July 12, 2025 • 27 mins
Kick off your shoes and relax! The TSA has finally announced what weary travelers have been hoping for since 2001—you can now keep your shoes on during airport security at most major airports starting this Sunday. This travel breakthrough headlines our latest episode, where we celebrate the end of awkward barefoot moments in security lines nationwide.
As America prepares to celebrate its 250th birthday, we unveil how tour operators and cruise lines are creating once-in-a-lifetime experiences for this historic milestone. Discover Holland America's special sailing from Boston on July 4th, where you'll witness fireworks from Boston Harbor before cruising alongside the world's largest fleet of tall ships in New York Harbor—a truly spectacular way to celebrate America's semiquincentennial.
For Hawaii lovers, we spotlight the hidden gem of Oahu's North Shore—the Courtyard Marriott that offers authentic cultural immersion through storytelling programs and "aunties" who share Hawaiian traditions daily. Learn about the semi-secret beach just yards from the hotel where you'll likely be the only visitor—a stark contrast to crowded Waikiki. Our exclusive listener deals include packages starting at just $1139 per person for five nights with airfare on Delta's nonstop flights from Salt Lake City.
Cruise enthusiasts will appreciate our Just Cruising segment featuring Carnival's switch from Pepsi to Coca-Cola products, Viking's new extended voyages combining popular European itineraries, and Royal Caribbean's expansion on the West Coast. The highlight? Our exclusive offer of free airfare to Europe when booking select Avalon Waterways river cruises for 2026, with packages starting at just $3500 per person including flights.
Ready to explore these destinations while deals last? Contact Blue Planet Vacations at 888-718-7717 to secure your spot before these limited-time offers disappear. Remember, live deliberately and don't put off creating those lifelong memories—you'll remember the experiences forever, but forget what they cost!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Patrick Wiscombe (00:00):
It is the weekend.
Welcome to the Inside TravelTalk podcast and radio show
Coming up.
In the next 30 minutes we willbe talking about keeping your
shoes on at the airport.
Finally, you don't have to lookat strangers feet.
You don't have to smell otherpeople's feet.
This is a good development.
Vacationing in Hawaii on theNorth Shore we have a special
(00:21):
promotion just for our listeners.
Plus, we'll be talking aboutfree airfare to Europe when you
book a river cruise.
Let's start the show.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time-sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
(00:42):
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (00:52):
Explore your world.
It's the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show presented
by BluePlanetVacations.
com.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
And now here are your hosts,Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo
(01:17):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (01:23):
Woo, coming to you live from the
Wiscombe-Faldmo Radio Studiosright here in Salt Lake City.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
I am Patrick Wiscombe.
Mark Faldmo will join me herein just a second and, if you are
(01:45):
brand new to this radio showand podcast, Saturday and Sunday
around the country and ofcourse you can pick up the
podcast at InsideTravelTalk.
com we are going to help youplan and book your next vacation
or just give you ideas of whereyou may want to consider
(02:06):
vacationing next.
And we are presented, proudlypresented by BluePlanetVacations
.
com.
And just a sincere thank youfor taking the time to stop and
listen.
Coming up in the next 30minutes, we will be talking
about keeping your shoes on atthe airport.
Finally, finally, mark, it's agood change you don't have to
(02:31):
take your shoes off at theairport.
That became official a littlebit earlier this week.
Vacationing in Hawaii, on theNorth Shore, and free airfare to
Europe when booking a rivercruise those are just three of
the stories that we'll betalking about on this edition of
the show, and let me welcome inmy co-host, mark Faldmo.
(02:51):
Where are you right now?
Mark Faldmo (02:52):
Mark.
Today I'm in Fort Lauderdale.
I'm at a meeting called GTM,which is Global Travel
Marketplace, where I get to meetwith 100 suppliers Some I know,
some I don't.
The whole purpose of thismeeting is to introduce travel
agents to new and uniqueproducts that they may not be
aware of.
It's a pretty good event tolearn about new trends and new
(03:14):
suppliers in travel.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:16):
Let's get to the travel news headlines.
Can I get a hallelujah?
I don't have to look at otherpeople's feet and I don't have
to smell other people's feet.
You can keep your shoes on atthe airport during security
screening.
That I could not believe thenews.
(03:37):
In fact, nikki was telling meabout the news that was breaking
.
What was it on Tuesday, Tuesdayor Wednesday of this week?
Mark Faldmo (03:45):
Yep, and it actually goes into effect
tomorrow on.
Sunday, and right now it's atmost major airports.
There are a few airports wherethis is not implemented yet, but
the ultimate goal is to rollthis out nationwide at every
domestic airport where you donot have to take your shoes off.
(04:06):
That is welcome news afteralmost 20 years of having to
take your shoes off.
Patrick Wiscombe (04:11):
I am not going to miss that.
Happy birthday to America, lovethis country.
And now the preparations beginfor America's 250th birthday and
tour operators and destinationsare gearing up because they
expect to be very, very busythis next year and probably
after that, tour operators andcruise lines are adding special
(04:33):
departures to specificallycelebrate America's 250th year
birthday.
Mark Faldmo (04:40):
I will just mention two here.
One is a Globus tour, which isa 10-day tour from Boston to
Washington, visits all of ournation's history in between
those two places.
One that I am really interestedin is Holland America's cruise
they have.
It's a special sailing fromBoston to New York, so it leaves
(05:00):
Boston on the 4th of July,where you'll see the fireworks
show from Boston Harbor.
Oh, wow, it has places likeWilliamsburg, overnights in New
York City, and it leaves rightat the end of an event called
Sail the Fourth Celebration,which is the world's largest
fleet of tall ships, which willbe in New York Harbor that day,
(05:22):
so you'll sail out with thempast the Statue of Liberty.
