Friday, February 22, 2008

Royal Caribbean Travel Partner Webinar Series

Travel Partner Webinar Series
All Sessions are ½ hour long
All Times are listed in EST


Presenters will log in 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start time
There is no need for username or password
Travel Partners do not need to preregister
Click on one of the links below or copy and paste onto a new browser.

Wednesday, March 26th Nancy Baumann





Thursday, March 27 th Derrick Johnson





April


Tuesday, April 1 st Showeshi StricklandBoston/
Cindy Weimer


9:00 EST CruiseMatch – FIT
https://royalcaribbean.webex.com/royalcaribbean/k2/j.php?ED=103111942&UID=1012799177



Wednesday, April 2 nd Nancy Baumann





Tuesday, April 8 th Randy Raudt





Wednesday, April 9 th Derrick Johnson





Wednesday, April 16 th Mark Stoneham





Thursday, April 17 th Showeshi StricklandBoston/
Cindy Weimer





Wednesday, April 23 rd Nancy Baumann





Thursday, April 24 th Derrick Johnson




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FUNJET VACATIONS DYNAMIC VAX TRAINING

FUNJET VACATIONS DYNAMIC VAX TRAINING
SESSIONS AVAILABLE FROM YOUR OFFICE OR HOME!

Learn how to customize vacations for your clients
To Sign Up:
Email: TMTCWebinars@triseptsolutions.com

Make sure you include: Session, Date and Time, ARC number, Your Name, Agency, Email Address and your state.

We will enroll you and send you a confirmation email.
*All times are in Central Daylight Savings time zone

BOOKING MULTIPLE ROOMS PER RESERVATION
(60 minutes)
Let us show you how to customize your vacations. Book up to 4 rooms,
up to 8 passengers on one reservation. Create bookings (for Scheduled Air
and Charter) with more than one room per reservation.
Offered: Feb 21, 6PM • Feb 26, 10AM • Feb 28, 7PM

MAKE A GOOD SKED AIR VACATION PACKAGE -
MAXIMIZE SEARCH OPTIONS (60 minutes)
Create a good itinerary – No more extreme connections or overnight flights.
Use Search Options more effectively to create better itineraries. Create several
itineraries - change dates without starting over! Use the Change Options fields
to see more air and hotel choices without starting over.
Offered: Feb 4, 5PM • Feb 22, 9AM • Feb 28, 9PM

FUNJET AND VAX GENERAL INFORMATION
(60 minutes)
Learn about Funjet's new Complete Coverage, how to set user preferences
and do price matches. Let us show you how to access all sorts of
Funjet information, everything but the kitchen sink!
MULTI STOP VACATIONS (60 minutes) Offered: Feb 6, 3PM • Feb 19, 8AM • Feb 22, 11AM • Feb 27, 5PM

Learn how to utilize our quick fill in the blank search format, search up
to 9 destinations. Learn how to build Arrival Unknown situations (ARUNKS).
Multi Stop Vacations to Hawaii, Europe, Costa Rica, Florida and California.
Offered: Feb 20, 2PM • Feb 27, 7PM

BOOKING HAWAII WITH FUNJET (60 minutes)
Learn how to book Hawaii in VAX. Learn single stop vacations and multi island
vacations. Also included in this session, destination and tour information.
Offered: Feb 6, 9AM • Feb 19, 10AM • Feb 26, 12PM
GET STARTED BOOKING (60 minutes)

Make a charter search using the charter destination calendar and make
a general search for Sked Air packages. Learn how to make several searches
and toggle between to comparison shop, how to save your searches
(suitcases) for future reference and retrieve them. Finally, learn how to
complete a reservation and email the confirmation to the customer.
Offered: Feb 1, 11AM • Feb 18, 4PM • Feb 25, 9PM

BOOKING SKI VACATION WITH FUNJET
(60 minutes)
Learn how to book ski vacations to Colorado and Canada.
Learn how to book hotels and condos, lift tickets, lessons and rentals.
Offered: Feb 5, 2PM • Feb 21, 8PM • Feb 29, 9AM

BOOKING EUROPE WITH FUNJET
(60 minutes)
Learn how to book Europe! Learn single stop vacations and multi stop European
vacations. Also included in this session is destination and tour information.
Offered: Feb 8, 11AM • Feb 20, 12PM • Feb 25, 7PM

BOOKING VALUE FLIGHTS and USING THE
'ACROSS DESTINATION' CHARTER CALENDAR
(60 minutes)
Where to find and how to book Untited Value flights to Mexico and
the Caribbean. Non stop flights available from ORD,DEN, SFO, and IAD.
Many feeder cities available too.
Offered: Feb 18, 6PM • Feb 29, 11AM
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Monday, February 18, 2008

Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort

Tommy and I spent a long weekend at the new Saratoga Springs Resort at Disney World. Saratoga Springs is the newest of the Disney Vacation Club Resorts, although you don't have to be a vacation club member to stay at any of these resorts. Other Disney Vacation Club Resorts we have stayed at are Old Key West, Vero Beach, Beach Club Villas, and Boardwalk Villas. We have also stayed at the Contemporary Resort, Polynesian Village, Fort Wilderness, and All Star Music (my son and I with a school group).

