Episode Transcript
[00:00:07] Speaker A: Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Mouse Ears Podcast, where we talk about all things travel, but mostly Disney, brought to you by fairy tale journeys. Travel.
[00:00:21] Speaker B: So, okay, we're talking about all the little details, but I don't think we've really dived into.
How does booking with an authorized Disney vacation planner work? Who wants to answer that? I'm looking at you, Suzanne.
[00:00:41] Speaker C: Look, I'm just the owner.
[00:00:44] Speaker D: I can help out with that if you need.
[00:00:45] Speaker A: Steve, Mike's over to you now.
[00:00:47] Speaker E: Then we're gonna talk about.
[00:00:49] Speaker F: Suzanne's not just an owner. She's also an agent.
[00:00:52] Speaker E: Yes, she is.
[00:00:53] Speaker F: She does book the original agent.
[00:00:55] Speaker C: Well, the. Yeah, the original. I try not to.
Not to sell anymore because I have too much on my plate like it is. But, Jen, if you'd like to answer that.
[00:01:09] Speaker D: Okay, I can. I can handle that. I think the process, it probably differs just a little bit from agent to agent, depending on how they want to do their initial intake. But there's an initial consultation. I normally like to do that over the phone. It's usually the best and fastest way to get all of the information that you need for traveling and to ask all the pertinent questions that you need to ask and, you know, to make sure that you can really, you know, get what it is that the client's looking for. And like I tell clients, this is their trip. It's not my trip that planning according to what I would do. This is what's best for them. And, my God, my job is to guide them on that.
So we do the consultation, we do quotes, and then we discuss the quotes. I have a client I'm working with right now that they were going back and forth between two resorts and two very different resorts, and it came down to, what kind of explanation experience do you want? This resort's going to give this kind of an experience, and this resort's going to give this kind of experience. And just asking that one little question, she was able to. Oh, well, I think I want this, like, okay, so that's what we do. So then, you know, we get you booked, and from there, it really depends on the client. I have clients that are.
I just want to pack a bag and go, you handle everything.
And. And we do that and very detailed itineraries, and, you know, we'll do all the dining and, you know, make sure that everything is seamless.
And then I have a few clients that are just like, these are the dates. Check this price and this price. This is where we want to be. And then I book it and Then it's hands off. And I'm just there as a backup in case something happens. Anyone who was a travel agent or traveled during 2020 knows how nice it is. We shall not say what it was, but it, it was a lot. I mean, that was, that was an eye opening experience on just how valuable using a travel agent is. And I'm not talking about just our agency, but any of the other really great agencies out there having a really good agent.
You know, some of these people, I feel bad, they lost sometimes tens of thousands of dollars on their trips because they did not use an agent. They didn't have the proper insurance for their trips. They didn't have any kind of guidance. They waited for days on hold.
[00:04:06] Speaker C: It was just, it was a nightmare. I just remember it. Yeah, it was, it was a tough time watching that.
[00:04:14] Speaker D: It was hard. It was hard. And then, you know, we, a lot of us had people reaching out to us. I know I did that were. Can you help me, please? I booked on my own or I booked with a store. We won't say I booked with a store.
You know, I booked with this. And unfortunately, especially if you book outside of our agency, we can't touch those reservations. There's nothing that we can do to help you. And it was so heartbreaking to have all this knowledge and experience. Experience. And if you would have just picked up the phone or sent us an email and booked with us, we could be helping you now. So I have clients that specifically use me because they just, they want to do all the planning, which is fine. They're experts and they can, you know, they can handle it, but they just want that backup in case something happens.
So.
[00:05:12] Speaker C: Yeah, I agree.
[00:05:14] Speaker D: So there's a lot of, you know, the pre trip support, there's a lot of, you know, emails that go out and reminders and dining recommendations. And one of the things that I specialize in because I'm allergic to everything are dietary requirements. Absolutely.
[00:05:33] Speaker C: I'm with you now, by the way.
[00:05:36] Speaker E: Yeah, Disney's the best at that.
[00:05:38] Speaker D: They are really good. But that's, you know, that's one of the things that I, that I specialize in are, you know, people with dietary requirements and knowing which restaurants are better than others and you know, which places maybe that you want to avoid.
[00:05:55] Speaker C: And that's getting more and more, you know, like I was just telling you now I'm allergic to peanuts and eggs. I used to not be allergic to that. And I'm, I know Kelton. That was, that was my look too because I was like, yeah, eggs.
[00:06:14] Speaker E: Yeah.
[00:06:16] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:06:17] Speaker C: But yeah, so I guess just the older you get, Kelton, you just start getting allergic.
[00:06:22] Speaker A: I don't tell me that Brooks is gonna go first, so.
