More about our NEW River Cruise Video further down in this article.
But first, a few words on what’s happening with the pandemic.
Most of you who’ve followed us for a while, or chatted with us on the phone, know that we’re a “blended” family: Bob was born and raised in Canada while I was born and grew up in Iowa. This means we celebrate the holidays of both countries, and it was Canadian Thanksgiving this past Monday.
Canadian Thanksgiving is a much more muted affair than it is in the US, but they still get together with their families and reflect on the things they are thankful for. For me… it’s a chance to get a jump on such thoughts, so I get to articulate what I’m thankful for six weeks early.
I am especially thankful that many of you have started to travel again. We never stopped being busy through the entire pandemic, but you are probably aware that travel agents only get paid AFTER people travel, so it’s nice to be busy AND earn an income (after many months of working hard for NO income).
In the past few weeks, there have been several signals that we are transitioning from “pandemic” to “endemic”. The pragmatic effects of this are hard to articulate because travel conditions have actually changed very little. This is more of a psychological change in terms of how people are viewing the world and travel within it.
To over-simply the change: People have stopped waiting for the pandemic to be over and are instead asking what they need to do to manage the impact the pandemic will have on their travel.
The signals we are getting from other regions most commonly travelled by Americans (Europe, Australia/New Zealand, Canada, Caribbean) is that the current hurdles required to enter their countries are likely to remain in place for some period of time yet. The good news is that clients returned from recent trips have overwhelmingly reported that these hurdles are quite manageable. A pain in the butt, perhaps… but manageable.
So, here’s a sentence I NEVER thought I would write: “I am happy for the endemic nature of covid”… at least if it means we can travel again.
Here are today’s travel opportunities, and today it’s all about layering-up multiple offers on top of each other for amazing value with our two MOST inclusive cruise partners:
Regent Seven Seas
We have access to an EXCLUSIVE sale in partnership with Regent Seven Seas, with savings between $300 and $2000 per suite for select cruises booked by October 21st.
This is for a product that is already very inclusive (the MOST inclusive of all ocean cruise lines). Your fare includes:
- FREE Roundtrip Air (Business Class for flights to Europe)
- 1-Night Pre-Cruise Hotel Package in Concierge Suites and Higher
- FREE Unlimited Shore Excursions
- Unlimited Beverages, Including Fine Wines and Spirits
- Open Bars and Lounges, Plus In-Suite Mini-Bar Replenished Daily
- Pre-Paid Gratuities
- Specialty Restaurants
- Transfers Between Airport and Ship
- Wi-Fi on the ship
Best of all, the savings from this exclusive sale are combinable with the Virtuoso perks we normally get you any time you book through our agency.
Here are some examples:
- Miami round-trip. 7-nights at $3499 departing Feb 14, 2022. PLUS $250 per person On Board Credit. PLUS a $125 per person personalized experience credit.
- Bridgetown, Barbados round trip. 7-nights at $3499 departing April 1, 2022. PLUS $250 pp OBC. PLUS $125 personalized experience credit.
- Barcelona to Istanbul (via Italy & Greece). 12-nights at $10,299 departing May 2, 2022. PLUS $250 pp OBC. PLUS $175 personalized experience credit.
To maximize the value of all these offers, you must book by October 21, 2021. If you’re looking for a getaway in the early part of 2022, there are several other options as well, in the Caribbean and the Mediterranean.
Uniworld Boutique River Collection
If you prefer to travel on the river, we’re seeing some interesting promotions with Uniworld. Much like Regent, they are allowing us to layer up various promotions that, when combined, provide truly compelling value. Uniworld is the most inclusive river cruise line.
We recently added a video to our YouTube Channel about 5 things Uniworld does to differentiate itself in the world of River Cruising.
Click here to watch the video: https://youtu.be/5inci9xXT0M
Here are some examples from Uniworld:
- Amazon River & Machu Picchu. 14-nights at $8999 per person ($5000 off). Depart on January 19th OR March 9th, 2022. This itinerary is round-trip from Lima, Peru. One week on the Amazon, 3 nights in lima and 4 nights near Machu Picchu.
- Rhine River from Basel to Amsterdam. 7-nights at $2199 per person. March 20, April 24, May 1, 8, 15, 22, 29, 2022 departures.
- Danube River from Budapest to Passau. 7-nights at $2199 per person. March 13, 27 or April 3, 10, 2022 departures.
- Po River in Italy from Milan to Venice. 9 nights at $2699 per person ($1000 off). Depart on April 8, April 15, or May 13,2022.
Here’s where the layering of offers comes into play:
- You can take an additional 10% off the above prices if book and pay for your trip by the end of October.
- We can get you $200 per person on board credit on any of these departures – but remember, you must book through us (The Pampered Cruiser).
PLUS: Anyone who wants to travel in the next few weeks can still get “Buy one river cruise, get the second one 50%”. The applies to any of the remaining departures in 2021.
Have something to say about this?
Join the conversation on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PamperedCruiser/posts/3117670808515412
If you’re planning a trip, I’d love to help! Click here or call 800-876-0168 to get in touch today.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sue Bradley
Sue Bradley
