Booking a vacation on your own, especially when COVID-19 is creating so much uncertainty, is not a great use of your time and money. Here are our top 7 reasons why you should book your next vacation with one of our travel advisors and save yourself some stress, money, and most importantly, time.

1.WE ARE THERE should SOMETHING GO WRONG

Whether you’re taking a tropical voyage or exploring Machu Picchu, even the best planning cannot prevent or predict the unexpected. It is impossible to know whether you or a family member may fall ill, if work demands might prevent you from leaving on time, if you will need to cancel your trip last minute, or if you might encounter a medical or weather emergency overseas. We are your personal advocate to help facilitate any itinerary changes during your travels and make recommendations along the way if something unexpected does come up, helps to give you the peace of mind you need.

2. WE DO THIS FOR A LIVING

We have extensive experience. This is our job, day-in-and-day-out, booking travel of all types around the world. We know the best destinations, the best cruising seasons, the best deals, and we have relationships with global travel partners built over the past 25 years. If you are in need of a destination specialist or have unique travel requirements, we will match the right advisor for your personal travel needs.

3. We will SAVE YOU TIME AND stress (and money)

We do charge fees for our services, but they are nominal compared to the amount of time and effort we put into each of our customer's vacations as we help research, plan, book, and then follow throughout the trip, work with you if you have insurance claims, cancellations, or other challenges that may arise before, during, or getting you home from your vacation. The bulk of our pay is typically paid a commission directly from the cruise lines, hotels, or guided vacation providers we book for you.

As a result, your out-of-pocket cost is typically very minimal for what you receive in return. We have airline contract rates and wholesale flight options available, access to exclusive deals and amenities with numerous travel partners, as well as the power of American Express Travel behind us providing you with a better vacation value than if you were to try and book a trip on your own. When you take all of that into consideration, combined with time we'll save you in planning and the stress we'll save you should the unexpected occur, using a travel advisor proves to be a budget friendly option.

4. We MAKE PERSONALIZED RECOMMENDATIONS

 You might think you want to explore a certain destination when in fact your interests and budget better align with another. We are specialists in understanding the differences in regions around the world and are highly in-tune with what kind of experience each will provide. Spend a little time letting us get to know you and your personal travel preferences and we will match you with the best cruise line, hotel brand, airline, or guided vacation partner and then we'll plan a custom itinerary to provide you with an extraordinary vacation experience.

5. We KNOW WHAT DOCUMENTATION YOU NEED

Some destinations require a passport and others don’t. Some need VISAs and certain countries may require medical shots in advance. We cannot acquire the documents for you, but we will explain the requirements of your particular vacation so that you are prepared to have the correct travel documents for your trip.

6. WE UNDERSTAND ALL THE FEES AND T&C'S

Booking a vacation is more than just saying “yes” to the advertised rate of a hotel, cruise, airline ticket, or guided vacation on a website. You may encounter a variety of additional costs including: resort fees, taxes, port fees, daily gratuities, baggage fees, WiFi connectivity costs, shore excursion options, transfers, travel insurance, etc. Every travel option also comes with its own Terms and Conditions on what you can and cannot do if you need to change your plans. We are well versed to make you aware of the most important points that are relevant to you personally. Most importantly, we can help you understand exactly what you are paying for.

7. WE ARE HERE IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG

Did we mention this yet? Oh right. Well, it bears repeating. Even the best planning cannot prevent or predict the unexpected, "hello COVID-19". We are in constant communication with vendors on your behalf and are alerted if hotels close unexpectedly, flights are delayed to certain destinations, or if a cruise will not depart as scheduled. As we've learned throughout this ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, having your own personal travel advisor to help facilitate any itinerary changes before or during your travels should the unexpected happen gives you the peace of mind you'll want and need. At the beginning of the pandemic of 2020, before we all fully understood what we were going to be dealing with, we would sit on hold with the airlines and tour providers for up to 7 hours for ONE phone call to cancel a flight or a tour in Europe. These are hours we were not compensated for, but saved our customers from having to figure out for themselves. Many people learned that saving a few dollars booking themselves online was no bargain as they couldn't reach any customer service to assist them with their vacation cancelation. 

If you've never worked with one of our travel advisors, we invite you to contact us and ask questions. Learn how your personal vacation advisor will be the best way to protect your priceless vacation time with loved ones. If you've worked with one of our travel advisors in the past, we look forward to planning your next vacation! Contact our Travelink, American Express Travel advisors to get started!