The rest of Q&A

Q – We have just been approved to visit Cuba with a small group. This has been a rather long dream of ours. They are suggesting we bring lots of cash but my wife and I would much rather rely on our credit cards. Do you know if Mastercard or American Express would be more widely accepted? We have just started researching this but that is our major question at this point. Although we will be in a group, do you feel we will be safe in Cuba?

A – Switzerland or the Vatican might have been safer choices but the dancing is much better in Cuba. We do want you to do a fair bit of research before you set off on this “cultural” journey. For now, we would advise:

• Credit cards are generally not accepted from US banks in Cuba. You will likely pay most of your expenses to the tour organizer upfront. Bring enough cash to cover several days of emergency expenses. Do not attempt to hide it. Declare it when you go through customs.
• Leave all expensive jewelry and country club insignia clothing at home. No one needs to know you are Americans – although it is highly likely they will figure it out about ten feet outside the airport. 
• Be open to the food but be cautious about drinking non-bottled water. 

Q – I am in the process of talking with two or three travel agents in our part of Florida. They each have business cards showing the name of an agency but I am getting the impression that they really work independently. When I asked about it they said they were IC’s. Should I be concerned in any way? I must say that your profession seems rather vague about who works for whom and how they are compensated. Would you agree?

A – Yes. Travel professionals are lousy communicators when it comes to explaining ourselves to the general public. Many bright consumers cannot explain the compensation model when they use a travel agent. Many, perhaps most, believe that they are paying more to use an agent’s services. Let’s try to summarize a few responses to your question:

• Most travel is no longer booked by brick and mortar travel agents working out of a business office. Currently, an estimated 71% of travel agents are technically independent contractors – not employees.
• They are usually affiliated with a travel firm and increasingly with a Host Agency. The Host provides office back-up, financial reporting and a variety of other services. But the owner of the agency cannot dictate what an IC does. 
• The travel industry, for the most part, operates very much like the real estate industry. Individuals do their own marketing and go after their own clients. But the “House” provides certain basic services so they can maximize their “sell time”.
• Currently, IC’s split commission with their affiliated agency. The normal split these days is 80-20. IC’s are free to form their own business identity with their own corporate name. 
• It is perfectly OK to interview a potential travel advisor. Ask tough questions and make certain you have a clear understanding of their personal insurance coverage. Do they carry, for instance, errors and omission coverage?
• Pricing is confusing because the industry wants it to be. If you are a five-star hotel owner are you really going to contact ten different online travel agencies and give them each a different price?  Do you really believe that any cruise line would risk alienating all of the travel agents nationally that sell its products by giving someone in India working a 1-800 call center better prices? It just doesn’t happen. Cruises and tours must have fixed pricing nationally so passengers don’t feel slighted when they socialize on tour or aboard their ship.
• Cruise pricing tends to change every 90 days or so based on marketing trends and computer-generated algorithms connected to current occupancy rates. On the other hand, escorted tour pricing is generally fixed as changing rates could cause major problems for the group tour guide.

We hope this brief summary is helpful. Your basic assumption is correct – the travel internet is dominated by misleading, price-centered, deal and discount features that, in truth, are always available to anyone.

Q – 12.127.23 – Wondering if you know anything about Alula and if you feel planning a trip around these sites is a good idea?

A – In the northwest of Saudi Arabia, and 200km from the Red Sea, Alula is located on the old ‘Incense Road’. This was a trade route that linked Arabia with the Mediterranean region. For centuries it was a geographical and cultural crossroads, a place of meetings and exchange. It attracted travelers from all over the world, and since 2020 has been doing so again. An ambitious regeneration plan aims to attract two million visitors by 2035 and make this the world’s largest living museum – a unique and global destination for arts, culture, heritage and nature tourism.

But, sadly, you have come to a biased source. We are among a growing number of travel industry professionals that will not recommend or book guests on behalf of the murderous Saudi Regime. We just cannot condone travel to a country that has exhibited such consistent levels of disrespect for women, members of the LGBT community, and Jewish travelers. The Saudis fund any number of anti-American schools worldwide. 

Yes, they now envy  the model of the United Arab Emirates as they have slowly moved from an oil-based to a more tourism-based economy. The Saudis have unlimited funds to do the same and we have little doubt that travel to the Kingdom, with the support of its government, will become extremely popular in the years to come. Arriving guests will stay in five-star+ hotels after flying over on a heavily subsidized Saudi airline. You will soon be seeing full color-spreads in consumer magazines and travel agents will be bombarded with free travel offers to personally experience all that the Kingdom offers. 

