Welcome And Travel Briefing

Todd Carlson 0:15

This is the Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show, presented by BluePlanetVacations.com. America's best travel advisors. Call or text the show right now. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. And now, here are your hosts, Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.

Patrick Wiscombe 0:52

This is the Inside Travel Talk Podcast Radio Show. Hello there, I'm Patrick Wiscombe, the Vacation Nerd, fresh back from the gym. Mark said it just as he was coming into the studio. So you're one of those people that buys the year-long membership and you actually use it. And the answer is yes. So if it sounds like I'm all hopped up on uh a runner's high, I guess I am. Unlike Mark, who has just come back from the dentist, who is actually high, right? The entire purpose of this travel podcast or radio show is to help you plan and book your next vacation and to give our listeners the latest travel news as well as the best travel and cruise deals designed to help save you time and money. So we want you to consider this your must-listen personal daily, weekly travel briefing if you love to travel or if you've had desires to start traveling. And this show is presented by that man on the other side of the glass, Mark Faldmo, his company called Blue PlanetVacations.com. How are you feeling, by the way? You doing all right? I'm pretty good. the gas is leaving your system, and I don't mean digestive, I'm talking about dental. Dental, yeah. Glad to be done with that. Oh, yeah. There's just something about the smell of a dentist's office that I just go, ooh. Yeah.

United’s New Premium Basic Fares

Patrick Wiscombe 2:19

Coming up in this first segment of the show, we have the hot travel deal of the week, but let's first start with the most important travel news from this past week. United said that they are gonna roll out more premium basic fares. All that says is basic that cost more.

Mark Faldmo 2:36

Yeah. So this is the basic fares that are unbundled. Oh, unbundled. So it's like the basic economy. What they're rolling out is for first class domestic and first class short haul international, which would be like to Mexico and Canada. In theory, you'll get a lower fare, but you don't get a seat assignment unless you pay for it. You do get one free checked bag. Normally, when you buy first class, you get two free checked bags. So they're reducing that. You won't have access to United's lounge and the basic first class fares, you can't make any changes or get refunds or flight credits for voluntary changes. Delta rolled this out a few months ago on their premium fares. United has been the next airline to follow, which I'm surprised because usually when one airline makes a change like this, all the others follow pretty quick. But it's been several weeks and now United's done it. We'll see if anyone else

American’s Automated Seat Upgrade Tool

Mark Faldmo 3:33

does it.

Patrick Wiscombe 3:34

American Airlines is launching or has launched an automated seat swapping tool in their American Airlines app.

Mark Faldmo 3:44

This is something I wish all airlines would do. What it is, if you book and there's only middle seats left, you choose a middle seat, but then in the app, you can go in and say, I want an aisle seat, I want a window seat, or I want an aisle or a window seat, whatever opens up. So you don't have to keep going in the app checking to see if there are seats available. So as soon as one becomes available, it'll put you in your seat of preference.

Patrick Wiscombe 4:11

Oh, I like that.

Mark Faldmo 4:12

the only thing that's excluded from this are exit row seats, because when you choose an exit row seat, you have to agree to terms and conditions. So exit row seats will not do this. But if you are unfortunate enough to be stuck in a middle seat, you can turn this on an American and hopefully get a better seat. And you don't have to keep checking. That's what I like about it. Because I constantly, when I get a middle seat, I'm always going in every day, every other day. Because it's surprising how often people switch seats, cancel, move, so things do open up.

Mexico Safety Misconceptions And Smart Habits

Patrick Wiscombe 4:44

One of the things that we wanted to talk about in this opening segment of the show is some of the misconceptions about travel to Mexico.

Mark Faldmo 4:53

Mexico is one of the most visited destinations by Americans. Yeah. But it's also one of the most misunderstood. A scary headline from one part of the country can suddenly make people question the whole country as a whole, even though something scary happened hundreds or thousands of miles away. Mexico is enormous, and the tourist destinations like Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, and Cabo are three very different and distinct destinations. So, you know, there's kind of five things to talk about. Don't judge Cancun, Puerto Vierto, or Cabo by something that happened hundreds of miles away. Safety conditions, just conditions in general, vary significantly by region. One thing that we've always talked about on this show is always going to the State Department's website, travel.state.gov, and look at the different levels and warnings that the State Department has put out for different regions of Mexico. For example, most of the tourist areas like Cancun, Cabo, they're at a level two, while several other parts that aren't really places tourists would go are a level three. Most of the places that you visit on vacation are a level two. There's very few level one destinations anymore out there. And then also, we've talked about the State Department step program. That's something where you can go register your trip, and the State Department will know where you're at and how to get a hold of you in case something does happen.

Patrick Wiscombe 6:21

There are tens of thousands travel to Mexico. What are the three major places where they visit?

