Still Traveling

By Paula Thrasher

March 15, 2005 3:43 PM | Link to this

OK, it’s time to reveal my dirty little secret: Flying scares me. Big time. I do it because I’m determined to go places in a hurry (and you can’t exactly drive to Europe anyway). But truth is, I don’t have any confidence whatsoever in the science of aviation. What I do not understand scares me, and I do not understand how a jet the size of a football field can stay aloft. And don’t get me started on turbulence. Suffice it to say, I quickly belt down a couple of wines (or bloody marys if it’s before noon).

There’s no point in trying to explain to me that flying is safer than ….blah, blah, blah. I’ve heard it all. I put on a pretty brave face and I don’t LOOK panicked. But in my heart of hearts (and deep in the pit of my stomach), I AM TERRIFIED. Nothing is so satisfying as landing at my destination.

Oh, I’ll continue to fly, and accept that when my number is up, it will probably be in a fiery air crash. (By the way, oddly enough, my favorite TV show is “Lost.” Go figure.)

In the words of Woody Allen: I’m not afraid of death — I just don’t want to be there when it happens.

By Amanda Miller

March 15, 2005 4:29 PM | Link to this

Paula I share your flying concerns — it’s hard to believe that something that heavy won’t plummet to the ground. And we’ve all had experiences just scary enough to give you pause. On a flight from New Jersey once, we took off in a bad thunderstorm, and plummeted, then rose and fell, and rose and fell. The turbulence was so bad that overhead bins opened and people were screaming. I tried to stay calm and watched the flight attendant who was strapped in nearby. When she went white, I figured I should have asked if the farm was for sale before boarding the plane. We eventually got airborne and the screamers looked a little sheepish. We were all pretty shaken. A friend of mine who’s very uncomfortable with flying recently took an overnight flight to London, then an EasyJet to Italy. For the overnighter, she immediately took a mild sleeping pill, followed by a glass of wine — and woke up in London. Not something I’d recommend, but it worked for her. It’s like the old joke: I want to die in my sleep like Grandpa, not screaming like the passengers in his car. Amanda

By Roslyn FAder

March 20, 2005 2:17 PM | Link to this

I read with fascination, awe, incredulity and a great deal of head shaking, the “Tips from Savvy Travelers” in last week’s paper. How do busy people with families, careers and such, find the time to do the amount of research they wrote about, particularly when so much of it is basically unnecessary and/or useless? The only person, in my opinion, who had any truly worthwhile money saving advice, is one of my clients. He quoted me but that was edited out.

As a leisure travel consultant for fifteen years, I know the best way to get the best deals for my clients — I deal with wholesales who charge less for everything from air fares to rooms,and other nexessities than people outside the travel industry or those in it but without the knowledge I have, cannot obtain. Of course I have my clients do some research so they are able to tell me what they want to see and do at their chosen destination, but I have traveled a great deal so give them the best advice from my personal experience, as well as the research I do. This is a forte of mine, which means I research in places they can’t. AND I CHARGE NOTHING FOR MY SERVICES!!!

Moreover, I provide tips I do not generally see on travel Web sites, and keep them safer and more aware of how to save money along the way.

The result is I have a loyal following who spend little unnecessary time doing what they know I can, and they recommend me to their friends, family, co-workers, etc. I am tired of reading about all the nonsense people put themselves through to be able to travel inexpensively, particularly when so much of it is unnecessary. A picnic is a lovely change of pace once in a while, but bread and cheese get old, and one can eat in inexpensive but delicious local restaurants, particularly if they have saved money from the start, and I’ve not read about the simple little things that make traveling truly more enjoyable and comfortable in many ways.

There is no difference from the above when booking a cruise. It isn’t just acquiring the least expensive cabin. There is a lot more to it and again, the average person, even someone who has taken many cruises, isn’t always in the know. Not counting the fact that the consortiums to which the company I work belong, allow us to get deals others cannot necessarily come by, in all areas of travel.

I believe it is high time for you to begin telling people to talk to friends, neighbors, co-workers, to anyone they know who travels,to find out who their consultant is, and to try them out. I believe they’ll thank you for it and be pleasantly surprised.

Roslyn

By Amanda Miller

March 21, 2005 12:59 PM | Link to this

Hi Roslyn Thank you for writing a note about the value of travel professionals. I advise people all the time to check with a knowledgeable agent when planning a trip, particularly when they don’t have the time or ability to research their trip. Travel counselors who are certified in an area, say the Caribbean, Europe, South America, know far more about the destinations than most people could learn with a week of research.

That said, many travelers like to look for deals and check prices on their own, and researching the destination is part of the travel experience for them. I think you can have it both ways — if you like to research, then research. But it never hurts to contact a travel professional for recommendations or consultation; if you’re looking for a bargain, they might be able to beat your “deal” and they also might be able to steer you away from a hotel that looks wonderful on the Web but looks like a dump in reality.

Roslyn, I edited out the name of your travel agency. We want to keep the blog as a place where people can comment and exchange ideas, but not mention specific agencies, airlines, hotels, etc. Amanda

By Mary Johnson

March 21, 2005 7:09 PM | Link to this

Since the dollar is so weak against the euro and since countries such as Italy derive much of their income from tourism, have you seen any indication that the tourist-dependent euro nations have reduced the prices of food, souvenirs, etc?

By Amanda Miller

March 22, 2005 1:40 PM | Link to this

Hi Mary My sense is that euro countries are dropping prices a bit to ease the sticker shock for Americans. I know hotels have been running some specials, but I don’t have any real hard data. You can bet the Europeans who depend on tourist dollars don’t want Americans to decide the prices are too high and they’ll just stay home. The dollar certainly goes farther in developing tourist destinations like Bulgaria.

Does anyone have some first hand experience to share?