Michelle Higgins of The New York Times is proof of this slightly overlooked hack when she visited the Grand Canyon in August with her nine-year-old daughter. She booked a two-night stay at the Enchantment Resort in Sedona, Arizona. Upon arrival, her $299-a-night double queen room reservation was upgraded to a two-bedroom, two-bath suite with a kitchenette, a fireplace, and dual balconies facing the Boynton Canyon.

      Apart from those, she was informed by the receptionist that their daily breakfast could be taken either in the room or at the hotel restaurant. Moments later, a golf cart serviced them to their spacious suite where a service attendant arrived with a fruit and cheese platter and a personalized welcome note. Such VIP treatment wasn’t due to Higgins being a famed personality but to her old-fashioned way of booking – with a travel agent.

     When most travelers have turned to independent booking as it credits flexibility, control, and cost-cutting by booking through websites, luxury travelers with a minimum spending of $300 a night could use a travel adviser/agent for better deals, specifically ones from large consortia like American Express, Signature Travel Network, or Virtuoso for their longstanding partnerships with travel companies. Senior Vice President of Preferred Partnerships for Signature Travel Network Phil Cappelli claimed, “We buy a considerable amount from the travel providers and are able to secure additional benefits for guests.” Perks referred to can include airport transfers, complimentary breakfasts, late checkouts, spa treatments, and room upgrades, among others. When using a travel agent, the aforementioned extras come at no additional cost.

       For American Express Platinum card members, long as they book through American Express Travel, they are given access to the benefits (which vary by card level) whether they talk to an agent; book online; or through the app. Same goes for Virtuoso.com and Signature Travel Network with shipboard credits and exclusive, personalized perks offered to users.

     The relationship these travel agents have with tourism services (e.g. hotels, cruise lines) is a two-way street; as the agents drive up sales to reap benefits for their clients, they also receive commissions. To lower the risk of encountering a travel agent who’d prioritize his/her incentives before your experience, it’s recommended to respectfully ask how he/she is compensated. 

     Going back to Higgins’ experience, with thorough research prior to consulting Beth Washington at McCabe World Travel, a Virtuoso member, she was able to stumble upon the cheapest, nonrefundable rate of Enchantment worth $623.38 and an option offering flexible cancellation worth $718.76 for two nights. Virtuoso’s rate was the same as the latter, incorporating daily breakfast (a $30 credit per person, per day) and $100 credit for spa or golf. Since Higgins’ daughter wasn’t eligible for spa sessions because of her age and golf wasn’t really their thing, the Virtuoso adviser offered the credit to be applied to food and beverage instead.

   In lieu of going through the hassle of planning a complex vacation by yourself, travel agents are relied on by tourism sectors like cruise lines, aware that purchasing a cruise experience involves multiple choices like room categories, restaurants, and land excursions.

     To get the most out of your luxury vacation whilst keeping your savings at bay, below are the three mentioned travel adviser consortia and their perks that come with booking through one of their members:

American Express Platinum Card Members

     Perks inclusive of early check-in and room upgrades when available; complimentary daily breakfast for up to two guests; $100-valued “unique amenities”; guaranteed late check out at 4pm; and five times the usual number of AmEx points or the ability to use Pay with Points on prepaid stays at Fine Hotels and Resorts Properties on AmexTravel.com could help you save about $550 at 1,100 hotels worldwide on a two-night stay.

Virtuoso

     Similar to AmEx’s benefits, Virtuoso also offers complimentary meals and Wi-Fi services and depends on the hotel’s availability for upgrades, early check-ins, and late checkouts. Additional perks may include complimentary airport transfers, spa treatments, and other meals – all with estimated savings of more than $500 per stay, available at 1,400 hotels in 100 countries.

Signature Travel Network

     With up to $500 savings on a two to five-night stay in luxury hotels, you can get complimentary full breakfasts, food and beverage credits, spa treatments, airport transfers, room upgrades, early check-ins, and late check-outs, varying by hotel.

     People don’t like paperwork, especially when it comes to travel-related documents. This hack for easier air travel is going to eliminate the hassle of filling out forms and other tedious processes. Flying is going to be much less stressful. 

     Just think of this – when you experience a delay in your flight, the travel insurance company is simply going to send you a text message that you’ll be receiving $100 for the inconvenience. No paperwork, no lines, and no hassle. 

