Welcome And What’s Ahead

Todd Carlson 0:15

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 Inside Traveltalk.com. And now, here are your hosts, Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.

Patrick Wiscombe 0:50

Live from Salt Lake City, Utah, this is the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show. Hello there, I am Patrick Wiscombe, the Vacation Nerd. The entire purpose of this travel podcast is to share with our listeners the latest travel and cruise deals designed to help you save time and money. And we're also going to help you plan to book your next vacation. So we want you to consider this show your must-listen personal daily travel briefing. If you travel or if you've just always wanted to start traveling, we are the right place to be. And this show is presented by my friend's company, proudly presented by BluePlanetVacations.com. Mark Faldmo returns from Well, Palm Springs was last week. This week it is the great state of Idaho.

Mark Faldmo 1:50

You had a late exotic.

Patrick Wiscombe 1:53

Yeah. As you're traveling, assuming that you drove on this one, do you ever stop, I don't know, like in Logan or I'm not even sure if that's the right way to go, to get Goster's milk and cheese curds while you're on the way?

Mark Faldmo 2:07

No, I don't. Okay. Just lots of stops at Mavericks because they're everywhere now.

Patrick Wiscombe 2:12

Maverick, man, they are en fuego right now. They're just popping up everywhere like 7-Eleven used to be. Yep. Coming up in this first segment of the show, we will get to the most important travel news and the biggest travel deals we have found so far today. Like travel deals to Hawaii. We found an underwater museum in Miami. Custom private tours. This is worldwide. This is an interesting idea if you want to go and have some direction on how to get around. We also have the hot and the hotter travel deals of the week. Traveling to China, MSC has opened another private island, the cruise deal of the week, and a vacation, this or that European edition. But let's start with the travel news.

Miami’s New Underwater Sculpture Park

Patrick Wiscombe 2:59

Is it Reefline?

Mark Faldmo 3:01

Yes, Reefline.

Patrick Wiscombe 3:02

Okay, Reefline is a brand new place that just opened, or at least phase one of it opened in Miami. How about if we tell our listeners about it if they're headed to Miami?

Mark Faldmo 3:12

If you're going there a few days early for a cruise, something you could do if you like to snorkel or scuba dive. So it's an underwater sculpture park. You know, there's a really big one of these in Cancun, but this one envisions to be even bigger. Right now they've just opened up the first section of it, but it's envisioned to be a seven-mile underwater sculpture park. So snorkel trail, hybrid reef, all of the sculptures are meant to eventually become coral reefs and you know help provide habitat for coral and for fish. The first section that's opened is called the underwater traffic jam, and it's all cars. So all the sculptures are cars.

Patrick Wiscombe 3:56

If you've ever been to downtown Miami, that's all it is right now. You take the I-95 and then just you're getting into downtown Miami is crazy.

Mark Faldmo 4:04

Miami just keeps growing and growing. Every time I go there, there's a new skyscraper

Delta Adds Seattle To Tokyo

Mark Faldmo 4:08

built or something.

Patrick Wiscombe 4:09

So Delta is expanding service to Japan with a new Seattle to Tokyo route.

Mark Faldmo 4:15

This is actually a different airport than they're currently flying into. Oh. So this new flight is into Narita airport in Tokyo, and they currently have flights into Hana Airport. Delta also operates flights from Atlanta, Detroit, Minneapolis, Los Angeles, and Honolulu to Hanaida Airport. But now they're starting the Seattle to Narita Airport. Japan is becoming one of the top trending destinations. That's why they're doing it. When Delta and Northwest merged, Northwest Airlines had a hub in Narita Airport. And they they kind of closed that up. So you know it'll be interesting to see. Because Northwest was a big operator to Asia, Southeast Asia through that hub in Narita, but Delta closed that hub down. So we'll see if anything like that comes back in the future.

Private City Tours With Locals

Patrick Wiscombe 5:10

There is a custom private tour group. Is it called Tours by Locals?

