A Review of Our Disney Fantasy Caribbean Cruise

A Disney Fantasy Cruise in the Western Caribbean

When I posted to Instagram that we were booked on a spring break Disney Fantasy Cruise, a lot of people DMed me to ask why. It’s a reasonable question – although we’ve been on a number of cruises, we don’t love cruises, and we’re not a big Disney family. 

It goes back a decade. When my kids were small, starting at 1, 3 and 5-years-old, we did three 12-night Disney Cruises in Europe. We booked them because they were easy – unpack once and see a lot of cool places – and because Disney is, by definition, family-friendly. Our kids went to the kids club a few times, and waited in line for character photos every once in a while, but really they just enjoyed the ship and the independence, since they could run around by themselves, and we (the parents) liked

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5 Reasons to Visit Glacier National Park This Summer

Glacier National Park with Kids

A few summers ago, in conjunction with Visit Montana, my 7-year-old daughter and I flew to Whitefish, Montana and explored Whitefish and Glacier National Park for four days. It remains one of my favorite trips – it was an easy destination from Los Angeles, the hiking, kayaking and fly fishing were great, the park was gorgeous, and we had lots of fun. I love the bonding when I go on adventures with just one of my kids.

In Glacier National Park
In Glacier National Park

I never posted about the trip on my blog, however. So now that we’ve visited a lot of other National Parks the past few years (including Arches National Park) it’s time for a post on Glacier National Park. Here are the top five things we love, and the reasons you should book a trip!

Getting to Glacier National Park is Easy

Some National Parks

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Holidaymakers praise locals as wildfires rage on

Northern Ireland holidaymakers have praised the efforts of locals on the Greek island of Rhodes as they faced evacuation due to wildfires.

The island has been battling flames fanned by strong winds for almost a week, with temperatures exceeding 40C (104F) due to the ongoing heatwave.

Officials say about 19,000 people have been moved away from the path of the wildfires so far.

Corfu and Evia are the latest islands to issue evacuation orders amid fires.

Tourists evacuated from hotels in Rhodes have been sleeping at the airport, as well as in sports halls, conference centers and on streets.

Bangor couple Bridget and Robert Davidson, who were evacuated on Saturday, have returned to their hotel in Kiotari to collect their belongings.

However, they have been left in limbo after being told they cannot stay there.

Despite their holiday horrors, locals praised Mrs Davidson for their help during evacuation efforts over

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Koh Yao Noi – The Off-Beaten-Path Island in Thailand

Koh Yao Noi (“Little Long Island”) is a small island in Phang Nga Bay in the proximity of its bigger sister, Koh Yao Yai (meaning “Big Long Island”). This small piece of land surrounded by the Andaman Sea is definitely less known than islands such as Koh Lanta, Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, and the Koh Phi Phi archipelago, not to mention Phuket.

On this quiet and peaceful piece of land, you won’t go clubbing, there is no loud music and crowds of farangs. If this is what you’re looking for, I invite you to get to know Koh Yao Noi – a Thai island definitely off the beaten track.

Koh Yao Noi – How to Get There?hornbills

Of course, as we’re talking about the island, the only option to get there is by longboat or speedboat. When buying a ticket at the port from which you depart, find out which

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Shefali Shah Talks About Being An Unpaid Travel Agent For Family, Says, ‘Yes It’s My Responsibility’

Shefali Shah Talks About Being An Unpaid Travel Agent For Family, Says, 'Yes It's My Responsibility'

Shefali Shah is one of the most popular and talented actresses in Bollywood. She never leaves a chance to mesmerize her fans with her impeccable acting skills. She has worked in some blockbuster films like, Darlings, Jalsa, Human, Dil Dhadakne Do, Doctor G, Satya and many more. Moreover, the diva became a household name after the release of the popular crime series, Delhi Crime. Apart from being an amazing actress, Shefali is a doting wife to her husband, Vipul Amrutlal Shah. And the couple is blessed with two kids, Aryaman and Maurya.

