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March 25, 2009November 18, 2011

In Whom Can We Trust?

I’ve been thinking about trust among tour guides, mortgage brokers, and doctors. I don’t like not trusting people I hire to be my experts — whether on tour, in a bank, or in the hospital.

I’m in a crisis of trust with banking and medicine. I like my investment guy…but I don’t trust him. I don’t understand that business, and I don’t really believe he can do his work without being corrupted by the conflicts of interest he deals with when he advises me where to stow my money. It’s the same with brokers who knowingly sold thousands of Americans mortgages they didn’t understand and could never pay. This makes me sad.

I just gave a fundraiser talk for my HMO (GroupHealth in Seattle). One of my big fears is that my doctor will get me on some prescription medicine for the rest of my life in part because it is profitable to him (or the medical industry in general) for me to take that drug. I learned that my HMO has an ethic higher than that, and that the doctors there willingly make less money in order not to sell their souls by pushing pharmaceuticals on innocents like me. I told my HMO friend that I don’t want “choice”…I just want accessible, efficient, and affordable medicine motivated by my body’s needs, not a doctor’s bottom line.

(Coincidentally, I put my HMO to work fixing a hernia. I had surgery two days ago and was really impressed by the organization and the whole process. Writing this blog entry is the only work I’ve done all day.)

While tourism is small potatoes compared to banking and medicine, its corrupting influences can be instructive. I started my tour company 30 years ago out of a similar frustration with the existing system. Naive tourists were shuttled through Europe by slick tour guides who kept them in the dark and took them shopping for kickbacks. In Amsterdam, they skipped the Van Gogh Museum (which cost the tour company $10 a head and offered no kickbacks) for the diamond-polishing place (free and offering 20 percent kickbacks on diamonds purchased). Because of this violation of trust, a generation of Americans has seen diamonds in Amsterdam…but no Van Goghs.

Ages ago in my work as a tour organizer, I realized that the norm in the industry was to recommend trip cancellation and interruption insurance (both to avoid any liability if something went wrong, and to get a 30 percent commission from the insurance company). I figured the insurance companies were making a third, the travel agent was making a third, and the tourists were paying triple the actual value of the insurance — which they often shouldn’t have purchased in the first place. To recommend this (and get that 30 percent commission) might have been really profitable, but it seemed dishonest to me. Instead, I figured the overall cost of insuring all the travelers on my tour program would be something I could more efficiently include in the tour. By “self-insuring,” I could provide that coverage while adding only about 30 percent of the cost of the normal insurance coverage to the cost of our tours.

This is related to what my HMO is attempting to accomplish — and perhaps what our nation needs to do with medicine in general. (All statistics agree that Europeans — who have defragged their health costs smartly — spend one third what we do for health care.) I make money by offering a good tour, not by pushing a highly commissionable product. I like to think doctors want to do the same (but, as Flip Wilson explained, “The system makes them do it”).

Considering the challenges confronting our government and society today, I keep coming back to this trust issue. I think of all the clever young students lured into professions in medicine and finance and banking because there’s lots of money to be made, and I lament the loss of trust. Our money says “in God we trust”…but what about the rest of us?

March 20, 2009November 18, 2011

My Interview with Salon.com

I recently took an interview with Kevin Berger from Salon.com on my way home from a speaking gig in Tulsa, Oklahoma. I was exhausted at the airport and thought it would be just a quick interview. I called him, and he just got me talking and talking (which I do with abandon when I’m tired). Kevin must have had a tape recorder going, because he caught everything I rattled off. He was fun to talk to and just egged me on. I remember stepping onto the plane as I hung up, thinking, “Wow, I talked that man’s ear off.” I didn’t really take the interview too seriously. But now, considering the readership Salon.com has, I’m glad I mustered the energy to have this conversation with him. Sometimes when I’m unguarded, my thoughts come out better. I like the feeling and flow of this piece. (Nice work, Kevin.) The article was posted this morning, and it has held the #1 “Most Read” spot on their homepage all day…and has sparked a lot of conversation in the blogosphere. In case you’re interested, you can read the article.

March 12, 2009November 18, 2011

Talking Traveling Heads

Last night, I recorded an interview with a local Seattle TV show, On the Money,giving advice about how the financial meltdown will affect travel. Speaking “authoritatively” on the topic, it occurred to me that the media has an insatiable appetite for talking heads to give their take on things, and the general starting point is, “How do we get through this catastrophe?”

My message: Sure, the travel industry — like our tour sales — is down about 30 percent. That’s not great. But why do we measure it against a spasmodic spike after years and years of mercilessly goosing our economy to perform better than it should? We goosed and goosed the poor thing until we ran out of prods. The exhausted economy finally just stopped responding. Everything’s down 30 percent — so we hunker down. And because our unrealistic and unsustainable expectations are no longer met, I fear we’re actually making things worse — turning the perception of bad times into actual bad times by burrowing in.

