I wanted to share my heartfelt thanks for the exceptional service…read moreprovided today by Sherry in Oklahoma.  When we encountered an issue with our Alaska Cruise, Sherry went above and beyond, proactively reaching out to team leaders, reviewing our emails and even contacting Cunard on our behalf.  Her dedication and commitment to resolving our problem were truly impressive.  Sherry is a shining example of the kind of customer service that makes Costco Travel our #1 Choice.  Thank you for having such an amazing team member like Sherry - we're grateful for her help and thrilled to continue doing business with Costco Travel!

We got semi-screwed on a cruise booking, we went with 3 parties in our group who booked together,…read morethe 2 of them were able to book an "XB" cabin which is any available balcony, (and subsequently, about 25% cheaper) than picking your own balcony.. we were not able to select the XB option, of course until the next day it magically appeared again for us. We ended up paying +$300 more than everyone else in our group because of Costco's technical error. Not fun! Will never use Costco travel again, total scam and not worth it. I called to get it adjusted 1 day later and they said it was "too late" -- thanks for nothing, Costco! Costco service is really not all it's cracked up to be, they are pretty bad tbh when the time comes for actual help on anything of significance.. Awful support, zero help, and no resolution. Thanks for allowing us to get ripped off +25% on our vacation compared to the other 2 groups who booked at the same exact hour as us. Fun start to the trip!

We have used Mary Valle to plan out and book several trips for ud, including a few weeks in…read moreIreland, and a couple of trips to New Zealand. On one trip she spent considerable time in arranging and then booking a number of B&Bs and Farmstays that we had already selected on our own, as well as interesting hotels. She is always available while we are traveling to make itinerary changes, or book additional accommodations, events, or specially accommodations, as well as airline changes, train tickets, ferry reservations, and such. After using Mary for a few trips she became rather intuitive about what we like or don't like. We wouldn't consider traveling without Mary's assistance. She is always just a text away. Dick and Paula Chase

I have used Mary Valle twice for our travel advisor and I will, indeed, reach out to her again for…read moreour next trip. Most recently Mary helped us plan and execute our trip to Italy. Our trip to discover my family in a small hamlet in Italy was magical. Mary was sensitive to our needs and chose an excellent driver who was prompt and courteous. We were not sure what to expect and when we got into this vintage 1600 town with just one commercial building; overwhelmed with the friendliness, and we ended up being there for almost 5 hours! When planning the trip, Mary listened to our needs and suggested 3-4 hotels at each place we stayed. She suggests hotels that cover a wide price range, so we are free to make the decision that suits our lifestyle and budget. Mary organized various transportation methods, including a train transport to Naples. Mary is someone I trust for suggestions to make our trips meaningful and stress free.

Beware if you receive a promo offer from PTP travel, Issaquah, WA, (a.k.a., Pennies To Paradise)…read more They send out postcards promising free airfares along with hotel stays if you call 1-888-639-6990 and mention their promo code AAIS-0104. You are then told, in order to claim the gifts, you and your spouse must attend their 90 minute sales presentation for a travel club, American Travel Planners (ATP). During the presentation, a PTP salesperson is assigned to each couple and pressures them to sign up for the ATP club at an exorbitant up front fee which starts at $11k and gradually goes down to $2k as you resist. And this up front fee does not even include the annual fee for belonging to ATP. If you resist till the end, they do not give you the promo gift as promised, but instead, give you a certificate you must exchange for the travel tickets. This certificate, issued by Millennium Travel & Promotions, is a scam in itself. If you do a Google search you will find several posts on how that scam works. A good description of how that scam works is at this site: ( http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Is_Millennium_Travel_and_Promotions_legit ). I suspect ATP is a scam as well, though I could not find very much information on them. It is probably because their internet web site has only been in existence since October 2012 (probably not enough time for people who have been suckered into the club to know it yet). Their web site is a slick presentation, but if you examine it closely you should notice there is no information as to who the corporate entity is, nor where physically it is located. But, by researching the internet, you soon find a connection with Andrew Wunder of Sea To Ski Vacations LLC, Broomfield, Colorado. If you do an internet search on Sea To Ski Vacations, you will find they are involved in several travel scams. Getting back to PTP, I suspect they are a scam operation as well. During their presentation (which is held at a local hotel/inn) they lie about their offices and how long they have been doing business in the area. If you ask for a business card, what you get is their address & phone crudely printed on a regular sheet of paper. It lists their address as being 4580 Klahanie Dr SE PMB 514, Issaquah, WA 98029 and phone as (425) 457-0449. Their address is nothing more than a postal mail box. I suspect all these people & businesses operating these travel scams just keep changing their names and identities as their scams are exposed. But, it is vital for the public to expose their scams on sites like Yelp as soon as they appear. It may prevent many people from becoming victims of the fraud. Please do your part in exposing these and similar scams by posting relevant information to internet sites that others can find during their search.