Since we were only staying from Friday to Monday (2/1 - 2/4) we decided to stay in a studio. The studio is large - it has a queen bed, a queen sleeper sofa, table with two chairs, kitchenette, and a balcony. Our view from the balcony was great. We overlooked the lake which has a geiser in the middle of it. There were swans that stayed in the area during the day. Very peaceful. We were close to the bus stop (we didn't rent a car) and to the check-in area which houses the restaurants and store and the main pool. The only complaint was that the mirror which hung by the table and chairs was so dusty that a prior "tenant" had drawn a heart in the dust. A little bit of dusting on housekeeping's part would help.

Since we arrived in the afternoon so we chose not to go to the parks that day. We had the Disney Dining Plan which we had never tried before. We took a ferry over to Downtown Disney and had dinner at the new Irish pub, Raglan Road Irish Pub. The food was great as was the atmosphere. We had a table pretty much in the middle of the room and the Irish band played. Every once in a while the Irish dancer stepped up on to the platform and danced a jig. I would highly recommend this restaurant.

After dinner we walked around Pleasure Island and Downtown Disney. We went in to the new magic store, Magic Masters, and were quite entertained by the magician. We ended up buying two magic tricks, one for each of us, and when you buy something they bring you into a hidden room to show you how to perform the trick. New career? I think we need a little practice yet!

Saturday we spent in Epcot. We thought we would split the day between parks but we had so much fun there we decided to stay. We had fun at "Honey I Shrunk the Audience" and at "Soarin'". "Maelstrom" is always fun (at the Norway Pavilion) and we also went on the refurbished and renamed ride in Mexico (it used to be El Rio del Tiempo but it is now the Gran Fiesta ride with the Three Caballeros). But the best part of Epcot was our dinner. We went to the Living Seas Pavilion where the Coral Reef restaurant is and put our names on the list for dinner. We didn't have to wait more than a few minutes because we got there when they opened. We had the best food, the best view (the aquarium wall is right there), and the very best service. Blanca was our server and she always had a smile on her face. She was so friendly as was her daughter, Jasmine. Tommy asked for the manager so he could compliment Blanca. There were some diners that were celebrating their anniversary and for a fee, you can request a banner to be held up by the divers. The diver went over to where their table was and held it up for them. We also saw the divers who were guests spending their time in the aquarium. This is one restaurant we had never been to before but we will definitely come back. I'm glad that the Le Cellier restaurant in Canada had no openings for us or we wouldn't have had the chance to eat at the Coral Reef.

We stayed in Epcot to see the fireworks show, Illuminations, then went back to our room. We used the bus system to get around the resorts and parks. Each park has an area for the buses and you just go to the waiting area designated for your particular resort.

On Sunday we went to Disney's Hollywood Studios (name changed from Disney MGM). The first thing we did was go on The Great Movie Ride which is one of the rides we always go on. Then on to the Rock 'n Roller Coaster followed by the Tower of Terror. I went on the Tower twice (by myself - Tommy doesn't like this one) and I have to say the elevator on the right is better than the one on the left. Just my opinion.

After we left this park we went on to the Magic Kingdom. We went on the newly refurbished Haunted Mansion and the Pirates of the Caribbean. Both were even better than before! Unfortunately Splash Mountain was closed for refurbishing. We ended with the Hall of Presidents then made our long trek back to our room. Long because we had cancelled our dinner reservations (we were going to have dinner back at the resort and watch the Super Bowl there) and decided to eat in the park. No luck. Then we tried the Contemporary restaurants and again, no luck. So we went to wait for the bus, but when the bus came we had to take the Old Key West people because their bus hadn't shown up. Instead of bringing us back first, we had to go all the way through Old Key West to all of its stops first, the go on to Saratoga Springs. We were hungry, missed a lot of the game, and a little annoyed. But we ended up getting food at the take out area of our resort and brought it back to the room to see the rest of the game.