So, what’s the impact of these “hard times” for travelers? Airfares are down about 20 percent since this time last year. (I just sent one of our researchers to Europe, flying from Seattle into London and home from Rome for $600 — wow.) Our dollar is about 20 percent stronger versus the euro, compared to a year ago (the euro used to cost $1.60, now it costs about $1.25). And the tumbling stock market means most of us have 30 or 40 percent less in our retirement accounts than we hoped to at this time. (Many are starting to think that investing in life experiences like travel might bring better and more reliable returns than investing in the stock market.)

What’s the result in Europe? I don’t see hotels formally dropping their prices, but I expect those who venture abroad without reservations will find prices soft. Tour companies like ours are discounting select dates to fill buses so they don’t have to cancel tours. Discounting is frustrating to people already on board who paid full price. And it’s frustrating to a tour company trying to make a profit, too. But it’s done in the interest of those already booked, so that their tour will not be cancelled. Cancelling is disruptive to travelers and tour hotel relationships in Europe. It’s costly in flight-cancellation fees for travelers with airfares already booked. Our company pays these fees, which can really add up. Everybody loses when a departure date is cancelled. Some companies (like ours) are easing up cancellation penalties for people who lose their jobs. It just seems decent.

While our tour sales are down, repeat customer sales (the majority of our tour members) are close to last year’s sales numbers. We figure many are holding off on their decision-making until closer to departure. While our “beginner tours” (like Best of Europe) are way down, our “advanced tours” (like Turkey, Adriatic, Baltics, Basque Country, and so on) are selling as well as last year. That indicates that fair-weather travelers will wait out this economic storm, while committed globetrotters will travel even if it means taking a financial risk or forgoing other things.

I believe our financial crisis is just a dose of reality as America realizes that it is not as rich as it thinks it is. (If you had a house worth $500,000, then it was worth a million dollars, and then it was worth $500,000 again — you didn’t lose $500,000. You were never really a millionaire. You’re just half a millionaire. I hope our government doesn’t do anything heroic to make you a fake millionaire again.) When good minds dedicate their lives to rearranging the economic furniture rather than producing things of real value and get filthy rich in the process, the fabric of our economy is weakened. I hope those days are gone.

In 2008, 12 million Americans went to Europe. About a million of them used my guidebooks, and 12,000 of them took a Rick Steves tour. In 2009, it looks like 8 million Americans will enjoy a little European travel, 750,000 will use one of my guidebooks, and 8,000 will enjoy a Rick Steves tour. Will we make anywhere near the money in 2009 that we did in 2008? Nope. Is that okay? It’ll have to be. Best wishes to those struggling to hang on to or to find a job. Let’s not let the media (which are constantly on mindless overdrive to sensationalize things in order to drive up their audience) stoke a panic that makes things worse. Let’s all work hard, produce worthwhile goods, and evolve as necessary with the times. And for those who can fly somewhere this year…happy travels.

A budget travel tip for 2009: Regardless of who you voted for, wear an Obama T-shirt, and you’ll be getting free drinks all over Europe.

Another tip: These are the “good old days.” People waiting for something else may someday look back with regret.

March 9, 2009January 4, 2018

Euro Experiences from NW to SE — Part V

Let me stoke your travel dreams by sharing some of my favorite European experiences, roughly from northwest to southeast. Maximizing the experience is a dimension of smart budget travel that’s just as important in challenging times as saving money. Imagine these…

In Padua, Italy, sip wine with college students at an outdoor bar in the market square. Pour some fine olive oil on a dish, season with salt and pepper, rip a long strip from your bread, dip it, and bite. A student explained I was making the scarpetta — the little shoes. Soaking up the oil along with the conversation, we travelers become human scarpette,sopping up culture as we explore Europe.

Borrow a good knife from a friendly restaurant and hike from village to village through the terraced vineyards of Cinque Terre — Italy’s most exotic stretch of the Riviera coastline. Climbing through ancient terraces, surrounded by twinkling Mediterranean views and castle-studded villages, you’ll work up a thirst. Then, using a big leaf as a protective mitt, break off a spiny cactus fruit, peel it with your knife, and slurp it — sloppily savoring the sun and the fun as you explore the best of the Riviera.

When in Rome, drop by St. Peter’s early or late for a Mass at the high altar. With the alabaster starburst of the dove symbolizing the Holy Spirit before you, the greatest dome on earth rocketing above you, and the nearly 2,000-year-old tomb of St. Peter below you, eat the bread and drink the wine of the Eucharist with worshippers from around the globe. On the way out, kneel before Michelangelo’s Pietaand ponder what humankind can do for the glory of God.

