How it works
Five steps. Most of the work is ours.
From the first email to the airport, one person plans it. We reply within a couple of business days.
- 1
Send the dates
Where you're going, or that you haven't decided. Roughly when, roughly how many, and what you have in mind. The form takes five minutes and rough answers are fine.
- 2
A short questionnaire
A few questions about how you like to travel. The pace you want, what you'd rather skip, what made the last good trip good. It takes a few minutes and it's what the trip gets built on.
- 3
A call
Half an hour, usually. We find out what this trip is actually about, and you find out whether you want us planning it. For an event week: who's badged or ticketed, which dinner has to go right, who flies in when.
- 4
The plan, in writing
Two or three options with the one we'd book and why, the flaw before you find it, and every rate, inclusion and cancellation term spelled out. You tell us what to change and we go back and forth until it's the trip you want. Then we book it.
- 5
You go
We book it and chase it: the transfer, the reservation that has to be made ninety days out, the lodge that wants a flight number by Tuesday. One itinerary on your phone, everything in the order it happens. If something moves, it moves there.
What it's like
Working with a travel advisor.
It starts with a conversation. We ask how the group likes to travel, what went wrong last time, and what would make this trip a good one. Half an hour, usually. That call decides most of what follows.
Then we do the legwork. We check the hotels and houses ourselves, ask the property the questions nobody asks, and call the partners we book with to hold rooms, tables and drivers. The plan comes back to you in writing: two or three options, the one we'd book, every confirmation number and every cancellation date on one page. You read it, you change it, you say yes.
It doesn't stop when you leave. If a flight runs late, a room isn't ready or the dinner moves, you send one message and we sort it. The itinerary on everyone's phone updates, so the group sees the same plan.
Booking the hotel through us is the part people underestimate. We know which room to ask for, we tell the property who is arriving and why it matters, and where a hotel offers partner benefits, like breakfast, a hotel credit or upgrade priority, they go on your plan, subject to availability. A request to switch rooms or check in early lands differently when it comes from the advisor who books there.
What you get
One itinerary, everything in order.
Rooms, drivers, dinners, tickets, confirmation numbers, who is where at nine. On every phone in the party, and updated when anything moves. No folder of emails, nobody asking who booked what.
What it costs
Rooms are free to book. Planning starts at $250.
Hotels, villa partners, cruise lines, lodges and guides pay us a commission out of the price, the same way Expedia gets paid, so booking through us doesn't add to it. The planning fee is for running the trip. It starts at $250, and the exact fee is in your quote.
| The trip, handled | The house or the hotel, the cars, the groceries, the dinners and the shows, the days either side, one itinerary, us on call. Planning starts at $250. More people, more stops and flights for everyone add to it, and the exact fee is in your quote. | From $250 |
|---|---|---|
| Team rooms | Rooms for the team at a group rate. We go through the terms with you before anyone books. | Free |
| Just the rooms | Two or three options, terms in writing, booked. A house or villa the same way. | Free |
The rate is usually the one you'd find on your own. What changes is after you book: partner properties can add breakfast, a credit on site or upgrade priority, subject to availability, and there's someone to call when the room isn't right.
Questions
What people ask before they send the dates.
How far ahead should we start?
Four to six months is comfortable for a longer trip, more for a lodge or a small ship with a short season. For an event week, the day housing opens is the day to send the headcount; the rooms near the venue go first. Less notice is often still workable, so ask.
What do you need from us?
Dates, headcount, budget if you have one, and anything already booked. For a show: who is badged and who is not. For a trip: one trip you have loved, so we know what good looks like to you.
Who do we deal with?
The same person from the first email to the last. We are independent, and Fora Travel is our host agency, which is what gives a small outfit hotel partnerships, supplier contracts and payments. The plan and the opinions are ours, and you deal with us.
What if we have already booked part of it?
Send it over. If a stay is still refundable and it is somewhere we can book, we can often move it so it comes with more. Whatever you have locked in, we plan the rest around it.
Send the dates.
Send what you have. We reply within a couple of business days.