December 7, 2024 • 52 mins
Ready to transform your travel game? Join us on the Inside Travel Talk podcast as we explore Budapest's vibrant allure and unravel Delta Airlines' upcoming service class overhaul. Curious about the best time to explore Budapest or whether a river cruise is the way to go? We've got you covered. Plus, get the scoop on Disney's Hollywood Studios' exciting new plans to bring the Muppets into the mix with a family-friendly attraction replacing the Aerosmith-themed ride.
Cruise enthusiasts, prepare for a whirlwind of insider news! We'll break down the 2025 cruise rankings, highlighting how Viking and Disney are leading the charge in various categories, and delve into Norwegian Cruise Line's strategic Caribbean redeployment. For those craving sun-kissed adventures off the beaten path, discover Mexico's hidden gems like Huatulco and Oaxaca's unique culinary treasures. These spots promise an authentic escape from the well-trodden tourist trails.
Tired of cramped flights and airplane etiquette woes? We tackle these head-on with witty solutions to improve your in-flight experience, and even explore the peculiar trend of selling canned air as a quirky keepsake. Discover why a travel agent might just be your new best friend, offering invaluable insights and a personal touch to ensure your adventures are nothing short of extraordinary. Tune in for these travel tales and more with Mark Faldmo and Patrick Wiscombe!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Patrick Wiscombe (00:00):
Welcome to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show.
On today's show, mark and I aregoing to be talking about
vacationing in Budapest, one ofhis favorite locations in the
entire world A cruise ship thatwants to take on Icon of the
Seas If you haven't seen Icon ofthe Seas, that's a big ship and
alternate beach destinations inMexico.
(00:21):
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.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice are capacity
(00:49):
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (00:51):
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
(01:12):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (01:19):
It must be the weekend.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
Hello there, hope you're havinga great weekend.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Mark Faldmo will be here injust a minute.
Thank you so much for takingthe time to stop and listen to
(01:39):
the radio show and the podcast,and if you are brand new to the
show, and even if you are a longtime listener, the entire
purpose of our radio show is tohelp you plan and book your next
vacation.
And if you don't know where togo, mark and I are going to give
you some ideas to consider, andone of those ideas is coming up
(02:02):
in this segment.
We're going to talk aboutvacationing in Budapest, but
before we get there, let's getto the travel news headlines.
Should we start with Delta?
Let's do.
I think this is an interestingstory Delta Airlines is going to
launch their new main cabinfare in 2025.
What is this about?
Mark Faldmo (02:22):
Delta wants to further segment their classes of
service.
Right now you have basiceconomy, main cabin, comfort
plus and first class, and theyhave not laid out a start date
on this.
But they want to divide thecoach into good, better, best.
So they want to add a thirdtier, that's in between main
cabin and comfort plus, and theyalso want to do the same thing
(02:45):
in first class.
They want to have basic firstclass and main first class in
the coach seats.
I can see that I don't know howit's going to work in the first
class, but they do want tosegment that because they want
to try and actually sell more ofthe first class rather than
upgrade their frequent flyers.
So they're really trying tofind ways to sell more seats.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:05):
Does this minimize?
I mean you have 4 million milesin the air.
Are they trying to water downmedallion members then?
Mark Faldmo (03:12):
I don't think that's their intention.
I've seen lots of talk onfrequent flyer channels where
they kind of feel like Deltareally wants to sell everything
rather than upgrade their loyalflyers and those loyal flyers
spend lots of money on Delta.
So we'll see how that goes byallowing people to purchase
(03:33):
first class upgrades whenthey're checking in and things
like that, if it's available.
They've already watered downthe first class upgrades for
medallion members.
They've in the last yearthey've been cut by nearly 50%
the available seats for upgradesWow.
But it'll be interesting to seewhat they come up with for that
good, better and best in thecoach section.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:55):
Like you said, the main cabin I get first
class.
There's only so many seats.
I mean I'm sorry you're sittinga row behind somebody who's
getting better service.
I don't see that going well.
I've got good news for you theMuppets, oh, hey ho.
Hey, mark Kermit the Frog here,that's a pretty good voice.
Anyway, the Muppets are goingto have a new home at Disney's
(04:18):
Hollywood Studios.
Mark Faldmo (04:19):
This is both good and bad news.
So where Muppet Vision 3D wasis going to close to make room
for a new Monsters Inc themedarea.
This is in Florida.
In Florida.
This is good and bad newsbecause the Muppets are going to
replace one of my favoriterides, which is the Rocket and
Roller Coaster, which isAerosmith themed roller coaster,
(04:43):
so that's going away.
But it's going to be a Muppetsroller coaster, so that'll be
fun Much more tame.
I can just see that rollercoaster with loops and twists
and turns and animal as they'redriving the roller coaster.
Patrick Wiscombe (04:57):
I do like animal, though.
So no more love in an elevator.
Mark Faldmo (05:00):
Correct.
Yeah, I haven't been toHollywood studios in quite a
while, but I'm excited for thatto go try that.
It's one of my favorite rollercoasters.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:08):
It is time for our destination of the week and
you received was this a text oran email?
This was a text actually.
Let me just give out the textnumber so people can get in
touch with the show it's801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
So you can ask your specifictravel related question.
Philip is asking he wants to goto Budapest.
(05:32):
Now.
I just know by default, that'sone of your favorite places on
this entire planet.
Mark Faldmo (05:36):
It is.
I could talk about it for along time.
It's a great place to visit.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:41):
His question is when is the best time to go
and how many days should he plan?
And should he do a river cruiseor should he spend more time
just in the city?
What are your thoughts on that?
I?
Mark Faldmo (05:52):
guess it depends on how in-depth you want to
actually get into Budapest.
On a river cruise you can go intwo to three days before with
the river cruise, you know.
Three to four days seeingBudapest or five to six nights
in Budapest, I think would beplenty to see an experience of
One of my favorite cities thathas lots of influences from
(06:13):
around the world.
Budapest actually started as aCeltic village and it's been
ruled and influenced by Romans,Mongolians, Ottomans, and so
there's lots of history in thecity.
The best time to visit is inApril or May and September,
October.
This is when the weather's alittle bit more mild and the
(06:34):
crowds are not quite as much.
In the summertime Budapest canget pretty busy, especially when
there's lots of river cruisetraffic there.
Patrick Wiscombe (06:42):
What places or what sites should he consider
when going to Budapest?
Mark Faldmo (06:46):
Budapest has several fascinating places to
visit.
Probably the most popular andalso my favorite place is Castle
Hill, up on a hill on the Budaside of the Danube River.
It's home to Buda Castle, whichwas built in the year 1265.
There's also Fisherman'sBastion, which was a
(07:07):
fortification for the castle.
A lot of people ask why is itcalled Fisherman's Bastion?
That's because that was thesection of the wall where they
think the fishermen were incharge of the defense of the
castle there.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:20):
You also said something there about the Buddha
side, and I'm not trying to befunny here.
So is there a pest side?
Mark Faldmo (07:27):
There is, oh there is it actually used to be two
different cities and at times itwas two different countries?
Oh, I didn't know that.
Divided by the Danube, and sothat's why it's Budapest.
It's just, it's a combinationof the two sides of the Danube,
oh really, okay.
Also, as far as landmarks go,my favorite place on Castle Hill
(07:49):
is Matthias Church.
I think it's one of the mostinteresting buildings in Europe.
It was first built in the year1015.
It's been destroyed and rebuiltseveral times, but one thing I
find interesting is it was areally ornate church when the
Ottomans took over.
The Ottomans came and theydestroyed a lot of the ornate
(08:10):
churches, but in this one theydidn't.
They turned it into a mosque ohreally and they simply
plastered over everything.
In theory, they preservedeverything because they
plastered over it.
Some of the little chapelsthere.
They just walled off andplastered it.
No-transcript, All of thosehistoric landmarks are just lit
(08:58):
up.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:59):
Yeah, that would be spectacular.
Mark Faldmo (09:00):
Visually it's fascinating.
A lot of the river cruises willdo that, although there's been
some limitations.
One of the most unique placesit's called the House of Terror
and it was the headquarters forthe communist secret police in
Budapest, so it goes over all ofthat communist history.
Market Hall, which is a publicmarket Public markets in Europe
(09:21):
are just fascinating andinteresting to visit, so that's
definitely a place that you'llwant to visit.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:27):
What type of food do they have, generally
speaking, in that public market?
Mark Faldmo (09:31):
Well, there are several restaurants, but I like
to go there to buy paprika andthey have.
You know, one level is kind oflike the meat and fish market
and then the upper level is likesouvenirs, trinkets, things
like that Some good Christmasshopping to be done there.
The backpack I use for travelwas purchased there.
(09:52):
It's one of the best backpacksI've ever seen.
So everything from food toclothes and souvenirs, trinkets
is there.
And when you're in Hungary,you've got to have Hungarian
goulash Right on the Danube bythe Intercontinental Hotel.
Just behind that there's asidewalk cafe.
I like to sit out there, eatgoulash and watch the river
(10:16):
traffic and you're looking rightacross to the castle hill.
So you have the castle, theMatthias Church, and when it's
all lit up it's fascinating.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:22):
Explain what goulash is, because it sounds
not good.
What is goulash?
Mark Faldmo (10:28):
It's just like a stew kind of a mix between stew
and chili.
It's just got lots of paprikain it.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:34):
There's the paprika connection there.
Mark Faldmo (10:37):
Budapest is a wonderful place to visit.
I would put that on anyone'sbucket list if it were up to me
to come up with their bucketlist of travel destinations.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:45):
Well, that's going to do it for Budapest,
then We'll take a break here.
Philip, if you have morequestions about Budapest, call
Mark in his office, 888-718-7717, 888-718-7717.
You have made mesingle-handedly, mark, because
(11:11):
of all of the conversations, notjust this one.
I do want to go to Budapest,for sure.
Mark Faldmo (11:16):
Yeah, we'll have to get there, We'll.
We'll find a nice river cruiseto go on.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:19):
I'm fine with that Coming up in the next
segment.
We've got the hot travel dealof the week.
We're going to talk aboutViking and Disney cruise
dominating the cruise linemarket and we're going to talk
about alternate beachdestinations in Mexico and, of
course, we always have the hottravel deal of the week.
That is next when the insidetravel talk podcast, a radio
(11:41):
show, continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my nameis Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you, really.
Thank you so much for listening.
Show Voice (11:49):
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.
(12:13):
Thanks for listening.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (12:23):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Anna.
Waterways, from castles andcapitals to vistas 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 dot com.
Show Voice (12:49):
Now back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show presented by BluePlanet Vacations dot com,
America's best travel advisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
(13:09):
Here's Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:17):
Serving travelers here in the great
state of Utah, but really aroundthe world.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
My name is Patrick Wiska.