We had dreamed of going on a safari for years but didn't know where to start. Then we had the good…read morefortune of meeting Phil. From the very first day of working with him to plan and organize our trip of a lifetime, we felt we were in great hands. Phil's fantastic first-hand knowledge of the camps allowed him to create a trip that far surpassed the typical group package deals. Phil meticulously plans every detail of the trip, from the best places to stay to recover from jet lag before the safari, to every transfer. You are never left wondering where to go or if someone will be there to meet you. The camps he chooses are small and personal, where you are taken care of and treated like family. The safari experience is second to none, with personal drivers and guides who are excellent, highly skilled, and knowledgeable. If you want a safari experience to remember, I can't recommend Phil and On Safari-In enough!

This was one of the most amazing trips I've ever been on, and I can't imagine doing it without…read morePhil's help. We didn't know anything about going on safari, and Phil build a custom trip that catered to exactly our personal travel style of going to some of the more off-the-beaten-path places with fewer tourists, but still lots of amazing experiences (we watched a family of elephants chase off a pair of male lions!). Everyone we met was on their 4th or 10th safari and when they found out we'd never been before, they'd always ask, "So how did you even find this place?" Also I had no idea you could have a vacation with this much adventure and yet zero stress. Having Phil take care of everything and getting it all arranged for and paid in advance took a HUGE load off of us, which was so great as we both have jobs where we typically do a lot of planning and project management. By taking care of that, Phil let us go on an exciting vacation where we actually got to RELAX. We took literally THOUSANDS of amazing photos, but here are just a couple fun ones I shot with my phone.

In the process of suing Expedition Trips I discovered not only did they not refund my money for a…read morecanceled trip (late 2019) but they also paid themselves an hefty commission of over $5,000 on the $20,000 trip and never refunded that either. They kept the $5000 commission despite the fact that the trip never happened! Prior to contacting Expedition Trips, I'd never heard of the tour operator, One Ocean Expeditions. Expedition Trips recommended them over the well-established Quark Expeditions. I relied on their expertise. Subsequently, when they became fully aware of the risks, they neglected to adequately express them to me. The hefty commission explains their steering me to One Ocean Expeditions in the first place. My friend fully insured a canceled cruise with One Ocean Expeditions with Allianz Insurance. This company refused to pay the claim on the basis that One Ocean was considered 'substandard'. Has anyone been able to file a successful claim? Expedition Trips justifies their dishonest and sleazy behavior stating 'if I had insured the trip....' and in the end this wouldn't have mattered. I was lied to repeatedly on the phone about causes for itinerary changes/departures which I mistakenly didn't challenge and have been subject to Expedition Trip's 'blame the victim' mentality.

These losers won't stop spamming us with unwanted marketing messages, despite our requests. They…read morerudely and unprofessionally hung up on my husband when he called them to tell them to stop sending messages every day. Their tactics are dripping in desperation. Maybe because it is 2020 and no one is traveling. Or maybe because it's not 1993 anymore and people don't need travel agents and other middlemen when they have the power of the internet to make their own travel arrangements. Either way, I don't know why any business would think it's a good idea to conduct themselves this way. Their behavior has pretty much ensured that we will go out of our way to avoid Expedition Trips! If you want to be treated rudely, or like a commodity, then by all means drop them a line.

I thought I had reviewed this place before - but I can't seem to find it…read more At any rate, they deserve the time to be reviewed!!!! My experiences have shown me that they can often get me as good of (or better than) a deal as doing it myself on a website. Plus, the service is unequalled. Do yourself a favor... next time you travel, call this place and get a quote and compare it to the one you found online. I bet you will be pleased. Plus, they are avid travelers as well, so they often have words of advise on the place you are going. Summary - Issaquah Travel is amazing, and I will always use them!