Inside Travel Talk
Explore Your World! The Inside Travel Talk Podcast is filled with destination information and travel, cruise and vacation tips and tricks. Its the Christmas catalogue of Travel! We are here to help you get out there and Explore Your World.
Inside Travel Talk
Expansive Escapes: Puerto Vallarta's Charms & European Christmas Cruises
Step into a world of travel wonders and insider secrets as we explore how Alaska Airlines is expanding your horizons with new routes to Tokyo and Seoul, courtesy of their merger with Hawaiian Airlines. Discover just how these new connections can enhance your Asian adventures. We also delve into the heart of Puerto Vallarta through an engaging interview with David Charez, sales manager for Buenaventura Hotels, who passionately reveals why this vibrant destination offers the perfect blend of oceanic thrills, mountain escapades, and rich cultural experiences.
Next, we whisk you away to the tranquil setting of Villa Premier's Serena Spa, newly renovated and ready to offer you the ultimate relaxation retreat. Our discussion with David Charez underscores the transformative power of a good spa experience during your travels. We also reveal travel gems, including exciting deals to Cancun and an exclusive peek into the Kennedy Space Center's upcoming interactive experience. Cancun's offerings don't stop there; Lomas Hospitality is setting new standards with inclusive experiences at El Dorado Resorts and Generations Riviera Maya, promising a feast for the senses with diverse activities and exquisite dining options.
As the festive season draws near, unlock the secrets of navigating European Christmas market cruises with expert tips on timing, travel insurance, and must-see markets from Berlin to the Rhine. Finally, arm yourself with savvy strategies to avoid common travel scams. We share practical advice on steering clear of deceptive taxi tactics, fake ticket traps, and the hazards of accepting seemingly "free" gifts. Whether you're planning a family-friendly escape to Puerto Vallarta's Buena Ventura Grand Hotel or dreaming of a luxurious Cancun retreat, this episode equips you with the knowledge to travel with confidence and flair.
Welcome to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show. On today's show we're going to talk about Puerto Vallarta quite extensively Europe Christmas markets and travel scams to avoid. Let's start the show.
Patrick Wiscombe:The Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show presented by BluePlanetVacations. com contains travel deals, promotions and offers that may be time-sensitive. All offers and information were accurate when the show aired. Travel deals and offers change constantly and are capacity controlled and subject to change without notice.
Show Voice:Explore your world. It's the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show presented by BluePlanetVacations. com. Call or text the show now 801-649-3700, 801-649-3700. And check out the podcast at InsideTravelTalk. com. And now here are your hosts, Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.
Mark Faldmo:Welcome to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show. My name is Mark Faldmo. Welcome to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show. My name is Mark Faldmo. You'll notice a little difference this week. We'll excuse Patrick from the show today. Thank you for taking your time to listen to the show today.
Mark Faldmo:The entire purpose of this show is to help you plan and book your next vacation and help you get out there and explore your world, and we're presented by Blue Planet Vacations. In this first segment we'll talk about some travel news and then we'll get into an interview that I had a few weeks ago with David Charez, who is the sales rep for Buena Ventura Hotels in Puerto Vallarta. We'll get to that interview in just a moment, but first let's talk about some of the travel news of the week. The first bit of news that we'll talk about is Alaska Airlines expanding Asia flights. Patrick and I have talked about the merger with Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines a couple of times on the show and now there's some exciting news coming out of this. As they are starting to combine their networks, Alaska Airlines will take some of the larger planes from Alaska Airlines and move them to Seattle and start flying to Asia, and the inaugural flight will be on May 12th to Tokyo's Narita Airport. This is really good news for travelers to Asia, as it will open up the whole Alaska Airlines network to the destinations that they fly, and they will soon start flying to Seoul's Incheon Airport in Seoul, South Korea.
Mark Faldmo:Our next bit of news is Southwest Airlines is changing the way they do drink service. So earlier this month, if you've flown on Southwest, you'll notice that they're starting to prepare the cabin for landing earlier. They used to prepare the cabin at 10,000 feet. Now they're going to start preparing the cabin for landing at 18,000 feet, which means beverage service could end earlier. You'll need to get your lap stop stowed earlier and your tray tables up. This could mean that on some of the shorter flights there may not be time for drink service. Now, as I mentioned, a few weeks ago, I was in Puerto Vallarta and I was able to get an interview with David Charez, the sales manager for Buena Ventura Hotels, one of my favorite resort chains in Puerto Vallarta. Here's the interview David, it's nice to have you on.
David Chariez:Thank you so much for having me, mark. Thank you for joining us here. It's always nice to enjoy the beautiful, perfect weather that we have, and it is perfect, indeed it is, it has been perfect.
Mark Faldmo:I've noticed it's not been too hot, not been too humid. There's been a nice breeze. Couldn't ask for anything more.
David Chariez:Well, we do our best. We do our best when we have special guests in-house, so it's nice to provide this for you.
Mark Faldmo:Thanks for ordering up the weather for me. So first off, I want to start off and ask you why Puerto Vallarta?
David Chariez:So I've had the privilege of working at three wonderful destinations in Mexico Cancun, Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta and all three are beautiful destinations indeed and they all have their unique attributes. But I have to be very honest with you. When I arrived to Puerto Vallarta, working for this company, Buenaventura Hotels I celebrate my 18th year in September so when I arrived to Puerto Vallarta, it is a destination that just absolutely captivated me, enamored me. It's one of those destinations that's just so complete. You know, we were a city before we were a tourist destination. So you know, you have multiple generations of people born and raised here, and it does make a big difference. So the people are absolutely amazing here and I'm sure you can attest to that as well.
