How Do I Select The Right Travel Agency? Part III

How Do I Select The Right Agency? Part III
Narrowing Down Your Options

Just For The Record
GaySailAway's "Bests"

1) Most Gay Friendly Cruise Lines: Azamara Club, Celebrity, Crystal, Cunard, Holland America, NCL, Oceania, Regent, Royal Caribbean, Yachts of Seaborne, Windstar

2) Best Cruise Lines for Active People: Azamara Club, Carnival, Disney, NHL, Royal Caribbean, Windstar

3) Best Cruise Lines for Relaxing: Azamara Club, Celebrity, Crystal, Cunard, Holland America. MSC, Oceania, Princess, Regent, Yachts of Seaborne, Windstar

4) Best First Time Cruise: Royal Caribbean Freedom Class Ship for large ship experience; Celebrity Solstice for an elegant boutique hotel experience; NCL Epic for an active cruise with many dining options

5) Best Large Ships: Celebrity's Solstice Class Ships, Cunard's Queen Mary II, NCL's Epic, Princess, Royal Caribbean’s Oasis and Freedom Class Ships

6) Best Medium Size Ships: Celebrity's Millennium Class Ships, Cunard's Queen Victoria, Disney Ships, Holland America, NCL, Royal Caribbean's Radiance Class Ships

7) Best Small Ships: Azamara Club, Crystal, Regent, Yachts of Seaborne, Windstar

8) Best Niche Cruises: Azamara Club, Celebrity Xpedition, Crystal, Cunard's Queen Mary II and Queen Victoria, Disney, Regent, Yachts of Seaborne, Windstar

9) Most Luxurious Cruise Lines: Azamara Club, Crystal, Cunard, Oceania, Regent, Yachts of Seaborne

10) Best Big Ships: Royal Caribbean’s Oasis of the Seas, NCL’s Epic, Princesses Diamond Princess and Celebrity’s Solstice and Equinox

11) Most Beautiful Ships: Celebrity’s entire fleet, Princesses fleet, Holland America’s fleet

12) Ships Where English is Not the Primary Language: Costa, MSC

13) Best Cuisine: Azamara Club, Crystal, Cunard, Oceania, Regent, Yachts of Seaborne

14) Best Entertainment: Carnival, NCL, Royal Caribbean

15) Best Gay Ports of Embarkation: Ft. Lauderdale, Honolulu, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco

16) Best Gay Friendly Ports to Visit: Cozumel, Key West, St. Johns, San Juan Puerto Rico, St. Thomas

17) Most Homophobic Ports: Bahamas, Grand Cayman, Jamaica, St. Croix

18) Best Itineraries for a Warm Weather Vacation: Western/Eastern Caribbean, Mediterranean, Mexican Riviera, Panama Canal, Hawaiian Island, South Seas, Australia/New Zealand

19) Best Itineraries for a Cool Weather Vacation: Alaska, New England, Scandinavia, Antarctica, South America/Patagonia, Transatlantic

20) Best Cruises from the US West Coast: Mexican Riviera, Alaska, Hawaiian, Transpacific, South Pacific, Asia, Australia/New Zealand

21) Best Cruises from the US East Coast: Western/Eastern Caribbean, Bermuda, New England, Europe/Middle East, Transatlantic

22) Best Cruises from Middle America: Yucatan, Western Caribbean

23) Best Ports for a First Time Caribbean Cruiser: Cozumel, Bermuda, San Juan Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, St. Maarteen

24) Best Ports for a First Time Mexican Riviera Cruiser: Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan, Puerto Vallarta, Ixtapa, Acapulco

25) Easiest Ports to Get To-and-From an Airport: Port of San Diego, Port Everglades, Ft. Lauderdale, Port of Honolulu, Port of Miami

26) Best Time to Dine: Late Seating for those who like to enjoy happy hour and require more time for getting ready after a day ashore

27) Best Deals East Coast: Caribbean- Oct thru Dec and Feb-March

28) Best Deals West Coast: Alaska- May and September, Mexican Riviera- Sept-November, February-March

How Do I Select The Right Agency? Part II

How Do I Select The Right Agency? Part II
Be Prepared

It’s very important to be prepared. It’s best to have an idea of where you want to visit, how much you can spend, what type of accommodations and style of cruising you would enjoy and how long you have for your travels. Ask friends, work colleagues and family if they have gone on a cruise and for their recommendations. They will know your personality and can provide you with good advice.

Once you have an idea of where you would like to go a qualified Travel Agent can help you find a cruise vacation that best suits your needs. To find the best travel agent for your needs GaySailAway.com has prepared a list of gay/gay friendly Travel Agencies that you can start interviewing. The list is broken up into geographical locations in the U.S. (Visit List) If you are not located close to one of these agencies you can always work with them over the phone. They can provide you information via conversations and through email and websites.