In Bosnia, at the crest of Mostar’s single-arched bridge, survey the town that just over a decade ago was a killing field of sectarian strife. Take in the cityscape of crosses, spires, and minarets. Ponder the tragedy of Mostar’s recent past and the hope symbolized by the bridge upon which you stand — once bombed and now rebuilt. Then pay the kid in the bathing suit to make the dizzying jump from there into the river way, way below.

In Istanbul, wander away from anything of interest to a typical tourist, and find a convivial bar filled with Turkish men sipping tea and playing backgammon. Ideally, the bar has classic inlaid game boards — where their softer light wood is worn deeper than the harder dark wood, and stained with generations of laughter and smoke — and the players use handmade dice with unruly dots. Challenge a local to a game and gather a crowd. Learn to count in Turkish and holler the numbers as the dice are rolled. Bir, iki, üç, dört…Let the kibitzers move for you whenever you wonder which move is best. Expect to lose the game and gain a lifelong memory

Every corner of Europe offers magic moments like these to good travelers. Opportunities are rich and the stakes are high. Wherever you travel, meet the people, and understand the historic and cultural context of your sightseeing. Equip yourself with the best information and expect yourself to travel smart. Take the initiative not to just see your destination, but to experience it.

March 5, 2009December 6, 2013

Euro Experiences from NW to SE — Part IV

Let me stoke your travel dreams for 2009 by sharing some of my favorite European experiences, roughly from northwest to southeast. Maximizing the experience is a dimension of smart budget travel that’s just as important in challenging times as saving money. Imagine these…

Enlarge photo

Many abhor the French passion for la gavage — the force-feeding of their geese. To learn about the tradition, walk through the idyllic French farmland with a Dordogne farmer, surrounded by a hundred happy geese, dragging their enlarged livers like loaded diapers. On a visit to a gavagefarm, feel the rhythm of life for a goose…taste a slice of that glorious foie gras…and be thankful you’re tops on the food chain.

People visit Paris’ St. Sulpice Cathedral to worship, to track down a scene from Da Vinci Codelegend, and to climb into the loft to see perhaps Europe’s greatest pipe organ played by Europe’s greatest pipe organist. After Mass, a tiny green door in the back pops open. Join a gang of organ aficionados and scamper like sixteenth notes up a tight spiral staircase to the dusty loft. Pass 19th-century Stairmasters upon which men once tread — filling the billows that powered the mighty organ — and enter the ramshackle loft where a venerable lineage of world-class organists have performed. The current organist, Daniel Roth, graciously welcomes visitors each Sunday. Rest your chin on the historic organ, and watch as Mssr. Roth powers an entire church with his mastery of the mighty bank of keyboards.

You can read about the carnage as German and French soldiers slaughtered each other day after day on the Western Front. Or you can wander silently through fields of white crosses at the vast World War I cemetery at Verdun — realizing that less than a century ago, that horrific battle of attrition left half of all the men in France between the ages of 15 and 30 as casualties. You’ll come away with a deeper understanding of why, to this day, France is reluctant to go to war.

In Beaune, surrounded by the hallowed vineyards of Burgundy, the venerable Marche aux Vins (wine market) welcomes serious wine buyers and tourists in a subterranean, candlelit world, where fine wines sit seductively on old oak kegs, just waiting to be tasted. Pick up a tastevin(shallow stainless steel tasting dish) and a shopping basket, descend into dimly lit caverns, and work your way through the proud selection. Sampling a world of $100 bottles in the company of people who live for their fine wine can be both inspirational and intoxicating.

Summit the Rock of Gibraltar by taxi or cable car to find yourself at a unique perch: the only place on earth where you can see two continents and two seas come together. Gaze out at Africa and notice the energy in the straits. Ponder the action where two bodies of water meet, creating choppy riptides where little fish gather, attracting big fish, who attract fishermen. Consider the action at this meeting point of two great civilizations — Islam and Christendom — rubbing like cultural tectonic plates for 1,300 years. Then ape with the monkeys who call the Rock home and couldn’t care less.

In Santiago de Compostela, in the northwest corner of Spain, stand in front of the cathedral at mid-morning to greet the daily batch of well-worn pilgrims completing the Camino de Santiago. For centuries, humble seekers have hiked from Pairs and points all over Europe to this spot. With leathery faces, tattered pants, and frayed walking sticks, they plant their hiking boots victoriously on the scallop shell symbol of St. James imbedded in the square, look up at the cathedral that marks the end of their journey, and are overcome with jubilation.