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Frequently Asked questions
DeSalvio Travel
We begin with the traveler rather than simply the destination. We want to understand why you are traveling, what interests you, what you value and how you want to experience a place.
From there, we use our destination knowledge, relationships and local partners to design and operate a journey around you.
Online booking gives you access to an enormous amount of information. Our role is to help filter it.
We research destinations, evaluate hotels and local partners, coordinate logistics and build the different parts of the journey into something coherent. We also remain involved after the booking, including during the trip.
We look for partners we can trust and, where possible, take the time to meet or inspect them ourselves.
That includes hotels, guides, destination management companies and other local specialists. We want to understand not only what they offer, but how they work and which clients they are best suited to.
We start with the client.
A hotel, guide or experience can be excellent and still be completely wrong for a particular traveler. We therefore consider your interests, expectations, travel style and budget before making recommendations.
Virtuoso provides a network of luxury travel advisors and preferred travel partners, including hotels and cruise companies. Participating properties and suppliers can provide additional amenities or benefits, subject to their individual terms and availability.
The network also creates relationships with travel professionals around the world. Our Virtuoso affiliation complements our own judgment rather than replacing it.
Travel advisors can earn through supplier commissions, professional planning fees, or a combination of the two.
At DeSalvio Travel, our full custom itinerary service carries a professional planning fee. Direct hotel bookings and pre-chosen cruises have no planning fee.
The important question is what the fee covers. Complex trip planning can involve substantial research, correspondence, itinerary design and revisions before the trip is booked.
Not necessarily. The public price may be the same, while certain preferred programs can provide additional benefits. In other cases, the value comes from better planning, appropriate hotel selection, coordination and support.
We do not believe the cheapest price is automatically the best value. The objective is to use your budget intelligently across the entire journey.
You have someone who already knows your itinerary and can help coordinate the response.
Depending on the situation, that can involve flights, hotels, transfers, local partners or other arrangements. Our full planning service includes 24/7 travel assistance, and we also work with destination partners who can provide support locally.
Yes. Booking is not the end of the relationship.
The process continues through concierge arrangements and preparation for the journey, and our full planning service includes support while you are traveling.
Yes. Some clients come to us with detailed bucket lists and multi-year travel plans.
We enjoy working this way because having more time allows us to research the right locations, find suitable guides and develop experiences carefully. The more time there is between the initial design and the journey itself, the more opportunity we have to refine it.
Absolutely. You do not need to know exactly where you want to go or what the final itinerary should look like.
We use the initial conversation to understand your interests and travel ambitions, then develop options from there. The first design is a starting point. We refine it together until the journey reflects your interests, wishes and priorities.
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