[00:06:26] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:06:29] Speaker F: But yeah, I mean, it's my knees gonna go. It's not going to be my diet.
[00:06:33] Speaker A: No, it's the knees. It's always the knees first.
[00:06:38] Speaker C: But you're right, Jen.
[00:06:40] Speaker F: Been there, done that, Steve.
[00:06:42] Speaker C: I mean, that's. It's huge.
[00:06:44] Speaker D: Yeah, it's. It's a big thing. And, you know, we talked about our network of agents. I had another agent reach out to me this week and said, hey, I have a meeting with a client that has this allergy. This allergy and this allergy.
What restaurant should I tell her? Now? I've traveled, you know, I've traveled with most of our agents or a lot of our agents. Um, but this agent has traveled with me before. And so they kind of knew, you know, some of the safe things and some of the things. But, you know, I was able to give recommendations and you know, make some other recommendations for her for her reservation. You know, like having an allergy cleaning of the room. I don't know if people realize they can do that, that you can request to have your room allergy. You know, it's. It's an extra deep cleaning for allergies.
[00:07:38] Speaker C: So I need that here at the house.
[00:07:42] Speaker D: Yeah, we'll see if we get mousekeeping out there to you.
[00:07:46] Speaker C: There you go.
[00:07:48] Speaker D: So we do a lot of pre trip support and then I myself, I am on call from the time my clients leave the morning that they're traveling until they get home. So if they need something now, we do advise them that there are things that are going to be best handled by Disney on property. But it's not uncommon to be on the phone with us while they're talking to the front desk. I have my travel agent and this is what we need to do. And you know, we can help, but for a lot of little questions or if a flight gets canceled, if they need to add another night, if something happens and they need to go home, we're able to help with a lot of that and just a lot of little things. I had a client once that text me and she's like, hey, we're headed to Disney Springs and we want a steak dinner. Can you make us a reservation?
Sure. So really quick thing here. Just head here. She is one of those that just wants to pack her bags and go.
But it was just, it was a really quick thing, but it meant a lot to the clients, because that's just one less thing that they have to worry about, and that's our job, is to make sure that they have the best vacation possible. So we're really there, full cycle. Whether you want to utilize us or not, that's really up to each individual client.
They don't have to utilize us. They could just have us as a backup or they could have us do, you know, a lot of the stuff. But I think the important thing is just booking, getting that booking in with an agent, you know, just in case. Just so you have that, you know. And you know, with Disney. Well, with all of our vendors, you're paying for a travel agent anyways, like you were paying for an agent anyways. You might as well utilize one. And one of the things, I don't know if we discussed it, but we do discount monitoring. So if a discount or promotion becomes available when, after a client's booked, you know, we're there usually, you know, six, seven o'clock in the morning.
[00:10:00] Speaker E: On hold.
[00:10:01] Speaker D: There's a lot of agents on hold.
[00:10:03] Speaker E: And they don't have to worry about doing it themselves.
[00:10:05] Speaker D: Don't have to worry about it.
[00:10:07] Speaker B: Specifically with Disney.
[00:10:09] Speaker C: Yeah, and that's huge because you're gonna, like Kelton said earlier, you're gonna sit on the phone for hours.
[00:10:16] Speaker D: Hours? Yeah, it's hours. Even with our platinum line, it's hours. I couldn't imagine the other line, it always says, like, if you want to be transferred out of the platinum earmark. No.
[00:10:30] Speaker A: Why would you give me that option?
[00:10:32] Speaker B: So one time, one time that's happened to me where I didn't request it. I'm there, thinking, on the earmarked line, I text Jen. I'm like, jen, I've been on the phone for four hours. I don't understand what's going on.
She was nice enough to call. And not only was she nice enough to call, she patched me into the call to talk to the earmarked line because I apparently was kicked out of that one. And she got answered in five minutes.
[00:11:04] Speaker C: Hit the button.
[00:11:06] Speaker B: I don't know, but it was like a lesson learned of. What were we saying? Not taking things for granted. Oh, my gosh. Four hours just sitting. That could have been anyone.
[00:11:16] Speaker C: All right, Seth, After a certain period of time, you're not on the platinum.
[00:11:23] Speaker D: Line unless it's a promo day.
[00:11:26] Speaker B: It was, it was. It was a day that DCL that opened up their itinerary for Silver. Silver Sailings, Silver Pearl. Oh, yes, Castaway. Thank you, Brain Fart. I. Oh, that was a bad day. People use an agent. You will save yourself so much time in the long run, trust me.
[00:11:49] Speaker F: Well, and you talk. I was gonna say you talked too, about discount monitoring.
Had one client that when, when they booked, there were no, There were no deals available. When. And the day that their promo, the day that the promo dropped, there still wasn't anything available because there's only so many that open up.
