Welcome Aboard And Today’s Lineup

Todd Carlson 0:17

You're listening to The Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show, presented by BluePlanetVacations.com. America's Best Travel Advisors. Call or text The show now. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. And check out The podcast at InsightTravel Talk.com. Here's Patrick and Mark.

Patrick Wiscombe 0:50

All aboard. You are listening to The Inside Travel Talk Podcast and radio show. Alongside Mark Foldbo, my name is Patrick Wiscombe. Thank you so much for allowing both of us to be part of your weekend. Coming up in this particular segment of The show, always in segment three, we've got The infamous Just Cruising segment. This week we are going to Vietnam and Cambodia. And we've got a good deal. If you've always wanted to visit that part of The world, stay tuned. That's coming up here in this segment. We will also be talking with Laura Okanowski with MSc Cruises. And uh Mark, did you watch The big game? We can't say it for trademark purposes. Did you watch The big game last Sunday, six days ago? I did.

Mark Faldmo 1:40

Yep. Had a good little party, ate some good food, watched kind of a boring football game, but before we get to Laura, let's do The cruise news headlines.

Disney Doubles Down On Alaska

Patrick Wiscombe 1:49

And I saw this story that Disney Cruise Line is sending a second ship to Alaska. Now I think this is a brilliant move on their part because Alaska is so popular.

Mark Faldmo 2:00

It is. the Disney Wonder has been doing Alaska for a few years, and now they're sending The Disney Magic to double their presence. They do round trip voyages and they hit The typical port Skagway Juno Ketchikan. Most sailings will visit Dawes Glacier, and then The Magic's itineraries will feature a stop in Icy Strait Point.

Patrick Wiscombe 2:22

With The second ship going to Alaska, meaning Disney, is it on sale yet? What's The plan there?

Mark Faldmo 2:28

Yes and no. Right now, it's in an early booking period for Disney's castaway club members, and that will go through Monday. And so on Tuesday, Disney is releasing their summer 2026 sailings. These Alaska Cruises, along with their summer schedule to Europe, all of that will be on sale to The general public. You can book that, right? I can. Yeah. If you're a castaway club member, as long as you have your number, I can book that. I want to get your opinion. What'd you think about MSC Cruiser's commercial? I loved The commercial. Being a marketer, I thought it was brilliant. One of The problems that MSC has had is it's a very European brand. And some Americans just don't get that when they sail on MSc. And so they built this ship, purpose-built, The MSC World America, to sail in The US market. So how they did that commercial with Orlando Bloom and Drew Barrymore was perfect. They had Orlando Bloom playing The European, it's kind of like The tomato tomato type thing,

MSC’s Big Ad And Brand Shift

Mark Faldmo 3:32

you know, and so they were showing how they're keeping their European heritage while still catering to The American market.

Patrick Wiscombe 3:40

Let's bring in one of my favorite people, MSC Cruises Laura Okanowski. Hi there. Hi. Let's talk about The big game commercial about MSC's World America. That ship is beautiful.

Laura Okonowski 3:54

Stunning. Yes. the MSc World America is really, I think, going to be a game changer in terms of vacation experiences. Given The commercial, we are now launching a campaign and it is really echoing European style and American comforts. And when you think about it, if you've ever been to Europe, have you?

Patrick Wiscombe 4:17

I never have. No. Mark has quite a bit. I've been several times. Yeah.

Laura Okonowski 4:22

Okay.

Laura Breaks Down World America

Laura Okonowski 4:22

There is a feeling of tradition. There's a feeling of renaissance. There's a feeling of just a refinery, I think. Yeah. When you visit Europe. And when you come on board The ships that MSC Cruises offers in its fleet, you feel that as soon as you walk on board. And when we now look to The launch of this beautiful brand new ship in April, World America, she is going to be just decked out in European styling and have all The comforts that us Americans are accustomed to in terms of restaurants galore, 19 restaurants, 18 bars and lounges throughout, a full family aventura district, which is going to have gaming areas. Oh, and The best part, oh my gosh, I can't wait to do this. You can go up to deck 11 and you can take an interior slide that will come down to The promenade area. It's 250 feet long. And there are just so many fun, family-centered things to do. And I'm just very much looking forward to seeing The new ship in person.

Patrick Wiscombe 5:39

What's The response been to World America, The new vessel?

Laura Okonowski 5:44

People are eager to get on board. People have been making bookings for several months, and we are seeing a surge of interest now on our MSC Cruise's website in talking with The travel advisors that I work with. They are getting inquiry after inquiry regarding this. So people were watching The big game on Sunday, and they sure did see MSC Cruise's commercial come to life.

