I’m kind of trying to just check in. My sister is here from Washington State. She and her baby, well he’s two, flew in Wednesday night. Mom and I picked the two of them up and went to another of my sister’s. We hung out up there all day Thursday. I’m actually the oldest of eight children, and a couple of my brothers live around my sister. So we all kind of hung out up there. Hung out at my sister’s and talked more than anything. I ended up talking to my sister who lives out west a lot about my business. I think she is going to become another client which is exciting. Friday we went back to my house. Both sisters ended up coming with us which was a fun surprise. My grandparents lives with us, well Grandpa is in rehab right now, so some people went to see him, but mostly everyone hung out. Saturday everyone was just around the house. We ended up having some really good time just as sisters. That might be the highlight of our time together so far. Then yesterday we came to my brother’s who lives near the beach. I’m not the biggest fan of the beach, so I’ve mostly stayed around the house and tried to catch up on work things.. I love my family, but I really do enjoy my work.
Monthly Archives: March 2014
Disney destinations, part #2
Wednesday is a different kind of day because my aide who gives me lunch and my bath has class on Wednesdays, and so she comes a lot later. I don’t mind at all, in fact I like having a nice long stretch to work. Today I’ve been pretty distracted, kind of impatient to go get my sister and nephew who don’t get in until tonight.
But let’s get back to our overview of Disney’s destinations… I’m not going to go through Disney’s Cruise line, since I blogged about that recently.
Adventures by Disney takes you to about twenty-five different destinations around the world. Disney has not one but two guides on every trip that they do. You can tour Costa Rica, and this trip is especially designed with teenagers in mind… Disney is taking adventures in Scotland, and these were actually inspired by the movie “Brave”. They also tour other places in Europe, including Italy. I’ve always been kind of fascinated with going to Italy because my grandmother is from there.. Disney always takes care of your bags for you as you go on these excursions, so that’s one less thing you’ll have to worry about as you check in and out of the resorts. Around 90% of your dining is included in these trips. You stay on four or five star properties most of the time. Disney also gets you vip service, which means you never have to wait in line. They are going to take your kids from time to time to give you a break. And they also have some adult only excursions. This is the one product where you are not going to see any Disney characters.
And the last product is Aulani, which is a Disney resort in Hawaii. Disney actually had native Hawaiians design the property. There are some characters that are around, but they are not part of the decorations much. This resort is relatively quiet. There is one shopping center nearby, but this place is not bustling. It is meant to truly be a place of relaxation, a place to unwind. And of course, if you go, you will have all kinds of dining options. There is a huge spa area. The resort also has one of the only teen spas in Hawaii. The children’s activities are all included in the price.
I would love to know what Disney destination you are interested in.
All things Disney, part #1
Sometimes I’ve wondered if I’d ever make it as a travel agent. Because of my disability, finding a job I can actually do has been challenging. But now that I’m working with a couple of different people on trips, and trying to figure out how to get more people interested, people say that you should never stop marketing your business… I do think this is a good job for me, and am looking forward to growing my business even more.
Today we are going to learn more about Disney. My very first clients, who are actually my brother and sister-in-law, are at Disney World as I write this. And of course, they have two of the most adorable daughters in the world. I’m hoping to get some pictures of their trip up on Facebook.. Disney has five different destinations. There is Disneyland which is in California, Disney World in Florida, Avanti which is their resort in Hawaii, Disney cruises, and Adventures by Disney which I’m not sure where all they’ll go… This may well be a two part post.
We are going to cover Disneyland first. This park has just had a major renovation which is always kind of exciting. One of the new features is a “Cars” land. Going there will make you wonder if you are on the actual set. They have added new entertainment like “The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party” which happens each Sunday night. They have new shops and new restaurants. And people who stay on Disneyland properties, the parks open an hour earlier exclusively for guests. The hotels have been renovated as well. They have different character dining options which is always fun for the kids. They also have some nicer restaurants for the adults.
And now we’re moving on to Disney World. Disney has completely updated Fantasyland, which is their biggest land and is the most visited. They have a new castle, and they’ve also built a house for Belle. There are also some new restaurants in that area, including a restaurant in the beast’s castle which sounds really cool. Disney World offer different meal plans which makes it easier to get your food when you’re trying to get the most out of your time at the park.