So I told, so told him, hey, I'll keep looking. And I, I checked four or five times a day for two months and then finally two, like a month or so before their trip, a promo opened up and I was on the, I was on the platinum line and within 10 minutes was able to save them considerable amount of money. But it's. And I know we, we all have stories like that and, and see, that's.
[00:12:51] Speaker C: Not going to happen if they book directly.
[00:12:54] Speaker F: Yeah.
[00:12:54] Speaker C: There. Because, I mean, who's going to have the time to call in or look online every day?
They don't.
[00:13:03] Speaker D: Multiple times a day.
[00:13:04] Speaker C: Yeah, I mean, they don't have that time. So back to what Jen said. You know, the commission is built into the price of every, every supplier. Even if they're going to a hotel, anywhere, they're already paying for it anyway. They just may not realize it. So why not use Advisor that doesn't charge?
Because y'all are free.
[00:13:35] Speaker A: It's perfect.
[00:13:38] Speaker D: It is perfect. And those are my favorite days where I just have a list of clients and I'm like, hey, I just saved you X amount of money. Have a great day. Hey, I just saved you X amount of money. Have a great day. Hey, I just upgraded you for a little bit less than what you were paying at the other resort. Have a great day. And it's just, it's just a list because we're able to, number one, utilize the line, but number two, you know, have access to all of that. As soon as they are going to release those, we have our list with our clients. We are ready and you know, and our clients don't have to worry about. They wake up and they're like, oh, and I'm just using this as an example, a real life example. But hey, I just saved $1200 or hey, I just got free dining or, you know, it's a nice way to, you know, wake up your client.
[00:14:32] Speaker F: Or hey, I'm. I'm paying a little extra, but I'm staying club level.
[00:14:36] Speaker D: Yeah, we need to do an episode.
[00:14:39] Speaker A: On Club level Season 4.
[00:14:43] Speaker C: Season 4, CCL Con.
Has Laura done that?
Oh, man. We've said that I love.
[00:14:51] Speaker F: I can, I can, I can only have so much living vicariously in one episode with Laura.
Like I, I have, I have to.
[00:15:01] Speaker A: Like two adventures by Disney. A cruise.
Oh my God.
[00:15:07] Speaker C: Yeah. We haven't done an abd.
We had a chance to now. It was back last year, but I.
[00:15:16] Speaker E: Think Garen was moving.
[00:15:20] Speaker C: That's right. Garen was his first year at Auburn and I couldn't, I couldn't, I couldn't do it.
[00:15:28] Speaker F: My sister in law is a war eagle.
[00:15:30] Speaker C: Really?
[00:15:31] Speaker F: Yeah.
[00:15:33] Speaker B: So anyways.
[00:15:41] Speaker E: We'Ll have to have a separate.
[00:15:42] Speaker C: That's a whole, that's a whole different episode.
[00:15:44] Speaker E: Sec discussion.
[00:15:47] Speaker A: So we talked, we've, I mean, we've talked mostly about Disney because that seems to be what this podcast does.
[00:15:55] Speaker C: Right?
[00:15:56] Speaker A: But Fairy Tale Journeys Travel does not only sell Disney, we sell, you know, other things as well. So can y'all just kind of quickly go through what are some of the other ones that Fairy Tale Journey sells? And if we have a, or if there is a status level or so you know, what, what's our status with that?
[00:16:20] Speaker C: So we sell Universal, Orlando, Hollywood. And we are a platinum agency with Universal, which is huge.
Royal Caribbean. Gosh, y'all sell a lot of Royal Caribbean.
[00:16:37] Speaker A: Love my royal. Loyal to royal.
[00:16:40] Speaker C: There you go.
[00:16:42] Speaker E: That's a little royal in that drink, baby.
[00:16:45] Speaker A: No way.
[00:16:46] Speaker E: The crown.
[00:16:48] Speaker C: Yeah. Y'all sell a lot of royal See sandals and beaches. We are a gold agency with them. Y'all sell a lot and y'all have like a plat, like, like a platinum line with them. But it's a gold line. You have certain perks that y'all have where y'all can go.
Easy access to people if you need help.
Let's see who else?
[00:17:16] Speaker E: Well, through Vax you've got several.
[00:17:18] Speaker C: Oh yeah. Apple Leisure Group.
Apple, yeah. Which is Apple Vacations. Apple Leisure Group.
Y'all have a yard Elite Sapphire status. And you know it's based on your sales. All of these are based on your sales. You know, kind of like Disney being a platinum agency. It's based on your sales. Universal Sandals, Appalachia Group.
[00:17:51] Speaker A: So we, we sell pretty much quite a few things, y'all.