Mark Faldmo will be back herein the studio here in just a
minute.
He went to go print some stuffoff for the hot travel deal of
(13:40):
the week and this is a good deal.
You're going to want to stickaround for this of the week and
this is a good deal.
You're going to want to stickaround for this.
If you want to listen to thisshow again, go to
InsideTravelTalk.
com to listen and subscribe tothe podcast.
We're on all of the majorpodcast platforms and, just on a
(14:00):
personal note, thank you somuch for allowing us to be part
of your weekend.
Really, Mark, and I don't takethat lightly and we are
sincerely grateful that you takethe time and listen and that
you download the show and thatyou subscribe to it.
We're starting to see some realtraction with the podcast and
(14:23):
with the radio show.
So I just want to let everyoneknow how grateful we are to you
for listening, Coming up in thissegment of the show.
We've got the hot travel dealof the week.
Mark is finally back in thestudio.
We're going to be talking aboutalternate beach destinations in
Mexico, but before we do, let'stalk about the travel news
(14:46):
headlines.
Here I saw this story Mark thatViking and Disney are
dominating best cruise line.
Mark Faldmo (14:52):
This is a ranking done by US News and World Report
for the 2025 best cruise linerankings.
There are five categories herethat we'll go over, and this
covers 18 cruise lines.
Best cruise line for the moneynumber one is Celebrity, number
two was Virgin Voyages, numberthree was MSC, number four was
(15:13):
Royal Caribbean and number fivewas Holland America.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:16):
MSC.
They are aggressive on theirpricing and their ships are
terrific.
Mark Faldmo (15:20):
They are, and they've really climbed that list
compared to where they werelast year.
In this category, virginVoyages has held the top spot
for best cruise line for themoney, but this year it was
Celebrity Cruise Line.
The next one is Best CruiseLine for Families.
No surprise here, Disney CruiseLine Best for Families,
followed by Royal Caribbean,Norwegian Carnival and then
(15:42):
Costa Costa.
I find interesting becausethey've really never been high
up on any rankings RightInteresting that they show up on
this list.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:50):
I know that this is literally probably 10 to
15 years ago at this point, butthe first thing I think of
about Costa is off theMediterranean coast when it
crashed or when it sunk.
Yeah, terrible.
Mark Faldmo (16:02):
Yeah, and then the next category best cruise line
for couples Viking was numberone Seabourn, celebrity, regent
Seven Seas and Virgin Voyages.
Personally, I would put VirginVoyages a little bit higher up.
Both Virgin and Viking areadult only, so there's no
children on those.
But I'd put Virgin Voyages alittle bit higher on that list.
Patrick Wiscombe (16:25):
One thing I learned was that Celebrity is
the what the luxury brand ofRoyal Caribbean.
Mark Faldmo (16:31):
Yes, and also they're part of the Royal
Caribbean family.
Patrick Wiscombe (16:34):
Yeah, and then what was the other one?
The Regent Seven Seas, I think,is the luxury brand or an
upscale brand of Norwegiancruise lines NCL.
Mark Faldmo (16:43):
Norwegian.
Yeah, we'll just cover two moreof these Best cruise line in
the Caribbean Disney number oneCelebrity, virgin Seabourn and
Royal Caribbean.
I agree with that.
I probably actually would addNorwegian somewhere on that list
because they do a good job inthe Caribbean yeah, they do Best
cruise line in theMediterranean Viking Seabourn.
(17:04):
Yeah, they do Best Cruise Linein the Mediterranean Viking
Seabourn, celebrity, regent andSilversea.
All of those, with theexception of Celebrity, are kind
of in the luxury market andthat's interesting actually that
Celebrity has shown up on somany of these lists as well.
The story is about Viking andDisney, but I'd also say
Celebrity, and you actually havea celebrity cruise book coming
(17:26):
up.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:28):
We're taking off in March One of the favorite
things that you have mentioned,but I saw online.
We're going to Maho Beach,which is where the airplanes fly
in about 20 feet over your head.
We're talking about full onjets flying over your head.
Mark Faldmo (17:41):
Yeah, I think when I was there a 7th 47 from
Amsterdam landed.
Oh boy, I don't think planesthat big land there anymore.
But it's interesting to be thatclose to those airplanes when
they land.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:56):
That would be terrifying to have that thing
fly over your head, or?
Just take off over your head,depending on the direction.
NCL, Norwegian Cruise Line, hasrevealed their redeployment
itineraries for three ships.
What three ships and where arethey going?
These?
Mark Faldmo (18:11):
are some of their smaller ships the Norwegian
Jewel, the Norwegian Star andthe Norwegian Dawn.
One was originally scheduled tosail South America, one of them
was in Asia and one of them, Ithink, was in the South Pacific.
They are all being redeployedto the Caribbean there is huge
demand for the Caribbean.
(18:37):
I don't know what's going on.
Yeah, it's quite amazing thatthey're going away from some of
these higher revenue sailings,or they get a higher per person,
but they just actually aren'tselling as much.
So the cruise lines havefigured they can bring them back
closer to home and sell them,probably at a lower per person,
but they can sell more of them.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:51):
If you want the best bang for your buck, go
on a repositioning cruise, whichis basically what this would be
.
Mark Faldmo (18:57):
Yes, yeah.
So when they're bringing these,I'm sure there'll be some great
repositioning cruises, and I'mactually going to look for that
when we're after the show hereand I will post them on the
blueplanetvacations.
com in the top five cruise dealson the website, so look for
that and I'll post them there.
Patrick Wiscombe (19:15):
This was a phone call that you received
that George wants to go toMexico, but not one of the main
tourist areas.
His specific question is whatare some alternate beach
destinations that are in Mexico?
There's?
Mark Faldmo (19:28):
I think, a lot of good options here for George,
and we've actually noticed thisas a trend and we've talked
about this before People arelooking for a little bit more
authentic, less crowdeddestinations.
So in Mexico there are threethat I would choose two on the
West Coast, one on the EastCoast.
The first one is Huatulco coast, one on the east coast.
(19:49):
The first one is Huatulco.
Huatulco is an area that hasnine bays, 20 of some of the
best beaches on the west coastof Mexico.
It's located in Oaxaca and has,I think, some of the best food
in Mexico.
This is where mole is from.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:03):
My son Brandon loves, mole loves it.
Mark Faldmo (20:06):
Yes, so he would love Huatulco.
When I was in Huatulco, one ofmy favorite things to try I
don't know that I'd really do itagain, but it was the
mole-covered grasshoppers.
That's one of the most famousthings in Huatulco and Oaxaca
that's what I would be doingOaxaca.
Yeah, but the mole covers itall up.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:30):
I can't get past the crunch.
I couldn't do it.
Mark Faldmo (20:33):
So that's one place To get there from the US.
You'd most likely connectthrough Mexico City to get to
Huatulco.
The next destination I'drecommend is Zihuantanejo Ixtapa
area.
It's two cities.
Zihuantanejo is a little bitmore of the traditional area.
There are several hotels inIxtapa, which is where most of
(20:56):
the forests stay there, andIxtapa interesting in the 1970s
was a big coconut plantation.
Oh really, lots of coconuttrees I love coconut Fresh
coconut.
Wow, awesome, yes, yeah, verygood.
And Zihuantanejo kind oftraditional Mexican fishing
village.
It's on a bay.
I like walking around the townsquare and waterfront.
(21:16):
There in Zihuantanejo, one ofthe main divers from Jacques
Cousteau started a naturereserve on an island that's in
the main bay.
I think that's since beenclosed since I've been there,
but an interesting thing to doif it is open.
And then let's move over to theeast coast of Mexico.
I think one of the most uniqueplaces you can go to is an
(21:39):
island called Holbox.
You would fly to Cancun andthen you drive about an hour and
a half or two hours to a portand then you take about a 30
minute ferry ride to the islandof Holbox.
There are no cars there.
All the taxis are golf carts.
All of the hotels are smaller.
I doubt there's a hotel that'sover 50 rooms there, but there
(22:00):
are some all-inclusives there.
Holbox when I visited there Iwas just enamored by it.
I want to go spend more timethere.
I guess there are some pavedroads, but for the most part
it's all dirt roads and golfcarts to get around.
Very nice beach, as it's on theGulf of Mexico, so it's not on
the Caribbean side, it's more inthe Gulf of Mexico, part of the
(22:23):
Yucatan Peninsula there, butfascinating way to get there and
island to visit.
If you don't want to do thatlong drive, there are helicopter
transfers.
You can, but those are quiteexpensive.
Patrick Wiscombe (22:33):
That sounds even more delightful.
Well, I guess that's theperfect way to lead into the hot
travel deal of the week, alwaysin segment number two of the
show.
What was the promotion that yougave, George?
Mark Faldmo (22:44):
The promotion is with Funjet Vacations, who's one
of our preferred suppliers atBlue Planet Vacations.
They have Black Friday dealsthat are still going on, and one
of them is save up to $650 ifyou pay your vacation in full at
the time of booking.
And then I did look at somevacation costs to the
(23:05):
Zihuantanejo Ixtapa.
So these prices are roundtripairfare from Salt Lake City,
five nights hotel and transfers.
I looked fairly close inJanuary 29th date.
The flights on this were flyingthrough Houston on United
Airlines.
Four-star hotel at the SunscapeAll-Inclusive started at $1199
per person.
Wow.
Four-and-a-half star AzulIxtapa Beach Resort started at
(23:29):
$1399 per person.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:31):
And that's coming up in about what 45 days
from now.
Mark Faldmo (23:35):
About 45 days from now if you want to go, and
obviously you can go anytime youwant, right, but this was kind
of our typical midweek, aboutsix weeks away, which is where
we're finding the sweet spotright now in the good prices and
to get to a destination likethat.
Ix tapa is kind of the hotelzone of Zihuantanejo, but
(23:58):
compared to other hotel zones,there's like 10 hotels there, oh
wow, maybe a little bit morethan that, but it's not the 40,
50, 60 hotels that you see inother of the larger tourist
destinations in Mexico.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:11):
That's the deal that he took you up on,
George.
Yes, yep, George, well done.
All right, we'll take a breakhere.
Do what George did.
Go to Mexico.
Some of these alternate beachdestinations Huatulco.
You know what my Spanish is,not what it used to be.
I'll just stop there.
Go to Mexico.
(24:31):
Call Mark in his office if youwould please 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 to book thatvacation.
And you can also go toblueplanetvacations.
com.
(24:52):
When we come back, it is timefor the infamous Just Cruising
segment.
We'll be talking about MSCWorld America.
This is the ship that isrivaling Icon of the Seas.
Mark and I have some thoughtson Icon of the Seas.
It is mind-blowing how big thisship is Unbelievable.
