WS Chronicle

By Busta Brown

Vacationers are back to their travel habits, airline profits have gone up significantly, and travel agencies are becoming popular again. With rules and regulations changing constantly. I asked the owners of Let’s Travel 2day, Guy and Jacqueline Dorsinville, what is one of the biggest COVID-related mistakes travelers can avoid this summer? 

“Not doing your research on the cities or countries you’re traveling to. COVID rules and regulations are changing daily, so you must stay updated. Another mistake people can avoid is not updating their passport. Please make sure your passport is up to date. Most countries require your passport to be valid for six months out from the time you are returning back home. 

“It’s not only going over to another country, it’s coming back. If your passport isn’t up to date, they won’t let you come back. Some countries won’t allow a one-way ticket. If you don’t have a roundtrip ticket, they will tell you to go back home,” shared Guy and Jacqueline Dorsinville. 

Jacqueline added, “Make sure you have all of your important documents with you when traveling. But before you go sightseeing, lock them up in the hotel safe and make copies of those important documents. There’s a lot of pickpockets out there. When I travel, I take a bookbag and keep it in front of me on my chest. We do lots of research on the countries that have a lot of pickpockets. They share videos of how easy it is for them to steal documents, money and other valuables from your backpack, pants and wallets.”

So, what service does Let’s Travel 2day offer to keep their clients up to date and protected? 

“We have an email system that keeps our clients up to date on any changes in rules and regulations before or while they’re traveling. We’ve heard stories of people that traveled to other states and countries without staying up to date with their COVID rules and regulations. Some people get tested before leaving the United States, yet when they arrive in another country, or sometimes state, they still have to quarantine in their rooms for six days because of the requirements. 

“We keep our email system up to date so these kinds of mistakes don’t happen to our clients. Our email system also shares the safest places to travel as well,” said Jacqueline. She added, “We travel to places a lot of people are afraid to go, due to the horror stories they’ve heard, and also due to COVID. We share our traveling experiences on our social media pages and via email to let them know it’s safe to travel, and where it’s safe to travel.” 

The husband-and-wife business partners love to travel with their three children, so they do extensive research on vacation spots to make sure it’s kid friendly. “So many parents can’t travel until their kids are out of school. So, we also research museums, historical places, and more. We personalize family vacations to make sure kids will also have fun learning while on vacation, and that it’s fun for the entire family. Our family travels to these places before we recommend them to our clients,” shared Jacqueline. 

I really dig how their research goes beyond the computer.

Let’s Travel 2day offers destination wedding services, excursions, cruise travel, car rentals, hotel bookings, and all exclusives. Some satisfied customers commented: “Great travel agent! We had a wonderful time in Vegas. We have 3 more trips booked with Guy. Hands down no nonsense to the point best value,” shared Cato Haggerty. 

“They booked my cruise and our service was excellent! We didn’t want to get off the cruise ship. I’ve already booked 3 trips,” shared another satisfied client. 

Guy shared a story about a client who overslept and missed her flight to Costa Rica. Their agency stepped in to make sure the female client had the time of her life. “She booked the flight herself, and did everything correctly, except she overslept. When she called us for assistance, we jumped right in. We made a call and got her concierge service, a butler, and other great services. She told us she felt like a queen and has been a satisfied client ever since,” said Guy. 

“Some of our clients called us when they got lost. We travel often, so we know how to help them navigate through most anywhere,” said Jacqueline. 

Their motto is fitting: “Let’s travel the world with Let’s Travel 2day.”

The married couple of 15 years loves to travel and has 20 years of customer service between them. Jacqueline spent most of those years in the airline industry, so she’s an expert on traveling. “Guy is the company’s cruise expert,” said Jacqueline. 

“Our family and friends have always asked for traveling advice and we love to help people, so we decided to start a travel agency, and it’s been going very well,” said Guy. 

I asked the couple what are some of the greatest challenges in the travel agent industry? “Competition with the bigger companies. Getting people to understand the value of going with smaller agencies. For example, if something goes wrong with one of the big companies, it takes all day to get in contact with somebody. To reach us is very accessible, and our customer service is excellent. 

“We had a client that had a rough experience traveling to Hawaii. We called the airline to get him compensation for his troubles, and we got him to Hawaii and back before I even received a call from the airline. We always take that extra step for our customers. We’re more concerned about you having a great experience on your trip than trying to take your money,” shared Guy. 

The Dorsinvilles go the extra step to support their fellow small businesses as well, by collecting items from local businesses and showcasing them to their clients. As a father, I was very impressed and inspired when Guy shared that their 15-year-old daughter is a partial owner of the company. This teaches her about business and helps her build a foundation for the future. Way to go! 

The Chronicle’s Business of the Month is Let’s Travel 2day. Follow them on Facebook @LetsTravel2day.