Caring and Our Travel Business
Hank Schrader, USMA '71, Europe Destination & Europe River Cruise Expert
Anne Schrader, Certified Travel Counselor & Certified Luxury Cruise Specialist
We got hit with 90+ winds from Hurricane Beryl and lost our fence on the east side of our house, lost power for about 13 hours and had some damage to one of our trees with a broken limb dangling over 20 feet in the air. This early July hurricane caused over 2 million to lose power—as I write this (11 July 2024), there over 1 million in the greater Houston area are still without power 3 days after the Cat 1 Hurricane hit early Monday morning. It is a very dangerous heat situation, and we hope it gets resolved quickly.
Not all get how serious this event is in our area. In an internet article on Fansided two days ago, the author was trying to make the point the Astros professional baseball team were playing the Marlins Tuesday after the hurricane hit and were offering $5 entrance tickets and dollar dog night because the Marlins are struggling to win games. To me, this was totally ridiculous—it wasn’t about a bad team so much as a way for struggling folks to escape the oppressive heat in the air-conditioned stadium—it is an act of caring instead of greed. Many here will have a lot of unforeseen expenses, spoiled food and damage to their homes.
We are some of the lucky ones—quick power restoration in about 13 hours. This our 5th hurricane since we moved here and our first property damage other than the power loss that is almost a given anytime a significant wind event hits this area. We are safe and sound but worry about others in the area who are not so fortunate.
A Small Gesture of Help from a Caring Neighbor
Luckly for us, there are many who still do care and have empathy for others. During the yard cleanup, I was struggling to cut down the rather large dangling limb high enough to reach with my hand-held tree trimmer and try to saw the dangerous branch down. As I always believe I can solve any physical task even though I’m 74, a very nice young worker from Center Point Energy stopped and wanted to check if we had any energy problems. We told him no and as he watched me trying to solve the dangerous situation with a manual pole saw, said he lived nearby and could get his small chain saw (a pole mounted tool), which would make quick work of the damage limb. Realizing I was stubbornly still working, he drove off and returned shortly with his motorized tool. Soon the branch was off with his help, and he drove off. The point of this story—he cared we were overmatched, had an easy solution and went out of his way to help. Yes, he cared!
So, he inspired today’s blog—caring in travel.
The 3 elements of Building a Good Relationship with Potential Clients
We are all overwhelmed with ads and offers daily. We also meet many folks who are selling to us. This is especially true in the world of Europe River Cruising. Since it is such a good vacation and so many have been inspired by the Viking ads on PBS that put river cruising on the map as a great way to see the heart of Europe, there is a lot of confusion about which line to select and which route is best for their vacation and some wisely reach out to us for help.
I’ll bet that most of us are thinking about 3 questions when they search for a travel salesperson and are evaluating them while listening to their pitch. They are 1) Can I trust this person? 2) Do they know what they are talking about? 3) Do they care about me and what I need?
Although not all travel professionals know enough about river cruising, many do. Most who find us, already have done a lot of research and will quickly know if we are knowledgeable enough to help them.
The trust element comes from action, not words. My favorite way to say this is “will we do what is right for you when no one is looking”. We trust you will be honest with us, and you trust we will be honest with you. Trust is earned, not given. We hope our actions earn your trust.
Perhaps the most important fact that builds the relationship is the care factor. I recently talked with a potential client, and he remarked since I was a retired military officer and 74, we probably were not desperate for the income of our travel business and that made him more comfortable using us—he trusted us since we seemed to him more concerned about getting folks a great trip than making money. He was right!
Do they care about me and what I need?
When I was a young second lieutenant, I read some advice from a Sargent Major to young officer leaders. He emphasized many things leaders needed to do, but one stuck out in my mind— it was caring.
