Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Am I just a CHEAP traveler?
I had to stop and think this week, “why do travel agents not understand value vs price?”
Am I just a CHEAP traveler to all the agents who contact ME to to book a trip or more often my transatlantic crossings? Endlessly I explain how I view travel and particularly transportation costs.
OF COURSE I prefer to travel business class, OF COURSE I enjoy a balcony on my 2 or 3 week sailings but I have a yearly travel budget.
I travel to add stories to my blogs and to experience new locations. I don’t want to find a perfect place 15 years from now and say, ‘wish I had been here sooner’!
Therefore I take the yearly budget and divide it between all the trips I want to take each year. If the location is more expensive to travel to or in, then I must devote more funds to that trip.
If I am spending 6 or 8 weeks Home To Italy, I can budget more closely since I rent apartments there or have Monasterystays.com book me into great convent hotels along my travel route. I can live in Italy for less than in Atlanta, GA!
As I plan an additional trip for 2013 there are endless choices where I can spend my money. Planning a 30+ day trip to maximize where I can travel, who I can interview and what special events I can attend is a tedious job. Idea lists, maps and finally a spread sheet summarizing the ‘opportunities’ consume my time and every flat surface in my home:
the spare room has the side trip to Turkey, the dining room is the command center, the den is the sorting and posting room…… is there an easier way?
Of course if I went to one location and experienced one town in one country, this would be far simpler but I have a limited number of years to see it all and do it all.
So travel professionals, I am NOT JUST CHEAP, I am careful and a planner.
Do you spend more than 10k a year on travel?
Tuesday, August 27, 2013
USA Today just posted this: No Solo Supplement on a Clipper Ship!
This item was written by Larry Bleiberg, former travel editor of The Dallas Morning News and Coastal Living magazine. Bleiberg is serving as Guest Editor of The Cruise Log while USA TODAY Cruise Editor Gene Sloan is away.
Solo travelers won't have to pay an arm and a leg to sail on Star Clippers this November and December.
The small-vessel line, which visits many small ports on sailing ships, is eliminating the extra charge for single travelers on select Caribbean and Central America sailings, and offering price-breaks of up to 66% off brochure rates, along with a one-category cabin upgrade.
The eligible dates include Royal Clipper's Nov. 23 sailing from Barbados, and Star Clipper's Dec. 14 and 21 trips from St. Marteen. Travelers can also get the savings on Star Flyer's Nov. 24 sailing from Balboa, Panama, and its Dec. 15, 22 and 29 trips from Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica.
Fares start at $1,385 per person for a single in a double cabin, including the price savings. The offer is capacity controlled due to limited availability for singles.
For more information, visit starclippers.com.
Star Clipper's Star Flyer is a 170-passenger, four-masted barquentine that takes its inspiration from the famed clipper ships of the 19th Century. Clipper ships were built for speed, often achieving 20 knots or more and sailed to the far ends of the earth before the age of steam. Peter Knego
Solo travelers won't have to pay an arm and a leg to sail on Star Clippers this November and December.
The small-vessel line, which visits many small ports on sailing ships, is eliminating the extra charge for single travelers on select Caribbean and Central America sailings, and offering price-breaks of up to 66% off brochure rates, along with a one-category cabin upgrade.
The eligible dates include Royal Clipper's Nov. 23 sailing from Barbados, and Star Clipper's Dec. 14 and 21 trips from St. Marteen. Travelers can also get the savings on Star Flyer's Nov. 24 sailing from Balboa, Panama, and its Dec. 15, 22 and 29 trips from Puerto Caldera, Costa Rica.
Fares start at $1,385 per person for a single in a double cabin, including the price savings. The offer is capacity controlled due to limited availability for singles.
For more information, visit starclippers.com.
Star Clipper's Star Flyer is a 170-passenger, four-masted barquentine that takes its inspiration from the famed clipper ships of the 19th Century. Clipper ships were built for speed, often achieving 20 knots or more and sailed to the far ends of the earth before the age of steam. Peter Knego
- This item was written by Larry Bleiberg, former travel editor of The Dallas Morning News and Coastal Living magazine. Bleiberg is serving as Guest Editor of The Cruise Log while USA TODAY Cruise Editor Gene Sloan is away.
Saturday, August 24, 2013
today an online post on no Solo Supplements on River Cruises!
River Cruises Solo???
Solo Traveler Savings on select Boutique River Cruises
Single travelers can choose river cruises with special offers
Reduced Single Supplement Savings is available on the following select river cruises and departure dates:Portugal, Spain & the Douro River Valley | Porto to Porto | 8 Days
2013: Nov 17
2014: Mar 27, Apr 3, Apr 10
Splendors of Italy | Venice to Rome | 13 Days
2013: Nov 3, 10
Splendors of Northern Italy, Venice, Florence & Rome | Venice to Rome | 13 Days
2014: Apr 6
Subject to availability. Capacity controlled. Other restrictions may apply. Uniworld reserves the right to withdraw or change offers at any time. For complete details on all promotions, general information, and terms and conditions applicable to all Uniworld trips, please contact your local travel agent. Reduced Single Supplement applies to cruise/tour package.
Waived Single Supplement Savings is available on the following select river cruise itineraries and departure dates:
Castles along the Rhine | Basel to Amsterdam | 8 Days
2014: May 10, 17
Classic Christmas Markets | Nuremberg to Frankfurt | 8 Days
2013: Dec 22
Enchanting Danube | Budapest to Passau | 8 Days
2014: Mar 23
European Jewels | Budapest to Amsterdam | 15 Days
2013: Oct 20
European Serenade | Vienna to Amsterdam | 13 Days
2013: Nov 2
Imperial Capitals of Europe | Istanbul to Vienna | 16 Days
2014: Apr 7
Legendary Rhine & Moselle | Amsterdam to Basel | 13 Days
2013: Oct 15, Nov 8
Paris & Normandy | Paris to Paris | 10 Days
2014: Mar 16, Mar 23
Paris & the Heart of Europe | Paris to Vienna | 18 Days
2013: Aug 25
Parisian Winter Holiday | Paris to Paris | 8 Days
2013: Dec 13, 27
Portugal, Spain & the Douro River Valley | Porto to Porto | 8 Days (cruise only)2013: Nov 14
2014: Mar 30, Apr 6, Apr 13
Rhine Holiday Markets | Basel to Cologne | 8 Days
2013: Dec 22
Springtime Tulips & the Rhine | Amsterdam to Frankfurt | 8 Days
2014: Apr 2
Tulips & Windmills | Amsterdam to Antwerp | 10 Days
2014: Mar 28, Apr 3
Venice & the Po River | Venice to Venice | 8 Days
2013: Jul 28, Aug 4, 18, 25, Nov 10
2014: Apr 6, Jul 27, Aug 3
Subject to availability. Capacity controlled. Other restrictions may apply. Uniworld reserves the right to withdraw or change offers at any time. For complete details on all promotions, general information, and terms and conditions applicable to all Uniworld trips, please contact your local travel agent. Single Supplement Waiver applies to cruise only.
- FIND A CRUISE
- REQUEST A QUOTE
- FEATURED RIVER CRUISE
- NEW IN EUROPE 2013
- NEW IN ASIA 2013
- NEW IN 2014
- SPECIAL SAVINGS
- SOLO TRAVELER SAVINGS
- LOCATE A RIVER CRUISE SPECIALIST
- SIGN UP FOR NEWSLETTER
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Solo Travelers - Uniworld River Cruises
Reduced Single Supplement applies to cruise/tour package. Waived Single Supplement Savings is available on the following select river cruise itineraries and ...
uniworld.com/solo-travelers
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