Todd Carlson 0:26

Explore your world. It's the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show. Presented by Blue Planet Vacations.com. Call or text the show now. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. And check out the podcast at InsidetravelTalk.com. And now, here are your hosts, Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.

Welcome And What’s Ahead

Todd Carlson 0:48

Patrick Wiscombe 1:08

Welcome to the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show. Hello there! I am Patrick Wiscombe alongside Mark Faldmo. Actually, he was the one that was in Denver, Colorado. Coming up on today's edition of the show, we will be talking about supersonic flights coming to an airport near you. Ho ho ho! That is great news! That's gonna be something when you can actually take a supersonic flight and actually get in there in what? Half the time, a quarter of the time, Mark?

Mark Faldmo 1:46

Yes. A lot quicker.

Patrick Wiscombe 1:49

And a whole lot more expensive, probably. Probably, yeah. Europe delaying the start of ETIAS. Once again, this we have been doing this show for nearly three years, and this is the story that just keeps popping up about every what six months or so?

Mark Faldmo 2:07

About every six months, it seems.

Patrick Wiscombe 2:08

Yep. Holland America Line is committing to year-round cruising in Europe. And we are just at the start of hurricane season. I guess technically it started what about a month and a half ago? June? About a month ago in June. Yeah. And we're gonna tell you how to navigate the Caribbean this hurricane season. And of course, we always have the travel deal of the week in this opening segment of the show. And thank you for taking the time to stop and listen to this award-nominated, but we haven't won yet, travel podcast. We have high hopes for the show. Yes. The entire purpose of this radio show and podcast is to help you plan and book your next vacation, or we're just gonna give you some ideas of where you might want to go on vacation next. And we're presented by that man's company, Mark Faldmo, Blue Planetvacations.com. Let's get right to the travel news, shall we?

Mark Faldmo 2:59

Let's go.

Patrick Wiscombe 2:59

All right. Europe is in high demand right now. I know it's hot over there, but we are in the middle of Europe visiting season. Is that fair to say?

Mark Faldmo 3:07

That is. Yeah, right. Smack in the middle.

Patrick Wiscombe 3:10

Europe is delaying the start of ETIAS until at least 2027. Let's just get an explanation of ETIAS. What does that stand for and what's the significance of this story for listeners who don't know?

Mark Faldmo 3:26

Yeah, so the ETIAS is an electronic verification system. So basically, they

Europe Entry Rules Delayed Again

Mark Faldmo 3:31

want you to validate your passport before you travel. It's mainly just to get fees. So they charge a $20 to $30 fee where you put in all of your information and get approved to travel to Europe before you go. This has been delayed several times. I think this is the fourth or fifth time it's been delayed. But I think the reason why they're delaying this is because the EU in January just started their EES system, which is the entry and exit system, which is where you basically check into the EU and check out when you arrive. It's biometric screening, you get your picture taken, your fingerprints, and all of that. But it is such a slow process. For instance, in Lisbon, there have been some days where that exit line to get from your flight out to the baggage claim has been seven hours.

Patrick Wiscombe 4:25

What are they gonna do with all the baggage?

Mark Faldmo 4:27

Yeah, and it's it's crazy. And then in Milan, they've because of three-hour border queues, they've just left planes out on the tarmac because there's no room in the airport for the passengers to get out. They're delaying the ETIAS because they're having so many issues with the EES. I know that's confusing. All of the acronyms there, but it's just been a mess. When I landed in Stockholm about a month ago, it took us two and a half hours to get through. And we were the only flight. There was one flight, there was no one in line. We were towards the end of the line, and it took us two and a half hours to get out. Our driver we had almost left us because he was waiting too long. So it's bring your patience if you're going to Europe, mainly for the entry and exit system. But the good news is at least for another year, you won't have to deal with the ETIAS system. Pack your patient pants. I do need to make a distinction because the UK does have a system where you do need to pre-put in your passport information to visit the UK. Um but for EU nations, you don't have to do that now.

