My Travel Planning Anniversary

Today is my travel anniversary!

What an EXTRAordinary year it has been! I look forward to the coming year.

My financial goal was met, but that wasn't the only thing that made it a huge success. Moreso, it was the continuation and expansion of who I want to be in the years to come - or, more to the point, who I do not want to be.

I am a travel planner. I am NOT a travel agent. I don't work as an "agent" on behalf of suppliers.

I am also not just a travel advisor or consultant. I do more than just give advice or guidance and then let you take the reins. That's what advisors/consultants do.

What I do instead is...

I share with you the wisdom, of course. but then I do the work on YOUR behalf, not the suppliers' behalf. I am your advocate, your confidant, your champion. I draw from you your "why" for traveling, then I build for you a travel experience that will blow you away!

There are plenty of "agents" out there, and if that's all you need, use them. Just know, they're not much different than using Expedia. There's not much benefit to you if you're doing all the research, you're doing all of the selecting, you're doing all of the post-booking follow-ups. If all they're doing is making the purchase for you, you may be better off without them.

For what do you need a travel planner then? Great question!

The answer...

1) You don't have the time or the inclination to do it for yourself.
2) You don't have access to the research.
3) You don't have access to connections around the world.
4) You don't feel confident in your ability to not create a vacation nightmare. (Happens more than you'd think.)

For my small planning fee (usually a few hundred dollars or so), I do all of that for you. Moreover, I USUALLY have access to deals, specials, discounts, etc. that end up saving you more than my fee costs you.

I spent two decades in F&B and have no regrets. It helped me become who I am. It helped us have a very comfortable life. And, because of how expensive things are at Disney, it introduced me to travel in a way I didn't realize before. Disney is the top of the food chain for F&B workers, and the service workers at Disney make a VERY good living. With that, my purchase power grew. So no, I have no regrets. I am, however, happy to be done with F&B. The time had come.

So yeah, this has been an EXTRAordinary year for me. I believe, however, that this coming year will be even more so and I'm eager for it to begin!

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