On this week’s episode, I took a few minutes to chat with Dennis Slusser with Fun in the Sun Vacations and Adventures to talk all things honey moon! Tips, tricks and more that will save you money, time and headaches when you have to change things around, especially in these times.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Hello, and welcome to get married. Where wedding planning is a piece of cake. I’m your host Sheridan. As a current bride myself, I’ve been navigating my way through the wedding planning world, and I have so many questions and I figured what better way to get those answers and to talk to some of the best vendors in the industry. So today I have the opportunity to sit down with Dennis, of Fun in the Sun Vacation and Adventures, to talk a little bit about planning your honeymoon. So, Hey Dennis, how are you?
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
I’m great. Thank you for having me.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Absolutely. Thank you so much for coming. So if we could just jump right into it. I guess my big question overall is why should somebody hire a travel agent versus doing it themselves?
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Well, there’s a lot of advantages in today’s market with the internet. It seems simpler to go ahead and just do it yourself, but there’s so much out there. The big vendors of the world, like Disney, Walt Disney World, Sandals, um, cruise lines. There are so many options that they actually want you to use a travel agent because you get on their site and we’ll use Walt Disney World as an example. You go to research that and you’re ready to pull your hair out. Um, cause there’s 30 hotels, 4 theme parks, there’s dining options, there’s ticket options.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
I don’t even know where to start on that.
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Exactly. You know, so that’s where a seasoned professional could come in, narrow down your list, make it simple and present you with options and then you decide and then customize it from there.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Awesome. So does it cost extra to use a travel agent?
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Very good question. The, the perception in the world is if I use a travel agent, I pay more and there are some travel agencies out there that do charge fees to use them, but we are what’s called a fee free agency. So if you were to call me to plan your honeymoon, um, there’s no fees. If you did all the research and found what you wanted, then came to us, we should come in at the same price, maybe even lower because we don’t hide any fees. There’s no hidden fees. What you see is what you’re going to pay.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Okay. Okay. So, um, I guess another big question would be, uh, you know, how far in advance should I book my honeymoon?
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Well, you know, the typically in the wedding industry, for whatever reason, we’re always one of the last options people use to book their honeymoon. It’s the last thing on their to do list. Um, I suggest as soon as you know, where you may want to go, you want to start doing your shopping then because the Caribbean’s always a very popular option. And a lot of people wait until the last minute, well, four months out to their wedding, what they want to go is booked up. So we have to go to plan B or plan C. So, um, also you get some better deals if you book a year or a little over a year out, if possible. So as soon as you know, I recommend putting down that deposit.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Awesome. And then, you know, from there, you can make payments as you go?
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Exactly with us. You, uh, once you put down your initial deposit, you can call us up anytime and say, I want to make another payment and the dollar amount and, and just make a payment. As long as you have your final payment in, by the due date, which is typically anywhere from three months to 45 days before your travel.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Awesome. Everybody loves a payment plan.
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Oh yeah. They get, it makes it affordable.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Absolutely. Absolutely. So, um, as far as travel insurance, I’ve been seeing a lot of that in my research. I mean, how do you feel about travel insurance? Would you recommend it or?
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
It is totally optional, but we strongly recommend it. There’s just so many issues, um, out there in the world. Um, for example, you’re investing thousands of dollars for your honeymoon. That’s a big investment. This insurance helps protect that investment, um, covers things like your, you missed your flights or the plane broke down and missed your connecting flight, um, your luggage got lost, um, has medical reimbursement. So if you get sick while you’re out of the country, you can get reimbursed for those expenses. A lot of people don’t realize that their health insurance that they have through their employer, most, most of the time does not cover them outside the United States.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Oh geez, I had no idea.
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Yes, exactly. Exactly. Um, it also covers like if you get sick or injured before your trip or a death in the family, you’re able to get it rebooked or get a refund, those sort of things. So,
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Well, fantastic. So I guess a little more of an overall question, um, you know, what would be some of the best advice that you could give a couple who’s planning their honeymoon?
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Some of the best advice is, you know, a little, it’s a lot of the little things that people don’t think about. Um, where do you want to go? How long do you want to go? What’s your budget? Cause a lot of people will come to us and say, I want to stay at the, uh, over the water bungalows in Jamaica. Um, and then we price it out to them and they’re scared. So the biggest thing is like for our agency, we have something for every budget. So, and we help them through the little things like making sure their passports are going to be valid for the length of their trip. Then make sure the brides know not to book their trips in their, uh, in their married name because their chances are they’re leaving for their honeymoon the day after their wedding, their names and legally not changed in that. And everything has to match the manifest or they’re not going to be able to get on the plane.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Oh my gosh, so does that mean, you know, right now with COVID-19, if somebody’s honeymoon was, you know, needed to be pushed to maybe a year out from their wedding, does that mean that they need to make sure that they don’t change their names before then? Or
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
In some cases, yes. They need to leave. They’ll need to leave their name because some of the airfare may be booked where there does not allow name changes, so they need, keep their maiden name.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
So if you, in the chance that you do have to change your honeymoon or postpone it, um, you know, especially now while we’re living during COVID, um, you know, what’s the best advice that you would give to a couple who’s having to go through that.
Dennis Slusser | Fun in the Sun Vacation:
Well, first off, uh, that’s one of the great reasons why to have a travel agent. Uh, during this COVID situation, we have had to rebook some clients as many as five different times. It’s just one delay or not the resorts, not reopening or the airlines aren’t servicing the Island. Um, so that’s where the travel agent comes in. We basically tell them, don’t worry about a thing. We’ve got this. The worst thing you can do. If, if you did it yourself, the worst thing you can do is just cancel the reservation because chances are, travel insurance will not cover you if it’s for COVID. For example, COVID is considered what they call a known event where you booked it, knowing that COVID was going on. So you’re getting a full refund…it’s not likely. However, if you postpone, airlines are waiving fees or resorts are waiving fees, some resorts are locking you in at the rate you paid. Even though if you go up to a year later, you’re paying this year’s rates and not next year’s saving you thousands of dollars.
Sheridan Butcher | Get Married Host:
Awesome. That’s great advice. Thank you so much. Thank you for tuning in to get married. Please stay tuned for more episodes coming soon of get married, where wedding planning is a piece of cake.
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