But it is wise to remember who the Saudis are and what point of view they represent. We do not believe that spending tourist dollars in the country is morally justifiable and we will not support it. 

In fairness, we strongly believe that Alula is a striking, truly memorable World Heritage site. The Saudis are going to try building a world-class tourism network in empty deserts. They have plans to build an entire city in a single straight line – a brand new engineering concept. We’d love to go there – but we won’t. We would love to help you plan this journey – but we won’t. 

Too many in the travel industry believe that the growth of tourism will somehow create a kinder, gentler society based on acceptance of all people. We find little evidence of that in the real world. What tourism does is further line the pockets of those who promote tourism in places where prejudice and hate are the rule rather than the exception. 

We do think you should visit Saudi Arabia. But we think you should do it via YouTube. 

Q – As a very recent retiree I have been trying to relax – and read your various sites. Wish you had more on airline strategies. Given my former corporate role, I spent two and a half decades flying three or four days per week. Now, I get physically ill when I see a bag of peanuts. But in the process, I have earned several million miles that I know want to start using for our bucket list.

I am wondering if there is anything like an online shortcut or “hack” that will allow me to see non-stop flights from various airports in the upper Midwest? I am sure we will have many more questions as we get closer to planning.

A – There is a hack for what you want to view online. Although it is not widely known, Wikipedia lists every major airport in the country. You airport page has a tab for “Airlines and Destinations”. Click on it and you will find a listing of all direct flights and which airline flies them. It is a great timesaver.

Q – We are trying to decide which tour company we should go with next summer for approximately two weeks in Spain and Portugal. Having a hard time choosing which tour operator to use based on our strong desire to have the best possible guide. Do we look for a “Certified Guide” as you have mentioned, or do we consider what the online reviews might say about a particular guide? Do we try to do this independently to hand-select the best guides? Will tour companies tell us in advance who the guide will be before booking so we can check references? We don’t want to come across as “escort fanatics” but we really believe that, given our limited overseas travel experience, the guide is 90% of the trip outcome. Really appreciate your time and this incredible site. 

A – There is a lot in your question. Let us try to address each portion  with some bullet point responses:

• You should assume that all full-time guides for the major tour firms are certified by local tourism authorities.
• Note that approximately 40% of the experienced tour guides in Europe had no work during Covid and sought employment in other professions. There is, currently, a serious tour guide shortage.
• Tour guides who work independently, out of their homes, rely on online reviews to attract new clients. These positive reviews can easily be purchased or even composed using an AI Chatbot by someone with computer skills. 
• The upscale major tour operators tend to attract the best guides because they appeal to an affluent rather than a mass-market clientele. This means, on average, that the guide for a company in the upper price range will likely secure higher average tips from the tour group. 
• A company like Tauck attracts many of the very best guides because Tauck has one of the lowest percentages of cancelled tours due to lack of participation. For many of the mass market firms this is an ongoing problem. Guides don’t know which tours will actually operate among the hundreds of departure dates listed. A Tauck or Abercrombie & Kent guide can pretty much plan their summer schedule far in advance. 
• Given the fact that there can always be heath issues or scheduling conflicts, the majority of tour departures do not list the name of the assigned guide. 
• Often, the absolute best guides are affiliated with the best of the on-site in-country offices that work with the large luxury consortiums and their agents. They know the guides personally and use them for VIP Guests. Many of the better guides will not do bus tours. They prefer to work with sophisticated travelers who will generally show their appreciation for good service. You would, for example, find excellent guides affiliated with a company called “Made for Spain & Portugal”. They are based in Madrid and have won numerous industry awards. Your travel advisor can set up touring with them directly and specify your interests and the type of guide you are seeking. But, of course, private touring is far more expensive than touring incorporated as part of a group tour. 

Q – Really fascinating site – but I fear we are not your type! My girlfriend and I have wonderful jobs in the private equity field and we are devoted to taking two weeks out of every year to travel. We prefer one destination in depth and then we like to set up a program ourselves involving tours geared toward our interests in art, hiking, and cuisine. We are in our thirties and, I suppose, more adventurous than many of your site followers. We would never go on a cruise ship or a fully escorted tour. We tried that kind of travel with our parents and we will wait another thirty years or so to try it again. As two women traveling together, we have to be aware of our surroundings and we tend to use upper four or five-star hotels.

