Last week at the Tae Kwon Do school my daughter and husband attend they had what they called buddy days. Students could bring a guest to any class on three different days. While my daughter certainly enjoys doing Tae Kwon Do with her Dad, she had an even better time when her friends came to classes with her. That got me thinking about how much fun a vacation can be when you include friends. Sure, it can be a bit of a hassle getting everyone’s schedules to mesh, but I’ve got some tips for you this week.

5 things to keep in mind when considering inviting friends or family on your next vacation

#1 – plan your trip first – that may sound selfish, but in all honesty it’s much less stressful. Trying to get your own family to agree on a destination can be a struggle in itself, but when you add more people to the decision making it can be even more difficult. I recommend getting the details ironed out and your own trip under deposit before you invite others to come along. Sure, this may mean that all of your besties won’t be able to join you, or may not want to. On the other hand, if you wait until the whole group agrees on the destination, an itinerary, and specific dates you’ll never go anywhere.

#2 – Everyone wants to go! That is, until they have to start paying for the trip. Don’t get upset or discouraged when your initial group of interested travelers dwindles as the deposit or final payment date gets closer.

#3 – Set clear boundaries. People need to know what is expected of them. Are you one to plan every detail of the trip for every participant, down to restaurant reservations? If so, your travel companions need to know that you expect them to participate fully in the activities planned. Maybe you plan on doing your own thing and only getting together for dinner. That’s important for the group to know as well, so they can make their own plans.

#4 – Plan at least one group dinner, photo session or other activity to celebrate your vacation as a group. While you don’t need to be joined at the hip the entire time, you do want some time together, or you wouldn’t have traveled as a group.

#5 – Have fun! Whether trekking the Inca Trail or renting a villa in Tuscany, you’re on vacation! You’re surrounded by friends, family and possibly new friends. Take a few moments to count your blessings, raise a glass and toast the occasion. Perhaps if things are going well, it can also be the start of a discussion on the next destination.

Bonus tip #6 – Click here to schedule your planning session with one of our travel professionals. We’ll make getting there as easy as being there!

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As the shutdown lingers on with no end in sight many travelers are wondering how their upcoming trips may be affected.

The good news is at this point not much has changed for travelers. 

“I need to renew my passport, will it come back before my trip?”

Currently passport processing is running as normal.

“Do I need to get to the airport extra early to be concerned with TSA shortages?”

While the Miami airport did temporarily close a terminal due to staffing shortages with TSA agents the affects have not been felt on a widespread basis just yet. This is certainly something to keep an eye on as the shutdown continues.

“Can I still use TSA Pre-check? ”

Yes, currently all airports that offer the service are still utilizing the benefits. Lines in Atlanta this week for “normal” security snaked through the airport were reported at one and a half to two hours long. However, the TSA released a statement on Tuesday reporting that waits in pre-check lines were less than 10 minutes.

“Will my Global Entry still work?”

Yes, the Global Entry Kiosks are still operational, however if you’ve applied for Global Entry and are waiting on your appointment, those will not resume until the shutdown has ended.

“I’m planning on going to the Grand Canyon this Spring, will I be able to get in? ”

Well, Spring is a long way off, but I’ll tell you that right now you can still get into the Grand Canyon and most National Parks. Concessions and lodges are up and running as well on normal schedules. The park programs and visitor centers that are staffed by park rangers have been suspended, but you may still visit currently. Please keep an eye on the news to see if this changes in the coming weeks or months should the shutdown continue

“With the current Brexit negotiations will my trip to Europe be affected?”

Great question and the answer right now is that it’s too early to tell. We will know more as the situation unfolds.

As always should you have questions or concerns regarding your travel, please do not hesitate to reach out to me, or any of the professionals here at Slaydon’s Travel.

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Since we are only 10 days into the new year, it’s probably safe to say that at least a few of you haven’t broken your new year’s resolutions just yet. Did you know that the most common resolutions can easily be incorporated into your travel plans?

Here are my tips to help you keep 5 of the 10 most common resolutions

Exercise More – What better way to up your step count than to explore a new city? Maybe even try a bike tour as an alternative to a taxi tour on your next trip. For those of you already in great shape who are determined to stay that way, have you considered challenging yourself in 2019 and planning a trip to Peru where you can hike the Inca Trail? Travel is a wonderful way to keep you on the move and off the sofa.

Get organized – Packing for a vacation is a test in organization, especially for a family! This can also be a great learning tool for your younger travelers. Teach them to make a packing list so they can be responsible for their belongings. Also teach them to put that list in their suitcase so they can make sure they have everything when it’s time to return home.