Mark Faldmo 6:29

Cancun, Los Cabos, and Porta Vallarta. Those are the major tourist areas. And in 2005, nearly 14 million Americans traveled to Mexico. For this year, I think the numbers are even up five to ten percent from the 2025 numbers.

Patrick Wiscombe 6:45

So it's getting even more busy.

Mark Faldmo 6:47

It is.

Patrick Wiscombe 6:48

One thing that you've always said is that each destination, meaning Cancun, Cabo, Wabo, Cabo Wabo, Sammy Hagar in the mind, Cabo San Lucas, Puerto Vallarta, each destination have its own feel. So let's break down Cancun first.

Mark Faldmo 7:01

Cancun is on the Caribbean side. There's the Mayan culture, the archaeological sites, great beaches. Puerto Vallarta blends beaches with a more authentic Mexico. There's a lot more culture, I think, in Puerto Vallarta. Cabo combines a whole different environment, desert, ocean. It's a little bit more upscale in Cabo. So there's lots of different vacation experiences you can have in Mexico.

Patrick Wiscombe 7:28

Are you ever nervous when you travel to Mexico? At least those three spots.

Mark Faldmo 7:32

I'm not nervous when I travel to Mexico. I do keep up on the travel warnings and different things that can happen in Mexico. There's a few travel tips. Always use a reputable transfer company and reputable excursion company. That's one reason to use a good travel advisor. We have our vetted operators down there that we use all the time. They give us information. When you land at any of these destinations, before you even make it out to where your transfer company is, there's all the timeshare people. Oh, yeah. And they're basically just scams. And they say where your transfer, you'll say what company you're using, they'll say, Yes, that's us. And then they'll say, Oh, but your transfer wasn't paid for once you arrive to the resort, and they'll make you pay for a transfer that you've already paid for in most cases. So there are scams like that.

Patrick Wiscombe 8:21

Well, there's scams like that in Seattle.

Mark Faldmo 8:24

Yeah, there's scams like that everywhere. Mexico is one where it's talked about a lot more. And so you just want to make sure you're using reputable transfer companies.

Patrick Wiscombe 8:35

How many times have you been to Cancun? It's got to be at least three or four dozen at this point.

Mark Faldmo 8:40

Yeah, it's probably 30 or 40 plus times.

Top Requested Vacations For 2026

Patrick Wiscombe 8:44

It's kind of a natural segue into the top 10 most requested vacations in 2026 that can help you plan your vacation in 2027. Now I know Mexico's on the list, but let's first start with number 10, doing an African safari.

Mark Faldmo 9:00

This is kind of a thing I put together, but also looked at some travel advisor surveys and some tour operator surveys just to kind of put this together. And as you just mentioned, African safari was number 10, particularly South Africa on a lot of people's bucket list is an African safari. Most people used to think of that as a once-in-a-lifetime trip. And now it's kind of moved into that bucket list trips where people would go back again. This particular survey had South Africa, it was the main destination. I prefer Kenya for a safari, but South Africa is a little bit more affordable, and you see all of the same animals just in a slightly different setting. So African safari was number 10. What's number nine then?

Patrick Wiscombe 9:46

Number nine is Morocco. Really? Now that one surprises me. Now that I'm thinking about it, some of the shows that we've done in the past, there have been some great deals to go to Morocco.

Mark Faldmo 9:57

It's kind of moved beyond that exotic niche into a top trending destination. That's one destination I have not been to, but I'm excited. I'm going on that cruise in December where I will get to go to Casablanca and Marrakech as a shore excursion. And so I'm looking forward to visiting Morocco.

Patrick Wiscombe 10:16

You're going to be there in a couple months, basically.

Mark Faldmo 10:19

I will. I am ex I'm really excited for that trip. What's number eight on the list? Mexico and Caribbean All-Inclusive Resorts. the Riviera Maya ranks as one of the top five destinations for Americans. And as we just mentioned, 14 million people in 2025 and a little bit higher this year. So of those, they threw in Caribbean All-Inclusive into this. So that's Cancun and Punta Cana in Dominican Republic are kind of top in that destination. So that was number eight. Number seven is Portugal. It really isn't an emerging destination anymore. It's more mainstream. On some surveys, it's ranks among the top three destinations. I've had lots of requests for Portugal. That's a destination I personally have not been to, but my cruise ends in Portugal. So we're spending some extra time there to see Portugal. So you know, excited for that. But it is one that we are getting a lot of requests on.

Patrick Wiscombe 11:16

Number six is a place that I know that uh you love Greece, which is Greece and the Mediterranean.