David Chariez:The other thing, of course, is why would you go to a beach destination? Well, for the beaches, of course, and you know we do have a ton of pristine beaches, all safe, swimmable beaches, which is really important. And then, of course, you have the Sierra Madre mountain range, which is the backdrop to this beautiful colonial seaside town. So, in essence, I always like to say you know, we really do offer a complete vacation experience in Puerto Vallarta, as you have, you know, everything that involves the ocean, everything that involves the mountain terrain, including zip line. You know some beautiful rivers and other. You know adventure activities such as that. And then, of course, the colonial part. You know you really. It's a place where you can really immerse yourself within the culture of Mexico, and this is a perfect example of everything that Mexico has to offer.
Mark Faldmo:Puerto Vallarta probably is my favorite spot in Mexico for those reasons. I love the colonial aspect of it. I love the beaches. We're sitting out here at the Sky Bar at the Buenaventura Grand Hotel watching people play in the beach. It's wonderful.
David Chariez:It's hard to be up here, isn't it?
Mark Faldmo:It is, it's hard to be here working, watching everybody have fun.
David Chariez:Exactly, but sometimes we have to work yeah sometimes we do have to work.
Mark Faldmo:So what better place to work than this, though? Absolutely, absolutely. So now let's switch to the hotels, the Villa Premier Boutique Hotel, which is where we've been staying. Can you explain that hotel a little bit to us?
David Chariez:So this is. You know, when I started working for the company, this was actually like my pet project. It was the main focus of my job as it opened in 1999. We celebrate 25 years this year, so it's a rather a fairly newer hotel in the destination, because this is a destination that does have some hotels over 50 years old and stuff. So it is one of the newer ones. It's a boutique hotel. There's only 83 rooms and suites here, so it's a very intimate hotel. It is adults only, which sometimes is great to escape everything, including the kids. So this does afford you that opportunity and it's a hotel.
David Chariez:It's the only one in our company that offers both European plan and all inclusive. So we're in European plan hotels and you know for those that don't know, ep means no meals or anything is included. Basically it's just room. However, we also offer an inclusive option at this hotel and most people do like that, because it means you have everything included Three a la carte restaurants to choose from. There's no buffet dining there. We have phenomenal mixology cocktails and that's all included, and also 24-hour room service. We have a phenomenal menu that does include some very tasty and delicious hot items. In the overnight menu we do have a chef on site 24 hours a day. Items in the overnight menu we do have a chef on site 24 hours a day. So you know, there's really not much that this hotel won't do to, you know, completely satisfy the needs of all of its guests For being that small of a hotel you know 83 rooms I think it's the perfect size.
Mark Faldmo:It really is, and no matter how you know you're here and with your, you know, staying here.
David Chariez:You know you're here and with your, you know, staying here. We're actually at 90, 96% occupancy, so we're pretty much full, and yet you don't feel that, do you when you're there.
Mark Faldmo:You don't feel it. I think again. You know to have a chef on site 24 hours for that room service is quite amazing for that size. The food at the hotel I can say of all the destinations I've traveled to, to all the all-inclusives, I think the Villa Premier has the best food.
David Chariez:Thank you, thank you, we really do. Um, you know, the company does so much when it comes to the gastronomy. Uh, at all three of our resorts we have been known over the years, company-wide with gastronomy. And, uh, you know, for Villa Premier, since it's our flagship hotel, it's our signature hotel, it's a hotel where, because of the gastronomy we are featured in, you know, gastronomy Festival, gourmet Festival, a couple of other independent activities that they do. One is Vallarta Nayarit Gastronomica, which is an event that encompasses, you know, the best chefs in Puerto Vallarta and our sister city, Riviera Nayarit, which is next door, as well. So we do a heavy investment in that and I'm glad, it's great to hear your comments because it's why we do it and the food there is just absolutely phenomenal.
Mark Faldmo:And, like a lot of hotels in Puerto Vallarta, you have great views of the beach and sunsets. But I think at least this trip, the two nights we've been here, the two sunsets have been amazing, and it's probably because of where we're staying.
David Chariez:Yes, you know, the Villa Premier. Every single room is oceanfront and it's a small boutique hotel. Yet if you look at the size of it, you think it's a lot bigger than what it actually is, because there's plenty of suites and you know, the big thing right now, of course, is availability to those suites. They're just so perfect and you're experiencing one of our. My personal favorite is the Premier Suite, which is our 783 square feet of just amazing space and a beautiful balcony. But all of the rooms have a balcony and all of the rooms face the ocean. One thing that I do like and you'll appreciate this too a lot of hotels don't have screen doors on their balconies. We do, and you could sleep with that door open and just hear the waves all night long, and it really is soothing and relaxing.
Mark Faldmo:Yep, and that's one thing I like about that, because I do like to listen to the ocean at night. Again, perfect setting, and we'll talk about this when we talk about the Buena Ventura, since the hotels are next door. But what about the location of this?
