How traveling is changing

My grandpa really fascinated me! He was lucky enough to tour the world and every time he was bringing back some kind of treasures to me: exotic dolls , futuristic gadgets, or small TWA or Pan-Am travel bags, to me. were fantastic tokens of a huge adventure in a far land.

I could only imagine those long flight from Italy to Japan or from Venice to California or South Africa in the 60' and '70 where people used to dress up to fly because the traveling part was as much an adventure as the destination.

The first time I boarded an airplane I was 13 .

Back then your main source of entertainment on a flight was an “edited for airplanes” presentation of some movie you didn’t bother going to see at the theaters two years before your trip, projected onto the bulkhead wall at the front of the coach cabin.

Nowadays, you have your choice of dozens of movies and shows you can select on a personal screen in the headrest of the seat in front of you. And if you don’t like that, you can always jump on the onboard wifi on your phone, tablet, or laptop and pick from a universe of entertainment unheard of back in the day.

I also remember with a bit of melancholy when you could show up at the airport 45 minutes before your flight, cruise through a metal detector (with your shoes on!), kiss your family goodbye at the gate, and casually board the plane with a giant cup of soda in one hand and a carry-on full of snacks, lotions, and nail clippers and scissors in the other.

The very important figure of the travel agent started to shift in the 2000 to make space to big online platform where people can plan and book their trips and vacations by themselves . It makes me smile thinking back at a very famous Italian tv commercial where Alpitour was trying to discourage the general public to self book their vacations.

I have to say that now more than ever a reliable professional figure is paramount in order to help clients through the shifting travel landscape - especially when it comes to travelling abroad. What locations are on lockdown? Which locations require COVID testing and/or quarantine for travelers? What are the cancellation and refund policies for airlines, hotels, theme parks, etc.? What cleanness protocols are specific resorts adopting for the safety of the clientele?

Fortunately, as a professional destination wedding specialist I have access to an amazing community of experts in the field who keep me aware of today everchanging scenario and can help my clients during any situation. Now more than ever having an expert on your corner can make a huge difference. Do you agree?