Mark Faldmo 5:15

Yeah, this is one of my favorite companies to work with, Tours by Locals. They do custom tours. And so how it normally works is I'll go in and find a guide, and they might have several different itineraries or things that they offer. And then we book it. But it's a completely private tour for one to eight people generally. They've introduced this new kind of tour type called essentials. And so this is one where you just choose the essential tour. You don't get to choose the guide, like I mentioned, but you get to choose the essentials of the city, and then your guide will be assigned to you later. But what I like about working with this company, I just had a client get off a cruise in the Amsterdam area, and we did a day trip and we booked to the windmills, some things for them to see. But when they met up with the guide, the guide said, What do you want to do today? Oh really? And they said, We want to go where no tourists go. And so they didn't even do the itinerary that we set up. They went to a little place where tourists don't go, but it's where most of the passengers on the Mayflower were from, just this little village. They had a great tour and said it was one of the best tours they've ever taken. But that's what I like about it. They're custom. You can choose a set tour, or when you get the driver, you can just say, Do something unique for me. They're all usually local people. They know the area well. So if you're looking for something unique to do all around the world, you can contact Blue Planet Vacations and we can get you set up with one of these private guides for just your group. Next week I have someone going to Normandy and they wanted their big Banda Brothers fans. And so I contacted a guide that's from Bayeux in France, lived there all of her life. I said they want to do a Banda Brothers tour. So she created a custom Banda Brothers tour just for this couple.

Patrick Wiscombe 7:17

Oh, see that is awesome.

Mark Faldmo 7:20

That's a really good thing to do to make unique vacations.

Puerto Vallarta Adults Only Deal

Patrick Wiscombe 7:24

It is time for the hot travel deal of the week, and the hot travel deal of the week is presented by Airwolf H V A C. You get the tie in there? Yeah. Is your house too hot or too cold? Well, right now it's just too hot. Airwolf HVAC will take care of the problem for heating and cooling done right. Trust Airwolf HVAC here in Utah. Call Jason. And he actually answers the phone, unlike the other HVAC companies. Call Jason, 801-735-3293, 801-735-3293, or you can schedule online at airwolf.com, and that's A-I-R-E Wolf.com.

Mark Faldmo 8:08

It's time for the hot travel deal of the week, which is We're going to go to Porto Vallarta and we're going to go specifically to one of my favorite hotels, the Villa Premier Boutique Hotel in Porto Vallarta. So right now, if you book an air and hotel vacation and pay in full by August 27th, so you have a week or so here to do that. You can save up to $550 on your vacation. Okay. And this is for travel anytime in 2027.

Patrick Wiscombe 8:38

Buy now, travel in 2027.

Mark Faldmo 8:41

Correct.

Patrick Wiscombe 8:42

But save up to $550 when you pay in full at the time of reservation.

Mark Faldmo 8:46

Correct.

Patrick Wiscombe 8:47

Okay. Let's talk about the hotel then.

Mark Faldmo 8:49

This again is one of my favorite hotels. It's an adults-only beachfront resort. But what I like about it, it's only has 80 rooms. They're all ocean view rooms and suites. Uh it's been a triple A four diamond hotel for about 20 consecutive years. So that's saying a lot, especially for a hotel to be on that list for 20 consecutive years.

Patrick Wiscombe 9:12

Yeah, that means they take care of the property.

Mark Faldmo 9:14

One thing, its location is a major advantage. It's the closest hotel. Well, actually, it's the the second closest hotel to downtown. Their other hotel that they own is right next door. It's a little bit closer, but it's location right near downtown is the one of its greatest benefits. You know, you can walk down to the Molacon, which I love to do in the evening around sunset. Another thing is their personalized wellness and dining programs. You get a welcome massage when you arrive. I know Heather enjoyed that. You when you're checking in, the masseuse comes up and gives you a shoulder and back rub while you're checking into the hotel. And they have a large pillow menu menu therapy. So it's just one of the perfect hotels to visit in Port of Ayar today. How many rooms? Is it eighty? Wow. All ocean view. Only 80 rooms, all ocean view. Yeah. And great food. Very good food as well.

Patrick Wiscombe 10:15

Always in this opening segment of the show, we also have the destination spotlight.

Is China Ready For Tourists

Patrick Wiscombe 10:20

And a little bit earlier this week, you was this a call or a text from Jack? This was a call. Okay. So he called you in the office. Jack was asking, we've already traveled to Japan. That's good. And loved it. We're thinking about going back to Asia, but what about China? Is China a good destination for American travelers right now? And what would be the best way to see it? I'm gonna say Yeah, I think so.

