Recently several friends have asked me “how do I get my travel information?” “How do you know who to trust, who do you believe?”
Clearly there is a great deal of travel information available these days. There are travel magazine and TV shows. There is a website for everything; all the different providers, airlines, cruises, tour operators, hotels and resorts. There are websites just for hotels!
Then there are the ‘trip advisor’ websites. Everyone is an expert and has something to say about the place they just visited. There is a new one I learned about recently called TripNut.com. And of course there is the travel industry with ‘travel consultants’ of which I am one. Who to trust?
How did you choose your primary care physician, your lawyer, your accountant, your dentist or your car for that matter? You did some homework! You asked friends, read information, obtained references and trusted you gut! I do the same. Though I do have a formula to design an interesting itinerary.
My colleagues and I have traveled far and wide. We share information. Hoteliers and tour operators come visit our office regularly and we go to trade shows during the year. And in August every year Virtuoso has a four day trade show. Then there are the published guides, like Karen Brown which have wonderful small properties. I have a library of travel books. We do the homework. Over the years we acquired a great deal of knowledge. Just like your physician!
In selecting a hotel I have not seen, what am I looking for? First I know where it is located. You are renting real estate so: location.. location.. location! There are many areas you do not want to be and others were you really want to be. Then I check out the number of rooms, floors, and amenities. If you want a pool, does it have one? Yes I may go to trip adviser, only because you are most likely to go there. And I want to know what these ‘experts’ are telling you. Always I take these opinions with a grain of salt… I know what one thinks is a nice room and is not the others opinion! So I take in all this information and listen to your requests and then I make suggestions and put together and interesting itinerary for you. An interesting itinerary is not just where you go but also where you stay!
Trust me.
AlwaysHarriet 