So has anyone been to Disneyland or Disney World and would like to share your experiences? Or is anyone interested in going to either place? If you want to go, I would be more than happy to help.
Norwegian Cruises
I ended up having a better weekend than I thought I might. I like having time with friends on Sunday since that is the day I pretty much refuse to work. I have friends I usually do things with, but they were busy yesterday. But I ended up going to a meeting with people from church yesterday afternoon… But anyway, my sister is coming in from out west this Wednesday, and I think I am going to mostly just hang out with her while she is here since we do not see them much. But in the meantime, I’m working with a couple of different clients, and I’m enjoying that.
My hope is to book a family on Norwegian Cruises before too much longer, so that’s why I decided to listen to a training on Norwegian today. Norwegian is a cruise line that lets you make your own decisions. Most cruises have either early dining or late dining, but you have to be in the dining room at either of those times. Also, a lot of cruises have assigned seating. Norwegian has its dining room opened more like your typical restaurant, and you decide what time you want to eat and who you sit with.
Norwegian has a wide variety of destinations that you can choose from. But they have their newest ships in New York and Florida. One of the new ships has a chef who has been on the Iron Chef, so that’s kind of cool.
Is anyone interested in taking a Norwegian cruise? Would you write and tell me about where you would like to go?
Aren’t sure about cruises?
I ended up having computer problems last night at my group. It wouldn’t turn on. It was frustrating, but thankfully my sister called this morning, and I’m grateful to say that we figured it out, and we don’t have to send it back like thought we might. My computer is my communication device, and sending it back would mean that I really couldn’t work for at least a few days while I waited on a loaner. But anyway, there are several things I need to get to today, so I’d better get started…
Today we are going to talk some more about cruises. To be honest, it’s a relatively short train, and I need to try to get this done and move on to some other things… Okay, we are going to be looking at why people who have never been on a cruise should go on one. Say you love vacationing at resorts. You go to a resort at least once a year. And you may have thought of going on a cruise, but have never actually made the switch. You may have thought that cruises are much more expensive than staying at a resort. That is not true. You can find a cruise to fit within any budget.
Another objection to cruises is the worry that you will be bored. Most everything that is available at a resort is also available on a cruise. And usually you have even more choices of what to do on a cruise. And if you’re worried about having to do specific things at specific times, cruises allow you to do as little or as much as you want.
many families wonder about what their children will be doing on cruises. There are usually a lot of activities for children on cruise ships, whether you’d like to keep your children with you or have them take part in the children’s activities put on by on board counselors. Families also worry about money. Cruises are all inclusive, so you are going to know exactly what you are spending up front..
Have you been on any family cruises that you’d like to tell about?
Disney cruises
I’m a little embarrassed about Tuesday’s post mix up. I’m not sure how to get that post back into the right place… But today is Thursday, and I have a home group meeting tonight. So I’m kind of trying to do everything I need to get done quickly since I won’t have any time tonight.
Because I do have time constraints, I’ve decided to do a shorter training session. It also happens to be about Disney cruises. I have to say that I made my first booking through Disney, the trip is actually next week. And Disney seems to just be an extraordinary company to work with. And if there was one trip I could take, it would probably be a Disney cruise. Hearing about these makes me want to go.
This is mostly going to be talking about Disney’s new Fantasy ship. This ship has a boutique where little girls can go and get made up into their favorite princess. This is Disney after all. What Disney trip would be complete without girls being made to look like their favorite Disney princesses? Fantasy also has its own water park.
does something a little different with dining. Each night you will be eating at a different restaurant. But you will have the same servers each night. So they’ll get to know any special needs that you might have.
This is Disney, and much of what goes on is aimed at children. But there are some adult only places for you adults to go. I think they’ll have places where you can leave your children so you will have time to enjoy couple time as well. There is something for each different age group. There are all kinds of different types of entertainment, from deck parties to off-Broadway plays. And of course you will also get to meet your more favorite Disney characters. Disney always has meet and greets where you can meet characters, and get autographs.
I need to go, try to get some other things done this afternoon… Does anyone have Disney adventures that they would like to share?