Mark Faldmo 10:48

We're starting to get more and more requests for China. It has been a while since we've received those requests. You know, I personally have been to China four times.

Todd Carlson 10:58

Love that.

Mark Faldmo 10:58

Yeah, loved all four trips. We used to operate some shorter week-long programs to China, and then we added some Yangtze River cruises. I've done all of that and again loved it. The culture, the history is just fascinating to see over there. But it has been several years since anyone's considered traveling to China. China is probably the next destination to watch. They have great prices right now. They're trying to attract tourism back to China, but it has ancient history, huge modern cities, distinctive regional cultures. That's one of the things I like is the food. And you travel around and you get different food everywhere in China. Another important point is China is something I would not recommend you do on your own. Do it as part of a structured program. You can do just a short Beijing. You can do one that moves around the country. One I like is Beijing with the Great Wall, Xi'an with the Terracotta Warriors, and Shanghai for that modern China. And you can do it with a Yangtze River cruise. Last week I talked about I went to GTM, which is Global Travel Marketplace, where we learn about suppliers. One of those suppliers is called Century Cruise Line. They do Yangtze River cruises, but they also package together all of these land programs. That's how I would do China. Century Cruise Lines is actually kind of interesting because Viking Waterways, Alma Waterways used to all do China, the Yangtze River, but that's one destination where they didn't own their ships. Century Cruise Lines operated Viking and Alma Waterways, Yangtze River cruises. And so with those cruise lines not coming back, they have seven ships and they needed something to do. So they decided they're just going to market their own cruises. So through Century Cruise Lines, Blue Planet Vacations, we can do a whole 10-11 night Yangtze experience that includes the most fascinating parts of China and the Yangtze River cruise.

Choosing The Right Hawaii Island

Patrick Wiscombe 13:02

Also, a little bit earlier this week, we received a uh was this a text? Yeah, from James.

Mark Faldmo 13:08

This was a text.

Patrick Wiscombe 13:08

Yeah. Okay. From James, he's asking, we're planning our first trip to Hawaii. Well, first of all, well done. You're gonna love it. But we're overwhelmed trying to choose an island. If you could give a quick description of the four main islands, how would you decide which island is right for us? That's a pretty easy question to answer. I would probably start with Oahu. Would you agree with that?

Mark Faldmo 13:35

Yeah, I would agree with that. It's best for the first-time visitors. You get Waikiki, Pearl Harbor, Polynesian Cultural Center, great restaurant, shopping, nightlife. You can go to the other side of the island, get great beaches and scenery. So Oahu has a little bit of everything.

Patrick Wiscombe 13:53

Yeah, the North Shore, don't forget that. That is awesome.

Mark Faldmo 13:57

It is. Yeah.

Patrick Wiscombe 13:58

My second choice would probably be Maui.

Mark Faldmo 14:03

Maui, yeah. Yeah, that that's kind of the best island for a combination of a resort stay and sightseeing. Great beaches, some good sightseeing, the road to Hana. Maui is great for couples, honeymooners, kind of wanting an upscale, relaxed vacation.

Patrick Wiscombe 14:22

Ooh, that's a good yeah, upscale. Yep, that's right.

Mark Faldmo 14:25

And then, you know, I we didn't even mention Halyakala, you know, go up to the volcano and see the moonscape up there. So so Maui is probably the most it's not the most visited, but it's probably the most requested island that I get.

Patrick Wiscombe 14:44

That's a great description. My personal choice would be Maui and then Oahu, probably.

Mark Faldmo 14:51

Yeah. Yeah. And then, you know, the other two islands, just quickly, Kauai, best for scenery and nature. Go around the Nepali coast and see the giant cliffs, has dramatic waterfalls. So it's known for its natural beauty, and it's probably the quietest island of all of the islands. Yep. And has the best hot dog shop in the world, Puka Dog. So I just have to get that in every time we talk about Kauai, because you know, get some of their coconut mango relish and a hot dog. It is great.