Learn a new skill – Have you always wanted to learn to SCUBA dive? Sure, here in Coastal Virginia there is no shortage of places you could dive, but wouldn’t you rather dive somewhere with crystal clear warm water? Take those preliminary courses at home then incorporate your open water certification dive into an island getaway. Maybe cooking is more your style, there are chefs all over the world just waiting to teach you their tricks. From pasta making with a Nonna in Italy to learning how to make the perfect sushi roll in Southeast Asia we can find your match.

Spend more time with family and friends – Vacations are a wonderful way to reconnect with your friends and family without the distractions of home. We are all guilty of spending too much time on our devices and too little time making memories with those most important in our lives.

Travel more – Okay, so this one is kind of a “gimme” but you get the idea by now. Should 2019 be the year that you stick with any of the resolutions on your list know that by trusting the professionals at Slaydon’s Travel with your vacation dreams you’ve come to the right place.

We look forward to helping you in bringing those dreams to reality when the time is right for you. Whenever that time may be you can click here and we will be more than happy to help you.

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The final impact activity of our Fathom cruise fell on Thanksgiving Day. It was a really wonderful end to such a rewarding week, and how fitting that we were working alongside each other on a day of gratitude. 

We gathered as we disembarked the ship in Grand Turk and traveled just a few minutes to the Turks and Caicos National Museum. September of 2017 brought devastation to the island of Grand Turk with not one, but two major hurricanes, Irma and Maria. The island is still recovering. It was our chance to help the Museum in their recovery. It’s amazing what nearly 50 pairs of hands can do in a few hours. We painted the newly constructed fence, we painted the cistern, the gazebo, weeded the garden and several of the men in the group worked together to build a new gate. 

All in all, the impact activities we experienced during our cruise really helped us to feel connected, not only to each other, but to the communities we visited. This was not your ordinary cruise vacation where all of the ports and islands seem to look the same because cruisers didn’t venture past the first few blocks. We were able to immerse ourselves in each of these destinations, get to know the locals and how they live all the while being able to Vacation For Good, something we are passionate about here at Slaydon’s Travel. 

When you are ready to Vacation For Good and make an impact on your next vacation click here, I would love to have a conversation with you about how to incorporate this type of impact activity no matter where your vacation path leads.

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Having already participated in the other impact activities offered during our stay in Puerto Plata I was very pleased to see a new activity on the list, and it involved my love for coffee, it was a win win. There is nothing I love more to start my day than a cup (or more) of strong black coffee, so when offered the chance to see the process from soil to cup I jumped at the chance. We started our day with a ride through the Dominican Republic countryside and up into the mountains to visit an EcoLodge. Together our group of less than 40 worked alongside some of the locals who are employees by the coffee industry in the DR. Together we planted coffee beans, 700 to be exact! Once they reach a few months old they will be transported from the location we visited to the coffee plantation further from town. Within a few years the plants will begin to produce the coffee beans, the 700 we planted are able to produce approximately 1 ton of coffee per year, and 2.5 million cups of coffee over the lifetime of the plant! That should about cover the consumption for my immediate family!

After planting the beans we were treated to a demonstration of the coffee process in Pedro Garcia, the community where the plantation is located. They use generations old practices of hand picking the beans.  They use a hulling machine with a hand crank. They dry them in the sun. They roast the beans on a rudimentary stovetop. They grind them by hand in a giant mortar and pestle.  Lastly brew them through a “brewing sock” to produce a darn good cup of organic coffee, which we enjoyed greatly.

Our group also came together to make Berry Borer Beetle traps, we made 30 in a very short period of time. These traps are used in the coffee groves to protect the fruit from the beetle that can damage the crop.

Next, it was time to gather on the mountaintop and enjoy a the local specialty, Sancocho. Sancocho is a wonderful stew of various meats and root vegetables served over rice. It was a great reward after our planting. The avocados picked from the trees around our tables were devoured in no time!

We returned to the ship tired and a bit dirty, but completely satisfied with the day of work and really able to see a tangible result. There is a lot that goes into making that perfect cup of coffee that we so easily take for granted every morning. There’s also a lot that these communities gain for themselves, their families and their environment by preserving the process. When you are ready to Vacation For Good and make an impact on your next vacation click here, I would love to have a conversation with you about how to incorporate this type of impact activity no matter where your vacation path leads.

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We had a very different Thanksgiving this year. Perhaps you remember our experiences a few years ago on the impact cruise with Fathom, if not, you can read about those experiences here.

When the opportunity came up for my family to engage in similar impact experiences in conjunction with the Thanksgiving holiday we jumped on it immediately. It was the perfect opportunity for us to vacation for good!

Even two nights early in Fort Lauderdale almost wasn’t enough when the winter storm moved through. Our flight from Norfolk was cancelled, we were offered a flight on Friday afternoon, but it would not have gotten us into Fort Lauderdale until very late Friday night. We opted instead on a crack of dawn flight out of Richmond Friday morning that got us into Fort Lauderdale before noon. Good thing we did, ultimately that flight we were offered from Norfolk Friday afternoon was cancelled as well, so we may not have made it to the port in time on Saturday with the number of people who were displaced by the mass cancellations.