David Chariez:So we are technically the first hotel in the downtown zone. If you're headed from the airport towards downtown Puerto Vallarta. We're only about a 15, 20 minute drive from the Puerto Vallarta International Airport and we are literally at the doorstep to the cobblestone streets, where you exit Villa Premier onto the main, at the doorstep to the Cobblestone Streets, where you exit Villa Premier onto the main street. That's where the Cobblestone Streets start. You make a quick right and four blocks into that you're at the base of the Malecon, the entrance to it, and that's where all the nightlife, the shopping galleries, just a lot of phenomenal people watching, and you're literally in the culture. You're in the culture, you're immersing yourself in the culture. So, location, location, location is what everyone deems to be the most important thing and this, being a beachfront hotel in the closest area to the downtown area, to the downtown zone, I think, makes this a phenomenal choice for any guest wanting to be in Puerto Vallarta.
Mark Faldmo:It is. I like being that close to the downtown area. And, David, why don't you tell me a little bit about the spa at the Villa? Premier? Relaxation is an important part of a trip and a spa is a critical component for that.
David Chariez:Thank you, mark. Well, you had the privilege of seeing it. I'm glad I got the opportunity to show it to you. You know, it's the newest thing at the Villa Premier. We just completely redid the spa. I mean, when I saw this, you know the spa, we renamed it too. It's called Serena and it's it's so Zen-like, it's so relaxing, it's so, it's so pure. Honestly, I mean, when we walk, we're walking through it, you know the, the aromas in there is just absolutely, just just just being in there, I felt so relaxed and you just feel so relaxed. There we have four treatment rooms. You know we specialize. We have full beauty salon and we use organic based products. You know the sauna steam room. It's a it's a small spa and standards to some very large hotels, but it is so perfectly, you know, it's just so perfect, so zen-like, so relaxing that, honestly, you cannot miss an opportunity to come and check out the spa.
Mark Faldmo:Yeah, I was going to say a spa facility like that at a hotel that size. You've done a great job, thank you. It's a large spa for the number of rooms that you have, so it's quite an amazing spa.
David Chariez:Thank you, Thank you, I really really appreciate that and, yes, absolutely, On your visit to Villa Premier, you definitely check out the spot. It's amazing and you know the treatments and everything that we offer there workshops, everything. It's just absolutely amazing. So thank you.
Mark Faldmo:Well, that wraps up our segment here. We'll be back with David in just a minute to talk about the other hotel, the Buena Ventura Grand. We'll be right back after this.
Show Voice:Taking you to destinations around the world. The Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show is presented by BluePlanetVacations. com, America's best travel advisors. Call or text the show now 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. Thanks for listening. We'll be right back.
Ad Voice:This segment of Inside Travel Talk is sponsored by Star Clippers. For over 30 years, star Clippers has offered unique, authentic tall ship sailing experiences featuring creative itineraries throughout the Mediterranean Caribbean and Central America. To book your unique Star Clipper sailing adventure, contact Blue Planet Vacations at 888-718-7717 or blueplanetvacations. com.
Show Voice:Now back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show Presented by blueplanetvacations. com, America's best travel advisors. Call or text the show right now 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. And check out the podcast at InsideTravelTalk. com. Here's Patrick Wiscombe and Mark.
Mark Faldmo:Faldmo, welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show. We're glad you're with us today. This is segment two, where we highlight the hot travel deal of the week. This week we're going to Cancun. There's some great deals on five-star hotels. We'll also finish out the interview with David Charez from Buena Ventura Hotels. But first let's talk about some of the exciting travel news that's out there and we're first going to go to Orlando, Florida area, going to the Kennedy Space Center.
Mark Faldmo:Kennedy Space Center is one of my favorite places to visit when I'm in Orlando, either before or after a cruise or when visiting other Orlando theme parks. Kennedy Space Center is a place I think that everyone should visit. They've announced a new interactive visitor experience, so if you're into space and rockets, this is a new experience just for you. They've reimagined the historic Launch Complex 39. This is slated to open in 2025. They've added some interesting exhibits here. They have the Earth Information Center, which is a data hub featuring a theater show, a hyper wall display, an interactive exhibit gallery, an interactive rocket building area where guests can design and virtually launch rockets, experiencing spaceflight from a launch site within the Kennedy Space Center's working spaceport. It will also be used as a launch viewing area for real rockets when rockets are launched from Kennedy Space Center, and then it also has several interactive exhibits, including a test fire simulation where guests can stand under a full-scale rocket engine as it simulates a static fire test, along with a shaded area and outdoor dining. You know, Kennedy Space Center is, you know, kind of one of those vacation spots where you can add science into your vacation. I've always been intrigued when visiting Kennedy Space Center, especially walking around the Rocket Garden, to see some of the real astronauts that are there, and you know so. This is just another example of some of the immersive things that Kennedy Space Center does, and our next story is one that we've covered a little bit.
Mark Faldmo:It's Lomas Hospitality's more inclusive experience in Cancun, Mexico. The hotels of Lomas include the El Dorado Resorts, which is El Dorado Seaside Palms, el Dorado Seaside Suites, el Dorado Royale, El Dorado Maroma Beach and El Dorado Casita Suites, which are all adult-only hotels, and then their family hotel is the Generations Riviera Maya the Generations Riviera Maya. This more inclusive, as we've talked about before, includes Maroma Beach, which is a beach club experience. You can have brunch at a restaurant that includes 20 food stations and all of your drinks you can sail over the Great Mayan Reef with snorkeling Again, one of the best reefs in the world to snorkel or enjoy activities like jet skiing, catamaran rides and, of course, the snorkeling that we talked about or you can just relax on the beach. It also includes, if you're staying at any of their properties, you can eat and drink and experience.