Travel insurance, part #1
I must have posted this to the wrong blog… Yesterday’s post
I am trying an experiment by starting to venture into the world of travel forums. This is all kind of new for me, having never really done much with forums before. But a good friend of mine said that joining forums might be a good way to meet some more clients. I’ve just joined a couple of forums this morning, so it’s too early to tell anything yet. But I’ll let you know how that goes.
I am going to be perfectly honest, my family travels to see family and friends. I’ve never been on a cruise. I know I’ve stayed at a really nice hotel once, the name of the hotel is not coming to me now, but that was a conference I was asked to be part of and everything was paid for. I’ve said all that to say that I don’t think my family has done anything…
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Travel insurance, part #2
My business is slowly picking up, meaning I’m talking to a couple of different people about trips, and I’m excited about it. Yes, I’m still working on marketing, and I do consider this blog and my new venture into forums to be part of that. I have a whole lot to learn about forums, and I am going to be working on that as I can. But it is nice to have more people asking about actual trips that they might want to take.
Okay, let’s get back into travel insurance. One thing you’ll want to remember about travel insurance is that if you get the highest coverage, you are going to get 100% of the money you paid for your trip back. Maybe there is a problem with the weather, something we’re all familiar with as of late, if you were to get the highest level of insure you could cancel your trip within an hour and get a complete refund. With the lower grade travel insurance plans, you would have to be cancelled for a full 24 hours before getting your complete refund. Or say you have everything planned, but then something comes up with your job, and you can not get away, if you have the gold plan you’re covered and get your money back. Another reason your trip might get cancelled, but you would be covered, would be if something happened to the cruise ship you were going on. The cruise would refund the actual cruise money, but if you booked air or were doing a pre or post trip, that would be covered under gold.
Or say something happened while you were on your vacation, and you had no choice but to return, you may get 100% of your trip money on the other plans. But you would get 150% back on the gold plan. Why, you may ask. You are going to need to make last minute travel plans which always costs more.
Or say you have something happen while you are on vacation. For example, maybe you get sick during your trip and have to miss something important or have to stay longer than you planned, the gold insurance is going to cover everything after only five hours.
I think I’m going to stop for today.. Has anyone had to use travel insurance and would like to tell me about it?
Getting kind of personal
I didn’t really have a good idea of how much we would be involved in getting ready for the wedding. I loved being part of that. I just didn’t know how little time there would be to work.
To be honest, this next little while is going to be crazy for our family. My sister who lives out west is going to come for a visit, not the day after tomorrow, but the Wednesday after that. And Mom and I are going to take my sister to another sister’s and my brother’s to visit a couple days each. Again I have no idea how much I am going to be working while we do all this. I love hanging out with my family, and know I’ll want to enjoy my family.
Also, my grandfather is really not doing well. He and my grandmother live with us, so it’s kind of been busy around here trying to figure out what we need to do there. We’re thinking that he might need to go live somewhere else.
Life just feels pretty crazy right now. I’ve been busy catching on e-mail and things like that today. I talked to a few people this past weekend who may be interested in doing business with me, and so I’ve added them to my database… But one thing I do know, I love this job. Part of me wishes we had more time with my friends, but I love getting back into work.. Tomorrow should be a more normal post.
More about Ensemble
I’m not sure how much internet access I may have while we are gone, so I might not be posting every day this week. We’ll just have to wait and see how things work out.
I have been with M Travel for a little over six months, and I know I am making progress, but it is slow. I know that anything worth doing takes, and it isn’t like I don’t enjoy this process because I do. But I really want to be helping clients fulfill their travel dreams. But I’m still figuring out how to get more clients to work with.
We are going to be looking more at the group Ensemble and what it offers travelers. In addition to cruises, Ensemble also has a large hotel program with a lot of four of five star properties. These hotels have all the little extras that luxury travelers want, like deluxe breakfast credits, or spa credits. Ensemble has villas in different places where people can go. A villa might be perfect for a couple on their honeymoon, or maybe several couples of close friends would want to spend a week at a villa together. This travel group just has a lot of the extra things that will make a trip so special. They can help get people to huge events most of us only dream of going to.
So what is your dream trip. Will you tell me about it and see what I can do to make it happen.
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