Create YOUR Travel Bucket List

Create YOUR Travel Bucket List

This year a little differently than our previous coffee chats today I’m going to ask that you set aside time during this session to focus on planning your travel bucket list so often we’re not in intentional about our travel plans we may hear about a trip our friends are

Taking and join in or we listen to a presentation or read a flyer and become interested today is all about you and how to ensure you’re thinking about where you’d like to go and accomplish those travel goals for today’s session I’d like you to grab a notebook and a

Pen and you can get a head start on creating your bucket list alongside me I’ll be recording today’s session so you can watch it later and share it with family and friends friends so our goal today is to Define your travel plan we’re going to get inspired in discuss

Where to begin we’re going to weigh the pros and cons of different types of travel and the benefits of how it relates to different destinations and ultimately we’re going to begin developing a three-year bucket plan together so when you’re defining your plan we always need some inspiration

And a great place for you to start is to think about some ideas that you have heard of in the past so that might be from a family member uh it could be a destination you’ve traveled to in the past for business but you didn’t get to

Spend a whole lot of time there so we need to have some inspiration then you need to figure out what is the best travel Style style for that destination and I mean the means of travel so we’re going to review those different styles of travel today and then we’re going to create our

Three-year plan so in order to begin we need to get some inspiration and inspiration can come from a variety of things uh Regional highlights maybe you are someone who is interested in the UNESCO world heritage sites and uh want to go and visit some of those in some of the

Different regions around the world are you a historical person or enjoy particular culture we’re wanting we always want to hit the big highlights and so a lot of the travel companies they will make sure that you are hitting those big highlights and we’ll talk about that shortly maybe you want to attend a

Special jazz festival or the military tattoo these special events can always be Regional highlights travel purpose the history are you a history buff are you interested in the Heritage Landscapes we have so many beautiful landscapes in our own country and a lot of us haven’t gotten to see as many of

The national parks as we’d like so maybe that’s something you are interested in the beautiful fiords of Norway and New Zealand or maybe more tropical climates the Southern Pacific or something like seeing the Fall Foliage so it can also blend over into Seasons things that you would like to see or particular hobbies

That you have I know a lot of our guests in the past uh are very interested in their ancestry and many have been inspired when they visit a region to go to certain areas where they know they had ancestors from are you a golf or a pickle ball Enthusiast more and more we

Are seeing different styles of travel that meet those uh Hobbies maybe you’re like me and you love the hobby of just laying in a lounge chair with your favorite beverage we can always look at that as well asking your friends about their plans is a great source these are folks that you

Have commonality with and you trust their opinions sometimes talking to your friends about their past travel plans can help you either decide I definitely want to go there or if I did that I would do it this way then once we’ve got our inspiration we need to think about

Prioritizing and that’s often difficult so here are some of the ideas that we have most important item I think we need to consider is the activity level consider doing the more rigorous or distance Bas travel sooner we want to make sure while our health and our walkability

Is up to par that we are not impacted and we can see different travel destinations the way that we’re wanting to it’s important to always remember that Europe does not have to be ADA Compliant so that can be a little bit difficult as you get older hotels also

Overseas are not like American hotels sometimes they have bathtubs so you have that stepping over uh component you have to contend with or a more boutique style hotel that doesn’t have elevators in it uneven pavement so pushing extensive travel further out might just prohibit you from experiencing some of these

Destinations to the fullest extent that you would like so think about the activity level of some of these bucket list items expense that’s always a big component when you are trying to maximize your travel each year it’s a good idea for you to try to pair a economical trip

With one that requires uh a little more expense so coming up with a timeline for saving and spreading those bigger more expensive trips out and pairing those with more economical ones will allow you to do more see more in a shorter period of time I know that’s one reason why our

Winter annual in February is always so popular for people number one it’s not of great expense and unless planning to go to Australia New Zealand there’s not a lot that we typically want to go and visit in February so the Caribbean is always a great way to get

Away uh special occasions is another thing to be thinking about um many people will have their uh momentous uh wedding anniversaries and decide they want to take their extended family on a trip so planning further out knowing those years that you’re wanting to do those things can maximize our ability to

