Dear Babcia and YiaYia-
I have a great river cruise booked from Amsterdam to Basal, Switzerland! I’m so excited to see so many things. The cruise line says it will take care of my air arrangements if they want me to or I can do it myself. Is there a reason to not just have them take care of everything? I don’t quite see the reason why I would do it on my own?
It sounds like such a great deal! But there a couple of things you should know when it comes to those too good to be true travel deals.
- Getting a group rate airfare means that there is no upgrading and not many options. In short, the control of your flights does not belong to you.
- You pay for how your time is used and keep that in mind for everything that you do.
- You can’t use points or miles for upgrades
- You can add the trip to your account though
- If there is any delay or cancellations, the tour company or cruise line will be in charge of how the problem gets remedied.
The Before and After
Choose to fly in early and explore something close by or stay on later to enjoy after your tour. A few examples are PARIS, ROME, A GREEK ISLAND!
Even cruises are jumping on board the extended stays! Often, these are offered as an add on but look closely and you will see that they are easily arranged and cover simple venues and activities.
The Layover
The art of the layover has been analyzed from every angle possible!!! From Anthony Bourdain’s show to movies about airport life. The layover is a great way to capitalize on your time. Consider:
- Airport Layovers like Munich or Istanbul
- Get out layovers like Copenhagen or Heathrow
- Airports that might have a tougher layover: Dublin, Paris, Amsterdam You need MORE than 10 hours to make these worth it.
You have the options!