[00:17:54] Speaker C: We sell everything.
[00:17:56] Speaker E: I'm trying to think often then just, I mean, just about all the major hotels, you know, Hilton, Marriott, Viking, Virgin.
[00:18:05] Speaker C: Boy, I love Virgin. Virgin.
[00:18:09] Speaker E: Every cruise line, even Carnival, with every package put together. You know, if they need transportation, we're booking the transportation. If they need strollers. Strollers or skaters. Exactly.
[00:18:24] Speaker A: So we legit do it all, y'all I'm working on.
[00:18:29] Speaker D: Amtrak.
[00:18:31] Speaker C: Yeah. Amtrak. Yeah.
[00:18:34] Speaker D: I have a big Amtrak quote that I'm working on for a client.
[00:18:39] Speaker C: Yeah, we, you know, we even do like the cabins in Tennessee, Smoky Mountains.
But you know, like I tell everybody, it goes back to our Disney clients.
So, you know that they may want to go to Disney the first part of the year, but then maybe at the end of the year, maybe they're having an anniversary and they want to go to Sandals or, you know, the next year. You know, Universal usually goes along there with, you know, Disney. So, you know, they may want to go over for a day or two.
And then now we've got Epic about to open, so that's huge.
[00:19:20] Speaker A: So we are big.
[00:19:24] Speaker D: Dare I say we are jail. Yeah.
[00:19:29] Speaker C: I think y'all know more about it than I do.
I can tell.
[00:19:33] Speaker E: Yeah, I can tell.
[00:19:34] Speaker D: We might.
[00:19:36] Speaker A: We have studied that one. I cannot wait until we do that. That episode next season. That is going to be such a fun episode.
[00:19:46] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:19:48] Speaker C: But yeah, y'all sell basically everything.
All, all the major cruise lines, all inclusive resorts, you know, other than Sandals and Beaches. We sell a lot of those.
[00:20:05] Speaker A: Awesome.
[00:20:06] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:20:08] Speaker B: You want it? We got it. Fdj.
[00:20:10] Speaker D: That's right.
[00:20:11] Speaker B: Your premier vacation destination vacation planner. I don't know. I just made that up.
[00:20:17] Speaker E: Sounds good.
[00:20:18] Speaker C: I like it.
[00:20:20] Speaker B: And I couldn't even repeat it again.
Neon lights.
[00:20:26] Speaker C: That was good, Sam.
[00:20:28] Speaker B: Thank you. Oh, man. So this is a good question. I feel like I get this question a lot. I think I'm not the only one that gets this question a lot. And it is, when is the best time to book a Disney or other vacation but for the sake of, you know, Disney.
[00:20:50] Speaker E: I like that answer.
[00:20:51] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:20:52] Speaker A: Right now.
[00:20:53] Speaker B: Right now. Right now, Right now. And why is that? Come on, Kelton, tell the people.
[00:20:59] Speaker A: Because you're going to Disney or Universal or if you're loyal to Royal like I am, it doesn't matter. You just got to get out there and do it. Don't. Yeah, because this is what I was telling my, my DCL client earlier today.
Why book now? I mean, you don't, you don't have to book now, but when you come to me and say, hey, why did that price go up? It's supply and demand.
Because everybody is. We are in the vacationing mode. And when those prices it, we can't lock you into what you don't have. So if you're on, if you're on kind of the, the fence about it, you know, with Disney, we can do a free three day hold Disney Cruise line, same thing. Three day hold, Royal Caribbean, they give you seven days. So. And it's. And when you do the. Yeah, when you do the package, it's only 200 bucks for Disney. You know, there it's why not? It is as simple as why not.
[00:22:06] Speaker C: And you can, you know, if you book far in advance, you have that period of time where, I mean, you just pay on it. I mean, you can pay as much as you want every month up until like 30 days before the final payments to you. So it's basically like a payment plan. Basically.
[00:22:28] Speaker E: I would love to do Christmas on dcl. I don't know why, but that would be fun. So. Oh yeah, I'd love to try that. And plus, we're getting a little older. It's kind of an empty nest where we're at now.
[00:22:40] Speaker C: It is an empty nest, yes.
[00:22:42] Speaker E: Except for our dog. It's the only, only thing that's not empty yet. But that would be just. I'd love to do that.
[00:22:49] Speaker A: Oh, that does sound like fun.
[00:22:51] Speaker C: But why? You know, my biggest thing is, you know, I get that question a lot too. Like, when's the best time?
You know, there's never really a good time, but why, like, wait? You never know, like, what's going to happen in the future, you know, or, you know, say if they have young kids, you know, that's another question. You know, I'll. They'll say, well, my kids are too young to go to Disney.
[00:23:20] Speaker A: False.