Mark Faldmo:The Aquanick Resort, which is the largest water park in the Riviera Maya, includes an ecotourism ranch with a cenote and swimming experience where you can interact with horses and rescued animals from the area. And this is the exciting part They've recently added Ak tun chen, which is a cenote and an underground cave expedition, so that's a really exciting addition. This is an attraction that, again, normally costs quite a bit to do, and this is included with your stay at any of the Lomas Hospitality Resorts, the El Dorado properties or the Generations. And now let's get back to the interview with David Charez from Buena Ventura Resorts and hear what he has to say about the Buena Ventura Grand Hotel. Let's get back to David, since we're here in sunny, beautiful Puerto Vallarta, the day just keeps getting better since we last talked. It does it really?
David Chariez:does.
Mark Faldmo:Nice breeze and you know just a great place to be right now. Now, Buena Ventura Hotels. You know we talked about the Villa Premier in the last segment. Right next door is the Buena Ventura Grand Hotel. Tell us a little bit about that hotel.
David Chariez:Well, for starters, any guest of the Villa Premier is welcome at the Buena Ventura Grand next door. The Buena Ventura Grand is one of the original hotels in the destination. We have been for 42 years. It's an amazing place. Same great location. Here we are a family-friendly hotel. I say family-friendly as a distinction to a family hotel, because we're a great hotel that does welcome all families, of course. But it's a great property for singles. It's a great property for couples. We have a nice inventory of 231 rooms, so we do have plenty of great property for singles. It's a great property for couples. We have a nice inventory of 231 rooms, so we do have plenty of great options for that as well.
David Chariez:This hotel underwent a complete transformation in honor of our 40th anniversary. We completely reimagined the hotel, redid absolutely everything, so gutting every last piece of tile, every toilet, everything, completely, all the rooms were completely gutted. You did have the opportunity to tour this with me yesterday, so you did see that and you know once the hotel, once that transformation was complete. Honestly, I think this is one of the most complete hotels in the destination. A very nice compliment, you know, to the Villa Premier as well, but also to the commitment of Buena Ventura Hotels, which, you know we're a company that you know, just specializes in hospitality. So you know, the family that owns the company is a family that really does not only invest in the product that they have but, you know, also within the community, and we have a lot of employees like, including myself.
David Chariez:I said I celebrated 18 years. Believe it or not, I'm actually probably one of the persons who's been here probably the least amount of time. At our 40th anniversary party, we actually had many employees that had started with the hotel the day that it opened and they brought back a lot of the ones that have now retired to come celebrate in that monumental occasion. But the hotel is an amazing location, right in the downtown area.
David Chariez:With our new, new, completely reimagined product, the food and beverage offerings were completely brought up to a different level. We invested heavily in that as well and all the public areas. So this is a great, great hotel offering phenomenal cuisine, phenomenal options for entertainment also, and then we have a great little outdoor spa here at the Buena Ventura grand as well. So it is completely amazing hotel. And again, location, location, location, mark. You saw, you know, walking out from this hotel, literally you make a right and again four blocks from everything. I also like to say, for the people who like to maybe go out to nightclubs a little, we are what you would consider stumbling distance from the bars as well I've noticed that because I have been to this hotel before the renovation.
Mark Faldmo:I noticed not that the rooms were bad before they were still good, but this is a step up from what it was before. Done a great job with that. That also says something about the hotel. When you have employees that have been here for 40 years, been with the hotel since the beginning, it is a very employee-friendly company to work for. That's one thing I've appreciated about Buena Ventura Hotels.
David Chariez:And you know it's interesting because I, you know, I live in the United States and I do cover both the United States, Canada and abroad representing the hotel. But when I come down here, you know all of the staff at, you, know all three of our hotels. They're just truly amazing. I get along with absolutely everyone, so I've become quite close to everyone here and I just enjoy spending time with my colleagues. But we all do what we do and that is to serve our guests and we do it very well together, yep and you certainly do that.
Mark Faldmo:Now it's time for the hot travel deal of the week. This was a little bit hard for me to decide today what to talk about, because we've had the great discussions with David and Puerto Vallarta, but I've decided to go to Cancun. I have just seen so many deals to Cancun Right now. This deal is for a February 21st departure, five nights hotel and round-trip airfare from Salt Lake City. It includes all taxes and fees and your transfers to and from the airport. The reason why I chose this is because I've just seen tremendous deals on five-star hotels, so every deal we're going to talk about is at a five-star resort. These are only about $50 to $75 more than the three and a half to four star resorts, so these are some great deals. Again, February 21st 2025 for a five night package with airfare.
Mark Faldmo:The first hotel is the Park Royale Beach, Cancun. This is a five star resort in the hotel zone of Cancun and it starts at $1199 per person. The next resort is the Catalonia Yucatan Beach five-star resort from $1339. And then we'll go to two of my favorite hotels in the area the Hyatt Ziva Riviera, Cancun. This is a relatively new hotel that was just completely rebranded and renovated to the Hyatt Ziva brand Five-star hotel from $1699 per person, and then the El Dorado Seaside Palms. So this will incorporate the more inclusive experience that we talked about a little bit earlier in this segment. So the El Dorado Seaside Palms five-star resort $1879 per person. If you're looking to go to Cancun, I think now is the time to book when the three and four-star hotels have seen prices, about where we've seen them, but the prices of the five-star hotels have really come down over the past few weeks. Well, that'll do it for this segment of the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show. We'll be back in just a moment.