That has quite an interestingitinerary.
Oh yeah, and that is sailingright on the 4th of July from
Boston.
There are a few other touroperators and cruise lines that
offer things like this, so ifyou're interested, give us a
call at Blue Planet Vacationsand we will give you all of the
(05:42):
details on these America's 250thbirthday travel opportunities.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:47):
Yeah, let me just give out the number now
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
Just get the conversationstarted, even though we're on
the air right now.
Call, and then Mark will callyou back or someone from the
office will call you back.
One of my favorite places onthis entire planet is Hawaii and
(06:09):
Courtyard Marriott Oahu NorthShore.
Obviously, you hear about theNorth Shore.
There's not a lot of hotels onthat north end.
Everything is pretty much Oahu,Waikiki, as Siri says, Waikiki,
but this is a hotel on theNorth Shore.
I love the North.
Mark Faldmo (06:27):
Shore and this is actually one of my favorite
hotels.
If you want a hotel that reallyleans in to community and the
Hawaiian spirit, it's theCourtyard Oahu North Shore.
It's right in Laia.
You're basically in the parkinglot to the Polynesian Cultural
Center.
There's great beaches nearby.
La'ea Beach, which is acrossthe street, is amazing.
(06:48):
You have Hukilau Beach, youhave Pounders Beach.
There are several nice beachesright there, but they've
launched a new.
It's a bi-monthly programthat's focused on Hawaii
storytelling and handmade goods.
These are presentations open tothe public, but if you're
staying at the hotel you canparticipate in that.
So just another way that theylean into the community.
(07:10):
They already have hula lessons,lay making classes.
They have their aunties thatare in the lobby, which are
local ladies who come on and putcultural presentations daily at
the courtyard.
It is one of my favorite hotelsin all of Hawaii to stay at.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:27):
And it's close to one of your favorite food
trucks, which is Mike's.
Mark Faldmo (07:32):
Hui Hui Chicken, which is in Kahuku, just a few
miles from Laia.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:37):
You can't go wrong with the North Shore in
Laia.
It's awesome.
We just received a text.
From who was this?
Connor?
He has a question.
It's not about Hawaii, but thisone is about Orlando.
He is asking he wants to go toOrlando, wants to visit a beach.
How far away are the beaches,and which one would you
recommend, mark?
Mark Faldmo (07:59):
Orlando is right in the middle of Florida, but
you're 45 minutes to an houraway from beaches.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:06):
Oh, is it that far away?
Mark Faldmo (08:08):
It is yeah, okay.
So if you go to the west aboutan hour, you can go to
Clearwater Beach, which isprobably the closest beach to
Orlando.
On the west coast you get kindof the white sand beaches, the
Caribbean-looking waters, so youcan go there.
Or if you go to the east, yougo out to like Cocoa Beach,
(08:28):
which is on the Atlantic.
I like going that directionbecause I like going to Kennedy
Space Center as well.
So it is different beachexperiences on either side of
Florida, but you are relativelyclose to a beach when you're in
Orlando.
So when you're at Disney World,universal Studios or SeaWorld,
(08:49):
you can go to the beach.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:50):
If you want to take a day to do that, Of
course, you've got Disney World,and one of our favorite places
is Hollywood Studios.
Mark Faldmo (08:57):
I love the Rockin' Roller Coaster, which is going
to be rebranded the MuppetsRoller Coaster shortly here, so
good attraction there atHollywood Studios.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:08):
If it's the Muppets roller coaster, who is
your favorite Muppet?
Mine is Beaker.
Mark Faldmo (09:16):
I like Beaker.
I think mine is Animal, that'sokay, that would be my second
one, and I'm sure Animal isgoing to be driving the roller
coaster, so that'll probably bethe theme of it.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:29):
Oh, my goodness, you nailed it.
Also in this segment, we've gotthe hot travel deal of the week
, which is, of course, Hawaii.
These are deals that Mark hasput together exclusively for our
listeners.
What do we have for listenersthis week?
Mark Faldmo (09:43):
We've kind of talked about this promotion the
last few weeks with differentdestinations.
This is with Delta Vacationsand it's save up to $250, but
you get bonus SkyMiles and ifyou're looking to get medallion
status, you also earn medallionqualifying miles on every
(10:04):
purchase, on the full purchase.
So, Patrick, I think youpurchased a trip a few years ago
, before this was in place, buthad this new policy been in
place, you would have been goldmedallion just on your trip to
Hawaii.
So this is a pretty good way toearn status with Delta.
If you chase status, like I do,I do too, using that promotion.
(10:29):
I've looked at a couple ofhotels on Oahu this is for the
dates of December 1st, for fivenights.
Salt Lake City, Honolulu RoundStrip.
Now this is on the Deltanonstop.
It is in main cabin, so thereare some lower fares if you want
to fly in the basic economy,fly on connecting flights or on
(10:50):
another airline.
But I thought I'd just usethose Delta nonstop flights with
this promotion because that'sthe most convenient way to get
there.
So in Waikiki, there are twopretty good prices here for that
date.
One is the Roamer House.
It's a three and a half staradults only hotel, one of the
only adults only hotels inHawaii.
It starts at $1139 per person.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:13):
And that includes airfare.
Mark Faldmo (11:14):
That includes airfare.
Okay, good, all right.
So five nights and airfare.
And then the Hilton HawaiianVillage, which is where you
stayed in one of my favoriteplaces, the Rainbow Tower, and
one of my favorite places, theRainbow Tower.
The Rainbow Tower, yeah, fourand a half star hotel from $1379
per person.