[00:23:21] Speaker C: No, they're not. No, they're not straightforward. No, it's not, it's not, not to say it's not about them, but it's, it's about you too. You know, they'll say, well, my child will never remember, but you will, you will. You will remember. And I don't know, y'all probably remember me telling the story about Wilson and Garen when we started taking them on dcl.
Garen was a little over, I think one, and Wilson was around four.
And you know, I have all those memories and all those pictures like around the house now that, you know, I still remember. You know, Garen may not remember, but I remember.
[00:24:07] Speaker E: Did Garen do the diaper dash or was he.
[00:24:09] Speaker C: No, he didn't do the diaper dash.
[00:24:10] Speaker E: He was a little shy. So that's where the babies race in the main lobby of the show.
[00:24:15] Speaker C: Yeah, he was a little older than that.
[00:24:18] Speaker E: Okay. Yeah, that's true.
[00:24:19] Speaker C: But he did like the diaper dash under the table every night, like at dinner time. Yeah, he was underneath the table.
But yeah, I Mean, you know, that it was memories that I have that I'll never forget. And to me, you know, that it's just as important. It's.
[00:24:43] Speaker E: You know, and we still want to go back without them.
[00:24:48] Speaker B: Suzanne, you need to help me convince Isabel to go to Disneyland Paris with me with the little one next year, because that's. That is my bucket list right there to take her and have that experience. And anyways, it's not just about the parents. It's the family members, too.
I want to be there, too.
[00:25:09] Speaker C: Yeah.
[00:25:10] Speaker E: I mean, I went in 1975 to Disney World, so.
[00:25:14] Speaker C: Oh, man, they probably weren't even born then.
[00:25:17] Speaker E: Probably not.
[00:25:18] Speaker A: We were not.
[00:25:19] Speaker E: I was. I was about 5 or 6 or. I still got pictures. A couple of them. Not too many.
[00:25:26] Speaker F: So are they pictures or tablet? No, I'm kidding.
[00:25:29] Speaker E: Stone pictures are tablet. Oh, yeah. Stone tablets.
[00:25:33] Speaker F: Yeah.
[00:25:33] Speaker E: It took them a while to chisel it. I got one of those, you know, those profile picks, the dark sort of shadow. I don't know where that is, but I remember getting.
[00:25:43] Speaker A: But.
[00:25:44] Speaker F: But no, y'all. Y'all talk about, like, making the memories. I. I remember because we've taken Ellie, you know, she's about to turn two next, you know, in about two months, which is crazy to think about, but we've been taking her since she was about four months old. And our. Literally, she. We've had a lot of firsts with her there.
I mean, some not great. Her first fever was at Disney, but I remember her first steps were on Disney property, so.
And, like, we have all. And, you know, I always tell my clients, get that. Get the photo package. Get the memory maker. Because, like, we have all these photos now that, you know, when she's old, she may feel like they're somewhat embarrassing, but, I mean, it's.
You know, I'm trying not to cry just thinking about it, but it's because she's literally in the next room sleeping. But it's.
We have all. We have all these memories now, and that's one thing that we've tried to do, is we try to create moments with her.
And what better place to do it at Disney or at one of the other locations that we offer? Because I said we do it all.
[00:27:17] Speaker C: Passion, more passionate.
[00:27:21] Speaker A: So.
So to, you know, as we're winding down, I mean, I've got one that I just kind of threw in. So for both y'all, Suzanne and Steve, what individual. What is Yalls ultimate, either dream vacation or a dream destination that you guys want to do since you've been Doing this going on 15 years now.
[00:27:45] Speaker E: I've got an idea.
What I would love to go doing Adventures by Disney that takes us down the Rhine River, I think it is.
And stop along the way. I think I would love to do that.
[00:28:00] Speaker A: You know, we have a great episode about that. We do a real good episode.
[00:28:06] Speaker B: They also have a Christmas. A holiday Rhine river cruise with Adventures by Disney. So, like, that's a good mix in.
[00:28:14] Speaker A: That Christmas trip in there, too.
[00:28:16] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:28:17] Speaker E: What's the new partner with the National Geographic in Lynn Lindblad, and they've got adventures to the Galapagos, to Antarctica.
I would love to do some of that too, but it's brand new, so that's going to be interesting. I think they have 12 ships they own, I think.
[00:28:37] Speaker C: And then you obviously know more than I do.
[00:28:39] Speaker E: And then they leave several. And these are, these are more.
[00:28:42] Speaker C: He spoke.
[00:28:43] Speaker E: They have a couple icebreakers. So I mean, they're, they're smaller ships, so there's not as many people on there. So that's kind of interesting. I'm going to be keeping my eye on that.
[00:28:55] Speaker A: That's fantastic.