Show Voice:Explore your world. You're listening to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show with Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo. Call or text the show now 801-649-3700. That's 801-649-3700. And check out the podcast at InsideTravelTalk. com. We'll be right back.
Ad Voice:Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Ama Waterways, from castles and capitals to vistas and villages visit some of Europe's most remarkable sites and cities To set out on your own river cruise journey. Contact Blue Planet Vacations at 888-718-7717 or blueplanetvacations. com.
Mark Faldmo:Welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show Coming up. On the next 30 minutes we'll be talking about Christmas markets, cruises, travel protection and travel scams to avoid. Let's start the show.
Patrick Wiscombe:The Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show presented by BluePlanetVacations. com contains travel deals, promotions and offers that may be time sensitive. All offers and information were accurate when the show aired. Travel deals and offers change constantly and are capacity controlled and subject to change without notice.
Show Voice:This is the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show presented by BluePlanetVacations. com, America's best travel advisors. Call or text the show right now 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700, 801-649-3700. And now here are your hosts Patrick Wiscombe and Mark.
Mark Faldmo:Welcome back to segment three of the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show. This is the Just Cruising segment, where we're going to talk cruises and also get the cruise deal of the week. Earlier this week I had a client call me and said he wanted to book his airfare for his cruise using frequent flyer miles. He said he was going to book a flight that arrived three hours prior to sailing because he read on the cruise line's website that you needed to just be on board two hours prior to sailing. Earlier this week I did have the chance to talk with Patrick about the suggested arrival times for cruises and what will work and what you should do when booking your airfare for a cruise.
Patrick Wiscombe:Let's get to Mark's travel tips, which we're going to talk about all aboard times, whether that be well. I guess that would be crew specific all aboard, but I guess it will extend that to flight stuff. What are some general rules that everyone should just know?
Mark Faldmo:So this goes back to the cruise story with the stranded passengers in Africa missing the boat. So we're going to talk about three times that cruisers need to be aware of. One is the first day of the cruise, when to get on the ship. Yeah, now, this varies by port and country. There are some different rules, but generally, a cruise line wants you on board no later than two hours prior to sailing.
Mark Faldmo:Meaning embarkation day. Embarkation day If your cruise leaves at 5 pm, you should arrive to your destination by noon, or go in the day before, just to be safe, yeah. And then at the end of the cruise you shouldn't book a flight before 1 pm. The cruise line will say noon. I say 1 pm because sometimes I've been on a ship in Los Angeles once where the port was fogged in.
Ad Voice:Oh really.
Mark Faldmo:We didn't get in until 11.
Patrick Wiscombe:So by the time everyone cleared customs and all of that, the noon flights were long and done so add just at least another hour to whatever they take Another hour to that.
Mark Faldmo:Okay, so that's embarkation day and disembarkation day, and then there is some confusion on ports because there's a posted time when the ship leaves Right, say at 6 pm, but then there's also an all aboard time which is usually 30 to 45 minutes. Before the departure time the cruise line has some safety and immigration checks they need to go through. So that's why they need that 30 to 45 minute leeway of the all aboard time. So when you're on a cruise, make sure in every port that you know the all aboard time and it's posted right there when you go out.
Mark Faldmo:They announce it.
Patrick Wiscombe:It's in the daily planner, it's everywhere, but just make sure you know that all aboard time I genuinely feel bad for anyone who misses the ship, but it's kind of hard to feel bad for you when they literally tell you every single day when you have to be back on the ship yes, sorry, not really.
Mark Faldmo:another thing to add to that is make sure you have travel insurance in case something does happen. Oh yeah, it would have to be for a covered reason. Is that a covered?
Patrick Wiscombe:reason, like if you miss the boat.
Mark Faldmo:Well, if on the arrival and departure day if the ship's late or in there is travel delay.
Mark Faldmo:In most insurance policies that probably would cover missing the ship in port, but that would be insurance company specific. So make sure when looking at your flights that you give yourself plenty of time to get to the port to account for any delays by the airline. I always recommend flying in a day before the cruise so that you don't risk missing the boat. And now earlier this week we had a text from a listener, Melissa. She wants to go on a Christmas markets cruise next year and she's wondering if it's too early to book now. We'll answer that and we'll spend the rest of the segment talking about European Christmas markets. To answer one of Melissa's questions, if it's too early to book, I would say if you want to go next year, book it now.
Mark Faldmo:We did some stories a little bit earlier this month where some of the cruise lines, like Viking River Cruise Lines, is more than 70% full for 2025. These specialty cruises sell out quite a bit. We'll talk in just a minute about Christmas markets, but first I thought it might be interesting to see which cities in Europe have the most Christmas markets. I did find a list online online and it's pretty interesting Berlin, Germany has the most, with 42 different Christmas markets that start in late November. The next city is Rome, Italy, that has 25 Christmas markets, and those start in early December.
