For Vacation Fun...a travel blog

  What is friend therapy? If you have to ask, YOU NEED A VACATION!    Friend trips are often laid back, low pressure, no-stress trips.  We all love our families, but as mom or dad, we find our selves having to be boss, driver, financier, decision maker and ringleader of a 3 ring circus.  Days of working, evening of running to sports and recitals followed by meal prep, homework, chores..it adds up.  Sometimes you just need to spend a few days away to recharge. Pick your bestie, your sister or brother, your lunch buddy from work, and get away.   Explore a new town that's halfway between where you each live, take a cruise, hit Vegas and enjoy some night life, visit a new country, relax at the beach.   Schedule a call with your travel agent to talk about your time and budget - if you're feeling really adventuresome, let your travel agent surprise you. 

Setting the pace for a family vacation can be difficult, especially when your family is a mix of go-go-go, chill-by-pool, and I-can't-people-today.    That's my family.  We all enjoy trips, and of course, we all compromise, but ultimately each person needs to have time to do their thing.   As a mom, I have learned over the years to identify the signs of who needs downtime, who needs alone time, and when everyone is ready to jump all into a day full of activities. As a travel agent, I talk with my clients before anything else happens. Its important to get the feel for the people going on their trip, and sometimes they don't even know themselves.  A conversation helps bring things to light - like is your family on the go all the time, heavy into sports and dance? Or do you tend to spend weekends on a hike? Or geocaching in a new city?   Plan your vacation days to give downtime to the people who need it, but maybe plan some alternate activities for the "go-go" member

 This is kind of a weird phrase, I know.  And to be blunt, it was something my mother said to me related to guys. (get it?)  But the concept comes up in conversations among travel professionals a lot.   Travel professionals spend a lot of time, effort, and money to learn their trade.  Time researching, taking classes, reading blogs and marketing information, industry updates and following news.  Money to visit and learn about different destinations (not vacations, but think 3 days of visiting 10-13 hotels to understand their offerings, properties, clientele, etc.).  Effort to put together customized itineraries for clients, to market themselves and their offerings, etc.  Most travel professionals work on commission paid directly from the locations the book - hotels, resorts, cruise lines, etc.  Many places, like small mom & pop properties, boutique hotels, etc. don't pay any commission at all, but people like them, so agents will them.  Since 2022, more and more agencies charge

What is the benefit of using a travel agent? (2023 Update) That is the question everyone asks.  Years ago, having planned a few Disney trips myself, I asked it too.  I had planned two trips for our family, using the Disney web site, organized my days, figured out my dining, called Disney's reservations, scoured the web sites to find out about tips, discount codes, crowds, the works.  But when my husband and I were discussing our next trip, I was pretty busy at work, with Girl Scouts, and with my daughter's sports and activities. I didn't have a lot of time to dig around and wait on hold for dining reservations.  So I decided to use a travel agent. So EASY!  I filled out a form online with information about our travel dates and preferences, and when the agent contacted me, we chatted more about what we expected from our vacation, what we liked and didn't like to do, and how this was a special birthday trip.  She priced out the trip for me, and offered me an alternat