Patrick Wiscombe 15:26

I'm gonna guess that the big island's your probably your last choice.

Mark Faldmo 15:31

Yeah, Big Island, which is now Hawaii Island. They're trying to move away, they're trying to move away from the Big Island, and it's just the island of Hawaii or Hawaii Island.

Patrick Wiscombe 15:42

When did they do that? That feels like a recent thing.

Mark Faldmo 15:45

A few weeks ago. Oh, okay. There was a release on that. So I still call it the Big Island because Hawaii Island just confuses the whole thing because it's all Hawaii. But it's best for adventure and diversity. We've got volcano national parks, again, some pretty amazing waterfalls. So it's great for people that want to explore, but also don't mind driving around. A few years back, probably on the first three or four episodes of the podcast, we did uh my one day on Hawaii, what I would do. Yeah, you know, it's a full about 16-hour day, but drive all around the island. Maybe we'll have to redo that segment in a in a future show because it's it's a great tour.

Patrick Wiscombe 16:27

We mail it in one week. Yeah, just play this one.

Mark Faldmo 16:30

Yeah. The one thing is I say wouldn't ask which Hawaiian island is best. I would ask which Hawaiian island is best for the vacation I want. Because all the islands offer a slightly different vacation from each other.

Patrick Wiscombe 16:44

Oahu by far is the most commercial. And by the way, it is spectacular. I don't I don't want to knock it. It is absolutely spectacular. You wouldn't think that the islands of Hawaii would be that different, but they really are. So could we save James some money by going to Hawaii? I'm assuming we can.

Mark Faldmo 17:04

Yes, yeah, we can. You know, that same offer that we talked about in Porta Vallarta for the Villa Premier is also good for Hawaii. So again, save up to $550 when you pay in full for a 2027 vacation and book by August 27th.

Patrick Wiscombe 17:19

Okay, so you have basically a week to take advantage of the $550 off. Have I got that right? Correct. Okay, so let me just recap everything. So we've got the Puerto Vallarta for $550 for the 2027 vacations. Pay in full now, travel anytime in 2027 if I've got that right. And we've also got the uh save up to $550 when you pay in full for a vacation going to Hawaii in 2027, but both vacations have to be booked by August 27th. Have I did I recap that right?

Mark Faldmo 17:59

That's correct. Yep.

Patrick Wiscombe 18:01

Okay. Take advantage of it. You will never go ever ever go wrong. Going to Hawaii. Never. You just you can't have a bad vacation. If you do, it's on you. Call Mark in the office. Take advantage of the offer. 888-718-7717-888-718-7717. And he will also post this on the website, blueplanetvacations.com. When we come back, it is time for the Just Cruising segment, the segment of the show that has made us famous around the country and around the world. We'll be talking about Princess already releasing their 2028 season Alaska package. We've got Royal Caribbean news. They're also doing something with their 2027-2028 season. And we'll talk about MSC opening another island. That is next when the Inside Travel Talk Podcast radio show continues. Alongside my good friend Mark Faldmo, owner of Blue PlanetVacations.com. My name is Patrick Wiscombe. Thank you so much for listening. We will be right back. Give us about 60 seconds.

Todd Carlson 19:28

Taking you to destinations around the world. The Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show is presented by BluePlanet Vacations.com. America's Best Travel Advisors. Call or text the show now. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. Thanks for listening. We'll be right back.com. America's best travel advisor. Call or text the show right now. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. And check out the podcast at Insight Travel Talk.com. Here's Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.

Patrick Wiscombe 20:44

Welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and radio show. Hello there, I'm Patrick Wiscombe, The Vacation Nerd, alongside

Cruise Segment Sail Away Energy

Patrick Wiscombe 20:54

Mark Faldmo, the owner of Blue PlanetVacations.com. This is the segment of the show called just a cruising segment that is only about cruise news, it's only about cruise vacations. There is no better sound than when you take off from port than to hear the ship horn. That just happens to be the ship horn of Norwegian's Aqua. And there is just something exciting about being on a big cruise ship as you pull out of port, sail away. You're up on whatever deck the uh the sail away party is, and every ship has them. It is absolutely awesome. And you know that the vacation is officially started when you hear the horn. It is just an absolute blast when you get up there and just start dancing with your fellow passengers. And you have to remember you're never gonna see these people again. You might see on the ship and they might go, hey, that guy was dancing weird. I would be that man. Elaine from Seinfeld comes to mind the way I dance. Yeah. I can see that. It's not that bad. Let's get to the cruise news. Princess has opened up their 2028 Alaska season. We're not even done with 2026. I mean, it's coming to an end. They bake what

Princess Opens Alaska 2028 Booking

Patrick Wiscombe 22:10

another six, seven weeks, and then they're it'll be over just like that.