We'll give you those detailswhen we come back.
(25:13):
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show alongside my good friend,mark Faldmo.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
Show Voice (25:25):
We will be right back to be part of your weekend.
We will be right back.
You're listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo, presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
(25:47):
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
Ad Voice (25:54):
We'll be right back travel insurance plans can help
protect you and your vacation.
Travelex is known for theiraward-winning customer service
and high claims paid rate.
Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
(26:17):
blueplanetvacations.
com for more information.
Patrick Wiscombe (26:19):
Welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio show Coming up.
In the remaining 30 minutes,mark and I are going to be
talking about MSC's WorldAmerica.
It's going to take on icon ofthe seas in terms of width and
length Huge, gigantic ship.
We're also going to talk aboutthe value of using the travel
agent, and American Airlines isexpanding their crackdown of
(26:43):
group jumpers.
Let's get back to the show.
Show Voice (26:54):
This is 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 now here are your hosts,Patrick Wiscombe and Mark
(27:16):
Fulton-Mo.
Patrick Wiscombe (27:26):
All aboard.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
This segment is always the JustCruising segment, always in
segment three of the show.
We're talking huge cruise shipsin this segment and, as Mark
makes his way back into thestudio, let's just start there.
(27:48):
What do we have?
Is it a 14-day or is it kind ofa combination of seven days in
the eastern, seven days westernCaribbean?
Mark Faldmo (27:58):
It's a back-to-back on two seven-days eastern
western.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:01):
It's kind of a cheater's code to go on two
cruises on one trip.
Mark Faldmo (28:05):
So you get really good value in that.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:07):
Yeah, you know they do cost a little more, but
you're already there anyway.
But before we get there, let'sget to the cruise news of the
week.
Let's start with this, mark,let's talk about Disney's new
ship called the Treasure.
Mark Faldmo (28:19):
It will be debuting here, I think in a week or two.
It will be its first passengersailing.
It's been christened and it'sdoing some preview cruises for
media and travel industry rightnow.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:31):
Were we invited on that?
Mark Faldmo (28:32):
No, we weren't.
So I wish there's two things onhere that I really want to see.
The first one is the HauntedMansion Parlor.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:41):
On the ship.
Mark Faldmo (28:43):
Yep, they have a lounge which is a 1900s ocean
liner themed lounge, also themedafter the Haunted Mansion ride
at Disney.
So just looking at the pictureor the renderings of it, it
looks like a pretty cool loungeto hang out in.
The next one is one of therestaurants, Plaza de Coco,
(29:04):
which is part of the diningsystem.
It's Mexican themed and it'sthemed after Pixar's Coco.
That's a first for Disney tohave something themed after that
.
When you said Plaza de Coco.
Patrick Wiscombe (29:16):
I was like, oh sweet, it's a chocolate,
Chocolate.
I'm like, all right, I can getbehind this.
Mark Faldmo (29:23):
All ships need that .
Well, they need to go back tothe midnight chocolate buffets.
There's not very many shipsthat do that anymore.
No, death by chocolate.
Death by chocolate, yeah.
And then probably the thirdthat's new to Disney and this
was probably the one I would bemost excited about.
It's called the Periscope Puband it's a sports bar.
It is themed after 20,000Leagues Under the Sea submarine
(29:45):
voyage.
I've always liked that movieand I like that ride at Disney
submarine voyage.
I've always liked that movieand I like that ride at Disney.
There's actually two more shipsin this class of ship that
Disney is putting out, so it'dbe interesting to see what type
of things they include on thosetwo ships that follow the Disney
treasure.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:01):
Okay, so this is version one of this ship, and
then there's two more coming.
Let's talk about MSC's newcruise ship.
Called what is it?
Is it World America?
Yeah?
Mark Faldmo (30:12):
MSC World America Okay.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:14):
So they're the new cruise ship that's going to
be released.
I think it was in April of thisyear 20, no, no, no, I'm sorry,
April of 2025.
2025.
And that it's going to take onnot only in sheer size
technically it's smaller butIcon of the Seas, which is Royal
Caribbean's ship.
Yeah, I can't even tell you howbig Icon of the Seas is Kind of
(30:36):
takes your breath away.
Mark Faldmo (30:38):
Yeah, and so MSC is going that route.
This will be the biggest everMSC cruise ship and it will be
sailing alternating Eastern andWestern Caribbean cruises out of
Miami and, as we alluded tobefore, they also sell them as
back-to-back so you can do a14-day cruise.
This new ship, the worldAmerica, is going to have a
(30:59):
one-of-a-kind plaza that runsdown the middle of the ship,
with bars, restaurants,multi-stories and and the
activities they are going tohave one of the largest water
slides at sea and their wholewater complex and gaming complex
will be fantastic.
They are trying to break intomore of the family market, which
(31:22):
Royal Caribbean and NorwegianCruise Line kind of control.
This ship is going to beamazing for families.
Patrick Wiscombe (31:28):
There's so much to do on these ships.
If you say that you're bored ona cruise that is on you,
there's so much to do on theseships.
If you say that you're bored ona cruise that is on you, there
is so much to do.
Mark Faldmo (31:35):
Just the technology that's going into these new
ships.
Cruise lines are almoststarting to compete with Las
Vegas for some of the new andfascinating attractions, and
cruise lines are really goingafter that.
Patrick Wiscombe (31:47):
It's a good move on their part.
I saw a story that Viking RiverCruises Viking the company is
70% booked already for 2025.
That's astonishing to me.
Mark Faldmo (31:58):
You have to book a lot earlier than you used to.
With Viking being 70% sold outfor 2025, that pretty much means
most of the good dates are goneand all of the peak dates are
probably gone If you're lookingto travel not just on Viking,
but on any cruise line.
I've seen similar reports fromother cruise lines, like
Norwegian has had fourrecord-breaking sales weeks in a
(32:20):
row.
All of these cruise lines arejust selling like crazy.
Patrick Wiscombe (32:25):
When you and I went to the Miami Marlins game.
I've never seen a cruise lineadvertised inside of a baseball
stadium ever.
Mark Faldmo (32:32):
Being in Miami I'd expect it, you know kind of the
cruise capital of the worldthere.
But yeah, that was interestingto see in the Marlins that
Norwegian was advertising.
Patrick Wiscombe (32:42):
Let's get to the cruise deal of the week,
which is always in this segmentof the show at the bottom of the
hour.
Let's stick with MSC's WorldAmerica, the gigantic ship
that's taking on Icon of theSeas.
One of the favorite things thatI did this year in I think it
was June 20th to June 30th Nikkiand I took a back-to-back
cruise.
It was fantastic.
(33:03):
Let's give listeners thedetails here.
Mark Faldmo (33:06):
I'll first start out with the Eastern Caribbean
part of this.
And this is the first passengersailing of the ship, so it's
April 12th 2025.
It cruises from Miami, goes toPuerto Plata in the Dominican
Republic, San Juan, Puerto Ricoand then also Ocean Cay, MSC
Marine Reserve.
Patrick Wiscombe (33:27):
Oh so it is going to.
Mark Faldmo (33:27):
Ocean Cay.
It is going to Ocean Cay.
I think, MSC is probably goingto include that in most of their
sailings.
Yeah, I would hope so.
The inside cabins start at $923per person.
That includes all taxes andfees.
Balcony cabins start at $1220per person.
Now for an MSC cruise.
This is a little bit more thanyou're used to seeing, but keep
(33:51):
in mind it's a new ship and ifyou compare to these rates the
first few months of the icon ofthe seas, they're probably half
the cost oh yeah, icon of theseas.
Patrick Wiscombe (34:00):
In fact, Nicky and I were looking at a cruise
on that now it's still doubleit's still double.
Mark Faldmo (34:05):
yeah.
So for a brand new big cruiseship with all the bells and
whistles, this is a pretty goodrate.
Yeah, phenomenal.
And then the Western Caribbean,and I really like this
itinerary.
It's a four-stop itinerary.
So it goes Miami, goes to CostaMaya, goes to Roatan in
Honduras I like it because itreminds me a lot of Tahiti and
(34:26):
then it goes to Cozumel and italso goes to Ocean Key MSC
Marine Reserve.
Patrick Wiscombe (34:32):
Let me just stop you there for a second If
listeners don't know what OceanKey Marine Reserve is.
It is MSC's private island andit is spectacular, absolutely
spectacular.
The scenery, things to do, thelighthouse show, the beach
bonfire, just all of it.
It is an amazing experience.
Mark Faldmo (34:54):
And Ocean Key.
Both of those itineraries have12 hours there, 8 am to 8 pm, so
it's a full day.
You get a full day and this onestarted.
This was an April 19th sailingand it was 1120 per person for
an inside or 1673 per person fora balcony, and then you can
(35:16):
book those again, like we said,as back to back, and that's a
great way.
You get a both parts of theCaribbean eastern and western,
if people can only do one.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:26):
Which one do you like?
Mark Faldmo (35:28):
I'm gonna say probably the western yeah, I
like the western because it hasone more stop.
Yeah, okay, I do like sea days,but the two sea days in a row
sometimes can get a little bitlong for me, so I like the extra
stop that it adds.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:45):
Okay, all right.
So if you can only do one,recap the price on that if you
would, for the Eastern first andthen let's recap the Western,
if you would.
Mark Faldmo (35:54):
The Eastern starts at $923 per person for an inside
or $1220 per person for abalcony, and the Western starts
at $1120 per person for aninside or $1673 per person for a
balcony.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:10):
And what were the dates on the Eastern one?
Mark Faldmo (36:13):
The Eastern was April 12th and the Western was
April 19th Makes sense.
These are the first twopassenger sailings that this
ship has.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:22):
Oh, if you can only choose one, just go.
First of all, MSC's cruiseships are visually stunning and
they're equally as stunning onthe inside.
Mark Faldmo (36:31):
I think MSC is really going to start to pick up
here for the US market as soonas they get a little bit more
known.
They're just kind of an unknownentity right now.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:41):
Nikki and I went to where did we go?
We went to Ocean Key, theprivate resort, but we went.
We went western.
That's what we did western.
Yeah, your Cozumel, Costa Maya,I believe we did not get to row
a town and, uh, I know that'sone of your favorite stops but
it just wasn't on the itinerary.
(37:02):
Phenomenal, call mark in hisoffice.
If you're all pumped up and,man, we got to book this.
Call them right now.
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
You can also look at the dealat blueplanetvacations.
com.
When we come back, we are goingto talk about travelers want to
(37:28):
ban reclining seats on planes.
I have a story on that one tooand we're also going to talk
about the practice of sellingdestinations canned air Just
bizarre.
Mark's travel tips.
And we'll wrap up the showthat's next Travel tips.