[00:28:55] Speaker C: That's more than what we realized.
[00:28:58] Speaker E: Well, I mean, that's, that's fascinating to me.
[00:29:00] Speaker A: He doesn't just do the numbers. He does so much more.
[00:29:03] Speaker F: What happened was he's more than just a pretty face.
[00:29:06] Speaker C: Yeah, there you go. At this Earmark Summit. Yeah, the earmark summit. The owner summit recently, the, the lynnblad lady, a rep. She was there and I was talking to her and she was like, oh, where are you from? And I, you know, I told her, Alabama. She's like, okay, Auburn, Alabama. Which one are you? So she went, she knew about the football. And I said, I'm Auburn. And she said, oh, but you know, her boss was an Alabama fan. And I said, okay. I said, well, my husband is. And I said, he's way over there. So she said, well, I'll have to. We'll have to introduce them. I said, okay. So I walk over to him and he's talking to some lady, just carrying on a conversation. And then I don't know what happened, but she kind of looked at me and, you know, I introduced myself and come to find out that what that was her boss.
[00:30:01] Speaker E: And she goes to Alabama games.
[00:30:03] Speaker C: Yeah. And so I was like, well, did she tell you to come talk to him? And she's like, oh, no, I just started talking to him.
[00:30:13] Speaker A: That's fantastic.
[00:30:14] Speaker C: It was kind of funny. So that's how he knows all this info.
[00:30:18] Speaker E: Yeah. I got to go on A trip.
[00:30:22] Speaker A: And we're happy, we're happy that you did it for sure. But.
So, Suzanne, what's your dream vacation and or destination?
Gotta pick one. I know there's a lot of good ones out there.
[00:30:38] Speaker C: You know, I've, I guess probably Italy is one that I've always thought about. Yeah.
[00:30:46] Speaker A: Italy would be fun.
[00:30:48] Speaker E: Yeah, I would too. I'd love that.
[00:30:51] Speaker D: Yeah.
All right, well, any final thoughts or advice for. This is a two part question. So any final thoughts or advice for anyone that's, you know, maybe thinking of booking a trip and you know, wanting to use an agent and then also if anyone is interested in becoming an agent, advice on that.
[00:31:23] Speaker C: Would you like to start?
[00:31:24] Speaker E: Yeah, go ahead. Because you do all the heart.
[00:31:26] Speaker C: Oh, well, I guess going back to booking, it just kind of goes back to what we talked about earlier. You know, they can either book directly and you know it's going to be the exact same price.
So why not book with a platinum agency and you know, y'all are the experts. Y'all are among the elite. So why not, why not book with y'all exact same price.
Y'all are there to help them from the beginning to the very end. And yeah, I mean, they'd be crazy not to, you know, to get that help or if they don't want help, like Jen said earlier, you know, y'all can book it for them.
Also. Let's see. Oh, if you want to become an agent, if you love Disney, if you're already helping like your family or friends.
[00:32:31] Speaker E: I mean, gosh, there's so many. They, they know Disney pretty well out there and they don't realize they're, they're doing all the work of a travel agent already.
[00:32:40] Speaker C: They're just not getting paid for that.
I mean, that's, that's usually how it happens. You know, they love Disney or Disney Cruise Line or, you know, just any of the Disney destinations and they're already going, they're already helping people.
And you know, I don't know, usually they start thinking about it, they're like, why am I doing this for furry kind of thing.
And there's so many that are out there that, I mean, would be wonderful agents. And you know, why not join Fairy Tale Journeys?
I mean, exactly.
[00:33:25] Speaker A: And just do it. I sat on it for a year before I started applying.
Don't do that. Don't be like me. If you're thinking about, just start, find a, find an agency that you connect with that you really like.
And then don't just go out and start applying because like you said, there are tens of thousands of agencies out.
[00:33:50] Speaker C: There, and they're opening daily.
It's unreal.
[00:33:55] Speaker A: So do your research.
[00:33:57] Speaker C: Right.
[00:33:58] Speaker A: That's.
[00:33:59] Speaker C: There's certain things that you need to look for because there's a lot of them out there that will hire just anybody. We are not that type of agency, as y'all know. I mean, we get applications and say, if I get 30 applications, I'm gonna. I'm gonna read every one of them, and I can tell by the application whether or not they're going to be good or not.
[00:34:27] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:34:27] Speaker A: Thanks for picking us.
[00:34:29] Speaker F: Yes, thank you.
[00:34:31] Speaker E: Me too.
[00:34:32] Speaker C: But, Kelton, I'm curious. Why did you pick Fairy Tale Journeys? What was it?
[00:34:38] Speaker A: That's a good question. Not. And one I was not prepared to answer.
