It's been a while since my last blog post. September was a crazy month for me! The American Society of Travel Agents Trade Show in Las Vegas took place in early September, then we were off to New York at the end.
I have never been so happy to see my own bed! I love to travel, but too much can take alot out of you. At least airport security does! Vegas was awesome! Of course I had a great time personally, but I learned so much and met so many great people that will help me serve my clients even better for the rest of this year and 2010.
One of the hot topics at the show was fees. Many of us have recently moved to fees, while others have done it for years. I reluctantly moved to this model in August when it became impossible to continue providing the same great experience for everyone with an increase in the 'shoppers and tire kickers'. I wrestled with this decision because I did not want to discourage first-time cruisers and those unfamiliar with the value of using a travel agent. The more I thought about it and researched I found that those time wasters do know the value and that's why they wanted my free information to go book online. If they knew what they were doing in the first place they'd never ask for my help. I'm talking about people that will talk for hours, call everyday for 2 weeks, then disappear or tell me they booked on Expedia to save $10. When I added up how much time I was spending on things that never materialized it was apparent that there was no way I could continue without weeding out some of those types......Oh and the worst offenders are the ones that have the nerve to come back and ask for help once they realize that $10 savings was a room with no windows (true story) or a non-refundable room that they now need to change. You may think you're saving tons of money booking online, but most of the time a vacation is a significant investment that should be carefully planned. A call center employee does not have an incentive to make sure you understand all the fine print when they'll never speak to you or see you again.
I also took a seminar on cloud computing that left my head spinning, but has started to slowly sink in. I have a new Google Voice number, 678-4KenyaS and am trying to see how Google Docs can help me as well.
I came back so motivated and have been on a roll since then.
New York is another story! That city drains me! I'm always talking about managing your expectations and making sure you're honest about what types of hotels and restaurants you enjoy. Now if someone else were asking me those questions I can firmly say I do not care for cities! Once you have seen the monuments and historical sites they all start to look the same. Restaurants the size of my closet and the cost of my mortgage do not excite me! I didn't have a choice in the hotel since it was a business trip for my husband. It is one I definitely would not have chosen for myself.
If you watched Dave Chappelle's show I feel like Vegas is that episode where he talked about what the Internet would be like if it was a real place.
On the traveling with kids front, my mom took care of my son while I was in Vegas. He did fly to NY with us. I always dread flying with him because getting through the airport is such a hassle. Then I'm on pins and needles the whole flight hoping he doesn't kick the seat the entire time and praying he goes to sleep....He never does though! For the most part he is a very good sport and a pro at flying already. He even knows the drill when we get pulled to secondary screening by TSA. Funny how that's supposed to be random but I get it about 75% of the time. The guy I sat next to on the way home said he has never had that happen. (Huge thank you to him for playing trains and coloring. He was the nicest seatmate I've ever had!!! NO evil eye from childless people for an entire flight was great) I'm starting to wonder if I share a name with someone on the watch list or something. Notice I didn't use that word, I don't want to get flagged even more! It's so bad I know the mark they put on your ticket at check-in. I want to tell the person at the counter, 'Come on, I know what that means!" If I was carrying something I'm not supposed to I'd know to get rid of it now. My husband is a G-man through and through, but they have really got to get their acts together at TSA!
