I've recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Tamie Gorenc, a travel agent for The Travel Society! She has been in the industry for over 30 years and has experienced all aspects of travel and planning. She is also a honeymoon guru and was gracious enough to share some of her infinite wisdom with me!
1. "Explain your services a bit, what do you provide to clients?"
" I do a lot of the leg work and help make couples' (and other clients) lives easier. I get to know the couple, listen to their ideas, and present them with pricing options to make their decisions easier. I also get a sense of who they are and what they want to get out of their honeymoon whether that's adventure, romance, etc."
2. "What mistake do you see a lot of couples making?"
"A lot of couples are so busy planning their wedding, rehearsal dinner, and other activities that they put off planning their honeymoon for a long time."
3. "What questions do you ask couples to get a sense of what they're looking for?"
"I ask them what they've done in the past (in terms of travel destinations), what they like to do in their free time, what hobbies they have and what they do for work. I use all of that information to give them some initial ideas and then we go from there!"
4. "Tell me about YOUR honeymoon."
"My honeymoon was very romantic! We went to Hawaii 3 or 4 months after our wedding day. Part of me wishes we went right after the wedding because we were both tired and needed a break, but the time in between our wedding and honeymoon gave us the chance to unwind, unpack, and get settled into our home before going back to work."
5. "Tell me a little bit about your pricing."
"Couples don't pay me directly, I only charge a service fee for things like airline tickets and other services that I don't get reimbursed for. Things likes tours, cruises, hotels, and vacation packages are all reimbursed via commission from the companies themselves."
6. "Do you have a type of client that you prefer to work with?"
"I like all clients, I think I get along with everybody! I've never had a client get particularly angry or upset. I love working with families, married couples, newly engaged couples, corporate groups, you name it!"
7. "Tell me about some of the challenges you've faced."
"One of the biggest challenges I've faced is when an airline cancels a flight at the last minute. I'll do whatever I can to get clients rebooked and will help rearrange their schedule if need be. I'll also handle any reservations that may be affected by the delayed flight so that my clients have as little stress as possible. I had clients booked for a trip to Mexico over Fall Break in 2006, when Colorado had one of it's massive snow storms. The airport was closed and no flights were going out, but I was able to help them book a flight for the next day to Hawaii and save the rest of their vacation."
8. "Do you have a favorite travel destination?"
"I loved both Montreal and Nicaragua, they're both on my list to go back to. Montreal feels like you're in Europe without having to travel nearly as far. It's like going to France but on a much shorter flight! I loved Nicaragua because of the adventure it provided, we hiked volcanoes, swam, etc."
9. "Is there anything else you want clients to know about your services?"
"If you book your trip with me I stay with you from the beginning of planning to the time you get back. If you have a problem, I help you solve it. You can call me any time from your destination, let me handle any issues, and go on with your day. I'll call you when I have it resolved so that you can get back to fully enjoying your stay!"