Here is our question: We have successfully used a company called Tours By Locals. We have thoroughly enjoyed all seven of our experiences with this organization yet we don’t see it mentioned anywhere on Traveltruth. Could it be that they do not pay travel agents a commission and that is the reason no one ever mentions it?  One of the reasons we do not use a travel agent. You seem honest – were we just lucky seven times? We did our research on each guide and their ratings so that may have helped. Really interested in your take on this company.

A – Thank you for an intriguing question. When we were in our thirties we would never even consider having a travel agent plan our initial journeys to Europe. Let us respond by saying that Tours By Locals is a tour guide company – not a tour operator. They are based in Vancouver and guests can work with them directly on their website to book privately guided tours all over the world. The company has grown substantially and cruise passengers are now able to book their guides in worldwide ports at pricing that tends to be less than similar private touring arranged by a travel advisor or directly by the cruise line. We are pleased you raised the question as we think that ToursByLocals is a viable itinerary for many travelers who just prefer to do make their own travel arrangements.  Here are some observations we trust you might find helpful:

• Several couples can book the same guide at substantial savings. Reviews of the guides appear on the web sites and some of the reviews might actually not be purchased.
• There is an important matter of liability. You are in a foreign country – who is responsible for your health and welfare during your touring? Suppose you fall? Suppose you get back to the pier after your ship has sailed?
• Can you properly insure services by a local guide with whom you have a private contract? 
• ToursByLocals is not a member of the major travel agent consortiums so that kind of financial protection is not available. But you can book their tours through your travel agent. In fact, they do pay commission to travel agents. Their lowest commission is 5% and they pay 10% what an agencies business exceeds $7,500 annually. Most agencies will request that you work with the company directly.
• We think that one of the great values of Tours By Locals is that you can, with the guide’s willingness, adjust the sightseeing plan to meet your needs. You will have access to your guide’s reviews and background online. 
• We do think that ToursByLocals is a credible touring option for those independent travelers who prefer to make their own private tour arrangements while saving money in the process. Seven positive experiences speaks for itself. 

Q – We are planning a trip through portions of Portugal with a touch of Spain. We are planning our self-drive route using Michelin reviews so we can dine at two and three-star Michelin restaurants. (We are in our forties – from LA – and fairly well traveled) Our question really concerns Michelin. Are their ratings till dependable? Also wondering if you have any driving recommendations as in “precautions”. 

A – Yes, try not to ever pick up a hitchhiker with an M-15 strapped to his back. We would also  urge you to be extra cautious about leaving anything of value on the seats of the car when you stop somewhere. Break-ins of rental car are fairly common in Spain and Portugal while crimes against persons are quite rare. Always scan the car when parking to make sure nothing at all is in plain sight.

As to Michelin:  Yes, still the gold standard in terms of honesty and the requirement of several visits. Some industry insiders might argue that two-stars is actually a wiser choice than strictly three-star as the standards of perfection associated with a three-star rating may be both uncomfortable and overbearing. But these days, there are some notable newspapers that do excellent reviews of restaurants in their travel sections. You have to look at publications that don’t accept free anything – and they are few and far between. You might want to Google the New York Times, The Guardian, and the Times of London for a start. Any review published in a book is likely to be out-of-date. 

Q – 12.4.23 – The wife wants to see Egypt and, as a Philly girl, she has little fear of wandering virtually anywhere on God’s green earth. So we are booked on a tour in January of 2025 with Kensington that includes a four-day Nile cruise. We just found this travel Q&A site (thank you) and were wondering if you feel this program is at all likely to operate? What is happening with the current crop of Egypt tours with wives even crazier than mine? Have they all been cancelled? 

A – As of this morning, the situation in Gaza worsens, talks have broken down, and virtually no tours within Egypt have been cancelled. Egypt is a sort of ally of the United States and it has a rather serious interest in maintaining the safety of tourists as well as the country’s tourism infrastructure. All tours are currently operating.

No one can predict where this is all headed. The Chief Political Officer of Hamas actually resides in Qatar and now discussions with Qatar as a mediator have broken down. But there is hope. The answer to your question is a strong “probably”. 

