FAQ
What should the client know about your pricing/fees?
When you engage in our travel services, you can expect to pay professional service fees based on your needs, the number of people traveling, and the timeframe. You have the option to choose a fully customized itinerary or a quote. These fees cover the in-depth research for your itinerary, consultations, itinerary building, booking, and managing your trip.
By charging a fee, we have the freedom to choose the suppliers that work best for you, matching you with the best properties, tours, and cruises tailored to your travel style—without being influenced by commissions. Many travel agents work on commission only, meaning they get paid solely by the travel suppliers they collaborate with. Our main priority is to find the best fit for you, ensuring your travel experience is curated to your preferences, not driven by supplier incentives.
We also charge a fee to ensure we are fairly compensated for our time and expertise, even in the event you decide not to book or cancel your trip. Planning a trip properly is a detailed and time-intensive process. It involves managing many moving parts and requires expertise to provide accurate recommendations based on your preferences and needs, crossing all the “t’s” and dotting all the “i’s,” and continuously monitoring conditions and changes before and during your trip. All planning fees are non-refundable.
What is your typical process for working with a new client?
As your personal travel consultants, we will connect via phone or email to discuss your needs and preferences. We will use our destination knowledge, connections, and experience to create a fully customized, full-service itinerary for each trip. If you’d like to make changes, we’re happy to accommodate! You have up to three revisions of the itinerary. Should you decide to change destinations, an additional fee will apply, as we will need to start from scratch. You can expect to receive your itinerary within a week.
You’ll have access to your itinerary through our mobile itinerary app or a browser link. Once you’re in love with the itinerary, we’ll begin the booking process. As your trip approaches, we’ll handle the finishing touches and send you everything you need so that all you’ll need to do is pack!
What education and/or training do you have that relates to your work?
You can book with our agency in confidence as I am an ASTA Verified Travel Advisor and a Certified Travel Associate with Nexion LLC as my host agency. I am an Accredited Cruise Counselor with CLIA. I am up to date on all the major cruise line’s trainings including Virgin Voyages, MSC, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Viking, Silversea, Ama Waterways, etc. I attend travel conferences so I am up to date on all things travel. With travel in all 7 continents, I have gained real life experience from the destinations I send my clients to.
How do you know if we are a good fit?
Once you complete the client inquiry form or we chat during our initial consultation, we’ll be able to determine if we’re a good fit to work together.
The clients we work best with:
- You love to travel but simply don’t have the time or energy to plan it yourself.
- You’re tired of scouring countless Google reviews. With so many options online, it’s hard to know what you’re getting, and you’d prefer to trust professional travelers (that’s us) to take the reins.
We probably won’t be a good fit if:
- You’re looking for freebies. Thanks to our travel partners, we often secure special VIP touches, onboard credit, and exclusive pricing that clients typically don’t have access to. We’re happy to offer these when they’re available, but our recommendations are always based on your travel style first.
- You’re not tech-savvy. We use a mobile app/browser itinerary builder with an option to print to PDF for convenience.
- You prefer to “hop on a call to discuss your trip.” Our planning fee covers the initial consultation and up to two additional calls to refine your itinerary. This structure allows us to better serve both new and existing clients. Calls will need to be scheduled on our calendar.
- You’re looking for the cheapest price. While we’re committed to providing value and protecting your vacation dollars, we aim to ensure you have the best experience, not just the lowest price. If you’re seeking deals, we’d be happy to add you to our email marketing list, where you’ll be the first to hear about promotions and sales. However, we don’t have scrape-the-bottom-of-the-barrel “deals” lying around—you deserve better than that.
What advice would you give a customer looking to hire a provider in your area of work?
On our initial call or on the client inquiry form, the more information the better. When asking yourself if you need a travel consultant, consider the possibility of something happening on your trip such as lost luggage or unforeseen circumstances, it is reassuring to know that you have someone in your corner. When you’re booking on Expedia, Costco, etc. you’re still working with a travel agent but you do not get that personalized service.
What questions should customers think through before talking to professionals about their project?
It is important to think about your budget and your expectations for the trip. Where would you like to go? What dates are you looking to travel? Flights are only available about 10 months in advance but we can price out a tentative itinerary in the meantime.
Why do you charge an agency fee?
If you’d like a quote, we put the quote deposit towards your trip. If you’d like a full itinerary, there are fees associated with this type of request. When you’re booking with Expedia, Costco Travel, etc. you’re still working with a travel agent and paying them a fee. However, you do not get that personalized service and the number for suppliers in the event of any unexpected surprises.
We also put a lot of time and thought into planning your trip. Planning a trip properly is quite involved and time intense — There are many moving parts and details. It requires expertise and research to provide you with the right recommendations based on your preferences and needs, to cross all the “t’s” and dot all the “i’s,” and to continue to monitor conditions and changes up to and throughout the trip.
The planning fee makes sure the time we put into your adventure is compensated. Travel agents are only paid from the resorts/suppliers they book after the client travels. The fee covers our time in the case that we work for hours and something occurs and you can’t travel anymore. We can assure you that the fee is well worth the quality of service you will receive!
Why do I need a travel agent?
1. We protect precious vacation dollars and hours. We’ve been there, seen the resorts, know the location and we take time to get to know our clients as well as possible so that we can match them with the right experience. We’d hate to see you waste your money on the wrong vacation.
2. We help save you all the time and hassle. There is so much on the internet these days and it is hard to know what is accurate or not. Thanks to our expertise, we know the options far better than most. In addition, we are your advocates. We’re the one that sits on hold, checks fares, prices and saves you hours and hours of time.
3. Thanks to our travel partners, we can often get special VIP touches that clients do not have access to.
4. Our job doesn’t stop when we book the travel. We go the extra mile to book restaurant reservations,special activities, golf tee times, shore excursions, etc. We also prepare clients for travel to make sure their passports & visas are current, vaccines have been taken, packing advice and even currency guidelines.
5. Lastly, if you have any unexpected surprises like a missed connection, you’ll have a # to contact for hiccups.
6. Help with group bookings – we can make special arrangements not easily arranged on your own