Patrick Wiscombe 5:40

ETIAS, EES, CODs, BFDs, L S Ds, or SOBs, please. Some assembly required. Batteries not included. The FAA is beginning the process to allow supersonic flights. I really want to take advantage of this, and I realize that it's gonna hit us pretty hard economically. I'm okay with that. I just want to experience it.

Mark Faldmo 6:08

Yeah, it this is interesting because even when the

Supersonic Flights Move Closer

Mark Faldmo 6:12

Concorde was running, they didn't allow supersonic flight overland. It planes could only go supersonic over the water. Oh, really? Now they're considering allowing it overland. There's a new company called Boom Supersonic, and they've completed a prototype where the supersonic boom is not audible on the ground. Oh so they are hoping to turn that in. They're working on a supersonic jetliner based on that. And then NASA's also got a few prototypes out there that kind of have a similar thing. And so this current prototype plane goes Mach 1.4 at an altitude of 55,000 feet. So that's about twice the speed of a regular flight, a little bit more than twice the speed, and about 20,000 feet higher where you'll be flying. So if this comes to fruition, it will be amazing. And you can probably get New York to LA in about two hours in that.

Patrick Wiscombe 7:14

So they won't even be able to get service out the door. Put your tray tables up, please. We'll have to test drive that one. I like that. Yes. Yeah. Hurricane season goes between, if memory serves, I think it's June 1st of every year to, I think it's is it the first of November or the end of November?

Mark Faldmo 7:32

It's November 30th, the end of November.

Patrick Wiscombe 7:35

Okay. We're about 30 days into the hurricane season. And so we want to talk about navigating the hurricane season if you're headed to the Caribbean.

Caribbean Hurricane Season Myths

Mark Faldmo 7:45

The reason why I put this in here is because this week I've had five questions about hurricane seasons, whether it's cruise or land vacations. Cancun is a big popular tourist spot that can be affected by hurricanes. There are a lot of misconceptions out there. So I really wanted to cover this just to get that out there. Hurricane season is June 1st through November 30th. One thing is it doesn't mean the storms are consistently affecting the Caribbean. Some people think I don't want to go because the weather's bad all the time. The reality is many travelers have perfect weather when they're there during hurricane season. It's hot and humid, but you have good weather. The highest risk for hurricanes is mid-August through October. So it's only kind of that month and a half when the highest risk is. It's fun. You can make it into an interesting part of your vacation if you do happen to be there when there's a hurricane. A good travel insurance policy can protect your investment when weather affects it. You have to have purchased that before there's a name storm. If you purchase it after, travel insurance won't protect you because they know you're just buying that to get out of your trip. So so you do have to pre-purchase the travel insurance usually within 14 days of your original purchase of your trip for that to be affected. And this is also a reason why working with a good travel advisor can make a good difference. There are lots of different travel plans out there. So we can help you choose the right travel insurance for your trip.

Patrick Wiscombe 9:45

Which by the way, did I use Travel X last time? For travel insurance? Yeah.

Mark Faldmo 9:49

Yes.

Patrick Wiscombe 9:50

I didn't have to use it, but that's fine.

Mark Faldmo 9:52

I highly recommend Travel X. There are some other good ones that have some really good tropical storm and hurricane policies as part of them. One of the things about traveling during hurricane season is it's when you can often find the best values of the year. Oh yeah. Because there's lower demand, resorts are frequently offering significant discounts. Airfare is less expensive. So if you're willing to accept a little bit of flexibility if needed, you can often get a nicer vacation for less money. And then one last thing, cruises operate year-round in the Caribbean. Cruise lines will just change their itinerary. So you might not go to the places you thought you were going to. Safety is the main concern of the cruise line. So the cruise most often will still go, but you might have slight changes in ports on that if there is a hurricane and still have a good vacation.