In the military, we are going to get the job done regardless of the difficulty. However, instead of just ordering soldiers to perform without any regard to their welfare, leads to dysfunctional units and destroys unit morale and cohesion. I took this advice as a principal for me—before I gave an order, I tried to think if there was a better way to get the job right and still care for the soldiers I was leading. Sometimes there was no way to make the situation better but just telling the truth was enough. Soldiers know quickly if you care,
So, why is all of this in the blog—Anne and I think caring and trying to match you to the best solution for your trip is our mantra—your welfare is vital to our relationship. Just like my former soldiers, our potential clients know quickly if we care.
We treat each of our clients as friends, because we don’t sell travel to clients—we sell travel to friends. There is a big difference—how your trip goes makes a world of difference to us. We would like to say we are small enough to deliver personalize service but big and experience enough to get you just the right trip.
We try to match you to just the right river cruise experience and make it logical, realistic and affordable in your price range. Don’t get us wrong—we do not sell on price—we sell on value. We try to demonstrate how valuable you are to us in many ways but how many other travel professional have a Traveler Hall of Fame? We are proud we could help you and want to share with others your joy and satisfaction.
Here are some of the folks who we have or will shortly added to our Hall of Fame this year.
Barb and Mike on the start of Tauck Galapgos Trip 2024—the famous Machu Picchu in the background
Our Amawaterways group on the Gems of the Danube April 2024—the wonderful lower Danube
Janice and Curtis with the Captain on AmaWaterways A Taste of Bordeaux river cruise 2024
Ruth and Joe on an Anniversary well spent on Amawaterways Tulip Time Cruise in the Chef’s Table 2024
Our Final Thoughts
We hope you enjoyed this blog--sometimes, it is important to share with you our thoughts about your travel challenges. Shared hardships cause folks to bound together to try and get thru the hard times. It also reminds us we need to care more, listen actively and respect your travel desires and dreams. We hope the many we have helped in the past think of us as friends first and then travel professionals second. Trust us, we do care!
We are travel experts, ocean and river cruise specialists, and Europe destination experts. We have first-hand knowledge of almost anywhere you want to visit in Europe. We know our products and the vendors who sell them to you. We have designed special tours for dozens of clients, led several and will continue to find just the right vacation that will exceed your expectations.
When you are spending your hard-earned money for a vacation, you want an advisor who can match you with the right trip. You want someone who will understand your expectations and fuel your anticipation (or excitement) to get you the best possible trip experience. And, you want someone who can help you with the decision making process. We think we have all these qualities.
Whatever your Dream Destinations are, we are here to help you get the best possible vacation based on what is important to you! We will provide you high quality, expertly planned travel. Please give me a call 713-397-0188 (Hank) or email me at hschrader@visitdd.com . We want to help you: Savor life…make memories…Visit Dream Destinations! Your journey begins here!
ANNE has earned a degree from the University of Houston in Hotel and Restaurant Management. Serving as the President of Visit Dream Destinations, LLC, since 2016, she is uniquely experienced professional travel advisor with over 26 years’ experience in the travel industry. Among her numerous certifications, she is a Certified Travel Counselor (CTC) by the Travel Institute, considered the gold standard in travel agent certification and she is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC) by the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA), as well Luxury Cruise Specialist also from CLIA. Having traveled often to Europe since 1989, she has expanded on her certification as a Destination Specialist in Western Europe (DS) with extensive first-hand experience in luxury vacations. She holds numerous other specialty designations from individual vendors. An expert photographer, she delights in capturing the true essence of destinations to share with all.
HANK is a certified Western European Destination Specialist (DS) who has been traveling to Europe for 53 years. He is also an Accredited Cruise Counselor (ACC), conferred by the Cruise Line International Association (CLIA). This recognized expert in cruise and leisure travel is a retired Army Officer, and taught World Geography for 8 years. He is a `71 graduate of West Point and has earned 2 master’s degrees. His other Certifications:
AmaWaterways River Cruise Specialist
Viking River Cruise Specialist
Scenic River Cruise Specialist
Emerald Waterways Specialist
Avalon Waterways Specialist
Brit Agent
