I am really excited to let all my subscribers and readers know about the launch of Adventures Planned - my new custom travel planning service.
As life happens, things prompt you to assess where you are and for my husband and I, we came to the realisation recently that 20 years had kind of slipped away and in a bit of a blur. We had crystal clarity at that moment that we didn't want the next 20 years to be just same, same - same jobs, same suburb, same challenges and frustrations and same environment day in and day out.
Travel has taught us many things over the years but on this occasion, we knew we were craving some change, and adventure and experiences that stimulate the senses - all the things travel gives us we wanted more of in our everyday life.
Scarily we upheaved everything safe by moving interstate, moving our kids to new schools, selling and embarking on a new home, and leaving long-term jobs behind in pursuit of something different.
Professionally, I had a very satisfying and successful career in sport, but things had shifted, and I needed something different. Naturally I kept coming back to my love of travel, but I wanted to offer something different.
What does Adventures Planned offer
Adventures Planned was born from the idea that everyone travels differently so I wanted to design travel experiences that matched the travel style and interests of my clients.
Having been a travel agent in my early career I know that often agencies don't have the time to really get to know their clients and this can lead to trips that are very off-the-shelf. Agents work incredibly long hours, for generally low pay, but having experienced the workload first-hand this generally means finding quick and easy solutions.
Added to this, you sell products and services based on a commission structure and often bonuses are applied to reach sales targets with particular companies, so you are not necessarily giving the best options.
Adventures Planned has a different approach to escape the ordinary with custom travel planning so that every trip is unique and unforgettable.
Importantly, because I am not working for a commission or kick-back from travel operators I look at all the options. This may mean comparing dozens of airlines or trawling through all the hotel or accommodation options and reading reviews to find something you will love.
All the options also mean I will check prices across different online platforms and direct with the supplier to find where you are getting the best price.
My service aims to make travel easy, attainable and stress free by removing the hours and hours of planning that goes into a trip. Get straight to the fun part - packing your bags and heading off on your adventures!
So what else makes us different?
We do not make your actual travel bookings. Now this is unusual but from a logistical and cost perspective it can be a huge benefit to you. Whilst I don't make the actual bookings for you, I do loads of research and provide clickable links or contact information for you to make the bookings with minimal stress.
The benefits start to become evident when we consider the flexibility and cost savings. How many of us have used travel agents and needed to make changes only to discover the agent is the only one who can make the changes!
The beauty of making your own bookings is that you have complete control to make changes whenever you like as well as control over your budget and payments.
With technological advances in travel and huge online travel inventories, so many bookings and changes can now be done completely online, and this is a beautiful way to be able to travel. Now when you find somewhere you fall in love with you can simply change your dates to stay an extra day or two within seconds online.
Hey, and don't forget that eliminating agent commissions means big savings for your trip. When it comes to price, a vast majority of the time your best price will be direct with a supplier. But don't worry, I will check this all out, so you don't need to.
So how do I earn an income?
Of course, I still need to be paid for my work so instead of a commission I charge a daily planning fee which varies depending on the trip. You can check out the website for a full outline of charges.
As I do not make the bookings, I receive zero commission and I guarantee that all recommendations made are based on personal experience or detailed research.
What if I am travelling as a family?
Of course, if you are on this website that means you are looking to travel with kids, and I can provide experienced support and advice for travelling as a family. As all my planning includes consideration of your unique circumstances, we will ensure your personal requests are considered right from the outset.
Curious to find out more?
I would love to hear from you if you would like to know more about my services. For further info I would love if you can drop over to the Adventures Planned website where you can submit and enquiry.
Or stay up to date with specials and updates via the facebook page.
Happy travels.
Karen
Let me know your travel planning challenges...
0%Life is so busy I never have time to plan
0%I love spending time planning my trips
0%I find it so confusing, I don't know where to start
0%I find planning boring - it would be great to have help
You can vote for more than one answer.