And then, just because wetalked about the Courtyard North
Shore, I put that in.
(11:36):
It's a three and a half star,although it has recently been
renovated.
I think it's a four, four and ahalf star, although, because
it's a courtyard, it doesn'thave some of the amenities
required to get that higher starrating.
But that starts at $1789 perperson.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:52):
So it might be $400 more per person, but it's
an entirely different vacationon the North Shore.
Mark Faldmo (11:59):
Yeah, it is.
You know a lot of people wouldlook at that and say, well,
that's a lot more expensive.
But its location and I thinkthe quality of the hotel, the
activities it offers, the localcultural immersion, the fact
that you can walk across thestreet to the beach and almost
every time I've done thatmorning, noon or evening I've
(12:20):
been the only one on that beach.
Patrick Wiscombe (12:21):
Yeah, it's a well-kept secret.
And then there's that beachabout I don't know, a half a
mile, third of a mile, just toits south.
That is a phenomenal beach.
Is that the one you're talkingabout?
Mark Faldmo (12:33):
It is, yeah, that one, or just literally across
the street from the beach,probably 75 yards from the main
entrance of the hotel.
Patrick Wiscombe (12:42):
It's a great beach.
Mark Faldmo (12:43):
So okay, there's no parking lot for it, there's
just houses there in between.
So that's why no one's on thatbeach, because that's why no one
knows it's there.
Patrick Wiscombe (12:53):
Oh, that's even better.
I've been doing it wrong.
Mark Faldmo (12:55):
Although you're probably talking about Hukilau
Beach, which is just down theway smaller parking lot, it's a
great beach too, yeah.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:02):
Now.
I know that it's hot right nowVery hot actually.
I know it's summer, but it hasbeen really quite hot.
Picture in your head, when it's30 degrees here, that you are
going to Oahu to go on vacation.
Mark has made those exclusivelyfor our listeners.
(13:24):
Call him in his office duringthe break.
Just get the conversationstarted, no obligation
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 is how to get ahold of Mark.
When we come back, it is time.
The infamous Just Cruisingsegment is next.
We'll be talking aboutCarnival's massive change to its
(13:47):
beverage program and we'regoing to tell you how to get
free airfare to Europe when youbook a river cruise with Avalon
Waterways.
That is next when the InsideTravel Talk podcast, a radio
show, continues Alongside myfriend Mark Faldmo.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
Show Voice (14:09):
We will be right back, taking you to destinations
around the world.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show is presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
(14:30):
Thanks for listening.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (14:39):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Ama Waterways.
From castles and capitals tovistas and villages.
Visit some of Europe's mostremarkable sites and cities To
set out on your own river cruisejourney.
Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
blueplanetvacations.
com.
Show Voice (15:05):
Now back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
(15:26):
Here's Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:45):
Broadcasting from Fort Lauderdale, Florida,
at least, mark is.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast, a radio
show.
This is the infamous JustCruising segment.
This is the segment of the showthat has made us famous around
the country.
If you love cruise news and youlove cruise deals, this is the
(16:07):
segment of the show for you, andwe have some really good offers
for listeners this week.
But first let's get to thecruise news headlines, and I
thought this was a prettysignificant development that
Carnival Cruise Line just made amassive change to its beverage
program.
I don't have the details.
What do we know about this?
Mark Faldmo (16:28):
And this is good, in my opinion.
They are changing from Pepsi toCoca-Cola, oh so studio
audience has something to sayabout that one.
Yeah, that is a good move, inmy opinion.
I don't drink much soda anymore, but three years ago this would
have been very, very welcome,when I drank several sodas a day
(16:51):
.
So I much prefer Coca-Colaproducts than Pepsi products.
Patrick Wiscombe (16:55):
Nikki and I, for the 4th of July, we decided
to go to Original Pancake Housefor breakfast and I ordered a
Diet Coke and they said is DietPepsi okay?
And I said no, yep, no, it'snot okay, anyway.
So Patrick had water, water,yep.
Viking has created, or iscreating, extended voyages for
(17:16):
the years 2026 and 2027.
Anything with extended voyagesI'm okay with this is on their
Ocean product.
Mark Faldmo (17:26):
The trend is people are taking less vacations but
longer vacations.
This year has kind of been thetrend, and so Viking, what
they've done?
They've created 14 differentitineraries in 2026 and 2027
that combine two popularitineraries into one.
So these range from 15 to 36day voyages.
(17:48):
Wow, they're mainly in the UK,Ireland, Scandinavia and
Mediterranean, but it reallydoes kind of take in what people
are looking for in these longercruises.
One is called Iconic WesternEurope it's 19 days between
London and Barcelona.
One called Viking Homelands,which is basically Norwegian
(18:10):
fjords 22 days from Stockholm toAmsterdam.
Iceland, Norway, British Isles29 days from Reykjavik, Iceland,
to London, and then there'sseveral others in there in the
Mediterranean.
So this is good and if you'reinterested in these, you should
look at booking them right away.
Oh yeah, I remember we did astory a few weeks ago.
(18:32):
The Viking was like 98% fullfor 2025 and they're already
like 60% full for 2026.
So now is the time to book oneof these longer cruises on
Viking.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:45):
Let me give out the office number quickly
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 is how you get ahold of Mark Now.
I know he's on the air rightnow.
Just leave a message.
He'll call you back or someonefrom the office will.
That's correct.
This is good news, since welived here in the West Salt Lake
(19:06):
City, specifically that RoyalCaribbean is opening cruises
here on the West Coast.
I'm going to assume that that'seither San Francisco, Los
Angeles or San Diego, or perhapsall three.
