What is the purpose of your trip?
The purpose of any trip is the purpose the traveller most wants it to fulfill. Finding the “why” behind a trip is crucial to planning a trip that will give you what you need and want.
The ethos of Counsel Travel is that it is customer driven, meaning that the overall aims of the travel in question is determined by the traveller.
Some people know exactly what they want, but many others do not. They know they always wanted to go to a particular destination, but they don’t have a vision for it. For example, I just had this come up for a client wishing to celebrate a big milestone of marriage, and they picked a beautiful spot.
One purpose, like this, is love—or in this case, celebrating the years of devotion it takes to get through years of marriage. So, already, with this being an anniversary trip, this is where the specifics of a trip can draw inspiration. I ask questions like, “What things do you like to do? What things does your partner like to do? What are some of the best times you’ve had with your partner?” The questions get more and more personal—the better I know somebody, the better job I can do.
I’ve heard so many answers, sometimes it distills down to something simple: “I want to sit on this particular beach,” or “I want to go to these restaurants I’ve dreamt of all my life.”
Other times, the job is to craft an experience for a whole group of people, finding options that appeal to each of them. Every trip has its purpose.
When I took my wife and four-year old to Africa, my purpose was to find and share a travel experience for my family that would also be meaningful to a four-year old. I don’t think she would’ve handled being dragged through the Louvre for hours and hours, but elephants, lions, and giraffes close enough to touch? That worked! I know my family pretty well, and so our family trips are pretty great.
Always ask yourself: “What is the purpose of this trip?”
If it’s to see Italy, you aren’t going to see it all; you are going to have to pick what will be best for you. What excites you most about visiting and seeing Italy. Ask yourself, what about Italy made you dream? Is it the glory of old Rome? Is it to see a sunset over a hilltop town? Answering those types of questions will help inform your best trip.
Here are some of the things I have helped arrange where learning about the client’s specific reasons for going helped plan something extraordinary:
Arranging for a grandfather, who was also a Vietnam veteran, to take his children and grandchildren to Vietnam. When I found out he was a vet, we managed to find the exact locations he was stationed in during the war.
Helping a man surprise his opera-loving wife with tickets to La Scala their last night in Italy.
Finding a photographer to follow newlyweds through Paris to chronicle the first day of their honeymoon.
Arranging a family to visit, with necessary supplies, an orphanage in southeast Asia. This was a very wealthy family that could’ve bought a home in the Midwest for the cost of their vacation. Despite this, they took a day out of the opulence to take their children to help those less fortunate.
Driving the Amalfi Coast in a Lamborghini for a car lover.
Dining at Jiro, in Tokyo, for somebody who really wanted the “best” sushi. That was the only thing he wanted on the trip with his wife to Japan. She, however, had many priorities with Japan like snow monkeys, skiing, and buddhist temples. When they got back, he told me the whole trip was worth that one meal.
All of those special add-ons really do a lot for a trip, and they all required digging deeper to match what was in their hearts for a travel experience.
If you aren’t sure of how to do that, you can call me to counsel if you aren’t a client. If you are, then what are you waiting for?
