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 pieces 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 not a realistic time frame 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.

Contact me or one of the other travel professionals at Slaydon’s Travel when you are ready to start piecing together your vacation puzzle. We can make getting there as easy as being there!