Q – 12.1.23 We just returned from an in-depth cruise in Japan aboard the Regent Explorer. Overall we had a lovely time.  However, we were disappointed (as were many fellow cruisers) with Regent’s “Pre-Vibrant Tokyo Tours”.  Essentially, the tours were drop off bus rides to sites with superficial brief commentary by “Guides” who simply told passengers to “walk around on your own and return to the meeting sites within 30 – 45 minutes–or less”. Quite frankly, it is a waste of time to spend 15- 20 minutes strolling around unescorted in Tokyo’s wonderful National Museum. My husband and I ended up hiring our own private Guides who gave us outstanding, comprehensive and unique tours in Tokyo.

We met a travel agent aboard the ship who was a host (Free trip perhaps) for the Virtuoso organization.  Interestingly, she told us that she also books private tours avoiding the Ship’s tours. Per her insights and our own experience we question whether the current quality of Regent’s “All Inclusive Tours” outweighs the cost/benefit of cruising with Regent? 

Although there were some artwork changes from the last time we had cruised The Explorer, we have to say that dining in the Pacific Rim remains outstanding–and seems to be a favorite venue among a lot of our fellow cruisers.

All in all, a wonderful experience but we are concerned about our new perceptions about Regent touring. Why should tours we arranged on our own be better than the ones carefully selected by the cruise line? And what’s with the “Fleeting glimpses of Tokyo” tour that was included?

Q – We are going to try to give your question the space it deserves:

After air, the segment of the cruise experience that produces the largest number of complaints is touring. Let’s use Venice, Italy as an example. On a typical day in-season, Venice can have between 12 and 22 ships calling. About half of these ships are designated “Mega-Liners” meaning that they are carrying several thousand guests. There are also hundreds of crew members who have the day off in port and they often need to sign up for tour experiences.

Add to the number of cruise passengers requiring touring, the fact that Venice is a city that is trying to keep cruise ships away from the central Canal area, and you have the makings of a monumental logistics operation. And then you have to ask ………….

Where are the tour buses coming from and who owns them? The reality is that in most worldwide ports you only have one or two companies that have the equipment to move that many cruise passengers. That means you are sailing into a virtual monopoly. The bus companies can offer the tours they wish to offer and the cruise lines can discuss options and offer suggestions etc. but they do not control the process. In fact, finalization of cruise ship tours is done by the ship’s Purser staff working with their on-shore representatives. But touring is always under local control. 

Then there is the question of the guides. Where do they come from and are enough certified guides available? In Venice, for example, one must ask where the guides live. A home in central Venice is extremely expensive. Often, guides must travel great distances to reach their work. 

And then there is the stark reality that about half of all cruise passengers want to see the major sites while the other half wants to meet locals, explore the dining scene, and get a sense of real life in modern times with little interest in history. or the “Ancients”.

So cruise lines have to deal with that as well. That is why no cruise line is currently earning A+ scores for its land programs. Planning touring for several thousand people each of whom has paid several thousand dollars fore the experience is an operational challenge of the highest magnitude. Regent’s tour programs are similar to but not better than those offered by other five-star competitors. They are all drinking out of the same tour trough. And often there are fewer options than we would like.

Private touring is always an option and there are some good companies starting to make a dent in this market. But given that Regent includes free shore excursions, few of the lines guests feel any need to spend more money to purchase tours when the same essential tours offered by other lines are included in Regent’s fares.

As to the three-night Tokyo package included with your sailing as a comp pre-cruise package: Tokyo may be the world’s most expensive tourist city. Were Regent to include the kind of detailed, longer, and personally guided sightseeing you would have preferred, there would have to be a significant cost increase. You did have the option of not taking the Tokyo introductory package. We do agree with you that Regent’s wording of the tour was not as clear as it should have been regarding the manner in which guests would be dropped off to explore on their own.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

Q – 11.18.23 – Dear, dear Traveltruthers. We recently learned that our son and daughter-in-law are going to give birth to our first grandchild. In their wisdom, they live in Silicon Valley while we happily reside  in Rhode Island. This, for us, means that we are going to start flying out to the west coast several times per year. Our question has to do with domestic airline planning. When should we be looking at flights/costs and is there one web site you would recommend that we can play with to learn the ropes. From everything of yours that we have read, it seems that for flights within the US you recommend searching online but doing the actual booking directly with the airline? True?

A –  For domestic flights, we recommend getting serious about 100 days prior to departure date. After that point, fares begin to rise. We would use the much improved Google Flights website. This site will give you the fare history of your selected flights and it will tell you what it things is a fair price for your ticket. You can set a price alert when you your ticket hits the recommend price range. You can easily set up the site to notify you via e-mail when the prices are about top change.

Congratulations. Wishing you many more and a regular commute out west.