You Need Our Tenacity, Especially from Anne!
By Hank Schrader, USMA ’71, Europe Destination & Europe River Cruise Expert
Tenacity—perseverance, determination, diligence—call it what you like, my wife Anne has it.
She is relentless in her search for the best possible trip for you. A while back during this year, I witnessed her staying on hold for over an hour to get a client a great deal on a flight and hotels in Europe because the online reservation system wasn’t working correctly. It became part of the inspiration for this blog, and when I witness her actions on our D Day trip, I knew I had to write something about her tenacity.
Why should you care? The reason is simple—our goal on every trip is to get you the best possible value for your vacation and tenacious folks like Anne, who are not afraid to put forth an extra effort, do get results that benefit you.
So, with your permission, let me give you some examples of tenacity from our business that have benefited others and about Anne’s amazing research abilities.
The Real World Meaning of Tenacity
Throughout my Army career and football coaching career, once-in-while, I worked with folks that had a relentless resolve to achieve the goal, win the game or complete the mission, regardless of how difficult the task. Many had good work habits or did good jobs, but a small handful were special.
With total bias, I have to put my lovely wife Anne in that category.
A smiling Anne—tenacity at its best!
What Service Means to Anne
Almost daily, Anne reminds me that we are not just order takers. What that really means, is we are travel advisors, looking for the best outcome for a trip. Sometimes, that means listening to what a client thinks they want, but hearing a different story—we often know something that might enhance a trip, often at minimal or no extra cost. A lot of it is just knowledge of our products we recommend, but it is also knowing our clients—will they be disappointed when they purchase a feature of a trip that just doesn’t match the lifestyles.
Trust me—if you want someone who really cares about your trip from detailed research, you can count on Anne. She has unmatched determination in my opinion.
Anne and Hank on an AmaWaterways River Cruise
An Amazing Ski Trip Story
Early in our travel careers, Anne planned a ski trip for a father and son in Canada. When the clients arrived at the hotel, the promised lift tickets were not at the hotel. Somehow late on a Sunday night, Anne tracked down the responsible folks and solved it and had the tickets delivered to the hotel prior to the lifts opening. She could not live with a possible delay of even a few minutes or more—it was the relentless tenacity at work—amazing to say the least. I have no idea how she did it, but it happened!
Trip Details Really Make a Difference!—we Communicate with Vendors prior to Your Trip.
If you ever really want to know how good your travel advisors are, start questioning the details. Here is a great example of little details that are routine for Anne.
One reason we think we earn your trust is our effort to reach out to every hotel or vendor prior to your vacation to let them know you our client and to ask them to provide any extra perk to help you have a more pleasant stay or experience. It always seems to works—at the very least they know we expect their best—and it often results in an upgrade or a freebie.
If you think all travel agents do this, you are mistaken—very few do. Sometimes we never get a reply but most times we are successful—we feel you trusted us to provide a great venue or experience and it is our duty to try and make it special.
I must single our Anne for this—she is relentless following up with the vendors—you can trust her!
Hotel Des Alps—A Wonderful Hotel in Lucere, Switzerland—Anne always communicates before our clients arrive to insure their stay is the best possible!
D Day in Action
Some of Our D Day Folks at the Airborne Museum Ste. Mere Eglise 6 June 2019
From our recent D Day trip, Anne outdid herself. First, she created a specialized detailed trip report for all folks on the trip. Almost everyone had additional plans and Anne handled this very well, often working hours on end to get it right, by booking transfers and additional services. All 33 clients got an exceptional trip thanks to her diligence.
While that would be enough for most folks, it was her actions during the last days of our trip that were exceptional. Sadly, two folks had some medical problems which required doctor visits. Anne immediately began working on the phone while we were in route on a coach to Paris from Normandy. For one client, she found a hospital that was recommended by the travel insurance company where the doctors spoke English, arranged for transportation and made sure they had enough cash (Euros) to handle this unforeseen event.
For the next client, who was so sick he and his wife could not participate in a post D Day river cruise, she again arranged for the hospital visit and transportation, extended their hotel stay until they were cleared to fly home, and arranged return flights and transfers to the US. She spent pretty much 2 full days in Paris solving both these really complex situations.
Many of our other clients were quite impressed with her professionalism, but the person most impressed was me—you have no idea how hard that was to resolve, but I do—most travel advisors would have been overwhelmed by this situation.
Well done my dear!
My Final Thoughts
Amazing—who wouldn’t want her on your side! If you want tenacity and results, just put Anne on your team for your travel plans.
As you can see, making wise travel choices, is more complex than you may have thought. Trip planning is not easy. Making sound decisions are critical to the travel planning process. Time and money issues are complex—we all want the best at the least possible price. We help you solve those complex issues, saving you hassles, time and worry. We are travel experts, ocean and river cruise experts, 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@dreamdestinations.com. We want to help you: Savor life…make memories…Visit Dream Destinations! Your journey begins here!
HANK is a certified Western European Destination Specialist (DS) who has been traveling to Europe for 48 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
