TravelResearchOnline.com Blog

There are accusations in the cruise community that Celebrity Cruises is downgrading the quality of cuisine in its main dining room in order to drive guests to speciality restaurants, where on ships like Celebrity Solstice, cover charges range from $5 per person to $35 per person.

On board Celebrity Solstice this week, I put the question to Jacques Van Staden, vice president of culinary operations.

“It’s a vicious rumor,” Van Staden told me during an interview in Silk Harvest, where the cover charge for dinner is $25 per person. “The specialty restaurants weren’t designed to drive up revenue. What people don’t realize is that the service charge goes 100 percent to our staff. That’s their gratuities.” Read the rest of this entry »

Les-Lee’s got one thing on her mind this week, and she’s warning you about the vacation certificates that might soon start showing up in your clients’ mailboxes. If you want to report something well done by a supplier, a res agent, or rep, we are happy to give them some coverage in TRO’s Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down. If you have a problem with airlines, tour companies, etc. or getting commissions, maybe we can assist. Contact Les-Lee at packagedeals@comcast.net.

I’m devoting an entire column to this peeve.

I just received a mailer addressed to me and where the return address is, is printed:

“Carnival Ticket vouchers enclosed.” On the opposite side of the mailer, is a picture of the Carnival  Conquest, and line, “Important Information Enclosed.”

I open it and read-“Congratulations, Pack your bags,  In celebration of our 28th Anniversary you have been personally chosen Read the rest of this entry »

- How I learned to love long lines, open my wallet & get with the Funship program -

Although veterans of many cruises, we had never had the Drive Port  experience. Just throwing everything except the dog into the SUV – bypassing the hassle and inconvenience of airports, airlines and transfers – seemed like a good idea. From Memphis the logical choice was Carnival’s Triumph sailing to the Eastern Caribbean out of New Orleans.  (7 days-July 24 to 31)

Embarkation – Docs we printed out online indicated boarding was from 12:30p to 2:30p with ship sailing at 4:00pm. So, we got in line for pier-side unloading and parking at 12:20p. Once parked and out of the SUV we stood in line for about 45 minutes – outdoors – in 95 degree mid-summer New Orleans heat and humidity. (What logistical genius arranged for that little bit of torture?) From parking to boarding the ship took a total of 80 minutes – during which long lines with many switch backs were the norm.  Read the rest of this entry »

Amadeus e-Commerce Solutions can help you sell travel online, boost your competitive edge, and make more money

Competition is fierce within the travel industry. The solid advice from the well-seasoned travel agent has been undermined by Web sites promising low prices and one-stop shopping. It’s hard enough to acquire and retain clients, then add a weak online presence and the challenges increase exponentially.

So how do you meet this demand head on and continue to grow your high value sales, differentiate your business from the crowd, and provide your clients with the service they expect online? Start with Amadeus e-Commerce Solutions.

Small agency, big challenges, one easy solution

Many small agencies feel behind the curve when it comes to understanding all of the fast-moving technological developments in the travel industry. They’re concerned that new business is being lost because they don’t have their own branded Web site yet, but have no idea how to create and maintain one that allows them to sell travel online. Does this sound familiar to you? Read the rest of this entry »

You have heard of the Pareto Principle, but you probably call it something else. 80% of all of your business comes from 20% of your marketing efforts. Roughly 20% of your time management is highly efficient and from that activity comes 80% of your productivity. 80% of the money made by travel agents is made by 20% of the travel agents. You probably know the Pareto Principle as the 80/20 Rule. It seems like everyone has encountered bully Pareto somewhere and is convinced of the immutable nature of its power. What bothers me about the Pareto principle is the way that travel agents accept it as applying to them, and assume that their practice must therefore fit the Pareto principle’s boundaries which encompasses an enormous range of mediocrity.

In reality, however, the Pareto Principle does not apply to every situation, especially those engineered to work otherwise. The Pareto principle is not an immutable law of nature, it’s all about averages. Read the rest of this entry »

With stunning, inimitable plumage and grace, the Quetzal is named for its splendor. The Aztec word, quetzalli, was used for this bird’s tail feathers, and also meant “precious,’ or “beautiful.’ This shy trogon has a large population in Costa Rica. This bird is endangered because the cloud forest on which it depends has been extensively destroyed.  The legendary tail feathers that can be three or more feet long are one of the telltale signs of the male Resplendent Quetzal. Adult Quetzals have a grey and black striped tail, and are covered in shimmering green on the head, back, and wings, so they blend into the wet foliage of the cloud forest. The females have somewhat similar plumage, but lack the green crest and bright red breast of the males, as well as the elongated tail feathers.  Any trip to the Costa Rican forest will not be complete without a Quetzal sighting.

Remember that travel agents can use 60-Second Geography articles on their websites and in their newsletters!

Be sure to check out the special offers on the self-drive trips to Quetzal country with Solar Tours after the article.

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Isla Mujeres or the Island of Women is a small and unique island just 8 miles across the Behia de Mujeres or the Bay of Women from Cancun. What once was a quiet fishing island is becoming more and more well known by tourists. It is only 5 miles long and a half a mile wide. It has beaches on all sides and the downtown area is only around 6 blocks long!

Back in 1990, it was still a sleepy island pretty much reserved for locals and the few private beach parties thrown by mainland resorts and reached by small boat. Today, there is scheduled ferry service from Punta Sam. The ferry leaves at 8am, 11am, 2:45pm, 5:30pm and 8:15pm.

Read the rest of this entry »

Every now and then my past life as a business analyst creeps into my current life as a travel consultant.  When I first started in this business and started booking group cruises, I went into uber-paperwork and record keeping mode.  I would create a binder for each group, and then in each binder I would put print outs of group reports, individual booking confirmations, pertinent information about each client, details about group activities, meeting space needs, pre and post cruise information, pillow gifts,  etc.  The bigger the group was, the fatter the binder would get.  Of course there are also the costs involved: buying more binders, tabbed dividers, toner, and printer paper.  Lots of printer paper.   I’m sure I’ve killed a rainforest or two along the way.

Then I discovered Microsoft’s little-known product called OneNote, found in Microsoft Office.  This is an amazing program that can be very powerful for travel professionals, if they only knew it existed.   It is a great tool to use when booking group cruises.  But its uses are only limited by your own imagination.  Read the rest of this entry »