Help you retain the best pricing as soon as possible and then best times to be away shoulder season is always a big highlight for people that are retired and have a lot of time they can go when there are fewer tourists and also save some money but if you are someone that’s

Still working you might want to consider looking at times during the year when you’re work schedule is a little bit lighter if you’re planning to travel with extended family checking the kids schedules they are often all over the place but knowing those windows of opportunity can be very beneficial and

Then again weather whether uh I might think oh I’m going to go to the Caribbean in uh August or September but I need to remember that’s hurricane season and when we go to the trouble of planning our trips we certainly don’t want weather to impact them so prioritizing your list these are

Some of the biggies to be thinking about when you’re putting them in order travel style there are many different travel Styles and there are pros and cons to each of them and so we’re going to go through these because it is not simply a oneandone you

Can’t say well I’m just a cruise person and I’m going to only ever go on a cruise well then you’re not going to see some of the mo uh more enjoyable areas that are Inland so we need to all be open to different modes of travel we’re going to start with land

Touring now this would be using a company that has a professional guide a professional manager that is with you throughout the entire Journey these companies have boots on the ground so it is their job to make sure that they are maximizing all of the special destinations in that area and making

Sure that you see the most popular uh experts in these destinations know the ins and outs they can give you special information that you would otherwise not here if you were there on your own they have planned out everything the accommodating hotels they’ve made sure all the unique experiences are set and

You have a Daily Guide so you know what to expect the pace of these trips can be intense or more relaxed there are uh different companies that we can compare for you the same destination depending on how you want to travel you are usually exposed a little more to

The local life Local Foods and culture of an area because you are spending more time in that overall destination the price is always set so you know upfront exactly what’s included with a guided Land Tour you know how many meals are included what transfers are included um sometimes you tend to

Have longer days because again they want to make sure you’re seeing as many highlights as you can in these areas getting the most bang for your buck Motorcoach travel is usually the preferred method of land touring companies and we do work with a variety of companies that have different motor

Coaches some that offer extra leg room with fewer people smaller groups uh and then the standard full motor coach size with larger groups this is also a nice option for solo Travelers because there is a rate for a Solo Traveler you do not have to pay

Double So La Land touring has a really nice option when you’re considering travel these are some of just a few companies that we work with Insight Vacations a little more of a business class experience in terms of land touring this is the company I spoke about that has a full-size motor Cod

They remove several rows that allow you to have ex extra leg room you have floor to cealing Windows uh their hotels are a little more of a upper moderate Hotel Colette tours another great one uh they have small and large group tours so if you’re someone that doesn’t want to be with a

Larger group we have options looking at Colette uh Trafalger that’s under the Insight umbrella I would say Colette and troger Globus all three of those are more moderate touring companies they stay City Center hotels uh they have um many of your meals that are included and then talc I would consider that probably

A premium touring company these are all the tried and true ones that we have had guests travel on in the past and returned with excellent feedback the next style of travel is custom travel and I know when you first hear about that that sounds really appealing

To people see exactly what I want for as long as I want to go but let’s dig in a little deeper to see if this really fits you specific interests or towns that are off the beaten path no problem we can make sure that you are visiting those it

Is not motor coach intensive so you can travel by train uh you can have a rental car you could have a driver we can also set up with custom travel for you to have day tours where they pick you up and drop you off at your hotel or you

Can also use local Transit if you’re someone who likes to take the metro and you want the map we can get you a pass and you can do all of that on your own one thing you need to know about with custom travel and this is even more

Now than before is there are many more unknowns involved so while there’s a lot of flexibility uh costs can adjust the hotels are still recouping from covid and being closed for so long so in some cases we can give you an initial quote on a hotel and two weeks later you are

At it again increased in price uh uh food is not included usually in your custom travel unless we have a tour that’s planned for you that has a meal and so there are lots of things that you have to manage on your own that if you had a travel

Professional manager that you were touring with they would assist with that uh all inclusive resorts falls under this umbrella of custom travel it is one destination unpacking one time you can do as much or as little as you want to and this is quite appealing to a lot of

Folks uh and we can make all the arrangements as packaged with air transfers all of that moving on to the next one ocean cruises for destinations that are near the coast this is great I do like to consider cruising in terms of destination as kissing the destinations you are not

