Saturday, September 29, 2007

Starting A Cruise Travel Agency

For people who love to travel, starting a travel agency specializing in cruises can be very exciting. Earning a living by talking about your cruise experiences and helping direct less experienced cruisers to the right vacation can be very rewarding. Many people are also attracted to the travel discounts you can receive by becoming a member of the International Airline Travel Agency Network (IATAN). Membership is available after earning $5,000 in commissions during the previous 12 month period.

It takes a little while to build your business. Great customer service and knowledge of the business are key ingredients to a successful career. Cruise lines tend to specialize to certain types of people. Some appeal to older crowds, others have many activities for children, while look for more active cruisers by providing more daytime activities on the ship or nighttime entertainment choices. One of the best ways to gain a lot of customers quickly is to sell a group trip. Join local groups, religious organizations, college alumni programs, etc.

Cruise lines typically pay commissions of 12% - 15% of the base fare. This excludes charges for port taxes and government fees. Additional money can be made by selling travel insurances where commissions are much higher, selling tours while your clients are on land and booking airfare and transportation to the airport or port. If your clients take travel insurance, they will be covered in case of delays, lost luggage or sickness, which will reduce your chances of having an unhappy customer.

As with any upstart business, you need to control expenses. A cruise travel agency can be operated right out of your home with the majority of work done through the telephone or internet. Cruise tickets can be sent by messengers to your clients. One of your more important and higher expenses will be the Errors and Omission Insurance Policy. This will protect you from mistakes during the booking process or from errors in printed materials or advertising.
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Flying In First Class: A Royal Experience!

It's quite an experience flying in the first class. Not everyone can afford to fly in the first class but those who can certainly know how good it is. You are treated like a king. The services in the first class are outstanding and the facilities are superb. The pushback seats offer great comfort and there's also lots of elbow room.

There are some ways by which you can cut the first class airfare and that is by booking early. There are many advantages if you book early, one is that you will get discounted rates and the other is that your seat will be guaranteed. You can also shop to reduce the airfare.

You can get the latest and the best deals on the first class airfare from sites like Orbitz, Expedia and Travelocity. So in case you find a great deal, grab it immediately. This is because the rates change quickly, within minutes. You should not forget to check the websites of individual airlines especially those who do not give their fares on these travel sites. Their rates are listed in their site only. You can subscribe to their mailing list so that you are informed as to when any good deal comes up.

You are given some wonderful and useful gifts if you traveling on first class. These are lip balm, mouth wash moisturizer, cooling gel, hand lotion, body gel and hand gel. You may even get socks.

You are likely to get more in case you are traveling on international flight or on long routes. You will get a privacy divider, completely reclining seats, fresh linen, duvets and eye shades. The quality of food and drinks is also the best. The food is tasty and of supreme quality. The same goes for the drinks. However all this pampering is justifiable because a first class passenger pays 10 to15 times more than the economy class passenger.

You can also travel in the first class and especially if you are a frequent flyer. For this you need to collect the miles and then get a first class ticket in return. There are some airlines which do not charge as much as the major airlines do for the first class. So you can try these airlines. Your business class tickets may be upgraded to first class provided it is not full.

If you can afford you must try to fly in first class because it's a royal and memorable experience. You will be treated like a king and you will certainly relish the services and facilities that are offered.

You can feel the special treatment the moment you check in. There is separate check in counters for first class passengers. The first class passengers are either the first ones to board or the last ones. So it's not shocking that everyone wants to fly in the first class!
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By: George Wood

George has published a variety of fascinating articles about best cheap airfare & travel on a shoestring budget. Check out his airfare website that the airlines DON'T want you to see. Stop the big airline companies from fleecing you of your hard earned money, and discover cheap first class airfare to wherever your imagination takes you!

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Air Travel - Flying With An Infant/toddler

Air Travel with toddlers doesn't have to be a stressful experience. Here are some exclusive tips that will help you make it through your flight.