Mark Faldmo 22:14

The reason why we put it in is because that's when you get the best deals, you have the most options of cabins. If you're looking to go to Alaska on Princess in twenty twenty eight, now is a great time to book. Yeah, you can. Book with refundable deposits, have access to probably most of the ship as far as cabins go, and also usually it is the best price. So if you're looking for Alaska, now is the time to buy You love Princess in Alaska. I do. I think Princess is the best way to sell to Alaska.

Patrick Wiscombe 22:47

And they have great itineraries as well.

Mark Faldmo 22:50

They do, yeah. And their glacier permits that they have are better than any other cruise line, so they can do some things that most of the other cruise lines can't do.

Patrick Wiscombe 22:58

Royal Caribbean is expanding their Asia-Pacific adventures for the 2027-2028 season.

Mark Faldmo 23:06

I think Royal

Royal Caribbean Expands Asia Cruises

Mark Faldmo 23:07

Caribbean sees a big advantage to moving ships to Asia. The last few weeks we've probably had, and even today, we've talked about Asia a lot more than we've talked about Asia in the past because it is becoming that hot destination.

Patrick Wiscombe 23:22

We've been doing this uh show for what three years? Three years. Yeah. This is the most we've ever talked about Japan. Not even close.

Mark Faldmo 23:30

Yeah. So in the Asia Pacific area, Royal Caribbean will have three ships in Australia, and they'll have three to eight night sailings on those. They'll have a ship from Brisbane, ship from Sydney, and then one ship that'll kind of go between both of them. And then they'll have Voyager of the Seas, which will move in 2028 to Asia. It'll do Singapore, Hong Kong, and Tokyo in between. Again, it will also have four and five night options, which would be great to pair with another Asian land vacation. One thing in that Voyager season is it'll be right there, right in the middle of the cherry blossom festival. I've always wanted to be in. Yeah, so that's a good thing. And then they will have the navigator of the seas for a full year in Singapore. So lots of options to get to that kind of Southeast Asia, Australia area on rural Caribbean.

Patrick Wiscombe 24:25

MSC Cruises has unveiled. This one surprised me. They have unveiled a Catalina Sugar Beach destination.

MSC Adds Dominican Beach Stop

Patrick Wiscombe 24:34

So it's another island, basically, in the Dominican Republic. So this would be in addition to their ocean key. They haven't made any announcements about their little key, which is basically all the dredging that created the new little island, but there is construction going on. And then there was this one. So that's why I was like, whoa, they dropped another one on us.

Mark Faldmo 24:57

Catalina Sugar Beach will be opening in November of 2026. It's an island off of La Ramana in Dominican Republic. La Ramana is actually a home port for one of their ships. So they have a ship that leaves from La Ramana. Oh, that's right. I forgot. Caribbean cruises has a lot of Europeans that go on it, but you can get there for the North American market. But what's interesting about this is this is not a completely private island for MSc because they've developed it in conjunction with the Casa del Campo resort and villas. And so there are some hotel guests that will have access to that beach area, but it'll also be available for explorer journeys. So both MSC cruises and explorer journeys will visit that island. And then the guests of that hotel. This will be a little bit different than your typical private island because they will actually operate lots of shore excursions like you would normally get from the cruise ship. So they have things that go to the mainland, and you know, you'll get lots of different excursions rather than just the typical private island escape. And these private destinations are becoming more and more popular. So why not add another one in the Caribbean?

Patrick Wiscombe 26:13

I know you've had some calls this week about cruising in the Western Caribbean. So let's define what Western Caribbean is. That would

Western Caribbean Mayan Ruins Bargain

Patrick Wiscombe 26:22

be Costa Maya, and I'm blanking on I was gonna say Costa Vita, but that's just because I'm hungry.