Mark Faldmo 11:22

Yeah. Greece remains a top five destination in multiple surveys. Mediterranean is one of the strongest cruise segments as well. There's so many different ways you can experience it. You can go on a cruise, you can have island stays, you can get the history of Athens. There's just so many different areas of Greece where you get completely different trips. Either do it by cruise or by land. There's some great tours that you can visit, different destinations. What is number five on the list? So number five, again, it's another one we've talked a lot about, Japan. It's one of the most interesting destinations in 2026. It has become in the the US Travel Association list. Number one or two is most requested destinations. I think the great way to see Japan is by cruise.

Patrick Wiscombe 12:13

Oh, yeah.

Mark Faldmo 12:14

Because you get to see different regions, and that also helps you with some of the language and cultural barriers in Japan.

Patrick Wiscombe 12:20

It'd be cheaper to see it that way anyway, rather than flying to the individual cities. Cruise is a great way to do it. It is. Yeah. Number four on the list is what?

Mark Faldmo 12:29

River cruising in Europe. Oh, one of your favorites. Again, something we talk about quite a bit. It ranks as the number two travel style in 2026. It also fits kind of the broader demand that we're seeing of a more immersive experience, especially in Europe.

Patrick Wiscombe 12:47

How many European river cruises have you done? I've done on about 10.

Mark Faldmo 12:50

Yeah, okay. So that's what I was gonna say. One scheduled for next year. So my word. Looking forward to that.

Patrick Wiscombe 12:58

Number three, this is one of my favorites, which is Alaska.

Mark Faldmo 13:02

Alaska by cruise and land. So a cruise and tour. Alaska, which I find this is interesting in the U.S. Travel Association's list. It's the number one domestic destination. I think that might be Hawaii, but it's not. It's Alaska. It's been the most requested and the leading destination. In the last four weeks, we've talked about one version of the Aleutian Islands cruises by different cruise companies. Alaska has a lot to offer. Adventure scenery, wildlife, just a great destination.

Patrick Wiscombe 13:35

Number two on this list, both of our favorite places to take our wives.

Mark Faldmo 13:40

This is Caribbean and Bahamas cruises. It it deserves a high position. And this was about 6,000 cruisers. 78% had at least one cruise booked in 2026. And Caribbean and Bahamas was the leak leading destination among those travelers. There's so many different options, a lot of good ports. You know, we've talked about the private islands and the good job that cruise lines have done with those. It's just a great destination.

Patrick Wiscombe 14:09

It sure is. Number one on this list. Big drumroll here. That's not it.

Mark Faldmo 14:15

Number one on the list is what? Although that was a cricket sound, so it's somewhere where I think Gemini Cricket comes from. Italy. So and this is easy because I think ever since 2020, Italy has been the number one destination every year. It's number one in the U.S. Travel Association tour operators list, number one in several travel advisor surveys. the one thing that's interesting is it is there, but people are looking to go deeper into different areas like Sicily, Sardinia, and other regions. It's not your typical Rome, Florence, Venice, Amalfi Coast. Those continue to remain kind of the staples of the destination, but people are looking to do more of the undiscovered Italy.

Patrick Wiscombe 15:04

So part one, go to the big stuff. Part two or three, go to the smaller stuff.

Mark Faldmo 15:10

Go to the smaller stuff. Yeah. If you've already done the big things, there's so much more to Italy that you can see, other than the airport. You probably would fly into Rome, but there's so much more you can see in Italy rather than those big four

Hawaii Without Overspending

Mark Faldmo 15:22

destinations.

Patrick Wiscombe 15:24

Let's get to the hot travel deal of the week, which is always in this first segment of the show, and it's presented by Airwolf H V A C. If you're having air conditioning or heating problems, call Jason. He actually answers his phone. He'll come out and fix your issue. 801-735-3293-801-735-3293. Or you can just schedule the service on airwolf.com. That's A-I-R-E Wolf.com. Question from Heidi was we'd like to take Hawaii vacation, but everything we hear says Hawaii has gotten incredibly expensive. We don't need a luxury resort, but we don't want to feel like we're doing Hawaii on the cheap either. Are there ways to have a great vacation in Hawaii without spending a fortune? the answer is yes. Where do you want to start here, though? Because that's kind of a big question.

Mark Faldmo 16:14

There are several ways you can do that. Hawaii Convention and Visitors Bureau reports that the average person spends about $296 per person per day. This was in July, was when that number was reported. But with the right island, the right travel dates, a few smart decisions, you can control the cost without sacrificing what makes Hawaii special. You kind of have six things to think about. One is which island. If you want to be more affordable, I would start with Oahu.

Patrick Wiscombe 16:44

Yes, agreed.

Mark Faldmo 16:45

Um, you know, Oahu offers the best overall value. It has more flights, much larger selection of accommodation, so there's more competition. You can also stay in Waikiki without renting a car, which can be a big cost of the trip.

