Bustling and colourful Christmas markets in historic settings, treasure-filled castles and stately homes in full festive mode, carol singers, sparkling and highly decorated Christmas trees, mulled wine, mince pies, and ice skating outdoors at famous London attractions. Welcome to an exciting series of tour ideas that can be gift-wrapped to generate valuable extra commission in the run-up to Christmas in Britain.

My top story brings together 5 Christmas markets in London, Winchester, Salisbury, and Bath which can be given extra festive flair by adding one or more of my After Dark Tours. December also sees the appearance of outdoor skating rinks at several famous heritage sites in London and they’ll appeal to families on the move.

I couldn’t resist creating a programme where you can meet a…

Crystal Cruises’ new Book Now Savings program offers reduced fares featuring limited-time savings up to $2,000 per suite on hundreds of Crystal voyages, with fares increasing once the designated expiration date is reached. Book Now Savings are available on select 2018, 2019 and 2020 voyages aboard Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity, as well as on Crystal River Cruises and the line’s yacht, Crystal…

Let’s use an example to “drive” this mistake home.

If I asked you what attributes you look for when shopping for an automobile, you would give me your personal buying criteria. These are your feelings based on your particular wants and needs when shopping for an automobile. If I asked someone else what it is they look for when they shop for a car, chances are they would give me an entirely new set of “requirements.”

You may say style, while others might find themselves drawn to acceleration and over all speed. Another might be looking for gas economy, while a third might mention the overall price of the vehicle. A fourth might be interested in the audio effects and the base in the onboard sound system.…

Last year when Royal Caribbean launched the new non-refundable deposit cruise fare, it included two incentives. The first was a lower cruise fare. The second incentive was an onboard credit of $25 to $100 per room, if the booking was created 6 months or more before sailing.

On August 1, 2018 Royal Caribbean sent an email to their travel agent partners advising of a change to the non-refundable deposit program. Effective November 1, 2018 non-refundable deposit bookings will no longer earn an onboard credit, regardless of how far before sailing that they are booked. According to Royal Caribbean, their analytics and research over the past year has shown “that the onboard credit was not influencing the consumer’s buying decision.”

The good news is that they did give…