Mark Faldmo 26:29

Yeah.

Patrick Wiscombe 26:30

Costa Maya. What's the other places? I can't think of them.

Mark Faldmo 26:33

Roatan?

Patrick Wiscombe 26:34

Yeah, okay, yes.

Mark Faldmo 26:35

Yeah. Yeah. So yeah, I've I've had some calls that want to do kind of, you know, we used to call it the exotic Western Caribbean. Yeah. So that go to Belize, Roatan. This particular caller wanted to go see some Mayan archaeological sites. So I immediately thought of this itinerary. Seven-day Western Caribbean on Princess. Oh. That goes to Cosmel. Cosmel, that was the other one. Yeah. Cosmel, Belize City, and Roatan, which is an island uh owned by Honduras. But when he mentioned Mayan Ruins from Belize City is my favorite shore excursion, probably ever, which goes to Lamanae, is the name of it. Ruins. And so you get off the boat, you take a bus for about an hour, then you get on a speed boat for about an hour and go up to this Mayan ruin that is only accessible by going up this river. And so it kind of seems like the jungle cruise a little bit to me. And then you come to this beautiful Mayan archaeological site. You have lunch there, and then you head back the same way to the cruise ship. So one thing that I like about this is the price. So currently, right now, Princess Cruises has uh 40% off the cruise fare, but you can get a balcony cabin, and this is for January 30th, is the date that I looked. Balcony cabins start at 9.19 per person.

Patrick Wiscombe 28:05

Whoa. Where does it go out of?

Mark Faldmo 28:07

Is it is it goes it goes out of Fort Lauderdale?

Patrick Wiscombe 28:10

Oh, okay. Whoa, okay. So you're going for a uh a bit of a ride then.

Mark Faldmo 28:14

Yes, yeah. So it it's a great option. And even Cosmel, if you wanted to do like Tulum, you can do a Tulum excursion, see some more Mayan art archaeological sites. How much was that again?

Patrick Wiscombe 28:28

Inside, did you say inside cabin is 919? Balcony cabin is nine nineteen.

Mark Faldmo 28:34

Inside cabin starts at five forty-nine.

Patrick Wiscombe 28:36

Oh get a balcony. If you can swing it financially, get a balcony, especially for that part of the world. Yes. Yeah. Should we call that the cruise deal of the week? Let's call that the cruise deal of the week. Okay, there it is. Round trip Fort Lauderdale, Western Caribbean Balcony 919. Book it. Just go. I know we're on the air right now, but just call Mark in the office. He'll return your call. 888-718-7717-888-718-7717. And he will also post this on Blue Planet Vacations.com. This is called This Or That European Vacation Edition, or at least that's the theme this week. So I'm going to give you two places to

Europe Vacation This Or That

Patrick Wiscombe 29:20

go. And we want our listeners to play along with us at home. See if you agree with us or disagree with us. You have two weeks exploring Italy or two weeks exploring Greece. Which one are you going to do?

Mark Faldmo 29:34

I think I'm choosing Greece. Really? Because I've been to Italy several times. So Greece would have a lot of new destinations for me. And Greece would also involve probably some sort of cruise or ferry service, just interesting modes of travel to fully see Greece.

Patrick Wiscombe 29:54

My choice would be Italy, but that's just because I haven't been there. So I think I would choose Italy over Greece. Question number two. You're going to go European river cruise or are you going to do a Mediterranean Ocean cruise? That would depend on the porch for me.

Mark Faldmo 30:13

I would say a river cruise.

Patrick Wiscombe 30:15

Yeah, me too. Question number three, you're spending your European vacation visiting London, Paris, and Rome. Or you want to go exploring small towns and the countryside. I think I would probably go big cities, London, Paris, and Rome, all three. Absolutely for me. You?

Mark Faldmo 30:34

Yeah. I would do the small towns and countryside. I've been to those big cities several times, so looking for something new. But if you haven't been to Europe a whole lot, you would definitely want to start with those bigger cities, London, Parish, Rome, and see all that they have to offer.