Patrick Wiscombe 10:50

We want to do a hotel spotlight. This time we're going to highlight two hotels from a caller. Was this Jane? I think it was. Jane. She goes, I want to go to Fiji, but where would you recommend that I stay when I'm in Fiji?

Mark Faldmo 11:04

So there are two hotels that are my go-to hotels for Fiji. I do have about six or eight that I really like. But

Two Fiji Resorts Worth Booking

Mark Faldmo 11:12

these two kind of fit every situation. The first is the Outrigger Fiji Beach Hotel. Oh yeah. And the second is the Castaway Island. Let's start with the Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort. It's located on Fiji's Coral Coast, which is on the main island of Fiji. It's approximately about an hour and a half or so uh from the airport to the hotel. Most of the time, the flights from the U.S. anyway are overnight flights. You arrive at about 8 a.m. So then you transfer to the hotel. You're still maybe a little bit too early to check in there. It's really good location. The reason why I recommend the Outrigger Fiji Beach is because it has beautiful white sand beach with probably some of the best sunsets over the Pacific. It's a traditional Fijian resort. So it creates that authentic island atmosphere, brings a lot of Fiji culture into the hotel. And this one is a good all-around choice. It's good for families, couples, multi-generational vacations. The rooms are large. They have a regular hotel section, and then they have kind of more individual unit sections or duplex types of accommodations. And situated on a hill. So the beach is down below. Just great views. They have a great kids' club. They have several restaurants that feature both local cuisine and international dining. And they offer several free complimentary cultural experiences with Fiji storytelling, weaving demonstration, traditional ceremonies. Just a great overall resort. It's also located near some of the best attractions. Just a few minutes away is a Sigatoka jet boat ride, Sigatoka River jetboat ride. Yeah, you've done that. I've done that, which is my favorite thing to do. Uh, you know, so again, the Outrigger Fiji Resort is just a good overall choice.

Patrick Wiscombe 13:20

What about hotel number two? You have five or six, but what's hotel number two in this case?

Mark Faldmo 13:25

Hotel number two is a really unique experience. It's the Castaway Island, Fiji.

Patrick Wiscombe 13:30

Oh, I've heard you talk about this one.

Mark Faldmo 13:32

Yeah, we've talked about it. It's actually a few miles away from the actual island that the movie Castaway was filmed on. It's located in the Mamanuka Islands, which is an island group off of the main island. So how you'd get there is once you arrive to the airport, you're then transferred over to the port, and it's about a 30-minute ride by a high-speed catamaran. Or if you really want experience, you can take a 10-minute helicopter ride transfer to the island. I'm not sure.

Patrick Wiscombe 14:04

You know what? I would probably say boat on that one.

Mark Faldmo 14:08

I I I like the boat. Yeah. The one thing that's a little bit hard after an international flight is it's a wet feet landing. So you have to kind of wade in to the resort. So just be prepared to take your shoes off and walk into the beach to get to the lobby. I'm okay with that. There there's not a pier there, so it it it's a great experience. The rival is part of the experience of the hotel. Oh yeah. It truly is a private island resort. You know, I think they have 40 or 50 rooms there. Um, they have garden bureets up to the beachfront bureaues. They they don't have any over the water, but where my room was, I'll actually have to post this online. I'll probably repost this. One of the most beautiful sunsets I've ever seen. I just put my phone in a time lapse and from this resort, and it was amazing. And so look to the Blue Planet Vacations Facebook page and I'll I'll post that sometime this week. The whole island, it's a small island. You can walk all the way around the island probably in about 30 minutes. There's a hike up to the top of the mountain. There's coral reefs, a great big, huge beach. There, great snorkeling just right off the beach from the hotel. If you're a scuba diver, there's really good opportunities nearby. It uh is by a great reef uh section for scuba diving. And this one is more you know for couples and honeymooners, but they also do take families, and this is where your kids would get a really authentic island escape. So it is a family-friendly resort. There's no cars, no crowds, very little outside distraction, it's just nature and the ocean. They also offer complimentary kayaks, paddleboarding, snorkeling equipment, and then some of the similar cultural demonstrations that we talked about at the uh outrigger Fiji. And so if you want a postcard perfect South Pacific experience, Castaway Island is what first comes to mind for me.

