WISE COUNSEL
67
March will hare by with bookings
BARBARA WAS VOTED MOST HELPFUL TRAVEL COUNSELLOR OF THE YEAR FOR TWO CONSECUTIVE YEARS.
BARBARA.CHARLTON@
TRAVELCOUNSELLORS.COM T: 0845 0587 290
EARLY BOOKINGS It’s March already! How time fl ies when you are busy – and I have been
busy, busy, busy!
As I mentioned last month, I think the current earlier booking trend will continue this month, and with Easter not falling until late April there is still time for more late Easter bookings. I’m not one to leave booking my
overseas trips until the last minute, so, with my 2014 trips long since booked up, I turned my attention to April 2015 and have booked a quiet and relaxing week in the Pollenca (Majorca) countryside! But that will defi nitely be it for a while. With my son going off to Australia for a year in August, I may well have to pop over next year, so I need to save some free time for that. It always surprises me how the
years can go by without me booking a certain destination, and then, for no apparent reason, you get a run of enquires to the same place. In February Prague seemed to be the short haul fl avour of the month, along with Northern Lights trips for next winter. Top of the list for long haul
places for me so far this year is the Caribbean. There are so many islands for clients to discover, and each offers their own distinct cultures, cuisines and landscapes. I have been to six of them – some more than once – but there are still so many others. Now that I have turned 51, time seems to be running away with me! Will I manage to visit all the places that I want to? Guadeloupe looks like it will gain in the popularity stakes thanks to the third series of Death in Paradise. I am totally in love with the little beach cottage the detective lives in, but after some research discovered it was just a set built for the series! If it had been available to rent I would have been there like a shot! The thought of sleeping right on such a beautiful beach with the cooling night sea breezes rattling the shutters while
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Hot tips galore!
It’s cool….“Sea breezes on the (Philippines) coast take the edge off the heat between November and
Orient-Express Hotels' La Samanna in the Caribbean island of St Martin
I listen to the sounds of the waves lapping onto the beach would be just a dream come true for me.
CARIBTOURS IN KENT I enjoyed a delightful Caribtours event at the Hotel du Vin in Tunbridge Wells recently. The evening was very enjoyable and we had presentations from some lovely islands and properties. It doesn’t matter how many of these events we chalk up, we can always learn more and I shall continue to go to them. In fact I’ll be back at the same very nice hotel next month for what should be a fun evening of training by Taj Hotels and Cox and Kings. Never having been to India, I’m looking forward to learning what I can about such a huge destination.
MARCH IN MOROCCO As you read this column, I will be sunning myself in Morocco. It will be my fi rst time to the coastal area of Agadir, but having visited the foothills of the Atlas Mountains last year and thoroughly enjoying it, I thought I would try the coast. I’ve been keeping an eye on the temperatures during our wet winter, and Agadir has been quite a few degrees warmer than the Canaries, although not as warm as the Red Sea Resorts. With no fi rst-hand experience of
"TOP OF THE
LIST FOR LONG HAUL PLACES FOR ME SO FAR
THIS YEAR IS THE CARIBBEAN"
the destination, I hope to be able to add somewhere new to recommend with confi dence. The short fl ight and no time difference makes it an appealing option for many seeking some sunshine. Clients love it when we can speak about somewhere that we have actually experienced ourselves, as it makes them feel more confi dent about booking with you. And you can remind them of the words of George Bernard Shaw: “Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.” After all, YOU are the professional. Sometimes it's a good thing to remind our clients of that key fact.
Hop to it!...“Encourage your (Maldives) cus- tomers to island hop! It’s well worth it for
longer durations” ZOE BETCHLEY, INDIAN OCEAN DESTINATION MGR, HAYES & JARVIS
February” DANIEL PAWLYN, HEAD OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT UK & IRELAND, INTREPID
Get involved…“Hong Kong and Macau offer something for everyone – from quiet morning T’ai chi sessions to casi-
nos and horse-racing” SHIVJIT BAGGA, PRODUCT MANAGER, TRANSINDUS
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