Europe, travel advisors and the art of the pivot

Late last month, the European Union dropped the U.S. from its ‘safe travel’ list due to rising Covid cases here. It’s still up to all the EU member states to decide the levels of restriction and protocol on all their inbound travelers, and so far, only a few countries, such as Italy and the Netherlands, have made changes to their entry requirements. Still, the announcement created confusion, and travel advisors were -- again -- working to reassure jittery travelers. This week, Phillip Archer, founder and Chief Experience Designer of Roaming Richly Travel, Craig Mungary, owner of Elite Global Journeys, and Dan Scher of Strong Travel Services talked with retail/hotels editor Christina Jelski and host Rebecca Tobin about the confusion surrounding the EU’s announcement and how to travel to Europe right now. And the critical art of the pivot: preparing for changes to rules and flight schedules, keeping flexible and coming up with creative solutions to keep travelers on track in Europe or elsewhere. We also talked about the complex nature of travel bookings and the decision to charge fees for travel planning services. This conversation was recorded Thursday Sept. 9 and has been edited for length and clarity. Looking for part two of our episode on cruising? We’re publishing it next week – stay tuned! This episode of the Folo is sponsored by Hurtigruten Expeditions. Learn more about its once-in-a-lifetime Galapagos cruises at its website or agent portal.  Related resources: Travel advisors reassure clients, but will EU guidance have chilling effect? https://www.travelweekly.com/Travel-News/Travel-Agent-Issues/Will-EU-guidance-have-chilling-effect Advisors scramble to make sense of EU recommendation https://www.travelweekly.com/Europe-Travel/EU-restriction-recommendation-causes-confusion Italy tightens Covid-19 protocols for American visitors https://www.travelweekly.com/Europe-Travel/Italy-tightens-Covid-protocols-American-visitors European river lines adapt to Netherlands' travel restrictions https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/European-river-lines-adapt-Netherlands-travel-rules  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.