[00:34:43] Speaker C: Do you know? That's a question I ask everybody now.
[00:34:46] Speaker E: You flipped a coin.
[00:34:47] Speaker C: That's because I'm curious.
[00:34:49] Speaker A: So it was one of those. I Googled travel agencies and then started kind of digging into, okay, authorized vacation planner. Boom. Here's the. Because, you know, there are the big ones that come up. The key to the world travel. And, you know, a bunch of. And I have a couple of friends that are also agents in some of those other agencies. So. And I even asked them, I said, hey, like, tell me about it. And that's where. So it came down to, you know, I stumbled across Fairy Tale Journeys and, you know, kind of reading on the website. So a little bit smaller, less agents. I'm going, I'm kind of feeling it. Let's, you know, let's give it a shot.
[00:35:30] Speaker C: Family friendly.
[00:35:32] Speaker A: It was. And I honestly, I always hate when people say, oh, we're a family environment. Cause when you work for, you know, big companies like that, they're like, I'm a family environment. It's like, but are you really, though? So.
So. But no, I mean. And this one and this one. Truly. And you see it. And you see it in the private Facebook group. So it was. And then, of course, our. Our conversation, Suzanne, I think, ran for like two hours. And it was just talking about, oh, you found out I worked for Disney. Then you found out I worked for Universal, and then this and then that. And it. So it. It really.
I couldn't have been, you know, happier to prouder, you know, to have not just been interviewed, but also you hired me for that fact. So I'm very.
[00:36:23] Speaker C: I'm very happy with hospitality. That's what it was.
[00:36:26] Speaker A: Just. You hated it when I called you ma'am, because that is one thing that you still can't get over.
And I always tell the day I die, Will, because that's, that's just how we're raised down here in the South.
[00:36:40] Speaker E: Truth. Very true.
[00:36:41] Speaker A: Amen.
[00:36:42] Speaker C: I do remember that. I was like, stop calling me ma'am.
I know I'm old, but yeah, so.
[00:36:52] Speaker A: And that's why. Yeah, that's why.
[00:36:55] Speaker C: So if anybody does want to apply, Steph, you want to tell them where to go to?
[00:37:04] Speaker B: Yes, I can. I just had to unmute myself. Sorry, guys. Yeah. So if you're interested in becoming a Fairy Tale Journeys agent, please visit fairytalejourneys.com and there is a tab that you will see to be able to apply to become an agent. And then, yeah, hopefully you have the absolute pleasure of speaking with Suzanne on the phone, having those in depth conversations that we all enjoy.
[00:37:32] Speaker C: They get long winded, but it's okay.
[00:37:35] Speaker B: Oh, I enjoyed mine. I, I think our conversation was two hours long as well. So I'm, I, believe me, I'm not complaining. It was a great conversation. I was so happy the whole time.
[00:37:44] Speaker C: Cut those down. Because they get. Yeah, they get long. I try to cut them down.
[00:37:51] Speaker F: I think ours, I think ours was like an hour and 15 minutes. And that's long for me on the.
[00:37:56] Speaker C: Phone, so be glad it won two hours.
[00:38:02] Speaker A: But it, I mean, you're, you're doing, y'all are doing the thorough digging and that's because I think Steph and I have talked, you know, on the side. It's like, why. Why is FTJ so small? You know, I thought with 250 agents, an agency like this, you know, should be at least double. Well, it's simple. You said it before. We don't. You don't just let anybody commit, you know, Right. This is.
[00:38:27] Speaker C: Even though I could, I could hire everybody. That applies. But that's not what Fairy Tale Journeys is about.
[00:38:36] Speaker A: Gotta support the mission and the. What is it? The mission and the vision.
[00:38:41] Speaker B: Again, it's that passion I remember in our call, Suzanne, that's one of the things that you brought up, was just making sure that, you know, I was someone who you could see also getting along with the other agents who's going to participate in the community. And, you know, we talked about that. Support people. You have no idea. In ftj, we're making videos, we're helping with social media. We are doing like trainings amongst ourselves. Anything and everything to help each other.
I think that's a true testament to wanting all of our success. And we will be diamond status earmarked in the very near future.
[00:39:27] Speaker C: Yes.
[00:39:29] Speaker D: That's what we're working for.
[00:39:31] Speaker A: Absolutely.
[00:39:32] Speaker F: Steph, put that on a sticky note. Power in the sticky note.
[00:39:37] Speaker B: I'm gonna manifest this one.
[00:39:39] Speaker E: There you go.
[00:39:42] Speaker C: We're headed there. We're gonna do it.
[00:39:45] Speaker A: Hey, slap on their epic universe media pass, too. You just never know. You never know.
[00:39:52] Speaker F: Yes for the meeps.