Patrick Wiscombe 6:10

the main theme of The commercial was Europeans going on holiday and Americans going on vacation. I want to zero in on that part of The ad.

Laura Okonowski 6:22

Yes, Patrick, you got it. the campaign really is called Let's Holiday. You know, here in America, people go on vacation, but Europeans, they go on holiday. While a vacation is a break from life, a holiday really is a more of a celebration of it. And at MC Cruises, we holiday and we want to set that stage for guests when they come on board, when they see our ships, they are very stylish. There's a certain panache about them. And there's really that sophistication that is The essence of The vessels as you walk throughout. Yet it has all those wonderful American comforts. We as Americans, we associate a lot of comfort and emotion with food. We want certain foods when we gravel, don't we? We might want a burger and fries, a burger on The go. We might want pizza at midnight. So we have all these customary things that Americans love, but I think we can maybe take a page out of The European playbook and linger a little bit longer. Maybe sip sangria by The pool, maybe have that two-hour five-course dinner. Not every night, but maybe once in a while. So that's really, I think, what was coming across in that wonderful commercial The other day.

Patrick Wiscombe 7:39

You've seen a ton of traffic on MSc cruises. You've had travel advisors calling you about MSc World America. Let's get people on The ship now. What promotions do you have for World America and just MSc cruises in general? But let's start with World America.

Laura Okonowski 7:55

Well, for World America, you know, The voyages will begin April of this year. So if you are looking to book that special holiday, be it a family reunion, maybe a graduation party, maybe a summer come-along family fun. Now is The time to lock in those best prices. We are very competitive in The marketplace with The launch of The ship, and The onboard amenities will not disappoint. You can give a call to Blue Planet Vacations and talk to Mark and his team there or reach out to them in other ways. But beyond World America, there are some amazing things happening as well in Galveston, Texas, not too far away, starting in November of 2025. And you know, we're about to celebrate a holiday on Monday, The 17th of February, that holiday being President's Day. And of course, MSC has a very special promotion in conjunction with The coming holiday. So beginning on The 14th of February through Monday, The 17th, we will be offering up to 40% off on several cruises on both World America leaving out of Miami, wonderful Western and Eastern Caribbean itineraries. Also offering Galveston opportunities leading out of that area on November of 25. And The Galveston departures will be The Seascape ship, where a beautiful terminal is actually being built right now and underway for The departure and home porting of that particular ship.

Patrick Wiscombe 9:33

Wait, so is Seascape moving from Miami over to Galveston now?

Laura Okonowski 9:37

It is.

Patrick Wiscombe 9:38

Oh, that's a change.

Laura Okonowski 9:39

Yes, it will be. So that it'll be home ported right there in Galveston to do The seven-night voyage that will be visiting Costa Maya, Mexico, Roatan, Honduras, and Cosmo, Mexico with some sea days speckled in. So great opportunity there. And I'm not afraid to say it. I'm going to mention it. My colleagues at MSC cruises have done The math, and I'm just going to put it out there. Our voyages at MSC leaving out of Galveston are literally 30% lower in cost of cruise fare versus some of our competitors. A big competitor starting with a C. Do you have an idea who that might be?

Mark Faldmo 10:18

Patrick. I know. Carnival.

Laura Okonowski 10:24

Oh, yes. So our voyages are 30% lower. Why are we doing this? You know, someone asked me The other day, well, what's wrong with The voyage? Why is it 30% off? Well, we just really need to get our name on The map for Galveston. So MSC Cruises is coming to town and we want people to know it.

Patrick Wiscombe 10:43

I am genuinely surprised how aggressively priced less than competitors to get in The market. And I think that The way that MSc is going about it is kind of amazing, really.

Laura Okonowski 10:57

It really is. I was on a conference call earlier today with our senior VP of marketing, and she referred to MSc when we first came on The scene in America. We had been known as a challenger, a challenger cruise line in The US because we were really kind of challenging The way of cruising and The bear of cruising and The way that we position our cruises. And now I really have to say, and I'm proud to say, that we are right alongside all of these big brands that have been in existence for a very long time. MSC is gaining a lot of momentum and a lot of interest. And it feels really great. I've personally been on The ships and we do an amazing job with service, with food, with entertainment. Oh, and one of my favorite things about World America too. I grew up in The era of dirty dancing. I remember going to when I was 13 years old. And that was like a, you know, a big deal because I think it was PG 13. So you had to be 13. And dating myself with that, you're probably going to look up The year that it launched. But we will have one of our entertainment venues is going to be dirty dancing live. So we are so excited about that. There's also a nod to The musical group Queen, where there's going to be a tribute to them with a lot of songs and costuming. And we are just doing a lot of fun, amazing things coming up here on our ships.