(37:48):
And we'll wrap up the showthat's next when the Inside
Travel Talk podcast and radioshow continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my goodfriend, I'm Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (38:02):
Explore your world.
You're listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atinsidetraveltalk.
com.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (38:24):
This segment of Inside Travel Talk is sponsored by El
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(38:49):
blueplanetvacations.
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Patrick Wiscombe (38:51):
The Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio
show presented byblueplanetvacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (39:23):
They'll help you plan and book your next vacation
.
Yeah, really, you're listeningto the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio show presentedby BluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And now here's Patrick Wiscombeand Mark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (39:46):
Final segment of this week's Inside Travel
Talk podcast and radio show.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
He is Mark Faldmo.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
If you want to listen to thisshow again, we'll be on the air
(40:07):
tomorrow morning, Sunday, righthere on 860 KKAT in Salt Lake
City.
We're also on, obviously,Saturday, because you're
listening to us right now andyou can also pick up the podcast
at InsideTravelTalk.
com.
We're on all of the majorpodcast platforms.
You can stream the show on thatwebsite, insidetraveltalk.
(40:28):
com, and if you would subscribeto the show, we're really
starting to get some tractionwith the podcast networks and
the search engines and we oweall of that to you, our
listeners.
So thank you for allowing thisto be part of your weekend for
the last.
What year and a half?
(40:48):
Mark, year and a half nowPretty amazing.
By the way, one of the thingsthat I was doing this past week
was building out the studio herein the house, and I know that
you have your home studio, but Iwanted to finish up building my
studio here.
(41:09):
We're in two separate locations, but it sounds like we're in
the same studio, although I domiss having you come to the
house.
Mark Faldmo (41:15):
Yeah, I like the drive.
It's my thinking time.
This is a good way to do it.
Technology is amazing.
Patrick Wiscombe (41:20):
And no one would know that we were what?
50 miles apart right now, 50miles apart.
Yeah, let's start with thetravel news, shall we?
Let's dive in.
Let's start with this news itemthat 41% of travelers want to
ban reclining seats on planes.
Okay, that is a controversialtopic, just to begin with.
(41:40):
But what details do you haveabout this particular news story
?
This?
Mark Faldmo (41:45):
survey was put out after an incident on Cathay
Pacific, which is an Asiancarrier, so it was a long-haul
flight.
A woman refused to put her seatupright.
The couple behind them couldnot see the television screens,
so they started kicking andshaking the seat.
Oh boy and it turned into awhole full-fledged issue and
(42:07):
we've actually talked about acouple of stories about
reclining seats the past coupleof months.
It's becoming more and more ofan issue, especially as airlines
start to redesign their cabinsand actually take out some space
.
Even though the seats reclinejust a matter of inches, it
really takes out the personbehind you, personal space.
(42:28):
For instance, if someonereclines their seat on most
airplanes I can't put down thetray table.
It's that bad.
So my rule with reclining seatsis less than four hours I don't
recline my seat, although Igenerally don't recline my seat,
I'm a window person.
And so I would rather leanagainst the side of the airplane
(42:49):
than recline my seat.
That's kind of the rule I go byIf it's shorter than four hours
, don't recline your seat.
That's something that theairlines and passengers are
going to have to figure out,because it is a pain point for a
lot of passengers.
Patrick Wiscombe (43:03):
Honestly, if I were the airlines, I wouldn't
even have reclining seatsProblem solved.
Just lock them up.
Mark Faldmo (43:10):
Yeah, I've seen some European carriers where
they have reclining seats.
Problem solved, just lock themup.
Yeah, I've seen some Europeancarriers where they have
reclining seats, but it doesn'trecline back into the person
behind you, it shifts the seatyou're sitting on forward.
Oh, interesting so it gives youless legroom, but you do get to
still kind of experience thereclining seat.
So that's a little bit betterway to do it, I think, because
(43:31):
then it does not affect theperson's space behind you.
Patrick Wiscombe (43:35):
I like that idea of it better.
Yeah, American Airlines isexpanding their crackdown.
This sounds like something inChina.
Yeah, on what are called groupjumpers let's just start the
definition of group jumpersthere and what they're doing to
crack down.
Mark Faldmo (43:52):
Second, Most airlines board in groups so they
have, you know, group or zoneone, group or zone two, and
there's a big problem withpeople just boarding whenever
they want to board.
And we talked about this, Ithink about four or five weeks
ago that Americans started thisat some of their airports, where
now you get the green go or ared buzz that stops you.
(44:16):
So if you're not boarding inyour zone, it pulls you out of
line, it does not let you board,and I know people are antsy to
get on the plane.
People are antsy if they'regoing to get overhead space, but
it really does slow downbecause a lot of those zones
take out the first few zones,which are people that need extra
time and assistance, and someof the top flyers.
(44:37):
A lot of those are built toboard the plane from the back
and from the windows in, and sothey're designed to help you
board the plane quicker with howthey do those zones.
Patrick Wiscombe (44:53):
You mentioned in a previous episode your
solution for group jumpers,which was the gong show the big
gong Stephen.
Smith gong.
Yeah, you are in violation.
Back to you know, back to theend of the line.
I also like the idea of maybehaving a wipeout, that TV show
wipeout.
(45:13):
Good night, big balls.
Yep, what you think is safepassage all of a sudden just
absolutely slams you into theside of the wall or something
for violators.
Mark Faldmo (45:23):
And then you get to go back to the beginning.
Patrick Wiscombe (45:26):
There is a strange trend that has recently
popped up, and it's the practiceof selling destinations canned
air Behold the great air ofCancun here, just you know and
then breathe it in.
Mark Faldmo (45:42):
This started in Italy's Lake Cuomo, up in the
mountains, the crisp mountainair.
So someone got the idea to sellcanned air.
So they sell lake Cuomo'scanned air for ten dollars.
It contains a precise mixtureof gases, including 21 oxygen,
0.93 argan and four percentcarbon dioxide and trace amounts
(46:07):
of nitrogen and neon.
I guess that's on theingredients on the side of the
can.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:13):
When Mark and I have decided to sell the air
of Salt Lake City during winter,during an inversion.
If you want the authenticexperience, we've got it here.
We've got it.
Might get lung cancer frombreathing it in, but
nevertheless here it is.
Ad Voice (46:29):
By the way, it's $10.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:31):
Yeah, and we do accept Venmo and apple pay.
I would do it just so I havethe story.
Hey, I bought some canned airand then everyone would be like
what is wrong with you?
Yeah, as we close out, this isa question that I've had for you
for a while why you should usea travel agent.
Mark Faldmo (46:51):
There's several reasons, and actually, if you go
to the blueplanetvacations.
com, they're at the very top ofthe page.
There's a link to why you use atravel agent, which lists some
really good reasons why.
A lot of it is personal touchand knowledge.
Travel agents that sell travelevery day, all day long know
(47:13):
some good ins and outs.
They also have clients that areconsistently giving them
feedback about different places.
Rather than looking at onlinereviews, which you might be
looking at something that's oneor two years old that really has
no relevance now because thatproperty could be better or
worse.
Travel agents are reallyimportant, and there was an
interesting study that was justput out that a majority of
(47:38):
travelers prefer to use a travelagent to get that personal
touch.
The interesting thing isyounger travelers are flocking
to using a travel agent.
They're tech dependent, theydon't know how it works or
anything like that, and so youknow that's a one reason to use
a travel agent, and I'veactually got kind of two
(48:01):
interesting stories.
I was at a meeting with DeltaAirlines about 10 days ago and
they really look closely attheir net promoter scores.
For those of you that don'tknow what net promoter score is,
it's a good measure of whatyour customers think of your
product.
So what Delta Vacations foundis those travelers that use a
(48:24):
travel agent have a much highernet promoter score.
They're happier with theirvacations.
Oh, interesting.
And then I, on Thanksgivingmorning, I was just listening to
Fox News and they had a travelexpert come on talking about
Black Friday deals, how to findthe best travel deals, and he
(48:46):
says well, the first thing youneed to do is have a good travel
agent that can help you sortthrough all of these things,
because a lot of these deals anda good travel agent will tell
you this might be good for a fewdays, so you don't have to book
now.
You can really take your timeand make sure you get fit into
the right vacation for what youwant.
And another thing that he saidwhich I totally agree with was a
(49:10):
lot of travel agents do getbetter deals from suppliers.
Suppliers see their customersatisfaction rankings, go online
retailers because it's a bettercustomer and also, as for a
(49:35):
selfish reason for thosesuppliers, they get a higher
revenue passenger.
Oh sure, booking with a travelagent?
Yeah, because the travel agentsdo.
As we've talked about manytimes price versus value.
Travel agents will work to getnot only the best price, but the
best value, which may not bethe best price, but you'll be
(49:55):
happier with your trip.
Patrick Wiscombe (49:57):
I can't tell you the number of times that
Mark has helped Nikki and I bookvacations.
How many vacations have we beenon this year?
Is it three or four, somethinglike that?
Probably four, I think, yeah, Ithink so.
Good vacations before.
(50:17):
I think, yeah, I think so Goodvacations.
And the insight that Mark hasgiven me and Nikki has just been
invaluable.
You talk about value, mark, isit?
Four million miles, travelingaround over 150 cruises.
He's been everywhere.
Awesome.
Call him in his office If wehave whet your appetite.
There's no cost or obligation,just call him.
(50:39):
Hey, we want to go to this placeor we want to go to the place
that you, both of you, weretalking about.
Call Mark in his office,888-718-7717, 888-718-7717,
888-718-7717.
(51:00):
And you can also check outblueplanetvacations.
com.
We'll be back right here onthis radio station tomorrow
morning 860 KKAT, 11 am MountainTime.
And if you want or need tolisten to the show again, you
can download and subscribe tothe podcast at insidetraveltalk.
com.
All right, we're done, but nowit's your turn to get out and
(51:21):
explore the world, because younever know what curveballs life
is going to throw at you.
Live your life deliberately.
Live your life intentionally.
Thank you for listening.
Really, have a great week.
We'll talk to you again nextSaturday and deliberately Live
your life intentionally.
Thank you for listening.
Really, have a great week.
We'll talk to you again nextSaturday and Sunday.
Have a great week.
Show Voice (51:40):
That's it.
That's the end of the showYou've been listening to the
Inside Travel Talk podcast andradio show with Patrick Wiscombe
and Mark Faldmo presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com.
Book your adventure right now.
Call 888-718-7717.
That's 888-718-7717.
(52:01):
Thanks for listening.
Have a great week.
Welcome to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show.
On today's show, mark and I aregoing to be talking about
vacationing in Budapest, one ofhis favorite locations in the
entire world A cruise ship thatwants to take on Icon of the
Seas If you haven't seen Icon ofthe Seas, that's a big ship and
alternate beach destinations inMexico.