Patrick Wiscombe 16:13

Castaway Island in Fiji, and then the first one we talked about was Outrigger Fiji Beach Resort. Always in this segment is the travel deal of the week. I have to assume that we're talking Fiji here.

Mark Faldmo 16:26

Yeah, we'll just stick with Fiji. Um, last week we talked about the stopover program that Fiji Air has. So you could use these hotels on that stopover program, and this offer also would apply to that. But you can save up to $400

Fiji Savings And The Date Line

Mark Faldmo 16:42

on Fiji vacations that include round trip air and a minimum of five nights hotel. Now you have to book this by July 15th, so it's pretty close in.

Patrick Wiscombe 16:52

Is five nights enough to visit Fiji or do you need a little more time?

Mark Faldmo 16:56

I would say probably at least six nights. But five nights is enough to see Fiji. The one thing that's hard for some people is the time change. So when you fly there, you lose two whole days. So if you can only afford seven nights off of work, five nights is how long you'll stay there. Okay. Just how the flights work out. Because you lose two days going and you almost gain a day back coming, but not quite coming home.

Patrick Wiscombe 17:28

So the international dateline, right?

Mark Faldmo 17:31

The international dateline. Okay. Yeah. So the flights leave Los Angeles at about 11 p.m. at night. So within the hour you're in the next day, and then about five hours, uh eight hours later, you cross the international dateline. So you lose a whole nother day on that. So five nights is enough time. The shortest I've done it, I went to a two-day-long meeting in Fiji last year.

Patrick Wiscombe 17:54

Oh, that's right. Yeah.

Mark Faldmo 17:55

That was a long flight for just two nights there. I love Fiji, so Oh, I know.

Patrick Wiscombe 18:02

I know you do. Take advantage of that offer. Save up to $400 on Fiji vacations. That does include round trip air and five-night minimum hotel. You have to book by July 15th. So we're pretty close when this when this comes out. Take advantage of that. Get the conversation started. Call Mark in the office at the break. 888-718-7717-888. 718-7717. And he will also put this on BluePlanetVacations.com. When we come back, it is time for the Just Cruising segment, the part of the show that has made us famous around the country and around the world. This time we're talking about Holland America line committing to a year-round cruising in Europe. And of course, we've got the cruise deal of the week on who is it? Is it Disney? Yeah, I think it is. Disney. All right, we'll talk about that. When the Inside Travel Talk Podcast radio show continues, my name is Patrick Wiscombe. He is Mark Faldmo. Thank you so much for allowing us to be part of your week. We will be right back.

Todd Carlson 19:17

Helping you get out and see the world. You're listening to the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show with Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo. Presented by Blue Planet Vacations.com. America's Best Travel Advisors. Book your vacation now. 888-718-7717. 888-718-7717. The show will continue after this. Helping you plan your next vacation. This is the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show. Presented by Blue Planet Vacations.com. America's best travel advisors. Call us now. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. And check out the podcast at Insidetraveltalk.com. Here's Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.

Patrick Wiscombe 20:40

That is the chip horn of Norwegian's Aqua. Welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show. Hello there. I am Patrick Wiscombe, and to all those boarding the show at this moment. Ahoy, mateys. Ahoy. This is

Just Cruising Segment Starts

Patrick Wiscombe 21:01

the Just Cruising segment, the segment of the show that has made us popular around the country and around the world. It is only about cruise news and it's only about cruise deals coming up in this segment. We're going to talk about cruise buffet guests facing surprise charges for taking food back to their cabins. And then of course we've got the cruise deal of the week where we'll be talking about Disney cruise line. But let's start with the buffet, where guests are facing surprise charges or taking food back

Buffet Food Fees Spark Debate

Patrick Wiscombe 21:34

to their cabins. I do this all the time, and I've never run into a charge yet.

