Frequently Asked Questions
An online booking site won’t ask why you hated the hotel you stayed at last summer. It won’t know that you are a foodie. When you call to ask a question, you most likely won’t talk to the same person again. They aren’t personally invested in your vacation experience. I am. I’m YOUR travel advisor and I care that you get the vacation experience YOU want.
Yes. Although many professionals do charge fees as we do, not everyone does. Travel professionals that do no charge fees solely rely on their travel suppliers to compensate them. If your travel plans involve a lot of components that do not include suppliers that pay commission (airlines, bed & breakfasts, independent tour operators, etc.), these travel professionals end up not being compensated for their work. The only options they have are to limit their business to only working with suppliers that pay commission or charging clients a fee (upfront or built in and undisclosed).
I have accumulated years of education, training, and personal experience, and have cultivated strong personal relationships with our supplier-partners. These relationships and our expertise have value, and we want to focus that value on clients that are serious about working with us through the whole travel process.
More importantly, we work for YOU not for our suppliers. We focus on your needs, and what suppliers are the best fit for you. If we relied solely on being paid commission, then we would focus only on those suppliers that paid us commission (especially those that paid the best commission or offered bonuses). If a tour, bed & breakfast, airline, or other travel component would be a better fit for your needs, we want to be able to offer it to you, even when there is no commission involved. We want you to be assured we are working for you and with your best interests at heart.
We start by digging into the details of your trip. Every client relationship starts with a consultation call, where we get to see if we’re a good fit for one another. Then, after taking care of the planning fee, I’ll start preparing suggested itineraries based on our conversation and your interests. Once we’ve finalized your itinerary, you get to sit back and relax as I take care of all the behind-the-scenes booking details. If you have any more questions about how this works, I’d be more than happy to answer them on a consultation call! More details can be found on my Services Page.
I like to say, “the internet is for looking, your travel agent is for booking”. The internet is a great resource but when you start to dig, you’ll find that there is a lot of conflicting information- sifting through it all can eat up a ton of your time. Use the internet for inspiration and to narrow down your destination choices but work with me to get the best value at the right location based on your travel preferences and budget.
The short answer is yes. A trip protection plan is for unexpected occurrences before and during a trip, so you can relax knowing you and your travel investment are covered for a wide range of incidents.
Keep in mind that your medical coverage only covers you in the United States. (Be sure to check to see if your medical insurance covers you in Alaska and Hawaii as not all medical plans are created equal.)
Most cruises, tours, resorts and hotels price their products based on double occupancy. If a single traveler is using space and services that are intended for two, the cost is higher than the per-person rate to cover expenses (such as hotel nights) that would normally be divided between two people.
Unfortunately, no. As I am not the agent on record, my insurance does not allow me to.
If you would like “Self-service” access to 5-star hotels and resorts with Virtuoso benefits and amenities,you may book those at my booking portal by clicking HERE.
If what you are actually looking for is a private residence or similar, I do have numerous, thoroughly vetted travel partners that allow me to offer homes, villas, and pied-à-terres around the world. Because points and reward programs vary and aretreated like cash, I am unable to book with rewards or points.
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