Schedule your flights to coincide with nap/bedtimes.
Whenever possible, try to book direct flights during the time of day or night your child would normally be sleeping. In all likelihood, they will keep up the pattern and fall asleep despite being 25,000 feet in the air. Any sleep they get on the plane will serve to cut down the time they must be entertained while awake!

Car seat on the plane?
When our daughter was an infant we choose to save the money and only purchase seats for ourselves which meant she spent the duration of the flight(s) on our laps. More recently, we have taken to carrying-on the car seat which accomplishes two very important things: freeing up our laps, arms, and such, and keeping her in the seat. It also adds some familiarity to a new vehicle/mode of transportation - a little piece of home(life) in a new place. Yes, it is frustrating having to carry the seat around the airport, but the in-flight payoff is worth it. One Step Ahead sells an adapter to turn a car seat into a backpack which may help you manage your carry-ons.

Managing the Flight
An easy and effective way to manage your in-flight, family-with-toddler(s) experience is to break the trip down, mentally, into 20 minute segments (to borrow an airline term). So, if you have a 2 1/2 hour flight, you really have only 7 twenty minute segments to schedule and occupy your child's (or children's) time. When you think of your flight in this manner it becomes a relatively manageable event. Here are some parent and flight tested tips on segment ideas that will occupy and entertain your kids, providing you with some down time to peruse the SkyMall catalog, and not have you lugging a suitcase full of toys around the terminal.

(remember: each idea has to occupy a mere 20 minutes, anything more than that is a bonus!):

* A new toy or book (nothing fancy, just something brand new to him or her)
* Crayola Color Wonder Markers (an inventive product that will only write on the special Crayola paper) - This is a favorite of ours. No messes at all and no toxic marker smell. The marker caps make for great, silly kid fingernail extensions. In fact, if your child is anything like ours, the caps alone could be their own segment.
* Tape and/or Stickers - Plain old Scotch tape can be a load of fun for a little one. Roll it up inside itself to make a sticky circle and let them stick it to their nose, your nose, between their fingers...just good old fashioned fun with a 2 inch piece of tape.
* Magna Doodle (Travel Edition) - A classic toy that our modern kids still enjoy. (Note: really young ones may get frustrated at their inability to, independently, erase their work as the tab to clear the screen can be rather difficult to slide)
* A Discman/Portable CD player - If you do not have an old one collecting dust somewhere, they can be had relatively cheap in the iPod age. This is perfect if your child has a particular CD they are diggin' at the moment (or if you have made a Mix CD of their favorite songs). If they have never used a portable cd player before, the novelty of this device combined with the music they already love should carry you for two segments. Be sure to keep the volume at a low level and use only the classic earphones with the large, round and padded ear pieces that sit on the outside of their ears. kid size earphones?
* Their favorite book(s) - (often a bedtime book, which is essential if your flight will involve a nap or take place during bedtime).
* For older toddlers/young kids: some brochures/city-location guide books. Allow and encourage your kids to plan a day trip, museum visit, etc. Give the reigns over to them for a period of time (whatever you are comfortable with/have the time for) providing they devise a plan using the material you bring on board. Not only will this occupy a good amount of time, but they will love the chance to be the boss and decision maker. By engaging them in the trip planning you will also increase the chances of them enjoying themselves and going along with something you want to do (reciprocating the favor). For the younger members of your family, use the brochures as a conversation piece to get them excited and interested in what they will be seeing during the vacation.

Snap-Crackle-Pop (Dealing with the altitude and popping ears)
Be sure to pack their favorite beverage and snack on board. Not only will the eating and drinking occupy a segment but it is also an method of reducing the impact of air pressure on their ears. By drinking or chewing they will hopefully not feel an uncomfortable amount of pressure while taking off and landing.

Enjoy your flight!

Copyright 2006 OutWithTheKids.com
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By: OutWithTheKids.com

Out With The Kids is a web blog dedicated to providing unique tips, trips, events, and ideas to families striving to raise healthy, happy, and interesting kids. Visit us at www.outwiththekids.com

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