(00:21):
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.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice are capacity
(00:49):
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (00:51):
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
(01:12):
.
Patrick Wiscombe (01:19):
It must be the weekend.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
Hello there, hope you're havinga great weekend.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Mark Faldmo will be here injust a minute.
Thank you so much for takingthe time to stop and listen to
(01:39):
the radio show and the podcast,and if you are brand new to the
show, and even if you are a longtime listener, the entire
purpose of our radio show is tohelp you plan and book your next
vacation.
And if you don't know where togo, mark and I are going to give
you some ideas to consider, andone of those ideas is coming up
(02:02):
in this segment.
We're going to talk aboutvacationing in Budapest, but
before we get there, let's getto the travel news headlines.
Should we start with Delta?
Let's do.
I think this is an interestingstory Delta Airlines is going to
launch their new main cabinfare in 2025.
What is this about?
Mark Faldmo (02:22):
Delta wants to further segment their classes of
service.
Right now you have basiceconomy, main cabin, comfort
plus and first class, and theyhave not laid out a start date
on this.
But they want to divide thecoach into good, better, best.
So they want to add a thirdtier, that's in between main
cabin and comfort plus, and theyalso want to do the same thing
(02:45):
in first class.
They want to have basic firstclass and main first class in
the coach seats.
I can see that I don't know howit's going to work in the first
class, but they do want tosegment that because they want
to try and actually sell more ofthe first class rather than
upgrade their frequent flyers.
So they're really trying tofind ways to sell more seats.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:05):
Does this minimize?
I mean you have 4 million milesin the air.
Are they trying to water downmedallion members then?
Mark Faldmo (03:12):
I don't think that's their intention.
I've seen lots of talk onfrequent flyer channels where
they kind of feel like Deltareally wants to sell everything
rather than upgrade their loyalflyers and those loyal flyers
spend lots of money on Delta.
So we'll see how that goes byallowing people to purchase
(03:33):
first class upgrades whenthey're checking in and things
like that, if it's available.
They've already watered downthe first class upgrades for
medallion members.
They've in the last yearthey've been cut by nearly 50%
the available seats for upgradesWow.
But it'll be interesting to seewhat they come up with for that
good, better and best in thecoach section.
Patrick Wiscombe (03:55):
Like you said, the main cabin I get first
class.
There's only so many seats.
I mean I'm sorry you're sittinga row behind somebody who's
getting better service.
I don't see that going well.
I've got good news for you theMuppets, oh, hey ho.
Hey, mark Kermit the Frog here,that's a pretty good voice.
Anyway, the Muppets are goingto have a new home at Disney's
(04:18):
Hollywood Studios.
Mark Faldmo (04:19):
This is both good and bad news.
So where Muppet Vision 3D wasis going to close to make room
for a new Monsters Inc themedarea.
This is in Florida.
In Florida.
This is good and bad newsbecause the Muppets are going to
replace one of my favoriterides, which is the Rocket and
Roller Coaster, which isAerosmith themed roller coaster,
(04:43):
so that's going away.
But it's going to be a Muppetsroller coaster, so that'll be
fun Much more tame.
I can just see that rollercoaster with loops and twists
and turns and animal as they'redriving the roller coaster.
Patrick Wiscombe (04:57):
I do like animal, though.
So no more love in an elevator.
Mark Faldmo (05:00):
Correct.
Yeah, I haven't been toHollywood studios in quite a
while, but I'm excited for thatto go try that.
It's one of my favorite rollercoasters.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:08):
It is time for our destination of the week and
you received was this a text oran email?
This was a text actually.
Let me just give out the textnumber so people can get in
touch with the show it's801-649-3700, 801-649-3700.
So you can ask your specifictravel related question.
Philip is asking he wants to goto Budapest.
(05:32):
Now.
I just know by default, that'sone of your favorite places on
this entire planet.
Mark Faldmo (05:36):
It is.
I could talk about it for along time.
It's a great place to visit.
Patrick Wiscombe (05:41):
His question is when is the best time to go
and how many days should he plan?
And should he do a river cruiseor should he spend more time
just in the city?
What are your thoughts on that?
I?
Mark Faldmo (05:52):
guess it depends on how in-depth you want to
actually get into Budapest.
On a river cruise you can go intwo to three days before with
the river cruise, you know.
Three to four days seeingBudapest or five to six nights
in Budapest, I think would beplenty to see an experience of
One of my favorite cities thathas lots of influences from
(06:13):
around the world.
Budapest actually started as aCeltic village and it's been
ruled and influenced by Romans,Mongolians, Ottomans, and so
there's lots of history in thecity.
The best time to visit is inApril or May and September,
October.
This is when the weather's alittle bit more mild and the
(06:34):
crowds are not quite as much.
In the summertime Budapest canget pretty busy, especially when
there's lots of river cruisetraffic there.
Patrick Wiscombe (06:42):
What places or what sites should he consider
when going to Budapest?
Mark Faldmo (06:46):
Budapest has several fascinating places to
visit.
Probably the most popular andalso my favorite place is Castle
Hill, up on a hill on the Budaside of the Danube River.
It's home to Buda Castle, whichwas built in the year 1265.
There's also Fisherman'sBastion, which was a
(07:07):
fortification for the castle.
A lot of people ask why is itcalled Fisherman's Bastion?
That's because that was thesection of the wall where they
think the fishermen were incharge of the defense of the
castle there.
Patrick Wiscombe (07:20):
You also said something there about the Buddha
side, and I'm not trying to befunny here.
So is there a pest side?
Mark Faldmo (07:27):
There is, oh there is it actually used to be two
different cities and at times itwas two different countries?
Oh, I didn't know that.
Divided by the Danube, and sothat's why it's Budapest.
It's just, it's a combinationof the two sides of the Danube,
oh really, okay.
Also, as far as landmarks go,my favorite place on Castle Hill
(07:49):
is Matthias Church.
I think it's one of the mostinteresting buildings in Europe.
It was first built in the year1015.
It's been destroyed and rebuiltseveral times, but one thing I
find interesting is it was areally ornate church when the
Ottomans took over.
The Ottomans came and theydestroyed a lot of the ornate
(08:10):
churches, but in this one theydidn't.
They turned it into a mosque ohreally and they simply
plastered over everything.
In theory, they preservedeverything because they
plastered over it.
Some of the little chapelsthere.
They just walled off andplastered it.
No-transcript, All of thosehistoric landmarks are just lit
(08:58):
up.
Patrick Wiscombe (08:59):
Yeah, that would be spectacular.
Mark Faldmo (09:00):
Visually it's fascinating.
A lot of the river cruises willdo that, although there's been
some limitations.
One of the most unique placesit's called the House of Terror
and it was the headquarters forthe communist secret police in
Budapest, so it goes over all ofthat communist history.
Market Hall, which is a publicmarket Public markets in Europe
(09:21):
are just fascinating andinteresting to visit, so that's
definitely a place that you'llwant to visit.
Patrick Wiscombe (09:27):
What type of food do they have, generally
speaking, in that public market?
Mark Faldmo (09:31):
Well, there are several restaurants, but I like
to go there to buy paprika andthey have.
You know, one level is kind oflike the meat and fish market
and then the upper level is likesouvenirs, trinkets, things
like that Some good Christmasshopping to be done there.
The backpack I use for travelwas purchased there.
(09:52):
It's one of the best backpacksI've ever seen.
So everything from food toclothes and souvenirs, trinkets
is there.
And when you're in Hungary,you've got to have Hungarian
goulash Right on the Danube bythe Intercontinental Hotel.
Just behind that there's asidewalk cafe.
I like to sit out there, eatgoulash and watch the river
(10:16):
traffic and you're looking rightacross to the castle hill.
So you have the castle, theMatthias Church, and when it's
all lit up it's fascinating.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:22):
Explain what goulash is, because it sounds
not good.
What is goulash?
Mark Faldmo (10:28):
It's just like a stew kind of a mix between stew
and chili.
It's just got lots of paprikain it.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:34):
There's the paprika connection there.
Mark Faldmo (10:37):
Budapest is a wonderful place to visit.
I would put that on anyone'sbucket list if it were up to me
to come up with their bucketlist of travel destinations.
Patrick Wiscombe (10:45):
Well, that's going to do it for Budapest,
then We'll take a break here.
Philip, if you have morequestions about Budapest, call
Mark in his office, 888-718-7717, 888-718-7717.
You have made mesingle-handedly, mark, because
(11:11):
of all of the conversations, notjust this one.
I do want to go to Budapest,for sure.
Mark Faldmo (11:16):
Yeah, we'll have to get there, We'll.
We'll find a nice river cruiseto go on.
Patrick Wiscombe (11:19):
I'm fine with that Coming up in the next
segment.
We've got the hot travel dealof the week.
We're going to talk aboutViking and Disney cruise
dominating the cruise linemarket and we're going to talk
about alternate beachdestinations in Mexico and, of
course, we always have the hottravel deal of the week.
That is next when the insidetravel talk podcast, a radio
(11:41):
show, continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my nameis Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you, really.
Thank you so much for listening.
Show Voice (11:49):
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.
(12:13):
Thanks for listening.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (12:23):
Inside Travel Talk is brought to you by Anna.
Waterways, from castles andcapitals to vistas 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 dot com.
Show Voice (12:49):
Now back to the Inside Travel Talk podcast and
radio show presented by BluePlanet Vacations dot com,
America's best travel advisors.
Call or text the show right now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
(13:09):
Here's Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (13:17):
Serving travelers here in the great
state of Utah, but really aroundthe world.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
My name is Patrick Wiska.
Mark Faldmo will be back herein the studio here in just a
minute.
He went to go print some stuffoff for the hot travel deal of
(13:40):
the week and this is a good deal.
You're going to want to stickaround for this of the week and
this is a good deal.
You're going to want to stickaround for this.
If you want to listen to thisshow again, go to
InsideTravelTalk.
com to listen and subscribe tothe podcast.
We're on all of the majorpodcast platforms and, just on a
(14:00):
personal note, thank you somuch for allowing us to be part
of your weekend.
Really, Mark, and I don't takethat lightly and we are
sincerely grateful that you takethe time and listen and that
you download the show and thatyou subscribe to it.
We're starting to see some realtraction with the podcast and
(14:23):
with the radio show.
So I just want to let everyoneknow how grateful we are to you
for listening, Coming up in thissegment of the show.
We've got the hot travel dealof the week.
Mark is finally back in thestudio.
We're going to be talking aboutalternate beach destinations in
Mexico, but before we do, let'stalk about the travel news
(14:46):
headlines.
Here I saw this story Mark thatViking and Disney are
dominating best cruise line.
Mark Faldmo (14:52):
This is a ranking done by US News and World Report
for the 2025 best cruise linerankings.