     This advancement in the way travel insurance work is because of two companies, the Berkshire-Hathaway Travel Protection and the Allianz Global Assistance. These companies are using new technology where they can track your flight. And then if anything comes up, they can automatically file a travel insurance claim for you. 

     Since very few people know about this new advancement in travel insurance, it is definitely a hack that you should keep a note of. If you go through the traditional route of travel insurance, you’re going to wait for weeks before you will be compensated. 

     With automatic claims, it is going to be what the term suggests. You won’t have to fill out forms to file your claim. You don’t even have to file your claim at all. It’s going to be the insurance company who will do those things for you. 

Automatic Claims: How They Work

     Automatic claims mean that you don’t have to wait for a disruption in your flight to happen so you can file your claim. The travel insurance company will be the one to monitor the flights. If ever there’s a delay, the insurance company will be offering you a fixed amount. You don’t have to do anything from your end. 

     Apart from flight delays, insurance companies also provide benefits for damaged or lost luggage. The amount will depend on your policy. What is only required from you is for you to verify the damage or the loss. The payment will come almost immediately. You can say that it is indeed an instant claim. 

Benefits of Travel Insurance Auto-Claims

• It is automated and therefore easier. As mentioned earlier, you are not required to do anything so you can file your claim. You only have to ensure that the travel insurance company is aware of your flight information before departure. 
• You will definitely get better service. In cases where there’s a delay in your flight, getting a text message that you will receive $100 will at least make you feel a bit better. 

• Money comes in an instant. Imagine never needing to wait for a check to arrive. The travel insurance company will send the money instantly. While waiting for your flight, you can use the money to shop a bit or have a few relaxing drinks. 

     You may wonder why this automatic claim from travel insurance companies is not well-known. Since automatic claims are still building their momentum, it is easy for people to be suspicious of it. They think that instant payments are just too good to be true. But when you study this automatic claim closely, it has plenty of benefits. 

     There are a wide variety of reasons why you could take a trip, be it for leisure, business or something in-between. Nowadays, so-called “bleisure” adventures are popular, incorporating the enjoyable and exciting aspects of a pleasureful escape with the efficiency of a job requirement. Nonetheless, great preparation is an essential factor of whether you’ll have a smooth, seamless trip in which you achieve your functional objectives and fondly bear in mind the experience years down the line. Below are a couple of suggestions to aid you to attain that very equilibrium.

Utilize A List

     In the hustle and bustle of preparing for your journey, the likelihood of neglecting something is really high, however, you can avoid that just by assembling a checklist well in development. All you’ll have to do is uncheck the things on the checklist and also start fresh when you’re going on a new journey.”

Book Proactively

     When you’re reserving your trip, leave a void in between expected goal times. In the best-case circumstance, you’ll have a possibility to relax, consume a healthier meal and refresh on your own. As well as in the worst instance, you’ll be able to attend on schedule even if there’s a hold-up with your trip or any other hitch.

     Overall, the key to stress-free journeys is investing time to plan points out thoroughly ahead of time, increasing your efficiency and general comfort along the way.

Build Healthy Routines

     Traveling typically suggests you’ll be in contact with even more people, public locations and items than the majority of other people. Something as straightforward as antibacterial wipes can go a long way to making certain that you don’t capture any type of ailments. You’ll need to enjoy your diet plan as well as make the added effort to find healthy food, instead of just going for the closest chow you locate at the airport terminal or in the city you have actually arrived at. It might cost you even more as well as take more time, however, it’ll certainly work out in your favor over time.

Research Funding Choices

     Travel can be very pricey, but smart individuals have a number of means to lower their prices. You can get a hotel loyalty card, which will qualify you to free stays depending upon just how much you’ve used them, not unlike airline company miles. Usually, you can additionally stack the advantages up and make on your own an extremely affordable trip.

     According to Ivan Baidin, CEO of Traveling Payments, “Travel-affiliate strategies can also help you make money by referring people to helpful services and products. Usually, you make around $7 from the rate of a bought aircraft tickets and $20 from a hotel booking. It needs patience as well as discovering, yet in time it repays really well.”

     An additional cost-saving method is to just make use of no-fee ATM cards. Different banks use them, so examine the fine print to see which one is most valuable total.