Mark Faldmo:And then Paris, France, has 11 Christmas markets which start in early December. And then Paris, France, has 11 Christmas markets which start in late November. Warsaw, Poland, has nine Christmas markets which start in late November, and then Bucharest, Romania, has eight Christmas markets that also starts in early December. Also on this list was Vienna, Austria, with six Christmas markets, and I think an interesting location is the country of Andorra, which is one of the smaller countries in Europe, which is on the France and Spain border. Despite how small the country is, it still has five Christmas markets. So those are the cities with the most Christmas markets in Europe. Now, moving on, earlier this week I did have a chance to talk with Patrick about Christmas market cruising and some particulars. Let's listen to what we recorded earlier this week and then I'll go into some of the travel deals we're going to go to the Christmas markets.
Patrick Wiscombe:Let's tell listeners what a Christmas market cruise is.
Mark Faldmo:In Europe. A lot of the small villages, towns and larger cities all have Christmas markets that they set up in their main square. They're small kiosks, restaurants, Christmas displays, everything about Christmas in these Christmas markets. So these cruises focus on that. Stop in the best Christmas markets in Europe and you get to experience that in each stop In what cities and countries?
Mark Faldmo:There are different rivers you can do it on. You can do the Rhine and the Danube, which are the two most popular. I guess I should say the Upper Danube, and then you can also do the Rhône in France and the Lower Danube. Best Christmas market probably in all of Europe is on the upper Danube, which is Nuremberg. Nuremberg is called the Christkindlmarkt, which is the largest and oldest Christmas market in Germany. The other stop you either start or end in Budapest, which there they have a lot of handmade works that is in their Christmas market.
Patrick Wiscombe:That'd be cool.
Mark Faldmo:All handmade toys and trinkets and different things. And then also Austria, Vienna. I've never been there in Christmas time, but Vienna I can see being a magical city at Christmas. You have been to Vienna, I have been to Vienna.
Patrick Wiscombe:Let's talk about the Rhine.
Mark Faldmo:River, so the Rhine River Christmas market that includes France, Germany, Netherlands and Switzerland. Are these seven-day cruises?
Patrick Wiscombe:These are seven-night cruises, so you go from country to country, but there's ports in each one of those countries that you go.
Mark Faldmo:Experience Christmas in those locations, so there's one or two ports every day, some days you're there all day. Sometimes you're just there half a day.
Patrick Wiscombe:And so you move on to the next one. So you move on to the next one. Oh see, I've never even heard of this before.
Mark Faldmo:A river cruise period is a great way to see Europe.
Patrick Wiscombe:And Ama Waterways. They do a great job, just by reputation. I've never been on them, but their reputation is stellar.
Mark Faldmo:Yeah, they're my favorite. I've sailed on them several times.
Patrick Wiscombe:We've got the Rhine River, we've got the Upper Danube, and then we've got what?
Mark Faldmo:Then there's the Lower Danube and the Rhône. On that, going back to the Rhine River, that one has two spots that I think are fascinating. In Cologne it's a big Gothic cathedral, the Christmas market is set up right in front of that, and then also in Heidelberg. I think Heidelberg probably would be the best city in Europe, so that would be your favorite, that would, that would be my favorite. I love Heidelberg. And then also on this one, in one of the cities they have the world's largest advent calendar. So you know, you just get a little special Christmas things like that on these. And then the Rhone is in France, so you get a lot of cities in France along that one. And then the lower Danube, which I think is interesting, would be hungry to Romania, and you'd go to Slovakia, go to Serbia, oh wow, and you'd go to Bulgaria on that so that feels like a unique experience.
Mark Faldmo:That is yeah, I've done that, not at Christmas time, but that's probably my favorite river cruise I've done. Is that lower Danube? Just because it's so different culturally and everything like that? Be interested to see how they do Christmas, Because they are all formerly behind in the East Block, Behind the Iron Curtain, and weren't allowed to do that. It'd be interesting to see how those Christmas markets are Now.
Mark Faldmo:Let's talk about some of the travel deals that are out there for Europe Christmas markets. Right now, AmaWaterways, which is my favorite cruise line, has holiday triple savings sale. This expires December 31st, so you have about 10 days to book this. This offer is also combinable with their $8.99 fixed airfare rate to Europe and with AmaWaterways seven-night river cruises you can save up to $2,000 per stateroom plus get a complimentary stateroom upgrade, plus get up to $100 onboard credit to spend onboard for things like spa and other things that they offer. If you move that to a 14-day river cruise, it saves up to $4,000 per stateroom plus complimentary stateroom upgrade and $200 to spend on board. So this is a great offer. This expires December 31st of this year and it is for Christmas market cruises starting November of next year through December. So if you're interested in a Christmas market cruise, this is definitely the way to go.
Mark Faldmo:Now I just want to highlight two cruises with AmaWaterways. There are two seven-night cruises and these are part of that. Save up to $2,000 per stateroom. The first cruise is Amsterdam to Basel. This is on the Rhine River and it has some of the best Christmas markets. I think Cologne, Germany and, as I mentioned earlier with Patrick Heidelberg, I think those have two of some of the best Christmas markets in Europe and the Rhine River is always a great river to cruise on and in 2025, there's some pretty good rates in early November and later in December on this November and later in December on this. So cruise rates start at $2839 per person, and that is with the $2,000 off per cabin, or essentially that's $1,000 per person.