There are five categories herethat we'll go over, and this
covers 18 cruise lines.
Best cruise line for the moneynumber one is Celebrity, number
two was Virgin Voyages, numberthree was MSC, number four was
(15:13):
Royal Caribbean and number fivewas Holland America.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:16):
MSC.
They are aggressive on theirpricing and their ships are
terrific.
Mark Faldmo (15:20):
They are, and they've really climbed that list
compared to where they werelast year.
In this category, virginVoyages has held the top spot
for best cruise line for themoney, but this year it was
Celebrity Cruise Line.
The next one is Best CruiseLine for Families.
No surprise here, Disney CruiseLine Best for Families,
followed by Royal Caribbean,Norwegian Carnival and then
(15:42):
Costa Costa.
I find interesting becausethey've really never been high
up on any rankings RightInteresting that they show up on
this list.
Patrick Wiscombe (15:50):
I know that this is literally probably 10 to
15 years ago at this point, butthe first thing I think of
about Costa is off theMediterranean coast when it
crashed or when it sunk.
Yeah, terrible.
Mark Faldmo (16:02):
Yeah, and then the next category best cruise line
for couples Viking was numberone Seabourn, celebrity, regent
Seven Seas and Virgin Voyages.
Personally, I would put VirginVoyages a little bit higher up.
Both Virgin and Viking areadult only, so there's no
children on those.
But I'd put Virgin Voyages alittle bit higher on that list.
Patrick Wiscombe (16:25):
One thing I learned was that Celebrity is
the what the luxury brand ofRoyal Caribbean.
Mark Faldmo (16:31):
Yes, and also they're part of the Royal
Caribbean family.
Patrick Wiscombe (16:34):
Yeah, and then what was the other one?
The Regent Seven Seas, I think,is the luxury brand or an
upscale brand of Norwegiancruise lines NCL.
Mark Faldmo (16:43):
Norwegian.
Yeah, we'll just cover two moreof these Best cruise line in
the Caribbean Disney number oneCelebrity, virgin Seabourn and
Royal Caribbean.
I agree with that.
I probably actually would addNorwegian somewhere on that list
because they do a good job inthe Caribbean yeah, they do Best
cruise line in theMediterranean Viking Seabourn.
(17:04):
Yeah, they do Best Cruise Linein the Mediterranean Viking
Seabourn, celebrity, regent andSilversea.
All of those, with theexception of Celebrity, are kind
of in the luxury market andthat's interesting actually that
Celebrity has shown up on somany of these lists as well.
The story is about Viking andDisney, but I'd also say
Celebrity, and you actually havea celebrity cruise book coming
(17:26):
up.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:28):
We're taking off in March One of the favorite
things that you have mentioned,but I saw online.
We're going to Maho Beach,which is where the airplanes fly
in about 20 feet over your head.
We're talking about full onjets flying over your head.
Mark Faldmo (17:41):
Yeah, I think when I was there a 7th 47 from
Amsterdam landed.
Oh boy, I don't think planesthat big land there anymore.
But it's interesting to be thatclose to those airplanes when
they land.
Patrick Wiscombe (17:56):
That would be terrifying to have that thing
fly over your head, or?
Just take off over your head,depending on the direction.
NCL, Norwegian Cruise Line, hasrevealed their redeployment
itineraries for three ships.
What three ships and where arethey going?
These?
Mark Faldmo (18:11):
are some of their smaller ships the Norwegian
Jewel, the Norwegian Star andthe Norwegian Dawn.
One was originally scheduled tosail South America, one of them
was in Asia and one of them, Ithink, was in the South Pacific.
They are all being redeployedto the Caribbean there is huge
demand for the Caribbean.
(18:37):
I don't know what's going on.
Yeah, it's quite amazing thatthey're going away from some of
these higher revenue sailings,or they get a higher per person,
but they just actually aren'tselling as much.
So the cruise lines havefigured they can bring them back
closer to home and sell them,probably at a lower per person,
but they can sell more of them.
Patrick Wiscombe (18:51):
If you want the best bang for your buck, go
on a repositioning cruise, whichis basically what this would be
.
Mark Faldmo (18:57):
Yes, yeah.
So when they're bringing these,I'm sure there'll be some great
repositioning cruises, and I'mactually going to look for that
when we're after the show hereand I will post them on the
blueplanetvacations.
com in the top five cruise dealson the website, so look for
that and I'll post them there.
Patrick Wiscombe (19:15):
This was a phone call that you received
that George wants to go toMexico, but not one of the main
tourist areas.
His specific question is whatare some alternate beach
destinations that are in Mexico?
There's?
Mark Faldmo (19:28):
I think, a lot of good options here for George,
and we've actually noticed thisas a trend and we've talked
about this before People arelooking for a little bit more
authentic, less crowdeddestinations.
So in Mexico there are threethat I would choose two on the
West Coast, one on the EastCoast.
The first one is Huatulco coast, one on the east coast.
(19:49):
The first one is Huatulco.
Huatulco is an area that hasnine bays, 20 of some of the
best beaches on the west coastof Mexico.
It's located in Oaxaca and has,I think, some of the best food
in Mexico.
This is where mole is from.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:03):
My son Brandon loves, mole loves it.
Mark Faldmo (20:06):
Yes, so he would love Huatulco.
When I was in Huatulco, one ofmy favorite things to try I
don't know that I'd really do itagain, but it was the
mole-covered grasshoppers.
That's one of the most famousthings in Huatulco and Oaxaca
that's what I would be doingOaxaca.
Yeah, but the mole covers itall up.
Patrick Wiscombe (20:30):
I can't get past the crunch.
I couldn't do it.
Mark Faldmo (20:33):
So that's one place To get there from the US.
You'd most likely connectthrough Mexico City to get to
Huatulco.
The next destination I'drecommend is Zihuantanejo Ixtapa
area.
It's two cities.
Zihuantanejo is a little bitmore of the traditional area.
There are several hotels inIxtapa, which is where most of
(20:56):
the forests stay there, andIxtapa interesting in the 1970s
was a big coconut plantation.
Oh really, lots of coconuttrees I love coconut Fresh
coconut.
Wow, awesome, yes, yeah, verygood.
And Zihuantanejo kind oftraditional Mexican fishing
village.
It's on a bay.
I like walking around the townsquare and waterfront.
(21:16):
There in Zihuantanejo, one ofthe main divers from Jacques
Cousteau started a naturereserve on an island that's in
the main bay.
I think that's since beenclosed since I've been there,
but an interesting thing to doif it is open.
And then let's move over to theeast coast of Mexico.
I think one of the most uniqueplaces you can go to is an
(21:39):
island called Holbox.
You would fly to Cancun andthen you drive about an hour and
a half or two hours to a portand then you take about a 30
minute ferry ride to the islandof Holbox.
There are no cars there.
All the taxis are golf carts.
All of the hotels are smaller.
I doubt there's a hotel that'sover 50 rooms there, but there
(22:00):
are some all-inclusives there.
Holbox when I visited there Iwas just enamored by it.
I want to go spend more timethere.
I guess there are some pavedroads, but for the most part
it's all dirt roads and golfcarts to get around.
Very nice beach, as it's on theGulf of Mexico, so it's not on
the Caribbean side, it's more inthe Gulf of Mexico, part of the
(22:23):
Yucatan Peninsula there, butfascinating way to get there and
island to visit.
If you don't want to do thatlong drive, there are helicopter
transfers.
You can, but those are quiteexpensive.
Patrick Wiscombe (22:33):
That sounds even more delightful.
Well, I guess that's theperfect way to lead into the hot
travel deal of the week, alwaysin segment number two of the
show.
What was the promotion that yougave, George?
Mark Faldmo (22:44):
The promotion is with Funjet Vacations, who's one
of our preferred suppliers atBlue Planet Vacations.
They have Black Friday dealsthat are still going on, and one
of them is save up to $650 ifyou pay your vacation in full at
the time of booking.
And then I did look at somevacation costs to the
(23:05):
Zihuantanejo Ixtapa.
So these prices are roundtripairfare from Salt Lake City,
five nights hotel and transfers.
I looked fairly close inJanuary 29th date.
The flights on this were flyingthrough Houston on United
Airlines.
Four-star hotel at the SunscapeAll-Inclusive started at $1199
per person.
Wow.
Four-and-a-half star AzulIxtapa Beach Resort started at
(23:29):
$1399 per person.
Patrick Wiscombe (23:31):
And that's coming up in about what 45 days
from now.
Mark Faldmo (23:35):
About 45 days from now if you want to go, and
obviously you can go anytime youwant, right, but this was kind
of our typical midweek, aboutsix weeks away, which is where
we're finding the sweet spotright now in the good prices and
to get to a destination likethat.
Ix tapa is kind of the hotelzone of Zihuantanejo, but
(23:58):
compared to other hotel zones,there's like 10 hotels there, oh
wow, maybe a little bit morethan that, but it's not the 40,
50, 60 hotels that you see inother of the larger tourist
destinations in Mexico.
Patrick Wiscombe (24:11):
That's the deal that he took you up on,
George.
Yes, yep, George, well done.
All right, we'll take a breakhere.
Do what George did.
Go to Mexico.
Some of these alternate beachdestinations Huatulco.
You know what my Spanish is,not what it used to be.
I'll just stop there.
Go to Mexico.
(24:31):
Call Mark in his office if youwould please 888-718-7717.
888-718-7717 to book thatvacation.
And you can also go toblueplanetvacations.
com.
(24:52):
When we come back, it is timefor the infamous Just Cruising
segment.
We'll be talking about MSCWorld America.
This is the ship that isrivaling Icon of the Seas.
Mark and I have some thoughtson Icon of the Seas.
It is mind-blowing how big thisship is Unbelievable.
We'll give you those detailswhen we come back.
(25:13):
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show alongside my good friend,mark Faldmo.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
Show Voice (25:25):
We will be right back to be part of your weekend.
We will be right back.
You're listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo, presented by
BluePlanetVacations.
com America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
(25:47):
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atInsideTravelTalk.
com.
Ad Voice (25:54):
We'll be right back travel insurance plans can help
protect you and your vacation.
Travelex is known for theiraward-winning customer service
and high claims paid rate.
Contact Blue Planet Vacationsat 888-718-7717 or
(26:17):
blueplanetvacations.
com for more information.
Patrick Wiscombe (26:19):
Welcome back to the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio show Coming up.
In the remaining 30 minutes,mark and I are going to be
talking about MSC's WorldAmerica.
It's going to take on icon ofthe seas in terms of width and
length Huge, gigantic ship.
We're also going to talk aboutthe value of using the travel
agent, and American Airlines isexpanding their crackdown of
(26:43):
group jumpers.
Let's get back to the show.
