Travel Question: Do I Need A Passport? (U.S. Citizens)

This is by far the most frequent question I receive from clients and potential travelers. So here is my answer...YES! Please, if you do not have a passport already, make plans to get one soon. Look at it as a travel necessity as you would luggage or a camera or anything else that would always be on your packing list.

Now before you go off and cite the U.S. State Department's official answer to the question and claim I am off-base, hear me out. If you plan on visiting Canada or Mexico from the United States by car, you need a passport (or the passport card). If you plan on flying to ANY Country outside of the U.S. including Canada and Mexico, you need a passport.

But...if you are going on a cruise and the cruise leaves from a U.S. port and returns to a U.S. port, then your cruise is considered to be a "closed loop" cruise. In this case, you are not required to have a passport or the passport card even if your cruise visits foreign ports during the cruise. The key is that it has to leave from a U.S. port and return to a U.S. port. As of the time of this article, you only need a State issued driver's license AND a copy of your State-issued birth certificate.

So again, before you go off and decide now that you do not need a passport because you only plan on taking a cruise, let me throw you some curves that might make you reconsider. First, the U.S. does not control other Country's requirements when it comes to entry documentation. You may go on your cruise and get to a port only to find out you cannot enter that Country because they require you to carry a passport. But here is the one scenario that I hope will make you rethink and hopefully go ahead with getting your passport; Assume you go on a cruise and go to a port such as Jamaica. While you are in port, you go on an excursion and, during that excursion, you break a bone and are transported to the nearest hospital. Now imagine sitting there and looking at your watch and realizing that your ship left port an hour ago. So you start thinking about flying home from Jamaica, but soon also realize you will need a passport to fly back into the U.S., but you had decided to save the money and NOT get your passport. Now what ya gonna do?  Now we all hope that this would never ever happen, but the question is...what if it does?

The above scenario is not far fetched and I wish more travelers understood the pros of getting their passports instead of only looking at the one negative which is always the cost. Look at it as an investment (I know that is bit of a stretch). The passport for an adult is good for 10 years and the sooner you buy it, the cheaper it will be since passport prices are constantly going up, not down.

I HIGHLY recommend for you to visit this LINK where you can get the latest and greatest passport info and costs for adults and children. If you are pondering a vacation of a lifetime that will take you outside the U.S. borders, don't put the passport decision process off, make it a part of your advance planning and get it checked off your to-do list and let the real fun part of the planning process begin.

Criteria for Selecting a Hotel

A short video discussing some of the things you should consider before you select the hotel you will be staying at during your vacation. I would love to get your thoughts or comments.

Point of Diminishing Returns for Disney?

The USA Today recently published an article (read it here) announcing the latest winners of the “Golden Ticket Award.” This award is handed out by Amusement Park Today. This trade publication surveys “experienced” travelers and amusement park fans across the country and then hands out the awards for the “best overall amusement park” as well as a variety of other categories; categories such as the best water park or the best new ride/attraction etc.

The Golden Ticket for the best overall amusement park was Cedar Point in Sandusky Ohio. Cedar Point is known for having some of the tallest and most thrilling roller coasters in all the world.

But what I want to ask is, “where is Disney?” If you look at the 18+ categories listed in the article, only one Disney park appears as a winner. Illuminations, the pyrotechnic and fireworks extravaganza in Epcot is the only Disney-related event to win and it was in the category of “Best outdoor night show.”

Categories such as the “friendliest staff” or the “cleanest park” or the “best dark ride” all went to other US theme/amusement parks. Even Disney’s nemesis, Universal Orlando, came away with more Golden Tickets.

This prompted me to do some pondering and reflect upon something learned back during the good old college days. Has Disney reached the point of diminishing returns? Has their increases in ticket prices started to outweigh the perceived value and benefits of the American consumer? The cost of a one day ticket to Walt Disney World has eclipsed the $80 (plus tax) mark compared to Cedar Point which has a one day ticket cost of $45.99 (at the time of this writing).

If last minute dining availability is an indicator, I will venture to say that turnstiles are clicking less at the 4 WDW parks compared to the same time in previous years. At some point, the continual increase in ticket costs will negatively effect the overall attendance if it has not already, in my opinion.

So what are your thoughts or experiences? Have you noticed a difference in crowds during recent visits? Have you considered vacationing to one of the many other amusement parks simply due to budgeting and things being tight due to the economy? Have you felt that the value is not as high as it once was during a recent WDW or Disneyland visit?

Where in the World Am I?

Ok travel enthusiasts...here is your chance to show your knowledge. Watch the video and tell me where I am at. What Country am I in? You can submit your answer in the comment section. Everyone who submits the right answer will be entered into a drawing on October 15, 2010 and will have a chance to win a $25 iTunes Gift Card.

Good luck and thanks for visiting my blog.

Cruise Stateroom Selection, Which Do You Usually Choose?

So much is said and written in regards to cruise staterooms. If you have spent any time at all on various cruise-related blogs and forums, you will see some pretty strong opinions when it comes to answering the question, "which stateroom category is the best?" You will hear (read) people saying that they always choose an inside stateroom because "ocean view or balcony staterooms are a waste of money. Who ever goes and sits on their balcony anyways?" Then you will get the natural rebuttal from those who will always choose a balcony stateroom and hear them justify their upgrade by arguing that they enjoy the "quiet moments sipping coffee on their balcony as they pull into each port of call," etc.