Mark Faldmo (19:18):
A lot of cruise lines have really struggled with
the West Coast, although we'reseeing more and more move ships
to the West Coast.
We're seeing more and more moveships to the West Coast.
So Royal Caribbean for thelongest time has had the
Navigator of the Seas sailinground trip from Los Angeles this
past May, which we talked aboutwhen I went on it.
They added the Ovation of theSeas.
In October they're going toswap the Ovation out for the
(19:41):
Quantum of the Seas.
But they are adding a thirdship to the West Coast which
will be from San Diego.
So starting in October of 2026,the Serenade of the Seas will
be sailing round trip San Diego,so they will be the largest
cruise line on the West Coast.
They have three, four, six,seven and eight day cruises, I
(20:05):
believe, to Mexico from all ofthese ports.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:09):
I know this isn't on the rundown, but if you
check your email right now,mark, because I know that you
and I get the same emails, didyou get the quick travel deal?
Generations, riviera Maya yeah,I did.
I think this is worthmentioning, even though we're
just getting it.
Mark Faldmo (20:25):
Yeah, let's put that in so Generations.
Riviera Maya is afamily-oriented hotel,
all-inclusive hotel in Cancunarea.
I've stayed there several times.
They have anywhere from studioto three-bedroom units Nuts, and
(20:49):
the deal that they're offeringright now is children up to 17
year old's stay free with theminimum of three nights hotel,
and this is for travel betweennow and the end of October.
It's also combinable with theirmore inclusive deal, which
provides free access to theirthemed water park, their beach
club at Maroma Beach oh you likethat a lot I do.
(21:11):
I love their beach club there,and also Wave Runner snorkeling,
and then also free transfers.
So this is a great deal ifyou're looking to take a family
vacation this fall to cancun.
By the way, it is alsocombinable with that same offer
that we had with delta vacationsthe 250 off bonus sky miles.
Patrick Wiscombe (21:35):
all of that was that, the uh, what we talked
about last segment?
Mark Faldmo (21:39):
yeah, last segment for Hawaii so that is also good
to Mexico, so that's a good,good deal.
So this is a great family deal,probably one of the best family
deals I've seen in a while,because this is usually a
relatively pricey resort.
So to get those kids free it'sa great deal.
Patrick Wiscombe (22:00):
Always in the infamous Just Cruising segment,
we have the cruise deal of theweek and we are talking about
Avalon waterways.
This is river cruising inEurope and the promotion that we
have for our listeners thatmark was working on really for
about the past month and we canfinally bring it to you now is
free airfare to Europe when youbook an av Waterways cruise.
(22:23):
That's the promotion.
Mark Faldmo (22:27):
Let's talk about that for a minute For select
2026 dates, and we'll go oversome different itineraries here
in a minute.
You'll get free airfare or youcan choose up to $1,500 per
person off on select dates.
The first river that I'llmention this is called Danube
Dreams and it's Budapest toVilsofen Germany.
This is an eight-day cruise.
(22:47):
The Danube is one of myfavorite rivers to cruise on
there.
Just the history.
I would choose the Danube overany river.
Time and time again, freeairfare for that.
Next one is the Romantic Rhine,which.
This is Amsterdam to Basel,Switzerland, again eight days.
This one.
The free airfare is good onselect dates July through
(23:09):
November.
If you like, castles the Rhineis packed with castles.
You just cruise past castles.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:15):
Would that be?
Mark Faldmo (23:16):
something to own a castle it would.
You know, some of theseexcursions you go up and in fact
the picture on my website isthis castle that we went to in
Austria and it's just this guy'shunting lodge.
A guy lives on it, he lives inthe guest house of the castle
and then they do the tours ofhow the castle worked two years
(23:36):
ago.
It's very interesting and worththe visit.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:40):
Have you seen that show, Castle Impossible?
It's about the girl and the guy.
I think it's.
Her grandpa owned a castle inFrance.
Now I know that we're talkingabout a different part of Europe
, but they're renovating thecastle.
Have you seen that show?
Mark Faldmo (23:56):
I've seen the previews for that.
Yeah, looks very interesting.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:00):
Cool, I'll be in my castle and I've got a moat
around it.
Yeah, are there any otherdepartures?
Mark Faldmo (24:07):
Mark.
Yeah, one more that I'd like tohighlight, and it's called
Magnificent Europe, which isAmsterdam to Budapest, so it
combines the Rhine and theDanube.
So if you're looking for thefree airfare on that, that's
selected June through Octoberdates.
One thing that's really niceabout these and I don't have the
(24:32):
specific dates, but some of thedepartures are as low as $3,500
per person, which includes theairfare to Europe.
Wow, they do range $3,500 to$4,500 for those shorter
eight-day cruises, but it is agreat deal if you're looking to
take a river cruise.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:43):
Did you work with TJ on that offer?
Mark Faldmo (24:45):
if you're looking to take a river cruise.
Did you work with TJ on thatoffer?
I did.
Yeah.
Tj's been a good partner inhelping us get deals for the
show and giving us informationfor the show as well.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:52):
So he got the permission he needed, so we
could finally offer that.
Yes, that's something you'vebeen working on for a while.
It is yeah, those arephenomenal offers.
Call Mark in his office.
As soon as we get off the airhere, he'll return your phone
call, or somebody from theoffice will 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
(25:15):
And you can also get the phonenumber and many of the specials
right on blueplanetvacations.
com.
You can listen to this showagain tomorrow morning right
here on this radio station andaround the country.
We air at the same time eachand every week on every single
radio station, and you can alsopick up the podcast at that same
(25:38):
time at insidetraveltalk.
com.
