failed at three very basic tasks, and none of them made a move to make it better. And it lost them my business. As I thought about it, I realized that this can (and likely does) happen to travel professionals across the nation. So here’s a cautionary tale for you to consider. Read the rest of this entry »

Taking one more step toward opening cruising, Royal Caribbean Group in its quarterly report today announced it will be allowing vaccinated guests on voyages of five days or less to board without Covid testing — and is “transitioning to the point where everyone will be able to vacation with us.”. Read the rest of this entry »

If a potential client asks you to recommend a cruise, the worst thing you can do is start rattling off cruise lines and destinations. Unless you know them very well, before you jump in with suggestions, engage them in a conversation in which you weave in the following questions. These will help qualify them as potential cruisers and help you to guide them to the best choices.

When it comes to river and coastal sailing in the United States, American Cruise Lines has been at the top of the game since 1991. Not only have they provided sophisticated cruising for travelers since then, but they have also continued to update their fleet with new ships ready to provide unique scenery on the Mississippi and the Columbia and Snake Rivers. And they’ve done it again, with anticipation for the first voyage of the American Symphony approaching in August.

As part of the modernization of their fleet, American Symphony has taken elements of the ships that cruise the European rivers and brought them to the shores of the United States… particularly the shores of the mighty Mississippi River. The ship carries 175 passengers. Similar to her sibling ship, American Melody, the interior has been updated in design and comfort.

I had to admit to myself that I was a bit nervous about interviewing Laurie McAndish King. As the accomplished writer of An Elephant Ate My Arm: More True Stories from a Curious Traveler, published last year, she’s seen a rise in popularity. This book has won first place in the Paris Book Festival, with individual stories in the collection winning multiple other awards. Her writing voice is clearly her own, a daunting task most writers struggle with on a daily basis. So, yeah, I was clearly nervous that my questions wouldn’t grab her attention. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

From the starting conversation about our video backgrounds, there was a curiosity radiating from the image on the computer. Three minutes in, she’d asked more questions than me. When it naturally came around to a starting point, I launched in with the biggest question first: did you start this collection of stories during the primary part of the pandemic?

The newest riverboat for the Mississippi River passed sea trials late last week and is on its way to New Orleans for an on-time start to its inaugural season on the Mighty Mississippi. American Cruise Lines announced that it has accepted delivery of the American Symphony from Chesapeake Shipbuilding as scheduled. American Symphony is the 5^th riverboat in the Line’s ground-breaking new series and the 15^thsmall ship built by Chesapeake for American. The 175-passenger new boat will immediately join the company’s expanding Mississippi River fleet. American Symphony’s first cruise is set to depart on August 27^th from New Orleans, and American Cruise Lines plans to christen the riverboat during its inaugural cruise on August 30^th in Natchez, Mississippi.

“American Symphony is part of our ongoing commitment to leading the U.S. River Cruise market by introducing innovative small ships every year,” said Charles B. Robertson, President & CEO of American Cruise Lines. “Smaller is better on the rivers. We look forward to American Symphony’s first season on the Mississippi, as well as the introduction of sister ship American Serenade early next year.” Read the rest of this entry »

Dr. Carol Dimopoulos has a unique background that bridges the educational tourism sector and academia. In her industry role she serves as CEO and founder of Learning Journeys, a company focused on global transformational journeys which encourages participants to immerse in their interests and passions. The organization focuses on incorporating education into the global travel platform as well as creating social exchanges which initiate economic opportunities for developing societies. Through her global exposure, she discovered what drives human empowerment at a core level. She is a well-respected assistant professor of entrepreneurship, speaker, published researcher and scholar on the subjects of DEI, social entrepreneurship, and responsible tourism. She also holds an MBA in strategic management from Sage Graduate School and a doctorate from The University of Illinois Urbana Champaign in Global Education and Leadership and earned a SUNY Fellowship in DEI-teaching and learning certification.

With almost perfect temperatures the whole year, the Canary Islands are a popular getaway for travelers. Particularly Tenerife, the most populous island in the chain. Picturesque sand beaches stretch along the coasts surrounding cloud-covered mountains, and small villages once lost to volcanic explosions have been born anew. A flourishing culture with art, delectable food, and tasty wine… the Tenerife life is rest and relaxation immersed in naturally stunning views with a healthy helping of adventurous views and perfect beaches.

Southwest Airlines yesterday announced the elimination of expiration dates on all Southwest flight credits unexpired on or created on or after July 28, 2022. Read the rest of this entry »

JetBlue Airways Corporation and Spirit Airlines, Inc. today announced a merger agreement had been approved by their boards of directors. Under the agreement, JetBlue will acquire Spirit for $33.50 per share in cash for an aggregate fully diluted equity value of $3.8 billion. Yesterday, Spirit terminated its proposed merger with Frontier Airlines. Read the rest of this entry »

CroisiEurope Cruises announced its entire 2023 river, ocean, and canal program, and the sailings are now available to book online. When clients are booked by August 31, 2022, they can enjoy a 15 percent early booking discount, which drops to 10 percent until October 15; a 5 percent discount applies for select 2023 CroisiEurope cruises booked between October 16 and November 30, 2022. Read the rest of this entry »

An estimated 40,000 employees of Britain’s rail network went on strike today, in protest over pay and working conditions. Read the rest of this entry »

This year, Travel Show Marketing Group’s Las Vegas Travel Agent Forum at Caesars Palace received well-deserved praise from both suppliers and travel professionals for their efforts. Read the rest of this entry »