Show Voice (26:54):
This is 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 now here are your hosts,Patrick Wiscombe and Mark
(27:16):
Fulton-Mo.
Patrick Wiscombe (27:26):
All aboard.
You are listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
This segment is always the JustCruising segment, always in
segment three of the show.
We're talking huge cruise shipsin this segment and, as Mark
makes his way back into thestudio, let's just start there.
(27:48):
What do we have?
Is it a 14-day or is it kind ofa combination of seven days in
the eastern, seven days westernCaribbean?
Mark Faldmo (27:58):
It's a back-to-back on two seven-days eastern
western.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:01):
It's kind of a cheater's code to go on two
cruises on one trip.
Mark Faldmo (28:05):
So you get really good value in that.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:07):
Yeah, you know they do cost a little more, but
you're already there anyway.
But before we get there, let'sget to the cruise news of the
week.
Let's start with this, mark,let's talk about Disney's new
ship called the Treasure.
Mark Faldmo (28:19):
It will be debuting here, I think in a week or two.
It will be its first passengersailing.
It's been christened and it'sdoing some preview cruises for
media and travel industry rightnow.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:31):
Were we invited on that?
Mark Faldmo (28:32):
No, we weren't.
So I wish there's two things onhere that I really want to see.
The first one is the HauntedMansion Parlor.
Patrick Wiscombe (28:41):
On the ship.
Mark Faldmo (28:43):
Yep, they have a lounge which is a 1900s ocean
liner themed lounge, also themedafter the Haunted Mansion ride
at Disney.
So just looking at the pictureor the renderings of it, it
looks like a pretty cool loungeto hang out in.
The next one is one of therestaurants, Plaza de Coco,
(29:04):
which is part of the diningsystem.
It's Mexican themed and it'sthemed after Pixar's Coco.
That's a first for Disney tohave something themed after that
.
When you said Plaza de Coco.
Patrick Wiscombe (29:16):
I was like, oh sweet, it's a chocolate,
Chocolate.
I'm like, all right, I can getbehind this.
Mark Faldmo (29:23):
All ships need that .
Well, they need to go back tothe midnight chocolate buffets.
There's not very many shipsthat do that anymore.
No, death by chocolate.
Death by chocolate, yeah.
And then probably the thirdthat's new to Disney and this
was probably the one I would bemost excited about.
It's called the Periscope Puband it's a sports bar.
It is themed after 20,000Leagues Under the Sea submarine
(29:45):
voyage.
I've always liked that movieand I like that ride at Disney
submarine voyage.
I've always liked that movieand I like that ride at Disney.
There's actually two more shipsin this class of ship that
Disney is putting out, so it'dbe interesting to see what type
of things they include on thosetwo ships that follow the Disney
treasure.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:01):
Okay, so this is version one of this ship, and
then there's two more coming.
Let's talk about MSC's newcruise ship.
Called what is it?
Is it World America?
Yeah?
Mark Faldmo (30:12):
MSC World America Okay.
Patrick Wiscombe (30:14):
So they're the new cruise ship that's going to
be released.
I think it was in April of thisyear 20, no, no, no, I'm sorry,
April of 2025.
2025.
And that it's going to take onnot only in sheer size
technically it's smaller butIcon of the Seas, which is Royal
Caribbean's ship.
Yeah, I can't even tell you howbig Icon of the Seas is Kind of
(30:36):
takes your breath away.
Mark Faldmo (30:38):
Yeah, and so MSC is going that route.
This will be the biggest everMSC cruise ship and it will be
sailing alternating Eastern andWestern Caribbean cruises out of
Miami and, as we alluded tobefore, they also sell them as
back-to-back so you can do a14-day cruise.
This new ship, the worldAmerica, is going to have a
(30:59):
one-of-a-kind plaza that runsdown the middle of the ship,
with bars, restaurants,multi-stories and and the
activities they are going tohave one of the largest water
slides at sea and their wholewater complex and gaming complex
will be fantastic.
They are trying to break intomore of the family market, which
(31:22):
Royal Caribbean and NorwegianCruise Line kind of control.
This ship is going to beamazing for families.
Patrick Wiscombe (31:28):
There's so much to do on these ships.
If you say that you're bored ona cruise that is on you,
there's so much to do on theseships.
If you say that you're bored ona cruise that is on you, there
is so much to do.
Mark Faldmo (31:35):
Just the technology that's going into these new
ships.
Cruise lines are almoststarting to compete with Las
Vegas for some of the new andfascinating attractions, and
cruise lines are really goingafter that.
Patrick Wiscombe (31:47):
It's a good move on their part.
I saw a story that Viking RiverCruises Viking the company is
70% booked already for 2025.
That's astonishing to me.
Mark Faldmo (31:58):
You have to book a lot earlier than you used to.
With Viking being 70% sold outfor 2025, that pretty much means
most of the good dates are goneand all of the peak dates are
probably gone If you're lookingto travel not just on Viking,
but on any cruise line.
I've seen similar reports fromother cruise lines, like
Norwegian has had fourrecord-breaking sales weeks in a
(32:20):
row.
All of these cruise lines arejust selling like crazy.
Patrick Wiscombe (32:25):
When you and I went to the Miami Marlins game.
I've never seen a cruise lineadvertised inside of a baseball
stadium ever.
Mark Faldmo (32:32):
Being in Miami I'd expect it, you know kind of the
cruise capital of the worldthere.
But yeah, that was interestingto see in the Marlins that
Norwegian was advertising.
Patrick Wiscombe (32:42):
Let's get to the cruise deal of the week,
which is always in this segmentof the show at the bottom of the
hour.
Let's stick with MSC's WorldAmerica, the gigantic ship
that's taking on Icon of theSeas.
One of the favorite things thatI did this year in I think it
was June 20th to June 30th Nikkiand I took a back-to-back
cruise.
It was fantastic.
(33:03):
Let's give listeners thedetails here.
Mark Faldmo (33:06):
I'll first start out with the Eastern Caribbean
part of this.
And this is the first passengersailing of the ship, so it's
April 12th 2025.
It cruises from Miami, goes toPuerto Plata in the Dominican
Republic, San Juan, Puerto Ricoand then also Ocean Cay, MSC
Marine Reserve.
Patrick Wiscombe (33:27):
Oh so it is going to.
Mark Faldmo (33:27):
Ocean Cay.
It is going to Ocean Cay.
I think, MSC is probably goingto include that in most of their
sailings.
Yeah, I would hope so.
The inside cabins start at $923per person.
That includes all taxes andfees.
Balcony cabins start at $1220per person.
Now for an MSC cruise.
This is a little bit more thanyou're used to seeing, but keep
(33:51):
in mind it's a new ship and ifyou compare to these rates the
first few months of the icon ofthe seas, they're probably half
the cost oh yeah, icon of theseas.
Patrick Wiscombe (34:00):
In fact, Nicky and I were looking at a cruise
on that now it's still doubleit's still double.
Mark Faldmo (34:05):
yeah.
So for a brand new big cruiseship with all the bells and
whistles, this is a pretty goodrate.
Yeah, phenomenal.
And then the Western Caribbean,and I really like this
itinerary.
It's a four-stop itinerary.
So it goes Miami, goes to CostaMaya, goes to Roatan in
Honduras I like it because itreminds me a lot of Tahiti and
(34:26):
then it goes to Cozumel and italso goes to Ocean Key MSC
Marine Reserve.
Patrick Wiscombe (34:32):
Let me just stop you there for a second If
listeners don't know what OceanKey Marine Reserve is.
It is MSC's private island andit is spectacular, absolutely
spectacular.
The scenery, things to do, thelighthouse show, the beach
bonfire, just all of it.
It is an amazing experience.
Mark Faldmo (34:54):
And Ocean Key.
Both of those itineraries have12 hours there, 8 am to 8 pm, so
it's a full day.
You get a full day and this onestarted.
This was an April 19th sailingand it was 1120 per person for
an inside or 1673 per person fora balcony, and then you can
(35:16):
book those again, like we said,as back to back, and that's a
great way.
You get a both parts of theCaribbean eastern and western,
if people can only do one.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:26):
Which one do you like?
Mark Faldmo (35:28):
I'm gonna say probably the western yeah, I
like the western because it hasone more stop.
Yeah, okay, I do like sea days,but the two sea days in a row
sometimes can get a little bitlong for me, so I like the extra
stop that it adds.
Patrick Wiscombe (35:45):
Okay, all right.
So if you can only do one,recap the price on that if you
would, for the Eastern first andthen let's recap the Western,
if you would.
Mark Faldmo (35:54):
The Eastern starts at $923 per person for an inside
or $1220 per person for abalcony, and the Western starts
at $1120 per person for aninside or $1673 per person for a
balcony.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:10):
And what were the dates on the Eastern one?
Mark Faldmo (36:13):
The Eastern was April 12th and the Western was
April 19th Makes sense.
These are the first twopassenger sailings that this
ship has.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:22):
Oh, if you can only choose one, just go.
First of all, MSC's cruiseships are visually stunning and
they're equally as stunning onthe inside.
Mark Faldmo (36:31):
I think MSC is really going to start to pick up
here for the US market as soonas they get a little bit more
known.
They're just kind of an unknownentity right now.
Patrick Wiscombe (36:41):
Nikki and I went to where did we go?
We went to Ocean Key, theprivate resort, but we went.
We went western.
That's what we did western.
Yeah, your Cozumel, Costa Maya,I believe we did not get to row
a town and, uh, I know that'sone of your favorite stops but
it just wasn't on the itinerary.
(37:02):
Phenomenal, call mark in hisoffice.
If you're all pumped up and,man, we got to book this.
Call them right now.
888-718-7717.
888-718-7717.
You can also look at the dealat blueplanetvacations.
com.
When we come back, we are goingto talk about travelers want to
(37:28):
ban reclining seats on planes.
I have a story on that one tooand we're also going to talk
about the practice of sellingdestinations canned air Just
bizarre.
Mark's travel tips.
And we'll wrap up the showthat's next Travel tips.
(37:48):
And we'll wrap up the showthat's next when the Inside
Travel Talk podcast and radioshow continues.
Alongside Mark Faldmo, my goodfriend, I'm Patrick Wiscombe.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
We will be right back.
Show Voice (38:02):
Explore your world.
You're listening to the InsideTravel Talk podcast and radio
show with Patrick Wiscombe andMark Faldmo.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
That's 801-649-3700.
And check out the podcast atinsidetraveltalk.
com.
We'll be right back.
Ad Voice (38:24):
This segment of Inside Travel Talk is sponsored by El
Dorado Spa Resorts.
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luxury at an El Dorado SpaResorts.
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To book your romantic beachgetaway at an El Dorado Spa
Resort, contact Blue PlanetVacations at 888-718-7717 or
(38:49):
blueplanetvacations.
com.