Insidetraveltalk.
com, you can literally juststream the show there, but if
you are a podcaster, all of thelinks to the show are on
InsideTravelTalk.
com.
Well, now it's your turn to getout and explore the world while
(25:59):
you can, because you never knowwhat curveballs life is going to
throw at you.
Live your life deliberately.
Live your life deliberately.
Live your life intentionally.
Don't put things off.
You'll make memories that willlast a lifetime and you'll
forget what the price was.
Thank you so much for listening.
We will talk to you again nextweek.
(26:19):
Have a great week.
Show Voice (26:23):
That's it.
That's the end of the showyou've been listening to the
inside travel talk podcast andradio show with patrick wiskam
and mark faldmo, presented byblueplanetvacationscom.
Book your adventure right now.
Call 888-718-7717.
Ad Voice (26:41):
That's 888-718-7717 or blueplanetvacations.
(27:08):
com for more information.
It is the weekend.
Welcome to the Inside TravelTalk podcast and radio show
Coming up.
In the next 30 minutes we willbe talking about keeping your
shoes on at the airport.
Finally, you don't have to lookat strangers feet.
You don't have to smell otherpeople's feet.
This is a good development.
Vacationing in Hawaii on theNorth Shore we have a special
(00:21):
promotion just for our listeners.
Plus, we'll be talking aboutfree airfare to Europe when you
book a river cruise.
Let's start the show.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time-sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
(00:42):
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (00:52):
Explore your world.
It's the Inside Travel Talkpodcast and radio show presented
by BluePlanetVacations.
com.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
And now here are your hosts,Patrick Wiscombe and Mark Faldmo
(01:17):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (01:23):
Woo, coming to you live from the
Wiscombe-Faldmo Radio Studiosright here in Salt Lake City.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
I am Patrick Wiscombe.
Mark Faldmo will join me herein just a second and, if you are
(01:45):
brand new to this radio showand podcast, Saturday and Sunday
around the country and ofcourse you can pick up the
podcast at InsideTravelTalk.
com we are going to help youplan and book your next vacation
or just give you ideas of whereyou may want to consider
(02:06):
vacationing next.
And we are presented, proudlypresented by BluePlanetVacations
.
com.
And just a sincere thank youfor taking the time to stop and
listen.
Coming up in the next 30minutes, we will be talking
about keeping your shoes on atthe airport.
Finally, finally, mark, it's agood change you don't have to
(02:31):
take your shoes off at theairport.
That became official a littlebit earlier this week.
Vacationing in Hawaii, on theNorth Shore, and free airfare to
Europe when booking a rivercruise those are just three of
the stories that we'll betalking about on this edition of
the show, and let me welcome inmy co-host, mark Faldmo.
(02:51):
Where are you right now?
Mark Faldmo (02:52):
Mark.
Today I'm in Fort Lauderdale.
I'm at a meeting called GTM,which is Global Travel
Marketplace, where I get to meetwith 100 suppliers Some I know,
some I don't.
The whole purpose of thismeeting is to introduce travel
agents to new and uniqueproducts that they may not be
aware of.
It's a pretty good event tolearn about new trends and new
(03:14):
suppliers in travel.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:16):
Let's get to the travel news headlines.
Can I get a hallelujah?
I don't have to look at otherpeople's feet and I don't have
to smell other people's feet.
You can keep your shoes on atthe airport during security
screening.
That I could not believe thenews.
(03:37):
In fact, nikki was telling meabout the news that was breaking
.
What was it on Tuesday, Tuesdayor Wednesday of this week?
Mark Faldmo (03:45):
Yep, and it actually goes into effect
tomorrow on.
Sunday, and right now it's atmost major airports.
There are a few airports wherethis is not implemented yet, but
the ultimate goal is to rollthis out nationwide at every
domestic airport where you donot have to take your shoes off.
(04:06):
That is welcome news afteralmost 20 years of having to
take your shoes off.
Patrick Wiscombe (04:11):
I am not going to miss that.
Happy birthday to America, lovethis country.
And now the preparations beginfor America's 250th birthday and
tour operators and destinationsare gearing up because they
expect to be very, very busythis next year and probably
after that, tour operators andcruise lines are adding special
(04:33):
departures to specificallycelebrate America's 250th year
birthday.
Mark Faldmo (04:40):
I will just mention two here.
One is a Globus tour, which isa 10-day tour from Boston to
Washington, visits all of ournation's history in between
those two places.
One that I am really interestedin is Holland America's cruise
they have.
It's a special sailing fromBoston to New York, so it leaves
(05:00):
Boston on the 4th of July,where you'll see the fireworks
show from Boston Harbor.
Oh, wow, it has places likeWilliamsburg, overnights in New
York City, and it leaves rightat the end of an event called
Sail the Fourth Celebration,which is the world's largest
fleet of tall ships, which willbe in New York Harbor that day,
(05:22):
so you'll sail out with thempast the Statue of Liberty.
That has quite an interestingitinerary.
Oh yeah, and that is sailingright on the 4th of July from
Boston.
There are a few other touroperators and cruise lines that
offer things like this, so ifyou're interested, give us a
call at Blue Planet Vacationsand we will give you all of the
(05:42):
details on these America's 250thbirthday travel opportunities.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:47):
Yeah, let me just give out the number now
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
Just get the conversationstarted, even though we're on
the air right now.
Call, and then Mark will callyou back or someone from the
office will call you back.
One of my favorite places onthis entire planet is Hawaii and
(06:09):
Courtyard Marriott Oahu NorthShore.
Obviously, you hear about theNorth Shore.
There's not a lot of hotels onthat north end.
Everything is pretty much Oahu,Waikiki, as Siri says, Waikiki,
but this is a hotel on theNorth Shore.