Mark Faldmo:The other cruise I'd like to highlight is the Gems of Southeast Europe. This is the lower Danube and it does hit Bucharest, which is one of the cities we mentioned that has the most Christmas markets in Europe. So this sells from Budapest to Bucharest. Essentially, Visit Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania on this. I think this is a fascinating itinerary and this itinerary does not have as many departures as the Rhine or the upper Danube, but for next year, in 2025, November 24th, the sailing date starts at $26 39 per person. That's the cruise deal of the week. Thanks for listening and we'll be back right after this short break they've literally traveled millions of miles to answer your travel-related questions.
Show Voice:Yeah, they really have. You're listening to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show presented by BluePlanetVacations. com. America's best travel advisors, Patrick and Mark, will be back after these messages. Patrick and Mark will be back after these messages, getaway. Contact Blue Planet Vacations at 888-718-7717 or blueplanetvacations. com. They'll help you plan and book your next vacation. Yeah, really, you're listening to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show presented by BluePlanetVacations. com, America's best travel advisors. Call or text the show now 801-649-3700, 801-649-3700. And now here's Patrick Wiscombe Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show.
Mark Faldmo:We're glad you could join us this week. Before we get started into some of the travel news, I just wanted to mention that this show is brought to you by BluePlanetVacations. com and if you want to learn about some of the hot travel deals that are out there at BluePlanetVacations. com, you can sign up for our hot travel deal update. We send those every 7 to 10 days or whenever a good travel deal breaks. So go to BluePlanetVacations. com and see some of the best travel deals out there.
Mark Faldmo:Now, before we get on to some of the conversations Patrick and I had earlier in this week, I just wanted to bring up as we're closing the new year and looking into 2025, some of the biggest changes that travelers will experience in 2025.
Mark Faldmo:And the main one is on May 7, 2025, the REAL ID Act will launch, and this means if you don't have a REAL ID compliant driver's license or a passport, you will not be able to get through TSA, so you'll want to check with your state to make sure that you have a REAL ID compliant driver's license Generally, it is noted with a yellow star or some type of symbol in one of the corners of your driver's license and a few other items that will come into effect in 2025.
Mark Faldmo:We talked about this, I think, about two weeks ago're traveling to the United Kingdom on or after January 8th of 2025, you will need to fill out an electronic authorization online before you travel and get authorization to enter into the United Kingdom. And, on a similar note, the European Union's entry and exit system is coming sometime in 2025. They still haven't set an exact date for that, but it's similar to that United Kingdom ETA, where you'll have to fill out a form online, pay a little bit of money and get pre-approved to enter the European Union. And now we'll get on to some of the travel tips that I talked earlier this week with Patrick about. We're going to talk about some travel scams to avoid and also the value of travel protection.
Patrick Wiscombe:Let's get to the seven crafty cruise tricks. Do not fall for these. And let's go over the first one, which I think has to do with taxi rides.
Mark Faldmo:This is geared towards cruisers, but this is also good advice for anywhere in the world. All of these happen all the time, especially to tourists. Tourists are a good target for scammers. Always set your fare with the driver before you get in. Yeah, don't do it in the middle of the ride. Don't do it in the middle or when you get out, or you'll be surprised.
Mark Faldmo:Oh yeah, a common trick that taxi drivers will use is they'll give you this is the rate $10.00, and then you'll get there and they'll say, oh, I told you $10, but that was per person, so now you owe me 20. So make sure you set it for the whole party and to where you're going, and then make sure you have bills to cover that Not too large of a bill, because they will always say they don't have change and then you're stuck paying them a lot more.
Patrick Wiscombe:What was the other trick that they try and pull taxi drivers A?
Mark Faldmo:lot of times people will say can you take me to the beach and then come pick me up at this time? Yeah, and I'll say yes, and they'll have you pay for that return trip up front. Never pay for the return trip up front. Tell them you'll pay for when they take you there and then you'll pay when they take you back.
Patrick Wiscombe:Yeah, because otherwise they won't return. Yep, see you later. Say goodbye to your money right there.
Mark Faldmo:Yeah, a common thing for a lot of people to do is to just hire a taxi to take them sightseeing. You know they don't want to take the excursions the ship offers. Taxi drivers are really good at this. I've actually been on some very good tours by taxi drivers. Oh, you have, but do some research and know where you want to go, meaning you choose the destination, you choose the destinations and how long you want to go there.
Mark Faldmo:Otherwise, they're going to take you to their brother's shop, to their sister's shop, everywhere where they get a kickback, and you're going to spend most of your time shopping and not actually doing the sightseeing that you want to do. So make sure you detail what you want to do, what you want to see, and if you don't want to shop, you need to tell them up front I don't want to shop. And the next one is fake ticket scams. Okay, what is that? There are some places that you need to buy tickets to in advance and some taxi drivers will say oh, I know someone I have, and then I can get you a ticket.
Patrick Wiscombe:Oh boy.
Mark Faldmo:You'll pay them for the ticket. They'll drop you off. It looks like a legitimate ticket, but when you get there they'll say it's a fake ticket.
Patrick Wiscombe:Oh boy.
Mark Faldmo:So only buy tickets from legitimate sources, don't buy them from a taxi driver. Now, the next one this is one that really bugs me is don't take the free gifts. You know a lot of vendors will come up and say it's free, it's free, it's free Because then they just keep hounding you for more and more, and a lot of times it's part of a pickpocket scam where they're watching where money comes from, how you act, and they will pickpocket you to do that and then also, along those lines of pickpocketing, keep your small bills and coins that you're going to use for street vendors and stuff in a separate area from your main money, because those pickpockets watch tourists where their money comes from.