Mark Faldmo 21:40

This is on Costa Cruise Line, which is part of the Carnival Corporation family. So I wonder if they're just testing this. A few years ago, most cruise lines started charging for room service because people were ordering the whole menu and then wasting a lot of food. So I still see a lot of people bringing food back from the buffet and plates of food outside of doors, uneaten. That's a problem. Yeah, I think that is one reason why they're doing this. They kind of framed it as a safety issue and a sanitary issue, which I don't really think it is. Costa says only trained staff can bring food to your cabin, so they want you to use the room service on that idea. guess. But I think a big part is the the uneaten, wasted food.

Patrick Wiscombe 22:26

Just put it in your fridge, people. Yes. It's what the mini fridge is for. Yeah. Princess Cruises says that they are going to expand their presence in Singapore. I've never cruised in or around Singapore. Have you been there?

Mark Faldmo 22:44

I've not been to Singapore. I think it's a really good option. Princess has typically been really strong in Japan and Asia in general. Now they're

Princess Bets Big On Singapore

Mark Faldmo 22:54

expanding to offer more Singapore. So they're going to bring between 2027 and 2030 they're going to eventually have three ships in Singapore the Diamond Princess, the Sapphire Princess, and the Grand Princess. And they'll run an itineraries from 10 to 28 nights. Asia is a place on a lot of people's bucket list. Some people have it on their bucket list that they don't know it's on their bucket list. You know, there's just a lot of interesting things that can be offered. And their Japan sailings have been so strong that I think adding the second Asian port especially is going to help increase their cruisers from Australia. Since Singapore is so close, it's going to be good for that. Singapore is relatively easy from the US to get to I think it's a great move on their part. And especially the longer, more in-depth sailings. I looked in January of 2028, which is they start at the end of 2027, but I chose a January of 2028. So that's about 18 months away year and a half from now what when that is this is a 14 day Southeast Asia it's Malaysia Thailand and Vietnam. And so it starts in Singapore goes to Kuala Lampur in Malaysia goes to Puket in Thailand, which is a a wonderful place. Yeah. Then it goes to two other ports in Malaysia Lang Kwai and Penang. And then it has two days at sea and goes up to two stops in Vietnam one of those being Ho Chi Minh City, which is a place I want to get to yep agreed. And then it goes back to the port that's closest to Bangkok in Thailand and then back to Singapore.

Patrick Wiscombe 24:41

I'd want to go to all of those places.

Mark Faldmo 24:43

Yeah it it's a great itinerary and that particular itinerary starts at about $1400 per person for an inside cabin. Basically a hundred bucks a day about a hundred bucks a day and I'm sure there's great shore excursions offered very interesting cultural experiences. So all I'm hearing is it it's big in Japan.

Patrick Wiscombe 25:06

It is yeah you got the reference right no the song the song big in Japan I'll be here all week okay yeah well now I have to look up a song Holland America line I was on Rotterdam last year with Nikki is committing to year-round cruising in Europe. So you'll have to deal with the ETIAS the EES Mark can help you with that. What are the details?

Mark Faldmo 25:40

Holland America is going to keep its ship the new Staten Dam is the name of it in Europe year round. It's gonna sail a dozen winter and early spring itineraries