Fast forward to Saturday afternoon when we joined our group onboard the Royal Princess. We did a quick activity to get to know each other and find out a little bit more about the impact activities we were doing in San Juan, Puerto Plata and Grand Turk.

This week I’ll share with you our experience at the Arturo Somohano Music school in San Juan. Musica 100×35 brings in at risk youth to teach them music in an after school program. The school was celebrating the Thanksgiving holiday as well, but when we arrived we were greeted with a short performance by their top students. We then split up into two groups and constructed paper violins and gourd maracas for the students. The paper violins are used by the 5 and 6 year old students as they learn proper posture and use of the violin. The real instruments are quite expensive and most families can not afford that investment for children so young. These give them the opportunity to learn more quickly. After the instruments were constructed we moved onto landscaping. Why would we plant trees at a music school, you ask? Most of the trees and plants were destroyed during the hurricanes last year so we wanted to work alongside the local community to make the school look nicer. More important, their stage is outside, so the trees we planted around the stage will improve the acoustics.

While we were planting families started to arrive with their 5 & 6 year olds to give us a concert on their paper instruments followed by the real instruments. They wanted to show us thanks for the time we had spent and were quite impressive given their ages.

All in all it was a very satisfying day of work, when we left the school we felt like we had made a tangible contribution to the organization. This was a theme that would continue throughout the week. With these impact activities we were able to work alongside the communities we visited to help them better their surroundings and ultimately their lives. Some might say that it was our lives that were enriched as well, I would have to agree.

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I recently ordered a puzzle with a photo from a recent vacation. Sadly, when the puzzle was delivered it was blank! It was a blank, white puzzle, there was no photo. I enjoy a challenging puzzle as much as the next person, but this certainly wasn’t the challenge I had in mind. Luckily, it will be replaced with the proper vacation photo, but in the meantime, it made me think about how planning a vacation is a bit like putting a puzzle together. Every life changing vacation is made up of a series of puzzle pieces that when put together correctly leave you with a memory that will stay with you forever. It’s my job to help you identify those pierces and help you put the puzzle together. Just one missing piece can turn the vacation of your dreams into a nightmare.

Three key pieces to make sure your vacation puzzle matches your vacation vision.

Communication – This piece begins at our initial consultation and is most important throughout, even upon your return home. It’s imperative that we both understand exactly what it is that you expect out of your vacation. Sure, mobility issues and food allergies are important things to share, but it goes beyond likes and dislikes. Ultimately, if you choose not to share that you have a lifelong dream of singing “Maria” at the top of your lungs while you visit the gazebo used in The Sound of Music, then how am I going to know to have the film crew on standby during your visit? It’s equally as important that you and your travel companions communicate in such a way that you each have the same vacation expectations. A vacation where you sit back in a beach chair while a waiter brings and endless supply of Pina Coladas may be exactly what you have in mind, but if your partner can’t sit still long enough to read a chapter of a book, doesn’t like the sand and likes to avoid sun exposure that vacation has the potential to go down in flames by day two! However, with the right communication we can find a destination that will offer you the rest and relaxation you desire and also offer the necessary distractions for your partner.

Be open – We all have a tendency to hold firm to a vision we have in our heads of the perfect vacation. I’m not suggesting that you throw that vision out the window. I’m suggesting that perhaps that vision needs to have a bit of wiggle room available. I’ve been a travel professional long enough to know that just because something was posted on the internet or written in a magazine article doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s a realistic vacation goal. I’ve seen wish lists that would take even the most seasoned traveler weeks to race through that clients want to accomplish in half the time. While a week away from home seems like plenty of time to check items off your wish list as you race through Europe, if you want to stop and see them you’ll need either more time or fewer sites. Do you long to see the Northern Lights but can only that one week in August that the kids don’t have baseball practice? That’s probably not a realistic time for that experience.

Prepare for the unexpected – now, this doesn’t mean pack for the worst case scenario! This means that you can’t let a missed connection or a rainy day in London ruin your entire vacation. Sometimes those moments that don’t go as planned end up being the most memorable time during your vacation. One of the stories that gets told quite often around our house is when we got lost in Venice. Just a hint, if you see cars, you’ve gone too far. Turn around and go back over the last bridge you crossed.

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Thanksgiving is early this year, which means the Holiday Travel Season officially kicks off late next week with pre-Thanksgiving flights and runs through the end of the year.

Here are a few tips to help make this busy travel season a little bit more bearable.