I love the North.
Mark Faldmo (06:27):
Shore and this is actually one of my favorite
hotels.
If you want a hotel that reallyleans in to community and the
Hawaiian spirit, it's theCourtyard Oahu North Shore.
It's right in Laia.
You're basically in the parkinglot to the Polynesian Cultural
Center.
There's great beaches nearby.
La'ea Beach, which is acrossthe street, is amazing.
(06:48):
You have Hukilau Beach, youhave Pounders Beach.
There are several nice beachesright there, but they've
launched a new.
It's a bi-monthly programthat's focused on Hawaii
storytelling and handmade goods.
These are presentations open tothe public, but if you're
staying at the hotel you canparticipate in that.
So just another way that theylean into the community.
(07:10):
They already have hula lessons,lay making classes.
They have their aunties thatare in the lobby, which are
local ladies who come on and putcultural presentations daily at
the courtyard.
It is one of my favorite hotelsin all of Hawaii to stay at.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:27):
And it's close to one of your favorite food
trucks, which is Mike's.
Mark Faldmo (07:32):
Hui Hui Chicken, which is in Kahuku, just a few
miles from Laia.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:37):
You can't go wrong with the North Shore in
Laia.
It's awesome.
We just received a text.
From who was this?
Connor?
He has a question.
It's not about Hawaii, but thisone is about Orlando.
He is asking he wants to go toOrlando, wants to visit a beach.
How far away are the beaches,and which one would you
recommend, mark?
Mark Faldmo (07:59):
Orlando is right in the middle of Florida, but
you're 45 minutes to an houraway from beaches.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:06):
Oh, is it that far away?
Mark Faldmo (08:08):
It is yeah, okay.
So if you go to the west aboutan hour, you can go to
Clearwater Beach, which isprobably the closest beach to
Orlando.
On the west coast you get kindof the white sand beaches, the
Caribbean-looking waters, so youcan go there.
Or if you go to the east, yougo out to like Cocoa Beach,
(08:28):
which is on the Atlantic.
I like going that directionbecause I like going to Kennedy
Space Center as well.
So it is different beachexperiences on either side of
Florida, but you are relativelyclose to a beach when you're in
Orlando.
So when you're at Disney World,universal Studios or SeaWorld,
(08:49):
you can go to the beach.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:50):
If you want to take a day to do that, Of
course, you've got Disney World,and one of our favorite places
is Hollywood Studios.
Mark Faldmo (08:57):
I love the Rockin' Roller Coaster, which is going
to be rebranded the MuppetsRoller Coaster shortly here, so
good attraction there atHollywood Studios.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:08):
If it's the Muppets roller coaster, who is
your favorite Muppet?
Mine is Beaker.
Mark Faldmo (09:16):
I like Beaker.
I think mine is Animal, that'sokay, that would be my second
one, and I'm sure Animal isgoing to be driving the roller
coaster, so that'll probably bethe theme of it.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:29):
Oh, my goodness, you nailed it.
Also in this segment, we've gotthe hot travel deal of the week
, which is, of course, Hawaii.
These are deals that Mark hasput together exclusively for our
listeners.
What do we have for listenersthis week?
Mark Faldmo (09:43):
We've kind of talked about this promotion the
last few weeks with differentdestinations.
This is with Delta Vacationsand it's save up to $250, but
you get bonus SkyMiles and ifyou're looking to get medallion
status, you also earn medallionqualifying miles on every
(10:04):
purchase, on the full purchase.
So, Patrick, I think youpurchased a trip a few years ago
, before this was in place, buthad this new policy been in
place, you would have been goldmedallion just on your trip to
Hawaii.
So this is a pretty good way toearn status with Delta.
If you chase status, like I do,I do too, using that promotion.
(10:29):
I've looked at a couple ofhotels on Oahu this is for the
dates of December 1st, for fivenights.
Salt Lake City, Honolulu RoundStrip.
Now this is on the Deltanonstop.
It is in main cabin, so thereare some lower fares if you want
to fly in the basic economy,fly on connecting flights or on
(10:50):
another airline.
But I thought I'd just usethose Delta nonstop flights with
this promotion because that'sthe most convenient way to get
there.
So in Waikiki, there are twopretty good prices here for that
date.
One is the Roamer House.
It's a three and a half staradults only hotel, one of the
only adults only hotels inHawaii.
It starts at $1139 per person.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:13):
And that includes airfare.
Mark Faldmo (11:14):
That includes airfare.
Okay, good, all right.
So five nights and airfare.
And then the Hilton HawaiianVillage, which is where you
stayed in one of my favoriteplaces, the Rainbow Tower, and
one of my favorite places, theRainbow Tower.
The Rainbow Tower, yeah, fourand a half star hotel from $1379
per person.
And then, just because wetalked about the Courtyard North
Shore, I put that in.
(11:36):
It's a three and a half star,although it has recently been
renovated.
I think it's a four, four and ahalf star, although, because
it's a courtyard, it doesn'thave some of the amenities
required to get that higher starrating.
But that starts at $1789 perperson.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:52):
So it might be $400 more per person, but it's
an entirely different vacationon the North Shore.
Mark Faldmo (11:59):
Yeah, it is.
You know a lot of people wouldlook at that and say, well,
that's a lot more expensive.
But its location and I thinkthe quality of the hotel, the
activities it offers, the localcultural immersion, the fact
that you can walk across thestreet to the beach and almost
every time I've done thatmorning, noon or evening I've
(12:20):
been the only one on that beach.
Patrick Wiscombe (12:21):
Yeah, it's a well-kept secret.