Patrick Wiscombe:Yeah, you're being watched.
Mark Faldmo:And then they will get pickpocketed for a few dollars. That's probably fine. You don't want to be, but you don't want everything taken.
Patrick Wiscombe:You had an interesting story that actually happened to you.
Mark Faldmo:A common thing is someone will spill ice cream, gelato, a drink or something on you. If anyone spills something on you, do not let them help you, because it's a pickpocket scam. Oh my goodness, because the one thing that pickpocket needs is touch to distract you oh yeah, and so my thing was I was at the arc de triomphe in Paris.
Mark Faldmo:My guy came up and said hey, you're American, do you know judo? Like that's a strange thing to ask. And then he was doing these judo moves on me and all of my pockets were emptied. Luckily it was just a map of the Paris subway system, so I had a hard time getting back to my hotel. But that's pick pocketers need is a lot of times, that slight distraction in all of my life I have never hey.
Patrick Wiscombe:do you know judo? Yeah, I'm sorry that happened, but that's kind of funny.
Mark Faldmo:It was funny, yeah, and you know. Another common thing is you'll go, we'll say the Colosseum in Rome. There are lots of people dressed as Roman soldiers to go take your picture with them. Don't take your picture with them.
Mark Faldmo:A lot of times they are pickpocket scams as well, or pick pocketers are watching the people with that um, if you do want to do that, set your price with the person beforehand, because a lot of times you'll try and give them five dollars or whatever and they say, no, it's 10, 15, 20, and then you'll have a miserable situation there. You know that they won't let you go, yeah, and then never give your phone to someone to take a picture and unlock it. Or if someone comes and says you took my picture, you can't, and they want you to unlock your phone to see that what they're trying to do is get you to unlock your phone and then they're going to grab it and run away with your unlocked phone and get all of your stuff, which is quite popular.
Patrick Wiscombe:It happens a lot more than you would think. Having you articulate it like that is justification for me just going. No, no, thank you for asking.
Mark Faldmo:Just get away, buzz off and then, well, there's kind of two things that we'll do. If you're buying something and they're going to take it in the back to wrap it up for you, make sure you check up before you come back. I've heard stories of where people will have an expensive handbag and they'll take it back to wrap it up, and then when they get back to the ship or to their hotel, it is a totally different product and then they're out of luck.
Patrick Wiscombe:And then they can't come back because the cruise ship is going to take off, yeah.
Mark Faldmo:And then the last thing is know the exchange rate. Well, how would you know that? There are apps? There's one called XE Currency Converter where you can just quickly put that in so you know about what you should pay. It won't always equal that because there are some different fees and stuff, stuff, but you'll know about what you'll pay. There's been vendors that say yeah, it comes out to about 200 us dollars and then when you get back, if you're not savvy and don't know the exchange rate people had five- six hundred dollar charges when they thought it was two hundred dollars, so know the exchange rate let's talk about travel insurance, travel protections.
Mark Faldmo:That doesn't sound interesting until you figure out what it can save you from right.
Patrick Wiscombe:You know, most people are like we're going on vacation. I've done that. I'm like I'm not paying for that. I've never had to use it, but I did get it, just in case something went sideways well, you never purchase insurance hoping to use this good point.
Mark Faldmo:So that's something. And travel insurance is, I think, a very good investment to protect your trip. It protects for health reasons while you're there oh, on vacation.
Patrick Wiscombe:So it's basically insurance, not only for the trip, but it to protect you physically, physically, oh, I didn't know that so you'll.
Mark Faldmo:let's talk about the pre-trip things first. So the pre-trip things are, you know, like flight cancellations, lost baggage, baggage delays, everything that can happen while you're flying, while you're getting to your destination, right. Many also allow you to cancel for a covered reason, which is long a doctor says that or if you have a death in the family, that's a covered reason and can't go. So there are a lot of unforeseen things that can happen before and kind of while starting the trip. And then it also covers you while you're traveling. There's health provisions. A lot of people say, well, my health insurance will cover it. A lot of insurance does not cover when you're outside of the USA.
Mark Faldmo:And many countries there are several countries that actually require you show proof of insurance, of health insurance while traveling, so you do need to buy some type of health insurance to travel to certain countries, because they will not treat you at hospitals and they'll probably treat you but make you pay a lot.
Mark Faldmo:So, you know, and I've had clients before that have had to be medevaced home from Australia. Oh boy, had people that have had to leave trips early and come home, and had they not had travel insurance, travel protection, it would have been very costly to do that. So, look at all the specifics. You'll need to go to a specific travel company and get their specifics. Yeah, the policy Most travel agents you know I recommend. Travelx is the travel insurance provider that I recommend, but there are several out there that are really good and to get the specifics I can recommend you to the place where to get all those specifics and call if you have any questions on the policies.
Patrick Wiscombe:Call Mark if you have questions 801-649-3700.
Mark Faldmo:Well, that's it for this week's show. We're glad you could join us. Patrick should be back with us next week. We look forward to having him back on the show. We're here every week. You can catch a rebroadcast of the show at InsideTravelTalk. com or on BluePlanetVacations. com. And we will see you next week. Have a good week.
Show Voice:That's it. That's the end of the show You've been listening to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show with Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo, presented by BluePlanetVacations. com. Book your adventure right now. Call 888-718-7717. That's 888-718-7717. Thanks for listening. Have a great week.