'There are 429 million vacation days left on the table every year by American workers. When they finally get around to taking a vacation, consumers don’t have time for a do-over. Put that planning in the hands of a professional. You’ll be glad you did,' said Zane Kerby, ASTA President & CEO.
ALEXANDRIA, VA – In celebrating National Travel and Tourism Week (May 2-10) and Travel Agent Day (May 6), the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) is shining a spotlight on the work dedicated professional travel advisors do by releasing the “Top 20 Strangest Requests” made of our members in the past year.
“When planning your trip, travel agents know what consumers often don’t know to ask,” said Zane Kerby, ASTA President & CEO. “But according to this poll of ASTA professionals, agents also sometimes have to save their clients from questions they DO ask. It’s clear from the list of “strangest requests” that some travelers need a little more hand holding than others,” he said.
“There are 429 million vacation days left on the table every year by American workers. When they finally get around to taking a vacation, consumers don’t have time for a do-over. Put that planning in the hands of a professional. You’ll be glad you did,” said Kerby.
The following are the Top 20 Strangest Requests made of an ASTA professional in the past year in no particular order:
1. Can you please book the honeymoon suite for us and another couple?
2. Can you please plan a honeymoon for me, my bride and my mother?
3. Can you guarantee that no pet has ever been in the hotel room?
4. Can I fish off of the cruise ship?
5. Do they speak English in Britain?
6. Can you book two rooms in different parts of the resort—one for me and my wife, and the other for my girlfriend?
7. Is our relationship like a client/lawyer relationship? (ASTA wonders if this is the same client who asked Question 6).
8. Does the crew actually sleep onboard the cruise ship?
9. Don’t tell my fiance this is where I took my first wife for our honeymoon.
10. I would like to go somewhere where there are NOT a lot of men.
11. I’d like to meet Elvis.
12. I’d like to get married in the Caribbean on an island where the marriage is not legal in the U.S. (Again, we refer you to Question 6).
13. Will there be shadows on my face at 4 p.m. when the pictures are taken?
14. Will you watch my pet while I’m away?
15. Are there toll roads on the way to Hawaii?
16. How can I get to Europe without going by air or sea?
17. I’d like to visit Scotland and Denmark on the same trip. (Agent then tells client he does not have time in his schedule to travel the distance). But they’re only an inch apart on the map!
18. Can you set it up so that the whales jump in the background at the same time I’m proposing to my girlfriend?
19. Can you ask the airline to block the seat next to me so I can stretch out?
20. I don’t want a window seat on the plane because I just had my hair done.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