And then there's that beachabout I don't know, a half a
mile, third of a mile, just toits south.
That is a phenomenal beach.
Is that the one you're talkingabout?
Mark Faldmo (12:33):
It is, yeah, that one, or just literally across
the street from the beach,probably 75 yards from the main
entrance of the hotel.
Patrick Wiscombe (12:42):
It's a great beach.
Mark Faldmo (12:43):
So okay, there's no parking lot for it, there's
just houses there in between.
So that's why no one's on thatbeach, because that's why no one
knows it's there.
Patrick Wiscombe (12:53):
Oh, that's even better.
I've been doing it wrong.
Mark Faldmo (12:55):
Although you're probably talking about Hukilau
Beach, which is just down theway smaller parking lot, it's a
great beach too, yeah.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:02):
Now.
I know that it's hot right nowVery hot actually.
I know it's summer, but it hasbeen really quite hot.
Picture in your head, when it's30 degrees here, that you are
going to Oahu to go on vacation.
Mark has made those exclusivelyfor our listeners.
(13:24):
Call him in his office duringthe break.
Just get the conversationstarted, no obligation
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 is how to get ahold of Mark.
When we come back, it is time.
The infamous Just Cruisingsegment is next.
We'll be talking aboutCarnival's massive change to its
(13:47):
beverage program and we'regoing to tell you how to get
free airfare to Europe when youbook a river cruise with Avalon
Waterways.
That is next when the InsideTravel Talk podcast, a radio
show, continues Alongside myfriend Mark Faldmo.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
Show Voice (14:09):
We will be right back, taking you to destinations
around the world.
The Inside Travel Talk podcastand radio show is presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
(14:30):
Thanks for listening.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (14:39):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Ama Waterways.
From castles and capitals tovistas and villages.
Visit some of Europe's mostremarkable sites and cities To
set out on your own river cruisejourney.
Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
blueplanetvacations.
com.
Show Voice (15:05):
Now back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
(15:26):
Here's Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:45):
Broadcasting from Fort Lauderdale, Florida,
at least, mark is.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast, a radio
show.
This is the infamous JustCruising segment.
This is the segment of the showthat has made us famous around
the country.
If you love cruise news and youlove cruise deals, this is the
(16:07):
segment of the show for you, andwe have some really good offers
for listeners this week.
But first let's get to thecruise news headlines, and I
thought this was a prettysignificant development that
Carnival Cruise Line just made amassive change to its beverage
program.
I don't have the details.
What do we know about this?
Mark Faldmo (16:28):
And this is good, in my opinion.
They are changing from Pepsi toCoca-Cola, oh so studio
audience has something to sayabout that one.
Yeah, that is a good move, inmy opinion.
I don't drink much soda anymore, but three years ago this would
have been very, very welcome,when I drank several sodas a day
(16:51):
.
So I much prefer Coca-Colaproducts than Pepsi products.
Patrick Wiscombe (16:55):
Nikki and I, for the 4th of July, we decided
to go to Original Pancake Housefor breakfast and I ordered a
Diet Coke and they said is DietPepsi okay?
And I said no, yep, no, it'snot okay, anyway.
So Patrick had water, water,yep.
Viking has created, or iscreating, extended voyages for
(17:16):
the years 2026 and 2027.
Anything with extended voyagesI'm okay with this is on their
Ocean product.
Mark Faldmo (17:26):
The trend is people are taking less vacations but
longer vacations.
This year has kind of been thetrend, and so Viking, what
they've done?
They've created 14 differentitineraries in 2026 and 2027
that combine two popularitineraries into one.
So these range from 15 to 36day voyages.
(17:48):
Wow, they're mainly in the UK,Ireland, Scandinavia and
Mediterranean, but it reallydoes kind of take in what people
are looking for in these longercruises.
One is called Iconic WesternEurope it's 19 days between
London and Barcelona.
One called Viking Homelands,which is basically Norwegian
(18:10):
fjords 22 days from Stockholm toAmsterdam.
Iceland, Norway, British Isles29 days from Reykjavik, Iceland,
to London, and then there'sseveral others in there in the
Mediterranean.
So this is good and if you'reinterested in these, you should
look at booking them right away.
Oh yeah, I remember we did astory a few weeks ago.
(18:32):
The Viking was like 98% fullfor 2025 and they're already
like 60% full for 2026.
So now is the time to book oneof these longer cruises on
Viking.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:45):
Let me give out the office number quickly
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 is how you get ahold of Mark Now.
I know he's on the air rightnow.
Just leave a message.
He'll call you back or someonefrom the office will.
That's correct.
This is good news, since welived here in the West Salt Lake
(19:06):
City, specifically that RoyalCaribbean is opening cruises
here on the West Coast.
I'm going to assume that that'seither San Francisco, Los
Angeles or San Diego, or perhapsall three.
Mark Faldmo (19:18):
A lot of cruise lines have really struggled with
the West Coast, although we'reseeing more and more move ships
to the West Coast.
We're seeing more and more moveships to the West Coast.
So Royal Caribbean for thelongest time has had the
Navigator of the Seas sailinground trip from Los Angeles this
past May, which we talked aboutwhen I went on it.
They added the Ovation of theSeas.
In October they're going toswap the Ovation out for the
(19:41):
Quantum of the Seas.
But they are adding a thirdship to the West Coast which
will be from San Diego.
So starting in October of 2026,the Serenade of the Seas will
be sailing round trip San Diego,so they will be the largest
cruise line on the West Coast.
They have three, four, six,seven and eight day cruises, I
(20:05):
believe, to Mexico from all ofthese ports.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:09):
I know this isn't on the rundown, but if you
check your email right now,mark, because I know that you
and I get the same emails, didyou get the quick travel deal?