But I will tell you that most of my clients usually make their choice based simply on their budget. If their budget only allows a cruise with an inside stateroom, then they will choose an inside stateroom versus forgoing the cruise because they can't afford a balcony and so on.

So here is my "non-scientific poll" related to the subject; which is it for you? Chime in and share an opinion as well.

Quizzes by Quibblo.com

Hawaii Part 3: Which Island(s) Should I Visit?

This really is the #1 question I get asked by travelers who are looking into taking a Hawaiian vacation. It also is the hardest question to answer. Each of the Hawaiian Islands offers a completely different experience so the answer again depends on the type of vacation you are seeking.

If you are a first time visitor, it would be hard for me not to recommend a visit to Oahu. While Oahu is tourist-laden, it has some of the most popular Hawaiian experiences such as a visit to the Polynesian Cultural Center, or a trip up to famous Diamond Head. And Oahu has one of the most emotion-evoking, historical monuments that anyone can plan on visiting…The USS Arizona Memorial. So if you are a first-timer, you probably should plan on spending at least a couple of days on Oahu.

If you are seeking a quiet and relaxing Hawaiian getaway, then Oahu and Waikiki may not be the right choice for you. As I stated in my previous post, Waikiki is crowded with LOTS of traffic and visitors, which sometimes is not conducive to relaxation. You may be more interested in visiting Maui, Kauai or the big island of Hawaii where things are a tad more serene and where scenery is the #1 attraction.

If you are on a tight budget, you may want to limit your visit to only one island during your trip so you can avoid the inner-island flights and extra transfer costs. If you are limited by time, then again you probably will want to pick one island and focus your vacation there. Remember, if you are traveling to Hawaii from states in the central or eastern part of the US, then you will be losing at least 2 full days of your vacation in transit to and from Hawaii. So you need to factor in the additional time you will spend in the airport and at the car rental desk when you plan a multiple island vacation.

I just wanted to give you some things to think about when you start planning your Hawaiian vacation. Simply determine the type of vacation you want and then put together a plan that accomplishes that goal. If you love seeing a bunch of sites and experiences, then you may want to mix it up a bit and do a 2-island trip. But if you enjoy the beautiful scenery and seek some quiet beach time, then you will want to choose an island that meets that goal so you have the best vacation possible.

Let me know your thoughts or questions. And as always…thanks for reading.

A Walt Disney World Myth: Off-site is Always Cheaper

We are living in a day and time where everyone is looking to save as much money as possible in everything that we do. Let’s face it, budgets are tight. Even the magical Walt Disney World has not been immune to the economy’s downturn. A recent report showed that Disney’s park attendance was down as much as 8% compared to the same period a year ago. Because of that, Disney continues to offer discounts and vacation package specials to try to encourage the budget-conscious family to book a Disney getaway, whether on land or at sea.

So with all of these discounts that continue to be offered, I have to ponder why so many potential Disney visitors still think that it is cheaper to plan an “offsite” vacation? I think it is because so many “Disney experts” that permeate blogs and discussion boards have continued to preach, “if you want to save a lot of money, stay offsite.” Well I am here to tell you that this is a myth, plain and simple.

Sure, if you compare a budget motel 30 minutes from the parks to a non-discounted Disney package, you will probably see a “savings” if you choose the “Motel $29.95.” But do not simply assume you will save money by staying offsite until you have done your homework and compared ALL the costs of the trip and other parts of the vacation.

For example...if you choose to stay offsite and Disney is offering a free dining vacation package for its on-site guests, do you know how much money you would save in food if you stayed onsite? Free dining can equate to a $500-600+ savings for a family of 4 during a 6 night stay. Did you sit down and actually establish a realistic budget for what you will be spending in food during your offsite stay? You have to get to that level of detail in your comparison of prices before anyone can claim they are saving “X” amount of dollars by staying offsite.

Another area that many forget to adequately compare is in the area of parking and transportation. If you are driving to the parks and are planning on staying offsite, did you add in the cost of parking at the parks? It costs $14 per day to park at any of the 4 parks at Walt Disney World (Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon being the exception). So your 6 day offsite visit needs to include an extra $84. Did you factor in the extra gas that you will spend by driving yourself to the parks versus staying onsite and being able to take advantage of Disney transportation? You need to before you can claim you saved any money by staying offsite.

If you are flying down to Orlando...does your offsite hotel offer free shuttle from the airport and then a free shuttle to the parks each day? If not...how much more is your rental car going to cost you or the shuttle bus? And if you do happen to choose a hotel with free shuttle, do you know how often it runs between your hotel and the parks? How much is your time worth? If your offsite stay means you will have to spend less time in the parks, is it really a better deal when you factor in that the park tickets make up a large proportion of your overall Disney vacation cost?

I hope this is making you see that staying offsite is not always the best deal. You can’t claim that you have “saved” money if you did not do your homework ahead of time to determine the true costs of staying off Disney property. I hope this helps with your future Walt Disney World vacation planning.

Questions? Comments? I would love to get your feedback.