Going to be fully immersed in that destination for very long uh you will be able to select an Excursion either through the Ocean Cruise Line or um something that you plan on your own that will allow you to see the big highlights of the area it is great that you can get

On board you unpack once it is mostly inclusive your meals Your Entertainment those are all included um a lot fewer unknowns especially if we are able to package your air your transfers where you’re met at the airport uh a little more of a seamless process but it’s really a taste of a

Destination so in some cases it’s a nice thing to begin with and then maybe you so much enjoyed one of these port cities that you decide you want to go back and have uh extended time in that area maybe either with a custom tour or a professional land

Company and the pace is yours so with ocean cruising you can do as much uh import as you’d like you may be someone who just wants to get off that day and walk around nearby or you maybe want to go on one of their pre-book shore excursions where you have a guide and

All of that information is shared with you River cruising this can be an interest all of its own I’ve had many just want to take a river cruise not as intrigued by where it goes but more that want to experience this style of travel typically though once they go

They are hooked and then they begin looking at itineraries that will interest them the most popular Rivers chosen by first timers are usually the danu or the Rind they are unique because they are City Center they are on the main thorough fairs that are going through these European cities so in many aspects

It’s treated like your floating Hotel you have a front desk so if you want them to arrange for you to be able to take a taxi to uh a local area they can do that for you um you unpack one time only but you are in a different area every

Day it is quite inclusive and you know upfront exactly what’s included it’s a good hybrid between land touring and cruising most River Cruise companies include an Excursion in every port they also have some optional excursions but the included Ed Excursion functions like you would with a Land

Tour you’re going to get on to a motor coach with your guide that day they’re going to take you out to see all of the highlights and then return you to your floating hotel for wonderful dining you are longer in each destination because you’re Sailing by river not as far of a

Distance to go from one to the next so like I said in a lot of cases you’re even in Port through the evening so if you want to walk out and go to a local PB and take in more of that culture you can uh you’re also able to enjoy local

Spirits and bring them on board it’s more immersive in the culture because you are in the center of the day of the region now comparing river cruise lines and and ocean cruise lines can be quite difficult and sometimes folks come to us they’ve never cruised and they say okay

Well tell me which one is best well that really is a preference so these are some of the suggestions we have for how to pick one that really works best for you and number one ports of call and itinerary would be what most guests tell us drive where they are going to to

Travel and what company they’re going to go with um there are a lot of companies out there that have unque itineraries and destinations that people really want to visit then another thing to think about is what you want included how inclusive of an experience do you want of course the more

Inclusions the higher the price in many cases do you are you someone that wants a beverage package included do you want included excursions are you into big Broadway style entertainment or are you more interested in cultural entertainment and the dining options are you someone that’s happy with a main

Dining room being uh one option for you to dine in or would you like multiple venues cabin size especially for a longer trip always think about is there going to be enough room in there for me to stay for 21-day trip um a lot of things to pack and the amenity on board

Between different Cruise Lines there are different um draws and so travel professional can always share that with you now promotions and price is always a driver and I will tell you right now across the board all of the companies are wanting to fill up their trips and

So for the next few months you’re going to see some exceptional promotions that are out there and and great inclusions and as we get closer to the end of spring those are going to start going away so I would encourage you once you’ve got your bucket list ready to

Start planning further out so that we can capture the best promotions it’s a misnomer that waiting till the last minute will get you the best price back in the day that was the case but any more the further out the best pricing and the most inclusions and then ship

Capacity are you someone that loves the very large ship with all the special amenities on board or do you prefer to travel with fewer people that is another thing to be considering ship size okay so now it’s time for you to grab your notepad and for us to start building

Your bucket list and so we’re going to do this together I have started mine so you can see here that I have listed Canada New England is definitely on my list and I want to see the fall folage in some of those beautiful areas

So I have listed that as one of my top items I’d also like to go to Ireland and Scotland and so I’ve listed that one as well southern France is also on my list I just have to figure out how I’m going to go there uh once before been to Aruba boner

And curile I definitely want to go back so I’m going to add that one on my list and uh the Western Mediterranean that is uh another Focus for me so I’m going to add that on my list as well so I’m going to give you a