Patrick Wiscombe 12:24

No one puts Laura Okanowski in a corner, maybe.

Laura Okonowski 12:29

You got it, Padget. MSC might may have been a little unknown in The past, but we are definitely known now. And in prior podcasts with you, I have shared that MSC doesn't necessarily stand for Mediterranean Shipping Company. It should stand for more ships coming, but I just won. I think it should stand for more surprises coming because we all want more surprises on The way with MSC. So let's get holidaying together, shall we?

Patrick Wiscombe 13:00

Are you going on The inaugural sailing? I am.

Laura Okonowski 13:19

I haven't seen my booking yet, but I've been told that I should be packing a bag for that inauguration, yes, out of Miami on April 9th.

Patrick Wiscombe 13:29

Always fun to have Laura on the show. We went a little bit long, so we'll do The cruise deal of the week in The next segment. I promise we will get to it. And we are headed to Vietnam and Cambodia on The Mekong River in 2025 because space is still available. I promise we'll get to it next segment. If you're interested in booking, getting on any, really any MSC cruise, call Mark in his office 888-718-7717-888-718-7717 or visit BluePlanetVacations.com. When we come back, not only do we have The cruise deal of The week, but we've also got Mark's travel tips and Margarita Ville at Sea Paradise, that particular ship, is going under some much needed refurbishment. We'll talk about that next when The Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio show continues. Alongside Mark Faldmo, my name is Patrick Wiscombe. Thank you. Truly, thank you for making this part of your weekend. We'll be right back.

Todd Carlson 14:41

They've literally traveled millions of miles to answer your travel-related questions. Yeah, they really have. You're listening to The Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show, presented by BluePlanetVacations.com. America's best travel advisors. Patrick and Mark will be back after these messages.com. America's best travel advisors. Call or text The show now. 801-649-3700. 801-649-3700. And now, here's Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo.

Patrick Wiscombe 15:51

Welcome back inside of The Inside Travel Talk Podcast and Radio Show. My name is Patrick Wiscombe alongside Mark

Margaritaville Paradise Gets A Refresh

Patrick Wiscombe 15:59

Faldmo. We are so grateful that you are listening to this show. Without you, we don't have a radio show, we don't have a podcast, we don't have a business. Thank you so much. We are really starting to make some traction, not only connecting with customers, but we're also getting a lot of traction with our listeners. So thank you again. the number of downloads that we get each and every single week, The number of people who listen to us on The radio network. Honestly, we couldn't do it without you. So thank you so much for allowing us into your ears. As we come back from break, let's get to The travel news headlines. Now, Mark and I were on this particular ship, Margarita Ville at Sea Paradise. What was it about 10 months ago? Yeah, it was April of 2024.

Mark Faldmo 16:45

Yeah, April of 2024.

Patrick Wiscombe 16:48

And they just announced what appears to be a refurbishment.

Mark Faldmo 16:52

Yeah, this is a major refurbishment which The ship needs. It's an older ship, so it has to go through these refurbishments a lot more often than most ships. It was originally built in 1991 for Costa Cruises. There aren't very many, at least of The ships that we're familiar with, sailing that are older than about 2000. Most of them are newer. And so, as we noticed, it did have lots of areas where it probably needed some refurbishment. But they're going to completely redo The dining and beverage experience, new entertainment. And they are going to make some changes to The cruise terminal there in Palm Beach to make The boarding process a little bit simpler. That was a yeah. So hopefully Patrick doesn't have to wait in line for two hours while Mark went to get the car.

Patrick Wiscombe 17:47

That was bad. Hey, anyone here have uh global entry? Mark raises his hand for another line. CF okay, I'll see you in two hours. That was pretty rough.

Mark Faldmo 17:56

This ship, it's probably not a ship that a lot of people listening would go on. It mainly does two-night cruises to Gram Bahama Island, but it has started doing three and four-day cruises as well, where it also adds in NASA. It mainly does short cruises. Its main target audience is basically The Florida market. But they do get some people from elsewhere. If I if I had two or three days to burn, I might do that. I like to be out on The ocean and it's a fairly affordable product. Very affordable. Did you say they're redoing The food? Just The The dining room. So they're not redoing The quality of The food, but they are redoing how The dining room looks.

Patrick Wiscombe 18:36

Okay, all right. Because I was gonna say The The main dining room food was excellent. At least when we were there, it was really, really good. It was really good. Yeah. Buffet, they could probably tweak that. They do need to improve that one for sure. Yeah, The dining room was good, and The burger in paradise was good.