Patrick Wiscombe 30:51

Question number four. When are you going to Europe? Are you going during the summer with the uh the long days and the warm weather? Or you're going to go to Europe during shoulder season with fewer crowds and cooler temperatures. I'm immediately voting for shoulder season with fewer crowds and cooler temperatures. That's my vote.

Mark Faldmo 31:08

Yep. Yep. I would do shoulder season by far. And you get a lot better prices too.

Patrick Wiscombe 31:14

That's this or that European vacation edition. Let's get to the final part of the show. Here is Mark's Vacation Tips and Tricks is presented by Grizzly Tires, specifically for our listeners here in Utah. If you

What Never Goes In Checked Bags

Patrick Wiscombe 31:29

need tires or auto service you can trust, go to Grizzly Tire Alignment and Auto Service for top tire brands, alignments, oil changes, and more. Call them at 801-895-4749 or just go to Grizzly Tires.com. I think this was actually a question from one of our listeners, Julie. I usually check my luggage when I travel. However, what are the things I should never put in my checked bag? Well, there's a few things.

Mark Faldmo 32:01

Our answer is try and always do just a carry-on. Yeah. But that isn't always possible. Right.

Patrick Wiscombe 32:07

Sometimes toiletries can it is kind of the ceiling.

unknown 32:10

Yeah.

Patrick Wiscombe 32:11

That you can't get around.

Mark Faldmo 32:12

So my rule is just imagine losing your suitcase for 24 to 48 hours. What would you need if your bag was lost? So you'll always keep medication with you, keep your passport and travel documents, money, credit cards, valuables, electronics, and chargers. In fact, a lot of you know, like lithium batteries cannot be in checked bags, so they have to be in your carry-on.

Patrick Wiscombe 32:37

Oh, that's right.

Mark Faldmo 32:38

Keys. Also try and always keep at least one change of clothes with you and basic toiletries. That sounds pretty typical. I think most people would say, yeah, that's what I do, but I'm amazed at how many people show up to trips when their bag is lost and they have nothing. Or they've checked their medication and we have to call the doctor and try and find a pharmacy and try and get medications to them. And so pack as if you're gonna lose your bag, which probably won't happen, but still pack that that you might be missing your bag for a day or two.

Patrick Wiscombe 33:11

In fact, that might be one of the best tips you've ever given. Pretend like you don't have this and all you have is a carry-on. Put that stuff in there.

Mark Faldmo 33:19

Yep.

Patrick Wiscombe 33:20

Julie, hope that answers the question. Before we take off, let's recap the cruise deal of the week. Mark, I'll leave that to you.

Mark Faldmo 33:28

Yep, so

Deal Recap And Final Push

Mark Faldmo 33:29

that was a seven-day Western Caribbean cruise uh starting in January that visited um some great places to see Mayan archaeological sites. Uh, Princess Cruises balcony cabin start at 919, inside cabin start at 549.

Patrick Wiscombe 33:46

Take advantage of that offer. Go to the Caribbean. It is awesome. Nikki and I spend an entire month there on four back to back to back-to-back cruises with two days off. That's it. Call Mark in the office. 888-718-7717-888-718-7717. And he'll also post all of this on blue planetvacations.com. New episodes of this show are released every weekday on my website, TheVacationNerd.co. It's not dot com, it's dot co. TheVacationNerd.co. And weekly on Mark's site, inside traveltalk.com. And this show is available on all podcast platforms. Just do a search for Inside Travel Talk or The Vacation Nerd on your favorite podcast platform. Well, that's it. We are done. We've done our job. Now it's your turn to get out and see the world. Life is short. Book a trip. Quit talking about doing stuff. Just get out there and do it. And we'll help you get there. Mark will absolutely help you do that. Call Mark in the office, 888-718-7717. Alongside my good friend, Mark Faldmo, my name is Patrick Wiscombe, the Vacation Nerd. Thank you so much for listening. We truly appreciate you joining us for the show. We don't have a podcast or a business without you. Go make it a fantastic week. We'll talk to you next weekend.

Todd Carlson 35:24

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 Blue Planet Vacations.com. Book your adventure right now. Call 888 718 7717. That's 888 718 7717. Thanks for listening. Have a great week.