Patrick Wiscombe 17:00

Depending on the hotel that you stay at, sometimes they'll even take pick you up from the airport. Not all the time, but uh they will pick you up, and it is kind of nice. And I was surprised how close the airport was to Waikiki.

Mark Faldmo 17:12

Well, Oahu is one of those places that will help you save some money. Travel during so shoulder season. Look at April, May, or September to early November rather than holidays, spring break, peak summer, airfare and accommodations are less. Another thing is hotel selection, especially in Waikiki. You can stay in a hotel that's one or two blocks from the beach. You don't have to stay right on the beach, and that can often save you $100 to $200 per night, depending on the hotel. And they're good hotels too. There are, you know, like one we talk about quite a bit is the Sheraton Princess Kailani. It's a block off the beach, right across the street from that is the Hyatt Regency, kind of across the street, but not on the beach. There's outrigger hotels that are two or three blocks away from the beach that have really good prices. There are a lot of hotels in Hawaii that actually come with a kitchenette. This can make a big difference on your food cost. Oh, yeah. Um, you know, you can have breakfast in the room, go down to an ABC store, buy some milk and cereal, buy some things there, and not spend as much eating out. You know, for some of those, like breakfast. You don't need to go pay the $50 buffet at the hotel. Just get a room with a kitchenette and have some food in there and maybe even some things for lunch or light dinner if you need.

Patrick Wiscombe 18:31

Those ABC stores are everywhere.

Mark Faldmo 18:33

They're everywhere. They're like waffle houses in the south. There's there's one on every corner. And sometimes in between, too. Yeah. And another thing is don't automatically rent a car for the week, particularly in Oahu. It's walkable. You can take tours that like if you want to go to the Polynesian Cultural Center, they have transfers that leave right from Waikiki. A lot of the luaus have that. By not renting a car, what it'll save you on is parking at the hotel, which can run up to $70 a night at some of those hotels. Don't try and see every island. A lot of people want to get to multiple islands. If you're looking to have a good trip but stay on a budget, go to one, maybe two islands. You know, follow some of these other rules that we've talked about. the secret to Hawaii on a budget isn't making the vacation cheaper. It's deciding what's worth paying for.

Patrick Wiscombe 19:27

Yeah, there we go.

Mark Faldmo 19:28

Maybe you do want to pay for a room with a view. Maybe that doesn't matter, which will save you. You know, so there are lots of decisions that you can opt to do. It's not about spending less, it's about spending well.

Patrick Wiscombe 19:40

What are the promotions that we have for our listeners?

Hawaii Deals And Booking Deadlines

Mark Faldmo 19:43

the promotion, so the hot travel deal of the week is save up to $550 if you pay in full for Hawaii vacation. This is booked by October 15th. So there's about what is that, six days left to do that. Yep. And you'd have to travel between February 1st and December 15th of 2027. Now that is stackable with some other discounts. So right now in Hawaii, there's a save up to 45% of select Hawaiian hotels. And many of the hotels are also offering fourth or fifth night free. There are just three hotels that I want to highlight here. Most of the Hyatt hotels in Hawaii right now are 20% off.

Patrick Wiscombe 20:23

Oh wow.

Mark Faldmo 20:24

Many of the Hilton hotels are 25% off. And one that I think is a big plus, which you don't see a lot on Oahu, is the Alani, which is Disney's resort, is also 25% off right now.

Patrick Wiscombe 20:37

On a Disneyland resort hotel? Yeah. No way.

Mark Faldmo 20:40

Or not Disneyland, Disney Resort. Disney resort. Yeah. So there's some good deals right now to save on hotels. If you bundle that with the Air and Hotel package where you can save up to $550, it can give you some significant vacation savings. And I know airlines are competing right now in Hawaii as well. So there's a little bit of pressure on them. So the fares are slightly dropping, even though fuel costs are going up for them.

How To Book And What’s Next

Patrick Wiscombe 21:07

There have been some exceptional airfares going over to Hawaii. If you can somehow combo all of that together, and Mark can help you with all that, call him in the office. Get the conversation started. There's no obligation. 888-718-7717-888-718-7717, and he will post all of this on BluePlanet Vacations.com. When we come back, it is time for the world famous Just Cruising segment. We'll be talking about AMA Waterways unveils the look of its upcoming Mekong ship, the first celebrity river cruise ship, completes its float out. And of course, we have the cruise deals plural of the week coming up. That is next when the Inside Travel Talk Podcast or radio show continues. Alongside my friend Mark Faldmo, I am Patrick Wiscombe, The Vacation Nerd. Thank you so much for listening. We will be right back. Give us about two minutes.

Todd Carlson 22:07

Taking you to destinations around the world.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.