Patrick Wiscombe (38:51):
The Inside Travel Talk podcast and radio
show presented byblueplanetvacations.
com contains travel deals,promotions and offers that may
be time sensitive.
All offers and information wereaccurate when the show aired.
Travel deals and offers changeconstantly and are capacity
controlled and subject to changewithout notice.
Show Voice (39:23):
They'll help you plan and book your next vacation
.
Yeah, really, you're listeningto the Inside Travel Talk
podcast and radio show presentedby BluePlanetVacations.
com, America's best traveladvisors.
Call or text the show now801-649-3700.
801-649-3700.
And now here's Patrick Wiscombeand Mark Faldmo.
Patrick Wiscombe (39:46):
Final segment of this week's Inside Travel
Talk podcast and radio show.
My name is Patrick Wiscombe.
He is Mark Faldmo.
Thank you so much for allowingus to be part of your weekend.
If you want to listen to thisshow again, we'll be on the air
(40:07):
tomorrow morning, Sunday, righthere on 860 KKAT in Salt Lake
City.
We're also on, obviously,Saturday, because you're
listening to us right now andyou can also pick up the podcast
at InsideTravelTalk.
com.
We're on all of the majorpodcast platforms.
You can stream the show on thatwebsite, insidetraveltalk.
(40:28):
com, and if you would subscribeto the show, we're really
starting to get some tractionwith the podcast networks and
the search engines and we oweall of that to you, our
listeners.
So thank you for allowing thisto be part of your weekend for
the last.
What year and a half?
(40:48):
Mark, year and a half nowPretty amazing.
By the way, one of the thingsthat I was doing this past week
was building out the studio herein the house, and I know that
you have your home studio, but Iwanted to finish up building my
studio here.
(41:09):
We're in two separate locations, but it sounds like we're in
the same studio, although I domiss having you come to the
house.
Mark Faldmo (41:15):
Yeah, I like the drive.
It's my thinking time.
This is a good way to do it.
Technology is amazing.
Patrick Wiscombe (41:20):
And no one would know that we were what?
50 miles apart right now, 50miles apart.
Yeah, let's start with thetravel news, shall we?
Let's dive in.
Let's start with this news itemthat 41% of travelers want to
ban reclining seats on planes.
Okay, that is a controversialtopic, just to begin with.
(41:40):
But what details do you haveabout this particular news story
?
This?
Mark Faldmo (41:45):
survey was put out after an incident on Cathay
Pacific, which is an Asiancarrier, so it was a long-haul
flight.
A woman refused to put her seatupright.
The couple behind them couldnot see the television screens,
so they started kicking andshaking the seat.
Oh boy and it turned into awhole full-fledged issue and
(42:07):
we've actually talked about acouple of stories about
reclining seats the past coupleof months.
It's becoming more and more ofan issue, especially as airlines
start to redesign their cabinsand actually take out some space
.
Even though the seats reclinejust a matter of inches, it
really takes out the personbehind you, personal space.
(42:28):
For instance, if someonereclines their seat on most
airplanes I can't put down thetray table.
It's that bad.
So my rule with reclining seatsis less than four hours I don't
recline my seat, although Igenerally don't recline my seat,
I'm a window person.
And so I would rather leanagainst the side of the airplane
(42:49):
than recline my seat.
That's kind of the rule I go byIf it's shorter than four hours
, don't recline your seat.
That's something that theairlines and passengers are
going to have to figure out,because it is a pain point for a
lot of passengers.
Patrick Wiscombe (43:03):
Honestly, if I were the airlines, I wouldn't
even have reclining seatsProblem solved.
Just lock them up.
Mark Faldmo (43:10):
Yeah, I've seen some European carriers where
they have reclining seats.
Problem solved, just lock themup.
Yeah, I've seen some Europeancarriers where they have
reclining seats, but it doesn'trecline back into the person
behind you, it shifts the seatyou're sitting on forward.
Oh, interesting so it gives youless legroom, but you do get to
still kind of experience thereclining seat.
So that's a little bit betterway to do it, I think, because
(43:31):
then it does not affect theperson's space behind you.
Patrick Wiscombe (43:35):
I like that idea of it better.
Yeah, American Airlines isexpanding their crackdown.
This sounds like something inChina.
Yeah, on what are called groupjumpers let's just start the
definition of group jumpersthere and what they're doing to
crack down.
Mark Faldmo (43:52):
Second, Most airlines board in groups so they
have, you know, group or zoneone, group or zone two, and
there's a big problem withpeople just boarding whenever
they want to board.
And we talked about this, Ithink about four or five weeks
ago that Americans started thisat some of their airports, where
now you get the green go or ared buzz that stops you.
(44:16):
So if you're not boarding inyour zone, it pulls you out of
line, it does not let you board,and I know people are antsy to
get on the plane.
People are antsy if they'regoing to get overhead space, but
it really does slow downbecause a lot of those zones
take out the first few zones,which are people that need extra
time and assistance, and someof the top flyers.
(44:37):
A lot of those are built toboard the plane from the back
and from the windows in, and sothey're designed to help you
board the plane quicker with howthey do those zones.
Patrick Wiscombe (44:53):
You mentioned in a previous episode your
solution for group jumpers,which was the gong show the big
gong Stephen.
Smith gong.
Yeah, you are in violation.
Back to you know, back to theend of the line.
I also like the idea of maybehaving a wipeout, that TV show
wipeout.
(45:13):
Good night, big balls.
Yep, what you think is safepassage all of a sudden just
absolutely slams you into theside of the wall or something
for violators.
Mark Faldmo (45:23):
And then you get to go back to the beginning.
Patrick Wiscombe (45:26):
There is a strange trend that has recently
popped up, and it's the practiceof selling destinations canned
air Behold the great air ofCancun here, just you know and
then breathe it in.
Mark Faldmo (45:42):
This started in Italy's Lake Cuomo, up in the
mountains, the crisp mountainair.
So someone got the idea to sellcanned air.
So they sell lake Cuomo'scanned air for ten dollars.
It contains a precise mixtureof gases, including 21 oxygen,
0.93 argan and four percentcarbon dioxide and trace amounts
(46:07):
of nitrogen and neon.
I guess that's on theingredients on the side of the
can.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:13):
When Mark and I have decided to sell the air
of Salt Lake City during winter,during an inversion.
If you want the authenticexperience, we've got it here.
We've got it.
Might get lung cancer frombreathing it in, but
nevertheless here it is.
Ad Voice (46:29):
By the way, it's $10.
Patrick Wiscombe (46:31):
Yeah, and we do accept Venmo and apple pay.
I would do it just so I havethe story.
Hey, I bought some canned airand then everyone would be like
what is wrong with you?
Yeah, as we close out, this isa question that I've had for you
for a while why you should usea travel agent.
Mark Faldmo (46:51):
There's several reasons, and actually, if you go
to the blueplanetvacations.
com, they're at the very top ofthe page.
There's a link to why you use atravel agent, which lists some
really good reasons why.
A lot of it is personal touchand knowledge.
Travel agents that sell travelevery day, all day long know
(47:13):
some good ins and outs.
They also have clients that areconsistently giving them
feedback about different places.
Rather than looking at onlinereviews, which you might be
looking at something that's oneor two years old that really has
no relevance now because thatproperty could be better or
worse.
Travel agents are reallyimportant, and there was an
interesting study that was justput out that a majority of
(47:38):
travelers prefer to use a travelagent to get that personal
touch.
The interesting thing isyounger travelers are flocking
to using a travel agent.
They're tech dependent, theydon't know how it works or
anything like that, and so youknow that's a one reason to use
a travel agent, and I'veactually got kind of two
(48:01):
interesting stories.
I was at a meeting with DeltaAirlines about 10 days ago and
they really look closely attheir net promoter scores.
For those of you that don'tknow what net promoter score is,
it's a good measure of whatyour customers think of your
product.
So what Delta Vacations foundis those travelers that use a
(48:24):
travel agent have a much highernet promoter score.
They're happier with theirvacations.
Oh, interesting.
And then I, on Thanksgivingmorning, I was just listening to
Fox News and they had a travelexpert come on talking about
Black Friday deals, how to findthe best travel deals, and he
(48:46):
says well, the first thing youneed to do is have a good travel
agent that can help you sortthrough all of these things,
because a lot of these deals anda good travel agent will tell
you this might be good for a fewdays, so you don't have to book
now.
You can really take your timeand make sure you get fit into
the right vacation for what youwant.
And another thing that he saidwhich I totally agree with was a
(49:10):
lot of travel agents do getbetter deals from suppliers.
Suppliers see their customersatisfaction rankings, go online
retailers because it's a bettercustomer and also, as for a
(49:35):
selfish reason for thosesuppliers, they get a higher
revenue passenger.
Oh sure, booking with a travelagent?
Yeah, because the travel agentsdo.
As we've talked about manytimes price versus value.
Travel agents will work to getnot only the best price, but the
best value, which may not bethe best price, but you'll be
(49:55):
happier with your trip.
Patrick Wiscombe (49:57):
I can't tell you the number of times that
Mark has helped Nikki and I bookvacations.
How many vacations have we beenon this year?
Is it three or four, somethinglike that?
Probably four, I think, yeah, Ithink so.
Good vacations before.
(50:17):
I think, yeah, I think so Goodvacations.
And the insight that Mark hasgiven me and Nikki has just been
invaluable.
You talk about value, mark, isit?
Four million miles, travelingaround over 150 cruises.
He's been everywhere.
Awesome.
Call him in his office If wehave whet your appetite.
There's no cost or obligation,just call him.
(50:39):
Hey, we want to go to this placeor we want to go to the place
that you, both of you, weretalking about.
Call Mark in his office,888-718-7717, 888-718-7717,
888-718-7717.
(51:00):
And you can also check outblueplanetvacations.
com.
We'll be back right here onthis radio station tomorrow
morning 860 KKAT, 11 am MountainTime.
And if you want or need tolisten to the show again, you
can download and subscribe tothe podcast at insidetraveltalk.
com.
All right, we're done, but nowit's your turn to get out and
(51:21):
explore the world, because younever know what curveballs life
is going to throw at you.
Live your life deliberately.
Live your life intentionally.
Thank you for listening.
Really, have a great week.
We'll talk to you again nextSaturday and deliberately Live
your life intentionally.
Thank you for listening.
Really, have a great week.
We'll talk to you again nextSaturday and Sunday.
Have a great week.
Show Voice (51:40):
That's it.
That's the end of the showYou've been listening to the
Inside Travel Talk podcast andradio show with Patrick Wiscombe
and Mark Faldmo presented byBluePlanetVacations.
com.
Book your adventure right now.
Call 888-718-7717.
That's 888-718-7717.
(52:01):
Thanks for listening.
Have a great week.
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