Shefali Shah talks about being a free travel agent for her family

On July 14, 2023, Shefali Shah took to her Instagram handle and dropped a series of picture notes. In the picture note, the actress revealed her new profession and jokingly stated that she has become an unpaid travel agent for her family. Further, on the

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Photos: This year’s GTM West agent event: Travel Weekly

Global Travel Marketplace West, the event geared towards travel advisors on the West Coast, drew a record number of applicants this year for its hosted-meeting and networking program, which ran July 11 to 13 at the Hilton Lake Las Vegas Resort in Henderson Nev.

Similar to the annual Global Travel Marketplace, which took place earlier this year in Fort Lauderdale, advisors at GTM West must apply; if selected, they are matched for a series of networking appointments with representatives from travel companies. Advisors must live in the western US or Canada and must show individual sales of at least $800,000 or be an agency owner of a multimillion-dollar agency to be considered for one of the 125 GTM West spots.

This year, the event drew applicants primarily through referrals from past attendees known as GTM Ambassadors, said Jacqueline Hurst, the director of trade recruitment and engagement for Northstar Travel Group,

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Booking Is Trying to Acquire a Flights Seller. Europe Would Be Wrong to Block It.

Skift Take

The European Commission’s logic appears to be that any strengthening of Booking.com — even in its flights business — would bolster its grip on the hotel business. Deal or no deal, Booking is committed to expanding in flights.

Dennis Schaal

There is no doubt that Booking.com is the dominant hotel room seller among online travel agencies in Europe. It is also apparent that the European Commission is acutely focused on limiting Booking’s grip.

But in delaying or potentially scuttling parent company Booking Holdings’ still-pending November 2021 deal to acquire Swedish flights seller Etraveli Group for $1.8 billion, the Commission’s logic appears to be skewed.

With a final decision due by August 30, the Commission issued a statement of objections to the proposed acquisition last month, arguing that the deal could strengthen Amsterdam-based Booking’s position in hotels.

Citing one of its concerns, the Commission said the deal could “strengthen

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12 Family-Friendly Things to Do in Carolina Beach

Carolina Beach is a small beach town in southeastern North Carolina; the beach is popular but less crowded and warmer than the Outer Banks area to the north. Just outside of Wilmington, NC; Carolina Beach has a reputation for being laidback, popular with locals, and very walkable for both lodging and dining. It is well known for its vintage-style boardwalk and is considered to be very family-friendly! There are a few small hotels and many vacation rental homes to accommodate young kids – if you stay close to the boardwalk you can ditch your car for the entire trip without too much trouble.

There are several outfitters in the area from whom you can rent jetskis, paddleboards, kayaks, or bicycles to stay active during your stay. There has been a recent focus on public art, and you can take a quick drive around the mural trail to see beautiful paintings!

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How to be a better salesperson: Travel Weekly

Jamie Biesiada

Jamie Biesiada

Do you think of yourself as a sales person?

Not enough travel advisors do, according to Byrd Bergeron, founder of the Travel Byrds.

“Travel agents don’t think of themselves in the sales space,” Bergeron said. “So what they do a lot of times is they focus on their customer service, and they’re obsessed with the customer service.”

What they’re not thinking about are things like their sales pipeline, how long it takes to close a lead, keeping every lead logged in a CRM or analyzing leads that were lost, Bergeron said. But thinking about things like that can improve a business and increase revenue.

Bergeron was speaking on the latest episode of the “Trade Secrets” podcast, which is all about sales strategies. Bergeron was a guest alongside Steven Gould of Goulds Travel, Luxera Travel and the Travel Advisor Resource Center.

She offered an example of thinking more strategically

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Here are your rights by each major US airline

Thousands of passengers were stranded at airports around the country in the last few weeks as airlines, particularly United, dealing with the fallout from staffing shortfalls among air traffic controllers and summer storms in the Northeast. Confusingly for many passengers, the severe delays and cancellations didn’t necessarily entitle them to compensation from the airlines, because weather and air traffic control delays were seen by the Department of Transportation as largely out of carriers’ control.

That doesn’t mean airlines can’t voluntarily give passengers compensation in those cases, but it’s essentially at the airlines’ discretion.

What are you entitled to if your flight is delayed?

US airlines are required by the DOT to give passengers refunds if their flights are outright canceled, but the rules around delays are a little murkier.

There’s no official requirement for passengers to receive a refund or reimbursement as a result of a flight delay, though the

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