#1 – Give yourself extra time – you’ve heard me say it before, but as always, I would rather you have time to sit an enjoy a cup of coffee at your departure gate than be stuck in a security line wondering if you’re going to make it to your gate before the final boarding call.

#2 – Be prepared to check a bag as the overhead bins fill quickly. With rising baggage fees it seems that everyone is carrying an extra piece of hand luggage. Checking a bag is my least favorite thing to do when I travel, however, more often than not, on a full flight the overhead bins fill before the plane does. Once they are full, passengers are required to check their bags at the gate and retrieve them from the baggage claim in their final destination. Make sure that you have a small bag that you can keep with you for medicines, keys and travel documents. You do not want these items in your checked bags. Also, if you have purchased a “basic economy” airline ticket most airlines do not allow use of the overhead bin for this type of ticket.

#3 – Pay attention to the route – if you are utilizing frequent flier tickets or companion certificates that can not be booked by a travel professional you need to be aware of the airports where you are changing planes. When traveling to points South or to the West Coast make sure you aren’t scheduled to change planes in places like Chicago that could be affected by Winter weather delays and cancellations.

#4 – It’s a little late for this Holiday season, but book early! It’s the busiest travel time of the year, flights are full, lots of people rent cars, resorts and cruise ships are at capacity, the sooner you book the better chance you have of getting the seat you want, the view you want, etc.

#5 – Expect to pay more than if you were traveling during the shoulder season. Again, it’s the busiest time of the year to travel. Schools are closed for at least a week, Colleges can be closed for a month or more. If you are expecting rock bottom prices this is not the time for you to travel.

#6 – Recharge – When traveling with electronics that might need to be charged en route, don’t forget to pack the necessary chargers. It’s also a good idea to pack a small power strip or outlet extender. The more crowded the airport is, the harder it is to find an available outlet.

#7 – Traveling with small children? Here is a link to my blog post about my top 3 tips for family travel.

#8 – Be nice! Sure, it’s stressful trying to get to Grandma’s house when flights are delayed or cancelled, but keep in mind that these airline crews, airport staff and baggage handlers are giving up their holiday with loved ones to make it possible. A “thank you” or friendly smile is just one small and easy way to spread some holiday cheer.

While no one ever begins a trip expecting bad things to happen and we certainly hope they don’t, remember you can always rely on the travel professionals at Slaydon’s Travel to help you in any way possible. Hopefully the above tips will help in avoiding a few mishaps, but if not, we are always more than happy to assist our clients when the unexpected occurs.

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Halloween is kind of a big deal in our house, as you can see from the photo below. That little wookie was even able to talk a couple of our adult friends into dressing up with us so we could walk around together. It was a beautiful evening to be outside and see the smiles on the faces of the kids and adults.

From the number of adults we saw in full costume, it’s clear that some of us aren’t ready to grow up just yet. When is the last time you gave into your inner child and really felt like a kid again?

Here are some vacation ideas that might let you do just that

#1 – African Safari – unleash your inner child as you cruise the plains in search of Elephants, Lions and Giraffes. You’ve been reading National Geographic for as long as you can remember, isn’t it time to stop dreaming and visit those destinations for yourself?

#2 – Rome – Not only can you walk in the footsteps of the ancient warriors, did you know you can actually go to Gladiator school? Complete with costume, you can live out your dreams of being a full fledged Roman Gladiator and even take home the photo to prove it!

#3 – Tikehau – what’s more kid like than staying in your own tree house over the crystal clear waters of a beautiful lagoon – you’ll feel like you’ve stepped back to Gilligan’s island on what seems to be a mostly uninhabited atoll in the South Pacific. Your most difficult decision of the day may be whether to take the boat to bird island or jump in and take a swim with the docile black tip sharks

#4 – Giant’s Causeway – You will get caught up in the story of the Giants behind the cool rock formations. You will also immediately turn into a kid as you hop from rock to rock navigating the unique coastline. You can also enjoy the swinging rope bridge not far away. The Northern Ireland coastline has a lot of activities and attractions to bring our your inner child, and when you’re done the adult in you can visit the Bushmills Distillery! It really is a win-win!

#5 – Australia – Nothing brings a smile to the face of an adult or child quicker than feeding a Kangaroo or cuddling a Koala. Want to bring that inner child out even more? Make sure your visit overlaps with New Year’s Eve – you’ve seen the fireworks display in the Sydney Harbor on the morning news shows every year as you’re eating breakfast – isn’t it time to see it in person? The good news is that inner child sometimes needs to get to bed a bit earlier so they do two fireworks shows! You can catch the early one and be snug in your hotel bed before the clock strikes midnight and you turn into a pumpkin!

Are you ready to unleash your inner child and explore this great big beautiful world? Click here and let’s get started, we may not be growing up, but we also aren’t getting any younger. What are you waiting for?

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