Few minutes to go ahead and just jot down some destination that are of interest to you this is just your rough copy So okay I’m going to move forward to the next screen just so that you can see where we’re going next so once I have my five destinations now I need to prioritize by the month or the season that I would like to travel well for Canada New England

Wanting to see the Fall Foliage it definitely has to be the fall so I’ve listed that now with Ireland Scotland they have quite a large window of travel opportunity I selected August because I would really like to go to the military tattoo special event and it is held

Annually in August so I’m limited on my options there southern France I would love to see the lab laender in full bloom now that is in the middle of the summer but I also would be open to going in spring or fall when there’s fewer tourists so I listed all

Three with a ruabon Aon curacy uh definitely want to go uh in spring or late fall now typically those areas are not disturbed by hurricanes but I do think uh spring or late fall for that would work well and for the Mediterranean for myself I want to take my family so I

Have to contend with a college student and a high school student schedules so I’m hoping for a late May early June option so that my family can all visit together so again once you’ve listed your five places and you’ve come up with a suggested month or season you want to

Travel now it’s time to plug it in so typically three years of planning works very well and it doesn’t mean that we can plan today for the F this trip out it’s possible that’s something that might need to be delayed until it’s more available but most of the travel

Providers cruise lines and the land touring companies are giving us options much further out they know that people have pent up travel plans and they want to be able to plan in advance to accomplish their bucket lists so we are seeing more of that just as an example I

Had a couple met with me um a few years ago and told me of their 50th wedding anniversary we knew where they were wanting to go I had it on my list so as soon as that itinerary came out we held the space and within six months that

Price had gone up $500 a person so planning further out does give you the best deal now I did look at um the years for my trips and when I went through I decided for southern France I definitely don’t want to go in the middle of summer

It’s a little price prohibitive for me so I thought let’s go with spring or fall and I staggered it so that I could maximize doing some of these things together I know it seems kind of simple but we just simply don’t take the time to plan out our travel and so I think

It’s important for us to be intentional so that we can maximize exactly where we want to go then the last option I the last thing I need to do is to figure out how I want to travel what’s the travel style for these destinations and I may not know

Right away and that is where brand travel comes into play for example Canada New England I know that I do not want to do a custom trip um I would prefer to have vetted guides for the different areas so they can share the history with me I

Don’t want to have to read books and figure it out on my own um I also want to have my Transportation taken care of and so I am thinking I’m leaning towards either a guided Land Tour or an ocean cruise and so in this example I would reach out

To my team and say I’m interested in going to Canada New England um I’m not sure if I want to take a Land Tour or an ocean cruise what are some options for me so we would share with you some itineraries to review with pricing with dates

And your job would be to look through and decide okay what style of travel do I want this time do I want it to be a a little more Leisure do I want to maximize everything I’m seeing in that destination do I want to unpack once or

Am I okay staying in a hotel for a few nights and then moving on to the next space and then once we go through those pros and cons you will have selected the best travel style for that destination here’s just a couple little bonus tips I would encourage you to

Check with your friends and family because travel is really better together when you have uh another couple to travel with or family members that you all can enjoy making uh memories of travel uh it it really is great and just a little funny at the bottom travel first class and first

Class can be whatever is of top rating to you because if you don’t your heirs will and I’d like to just thank you again for joining us today uh this is our information we don’t charge anything for our travel planning services so it is our pleasure to work through these destinations on

Your bucket list with you to make sure that you are selecting the best travel style and the best itinerary to match your focus um and we’ll be glad to do that once you have created your bucket list so I would encourage you uh to go back through the little notes that you jotted

Down today have a conversation with your spouse or your travel companion come up with those different destinations see if you can figure out months or preferred seasons of traveling plug them in over a three-year period and then start weighing the pros and cons of travel style for each contact

Us we have so many promotions going on there is a lot of um there’s a lot of travel companies that are really interested in boosting travel for 24 so they’re offering a lot of incentives if you’re wanting to go this year and then further out really great pricing so um

We would be really glad to help you with your travel bucket list and I hope this gets you started on a great year of 2024 travel and cheers or happy coffee drinking to all of you I look forward to seeing you soon bye for Now a

Work with me to build your Travel Bucket List and consider many options to prioritize your list.