Mark Faldmo 18:52

Oh my goodness. How many burgers did I have? It was a two-night. You probably had 12. No, I did. Lunch and dinner. I didn't have 12.

Patrick Wiscombe 19:02

I know. Okay, maybe six. That's five or six. Italy is proposing a new law to protect accommodations and restaurants from fake and paid-for

Italy Takes On Fake Reviews

Patrick Wiscombe 19:17

online travel reviews. I'm curious about this story.

Mark Faldmo 19:21

They're targeting online reviews because far too often many of The reviews are are fake or paid for. There are a lot of businesses that go out and pay for reviews. There are some businesses that pay for reviews, bad reviews for their competitors. That's pretty greasy to me. Yeah. And so Italy is trying to combat this. One thing that they are gonna require for reviews that are displayed in Italy are for hotels and restaurants, proof of stay or proof of you know using that service. So provide a receipt or something before The uh review can actually be posted on The review site. So there's a pause basically for verification. Correct. I don't know how they're gonna do that because I assume this is going to apply to TripAdvisor and all of those sites, Airbnb, all of those sites that have review services. Looking at some of The reviews and comparing to my experiences there, a lot of times I'm like, is this a real review? It's always hard to say. So if Italy can get that down, I hope The industry just adopts that because I think you should only be able to leave a review if you actually used The service.

Patrick Wiscombe 20:36

Yeah, agreed. As we went to break, I promised that we would get to The cruise deal of The week, which is Vietnam and Cambodia, The Mekong River in 2025,

Mekong River Deal Vietnam Cambodia

Patrick Wiscombe 20:47

because space is still available. What promotion do we have for listeners this week, Mark?

Mark Faldmo 20:52

the promotion is save up to $1,500 or get a two-for-one land package. And I'm actually looking at some of these prices. I don't think I've ever seen this Vietnam and Cambodia. So Mekong cruise this low. This is on AMA Waterways, which is that's your favorite of The river cruises. That is that that's my favorite brand. You know, one thing that I I like about this is you know, we've talked about river cruising. You're on a smaller ship, not as many people. This ship in Mekong is even smaller, it has 64 cabins on it, so 128 guests. So wow. It is about a third smaller than even The river cruise ships. So what ship is this from AMA? It's called The Amadara. Have you been on this one? This ship. I've not I've not been on this one. I do look forward to doing this one day. And one thing that I really like about this is you do start in Ho Chi Minh City or end in Ho Chi Minh City, depending on which direction you go. And then you do go to SEMREAP and Ingor Wat area. There is a land portion of this that's really interesting. What's The price on The Mekong River? As we mentioned, there still are several dates in 2025 that are available. the very best price, and again, I don't think I've ever seen this river cruise this low, starts at $2,089 per person.

Patrick Wiscombe 22:22

Wow.

Mark Faldmo 22:22

And that's August 11th. Now I can tell you why it's that low because August 11th is a pretty hot and humid time to be there compared to other dates. If you get later into October, November, you know, that's $1,200 to $1,400 lower than other dates. So that August 11th or September 8th is also a pretty good date. And on both of those, you can either get $1,500 off per person or get a two for one land. I probably would do The land and go see The stay a little bit longer before The cruise because logistically The beginning and end of this cruise are a little bit challenging.

Patrick Wiscombe 23:02

Well, it'll give you time to adjust your body clock as well. Yes. How far ahead of us time-wise are they right now? From Parents Salt Lake, I believe they're 14 hours ahead of us. Okay, that will mess with you. Yes. Yeah, I think you're right. Do The land portion. I mean, you're gonna save The money. You just pick and choose where you want to save The money. Have I got that right? That's correct. Yeah. That's gonna do it. Man, every week I say this. This hour goes by so fast.

Book With Mark And Final Thoughts

Patrick Wiscombe 23:33

Call Mark in his office. If you want to book any of The vacations that we have talked about for The last hour, call him. Just get The conversation started. There's no obligation. It is an amazing time to be alive because all you have to do is pick a destination, get on a plane, get on a boat, get on a train, however, you decide to get there. It's amazing that we even have that option. You can listen to this show again tomorrow morning, Sunday at 11 a.m. right here on this radio station. And you can stream, download, and subscribe to The podcast at InsideTravelTalk.com. We are on all of The major podcast platforms, and you can just stream The show on insideraveltalk.com. Just press play if you don't want to subscribe. Well, we've done our job. It is now your turn to get out and explore The world. And The reason I'm saying that is because you never know what curveballs life is gonna throw at you. Live your life deliberately, live your life intentionally. Thank you for listening. Have a great week. We'll talk to you again next Saturday and Sunday.

Todd Carlson 24:48

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 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.