[00:39:53] Speaker D: Yes for the meeps.
[00:39:55] Speaker E: Gotta dream it before you do it.
[00:39:58] Speaker A: If you can dream it, you can build it. Or is it.
[00:40:00] Speaker C: That's right.
[00:40:01] Speaker E: Something like that.
[00:40:02] Speaker C: Yeah, Anything you put your mind.
[00:40:04] Speaker E: They will come.
[00:40:05] Speaker A: That's what it is. That's what it is.
Very good, Jenny. Bring us home.
[00:40:14] Speaker D: All right, well, we're gonna throw it over to Brooks to get the answer to our trivia question, which I know has stumped me. So, Brooks.
[00:40:23] Speaker F: All right, so going back, if you remember our trivia question, it was what year was the Walt Disney Travel Co. Inc. Found it. So. And then also said bonus question. What was it called before the Walt Disney Travel Company?
What was it called? So. And I actually. Correct. I actually wrote it down wrong in the show notes. So I apologize about that, but. So it was originally the Santa Rosa Land Company.
I incorporated. And it was incorporated in or before 1968 to start owning some of the land for Walt that became Walt Disney World Resort, but it changed its name to Walt Disney Travel Company on August 16th of 1973.
It's crazy to think about.
[00:41:21] Speaker A: So if you guess 1973, give yourself a pat on the back. I'm. I'm not real sure.
[00:41:28] Speaker F: Or 1968.
[00:41:30] Speaker A: Or 1968 clause.
[00:41:31] Speaker F: Yep.
[00:41:34] Speaker D: Yeah, I. I did not. I didn't even attempt it. I didn't attempt.
[00:41:39] Speaker C: So I'll take the first one. The 68.
[00:41:42] Speaker A: You know what? That could be a future trivia question in our trivia episode. I might just save it.
So if you're.
[00:41:52] Speaker F: Pay attention.
[00:41:53] Speaker A: See if you pay attention.
[00:41:58] Speaker C: So the reason Brooks, that it was named that in 1968.
Do you know?
[00:42:11] Speaker F: I do not.
[00:42:12] Speaker C: I did.
[00:42:13] Speaker E: I think I experienced. I had a boss that sold land.
[00:42:18] Speaker C: You did?
[00:42:19] Speaker E: To the Santa Rosa Company. Oh, he. He was 85 when I was working for him. He didn't like them because if he knew it was Disney, that lamb would have been a lot more expensive.
[00:42:34] Speaker F: Right.
[00:42:34] Speaker C: So it was their way of him being able to buy up all that land and nobody know who was buying. Buying it. Yeah. So that's why it was under that name.
[00:42:49] Speaker A: There. There is a set of Windows on Main Street USA dedicated to all of the fake company names that Walt Disney used. And yes, it is.
As you're walking past the confectionery and Uptown Jewelers on the right hand side, I just don't know what that gift shop is called. But as soon as you pass Uptown Jewelers and you're looking at the castle, look up into your right at about the 2 o'clock, hand on the clock, and it's up there. And of course, the big one you could read is empty lot, the letter M, the letter T, and then L, O, T, T for empty lot.
So, okay, that was back from traditions day early 2 or mid-2012.
[00:43:43] Speaker F: See, I just get distracted by all the smells from the confectionery.
I'm like a car and I'm like a cartoon with a pie on the windowsill, just floating.
[00:43:55] Speaker E: I can smell them out.
[00:43:57] Speaker F: Yep.
Especially if you have a match of candle company. Candle.
[00:44:02] Speaker D: Yeah.
[00:44:03] Speaker E: Oh, wow. Yeah.
[00:44:04] Speaker C: Yeah. I love those candles.
[00:44:08] Speaker D: All right.
[00:44:12] Speaker A: You will find out what I bought with when I do my video unboxing. Yes. Thank you, Brooks.
[00:44:18] Speaker D: The unboxing.
I'm excited. I need to get my order into.
All right, folks, well, that does it for this week's episode of the Malcars podcast. Thank you so much to Suzanne and Steve for being on. We just. We love you. Like, we just love you.
[00:44:37] Speaker C: We love y'all, too.
[00:44:39] Speaker D: Don't forget to join our Mouse Ears podcast Facebook group, TikTok page, and Instagram to stay up to date with all things travel, but mostly Disney. And if you're interested in having a fairy Tale journeys agent book your next trip, visit fairytalejourneys.com and let them know that the podcast sent you.
And lastly, if you enjoy our weekly episodes of the Mouse Ears Podcast podcast, we love for you to leave us a review wherever you listen to us. And until next time, thank you so much, everybody, and have a great night.
[00:45:14] Speaker A: Bye, all.
[00:45:14] Speaker B: Bye, everyone.