Generations, riviera Maya yeah,I did.
I think this is worthmentioning, even though we're
just getting it.
Mark Faldmo (20:25):
Yeah, let's put that in so Generations.
Riviera Maya is afamily-oriented hotel,
all-inclusive hotel in Cancunarea.
I've stayed there several times.
They have anywhere from studioto three-bedroom units Nuts, and
(20:49):
the deal that they're offeringright now is children up to 17
year old's stay free with theminimum of three nights hotel,
and this is for travel betweennow and the end of October.
It's also combinable with theirmore inclusive deal, which
provides free access to theirthemed water park, their beach
club at Maroma Beach oh you likethat a lot I do.
(21:11):
I love their beach club there,and also Wave Runner snorkeling,
and then also free transfers.
So this is a great deal ifyou're looking to take a family
vacation this fall to cancun.
By the way, it is alsocombinable with that same offer
that we had with delta vacationsthe 250 off bonus sky miles.
Patrick Wiscombe (21:35):
all of that was that, the uh, what we talked
about last segment?
Mark Faldmo (21:39):
yeah, last segment for Hawaii so that is also good
to Mexico, so that's a good,good deal.
So this is a great family deal,probably one of the best family
deals I've seen in a while,because this is usually a
relatively pricey resort.
So to get those kids free it'sa great deal.
Patrick Wiscombe (22:00):
Always in the infamous Just Cruising segment,
we have the cruise deal of theweek and we are talking about
Avalon waterways.
This is river cruising inEurope and the promotion that we
have for our listeners thatmark was working on really for
about the past month and we canfinally bring it to you now is
free airfare to Europe when youbook an av Waterways cruise.
(22:23):
That's the promotion.
Mark Faldmo (22:27):
Let's talk about that for a minute For select
2026 dates, and we'll go oversome different itineraries here
in a minute.
You'll get free airfare or youcan choose up to $1,500 per
person off on select dates.
The first river that I'llmention this is called Danube
Dreams and it's Budapest toVilsofen Germany.
This is an eight-day cruise.
(22:47):
The Danube is one of myfavorite rivers to cruise on
there.
Just the history.
I would choose the Danube overany river.
Time and time again, freeairfare for that.
Next one is the Romantic Rhine,which.
This is Amsterdam to Basel,Switzerland, again eight days.
This one.
The free airfare is good onselect dates July through
(23:09):
November.
If you like, castles the Rhineis packed with castles.
You just cruise past castles.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:15):
Would that be?
Mark Faldmo (23:16):
something to own a castle it would.
You know, some of theseexcursions you go up and in fact
the picture on my website isthis castle that we went to in
Austria and it's just this guy'shunting lodge.
A guy lives on it, he lives inthe guest house of the castle
and then they do the tours ofhow the castle worked two years
(23:36):
ago.
It's very interesting and worththe visit.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:40):
Have you seen that show, Castle Impossible?
It's about the girl and the guy.
I think it's.
Her grandpa owned a castle inFrance.
Now I know that we're talkingabout a different part of Europe
, but they're renovating thecastle.
Have you seen that show?
Mark Faldmo (23:56):
I've seen the previews for that.
Yeah, looks very interesting.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:00):
Cool, I'll be in my castle and I've got a moat
around it.
Yeah, are there any otherdepartures?
Mark Faldmo (24:07):
Mark.
Yeah, one more that I'd like tohighlight, and it's called
Magnificent Europe, which isAmsterdam to Budapest, so it
combines the Rhine and theDanube.
So if you're looking for thefree airfare on that, that's
selected June through Octoberdates.
One thing that's really niceabout these and I don't have the
(24:32):
specific dates, but some of thedepartures are as low as $3,500
per person, which includes theairfare to Europe.
Wow, they do range $3,500 to$4,500 for those shorter
eight-day cruises, but it is agreat deal if you're looking to
take a river cruise.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:43):
Did you work with TJ on that offer?
Mark Faldmo (24:45):
if you're looking to take a river cruise.
Did you work with TJ on thatoffer?
I did.
Yeah.
Tj's been a good partner inhelping us get deals for the
show and giving us informationfor the show as well.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:52):
So he got the permission he needed, so we
could finally offer that.
Yes, that's something you'vebeen working on for a while.
It is yeah, those arephenomenal offers.
Call Mark in his office.
As soon as we get off the airhere, he'll return your phone
call, or somebody from theoffice will 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
(25:15):
And you can also get the phonenumber and many of the specials
right on blueplanetvacations.
com.
You can listen to this showagain tomorrow morning right
here on this radio station andaround the country.
We air at the same time eachand every week on every single
radio station, and you can alsopick up the podcast at that same
(25:38):
time at insidetraveltalk.
com.
Insidetraveltalk.
com, you can literally juststream the show there, but if
you are a podcaster, all of thelinks to the show are on
InsideTravelTalk.
com.
Well, now it's your turn to getout and explore the world while
(25:59):
you can, because you never knowwhat curveballs life is going to
throw at you.
Live your life deliberately.
Live your life deliberately.
Live your life intentionally.
Don't put things off.
You'll make memories that willlast a lifetime and you'll
forget what the price was.
Thank you so much for listening.
We will talk to you again nextweek.
(26:19):
Have a great week.
Show Voice (26:23):
That's it.
That's the end of the showyou've been listening to the
inside travel talk podcast andradio show with patrick wiskam
and mark faldmo, presented byblueplanetvacationscom.
Book your adventure right now.
Call 888-718-7717.
Ad Voice (26:41):
That's 888-718-7717 or blueplanetvacations.
(27:08):
com for more information.
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