Holland America Cruises Europe Year Round

Mark Faldmo 25:53

across northern Europe and the Mediterranean so that adds more than 70 additional European port days to Holland America's schedule they're putting a heavy emphasis on overnight stays in these less crowded offseason explorations in late 2027 and I've never heard of this on an ocean cruise they are going to do a Christmas market sailing out of Rotterdam. Really? So it's going to feature uh stops in Stockholm Helsinki Hamburg and Copenhagen with overnight stops in most of these cities I think they'll do well yeah I think they will and then you know after that sailing the ship is going to move down into the Mediterranean and do the Canary Islands with overnights in Istanbul Alexandria which is Cairo with voyages in the Mediterranean starting up to 24 hours. One thing that's interesting is the overnight in Alexandria will be 37 hours long so you'll have plenty of time to experience what Egypt has to offer the Christmas markets on river cruises are successful. So why not on an ocean going cruise? And then especially with overnight ports in most of those cities you'll get to see the the pyramids in Giza the new Egyptian museum go to the library in Alexandria you know there's so much to see there where most cruises just has a day you get to pick one thing. This one you might be able to pick two or three things because you can do one of them in the evening.

Patrick Wiscombe 27:30

So let's get to the cruise deal of the week always in the just cruising segment and we're going to help our listeners save up to $1500 on Disney Cruise Line. Disney Cruise Line has launched a promotion called Magic on the horizon and some of the details here is if you book by August 30th 2026 and

Disney Deal Details And Best Fits

Patrick Wiscombe 27:52

Mark can help you with this you can save up to $500 per guest on select sailings departing between October through December 2026.

Mark Faldmo 28:04

And what are some of the other details mark book by August 30th although I bet most of these sailings will be gone by then because Disney is pretty popular. Yeah. Save up to $500 per person on select seven night cruises and that $500 is good for veranda or balcony staterooms ocean view staterooms save up to $400 and inside stateroom save up to $300. I think this is an interesting promotion because most cruise lines only allow the promotion to be applied to the first two in a cabin to go to a third person. So in that balcony cabin that $500 per person becomes $1500 savings. This promotion is even good on some of the shorter cruises we mainly talked about the seven night cruises before but on cruises of five to six nights it's up to two hundred and fifty dollars per guest so it can really benefit families to get that up to $1500 off. And this will be on three of Disney cruise line cruise ships. So it'll be on the Disney treasure or the Disney Fantasy sitting out of Port Canaveral Florida. Love Port Canaveral awesome place. It is yeah or the Disney Wonder out of San Diego.

Patrick Wiscombe 29:18

Has Disney Wonder always been parked in San Diego or are they moving that around they've been moving it around.

Mark Faldmo 29:25

Oh interesting it's a Mexican Riviera itinerary gives travelers on the West Coast good chance to get on a Disney cruise. So and one thing since these are in the fall Disney always does a great job with themed cruises so a lot of these are over their Halloween on the high seas celebration in October or the maritime Christmas cruises during the holiday season. So it's a great opportunity for Disney cruises.

Patrick Wiscombe 29:54

And I don't think promotions like this come along very often do they not like this no not like this.

Mark Faldmo 30:00

It's rare to see a promotion on Disney cruise lines. One thing that's nice is Disney cruise line really does appeal to both kids and adults most people think kids but there are adult only areas on Disney cruise ships which means you can send your kids off to the kids club and and you can go enjoy a nice experience on Disney cruise line.

Patrick Wiscombe 30:22

Off you go take advantage of that promotion call mark in the office get the conversation started can you do deposits on a Disney cruise? I think you can you can yeah you can do deposits get the conversation started 888 718 7717 888 718 7717 or you can go to BluePlanetvacations com. And then we also had the uh promotion where you can save up to $400 on Fiji vacations that include round trip air and a five night minimum hotel stay. You've got to book that one by July 15th so you'll have to get on that one. 8887187717 All right our job is done and now it's your turn to get out and see the world while you can because you never know what curveballs life is going to throw at you. Live your life deliberately and live your life intentionally in a sincere thank you from me and Mark for

Final Reminders And Closing

Patrick Wiscombe 31:27

listening to the show.

Todd Carlson 31:28

Have a great week we'll talk to you next week that's it that's the end of the show you've been listening to the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and radio show with Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo. Presented by BluePlanetVacations dot com book your adventure right now call eight eight eight seven one eight seventy seven seventeen that's eight eight eight seven one eight seventy seven seventeen thanks for listening. Have a great week