Two of GaySailAway’s most recommended Travel Agencies are located on the West Coast and are able to accommodate clients from all over the US. These are Now Voyager Travel (www.nowvoyager.com 1-800-255-6951) in San Francisco (serving the LGBT for 25 years from the gay Mecca of the Castro) and Jerry and David’s Cruises and Tours (www.rsvpcruises.com 1-800-748-6968) located in sunny San Diego)

Remember to ask for an Agent’s qualifications for selling cruises. They should be experts in the Cruise Industry, preferably with memberships and accreditations by the ASTA (American Society of Travel Agents), CLIA (CruiseLine International Association) and IGLTA(International Gay & Lesbian Travel Association) . They should know everything from what cruise lines and ships best work for your needs, the best way to get to and from your ship, embarkation and disembarkation information (getting on and off the boat), accommodations close to your port of embarkation, passport and visa requirements and what to do in case of any emergency.

Once you’ve selected an Agent and are comfortable working with an Agent don’t be pressured into buying anything. It’s best to get their recommendations and do some research on your own. Ask for brochures and web addresses and visit the web sites yourself. A good rule to see if a Cruise Line is the right fit for your needs is to look at the photographs. If the photos generally show people over 50 years old in tuxes and formal wear chances are you’ll be spending a lot of time with retirees. If they show young families with kids then you’ll be on an active cruise that will have lots of kids during summer and spring break. Photos don't lie...Remember they are key marketing tools used by the Cruise Industires to entice key audiences to purchase their products.

Another resource you have available to you are websites that post reviews, both formally and visitor reviews. These websites can be extremely helpful in finding out if the Cruise Line, itinerary and ship fit your style. GaySailAway has found CruiseCritic.com, CruiseDiva.com and CruiseReviews.com to be very helpful.

If you prefer to cruise on an all-exclusive gay chartered cruise there are several options available for you. You can go directly to the Cruise Charter and book your cruise (you can also book them through any Gay Travel Agency). The Cruise Charters have in-house cruise specialists that know their product intimately and can help you purchase your cruise. For gay men www.AtlantisEvents.com and www.RSVPVacations.com offer all-gay charters. For lesbians www.Olivia.com and www.SweetDestinations.com offer all-women charters and cruises. For families www.RFamilyVactions.com, founded by Rosie O’Donnell, offers all-gay/gay-friendly charters and cruises. All of the aforementioned Cruise Charters are extremely inclusive of bi and trans customers.

There are several Agents offering small or large hosted LGBT group cruises on traditional cruises. On these cruise you will be traveling as a group amongst other passengers who are not LGBT. An advantage to traveling in a small group is the intimacy of being with a cohesive group, the economy of not having to pay for up-charges on an all-gay charter and more options to fit your schedule. These cruises are offered by well-established Gay Travel Agencies and can only be purchased directly from them. These Agencies include www.PiedPiperTravel.com, specializing in Gay Men’s groups, www.AquafestCruises.com, specializing in mixed groups and www.SweetDesitnations.com, specializing in socially conscious cruises for women. Though they tend to cater to one gender, they are always open to any gender or gay-ally.

How To Select A Gay Travel Agency - Part I

How to Select A Gay Travel Agency Part I
What Makes A Good Travel Agent?

With so much riding on making your vacation successful it's important to choose a travel agency that is the right match for your travel needs. Just like with any specialists there are niches that each agency excels in. Today's Travel Agents have an expertise in World Travel and Tourism. Many have professional certificates issued through trade schools and colleges that offer courses specializing in the Travel Industry. Many Agents have been certified by the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) where they earn accreditation as a Certified Travel Counselors (CTC). It’s important to find a Travel Agency that is an accredited member of the ASTA.

When selecting a cruise, it’s important to work with a Travel Agency that is an expert in the Cruise Industry. One way to tell whether an Agency is a qualified Cruise Representative is to see if they belong to the CLIA (Cruise Line International Association) www.cruising.org, the industry association that specializes in the training of Cruise Specialists. CLIA offers course work toTravel Agents to certify them as CLIA Accredited Cruise Counselors. Cruise Lines also offer Travel Agents training in their product, helping them to better qualify which cruise will be the perfect fit for your personality and needs.

To be accredited by these associations Agents have spent years of education attending classes and seminars, familiarizing themselves with cruise ships by visiting ships while they are in port and cruising with a variety of cruise lines to best acquaint themselves with the products that they are promoting to you.

The International Gay & Lesbian Travel Agency (IGLTA), www.iglta.org, represents the Gay Travel and Tourism Industry. They are the watchdogs for LGBT traveler. If you want to work with the best Gay Travel Agency it’s important to select one that is a member or is an affiliate of of the IGLTA. The IGLTA rates Airlines, Accommodations, Cruise Lines and Rental Cars Agencies on their support of the LGBT community.

The HRC, www.hrc.org, also provides LGBT Travelers with a list of HRC endorsed travel partners, partners whom the HRC has deemed friends of our community.