A word of advice: if you purchase the dining plan (which is well worth it and less expensive than buying all the food on your own) make sure you make your reservations prior to arriving at Disney World. Guests can reserve 180 days in advance and the more popular restaurants sell out. If there is a particular restaurant you really want to go to, don't disappoint yourself. Make the reservations. They can always be cancelled or changed (make sure you find out the cancellation policy of each restaurant you reserve). You can also use the dining plan for dinner shows such as the Hoop de Doo and the luau. Two dinner points are used for these specialty restaurants.
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Thursday, February 7, 2008

New Princess Disembarkation Process

Princess Bids Farewell to Traditional Disembarkation Process;
Rolls out New, Streamlined Experience for Passengers

Now Line Offers Most Gracious Passenger Welcome and Farewell with
Easy and Comfortable Arrival and Departure

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (January 31, 2008) - The traditional "hurry up and wait" disembarkation process that has long been a cruise industry tradition is now history aboard Princess ships, as the line introduces a new, streamlined farewell process for passengers.

Contrasted with the typical end-of-cruise departure where passengers listen to public address system announcements for their luggage tag color to be called signaling the staggered times they will disembark, Princess has debuted an efficient, more relaxed process for passengers leaving the ship. Passengers are each given an assigned time and place to assemble on the final morning and are personally escorted to the gangway by a member of the ship's staff, eliminating the guesswork as to the actual time passengers will be disembarking.

"We've been praised for our innovative embarkation program that enables passengers to board the ship without long delays, check into their cabins early, and begin enjoying the cruise amenities including meals and beverages," said Jan Swartz, Princess' senior vice president of customer service. "Now with the addition of this new disembarkation process which gives our passengers a more gracious send-off on their final morning with us, we believe we're offering the best passenger experience both at the start and end of their vacation."

The new program is in the process of being rolled out fleetwide, and has already been met with enthusiastic response from passengers. The new system eliminates loudspeaker announcements calling color-coded departure groups, and instead provides passengers with a letter the day before the end of the cruise that outlines their designated time to meet in an assigned public room, depending on their return air arrangements. There they will be met by a member of the ship's staff who will wait with them until departure time, when they will be personally escorted to the gangway.

The revised system enables passengers to easily plan their morning without the uncertainty as to when they should prepare to depart the ship. It also eliminates passengers congregating in the ship's atrium near the gangway, plus creates a more relaxed flow for morning breakfast.

"Passengers have told us that they're enjoying their final morning on board much more since we've started this program," noted Swartz. "It gives the departure a much more personal touch and creates a great beginning to their onward travels."

In addition to the enhanced disembarkation program, in many ports departing passengers can also take advantage of an express disembarkation option in which those who choose to carry their own luggage off the ship can elect to be part of the first group exiting the ship, allowing them to get an early start on their post-cruise travel plans.

The new disembarkation process complements Princess' innovative early embarkation program, which makes staterooms available to passengers immediately upon boarding. Arriving passengers can also enjoy a full dining room lunch in addition to the ship's Horizon Court buffet.

Additional information about Princess Cruises is available through a professional travel agent,
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Monday, February 4, 2008

British Airways Holidays no longer pays TA commission

Dear Travel Partner

We, at British Airways Holidays, are contacting you as you have booked with British Airways Holidays in the past 18 months on bahtraveltrade.com or via your local British Airways call center.

Due to impending developments to the British Airways Holidays reservation systems, we are writing to inform you that it will no longer be possible for travel agents to book British Airways Holidays products (hotels, car rentals, sightseeing and transfer options). This includes online at bahtraveltrade.com or over the phone with your local British Airways call center. As a result, the current travel agent commission program in place for British Airways Holidays will also be discontinued. This will have no effect on bookings for British Airways flights.

As a result of this change in policy, we have made the following arrangements:
With immediate effect we will no longer allow new British Airways Holidays bookings with a travel date after March 31, 2008 to be made via bahtraveltrade.com or your local British Airways call center.
We will continue to allow new bookings for British Airways Holidays products, with all travel complete by March 31, 2008, to be made by your office on bahtraveltrade.com or via your local British Airways call center as normal.
Effective April 1, 2008 we will withdraw access to bahtraveltrade.com, the British Airways Holidays online reservation system.
We will honor any existing British Airways Holidays bookings with travel dates after April 1, 2008, and we will be in contact shortly with instructions regarding these specific bookings.
We would be grateful if you could cascade this to your staff who work with British Airways Holidays as appropriate. Further details will also be posted on bahtraveltrade.com, including the FAQ document which is attached below:



Should you have any questions, please direct them to bahonline@holidays.ba.com, quoting your agency name, IATA and country of residence.

We would also like to thank you for your personal support of British Airways Holidays over the past few years.

Best regards

British Airways Holidays
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