Robert Paterson's Weblog

There are Travel Agents and then there is Trufflepig - The Mumbai Trip

What if you were on vacation last week in Mumbai - who would you call? What about your family back in your home country? How would they know what was going on. How could a foreigner in a city in crisis find a local network that could provide the kind of support that would really help.

What about the Embassy? The Consulate? The Travel Agent?

What is required is an organization that has made its local networks the foundation of its service. Trufflepig, my son in law's travel business, is such an organization. Here is the proof of the pudding:

Hello Charlie
I’ve been meaning to send an email.This is the first opportunity.

Above all I want to express my sincere thanks for your personal concern and professionalism related to our episode here.

I am presumptuous enough to speak on behalf of the group here to say we are all sincerely appreciative of your interest and diligence and support.

My children (A***** and Cor****) are highly complimentary, and very grateful, for your timely updates. It was very comforting to them in a time of high anxiety.
 
Ironically, our group did not feel overly threatened or even overly concerned, despite being close to the heart of the terrorism.

Certainly we felt it, and were on high alert, but unlike everyone on that side of the ‘pond’, we had the benefit of first hand knowledge here and could keep our situation in perspective. For those there in Canada, unfamiliar with Mumbai and getting only the CNN view, the situation was likely more terrifying.

In any case, we got through that travel ‘hiccup’ without too much problem, thanks in great part to your guidance from afar, and the good management assistance of your aide-de-camp, G*** T****t.
 
Our group got out of Mumbai before sunrise, checked out of a dark hotel via flashlight, and whisked to the airport.

Now of course we are at the Malabar in Fort Kochin and quickly getting back into the rhythm of the trip.

It has been nothing short of outstanding so far (even our shortened, chaotic visit to Mumbai)
The people here at this hotel have already been more than hospitable and generous, due in no small part to your arrangements and their obvious respect for you.

So much thanks again as we carry on this marvellous adventure. We will talk to you soon, maybe share a Kingfisher, when we return to Toronto.
Sincerely
H J and All

Now that is heartfelt. Not only did the family in Mumbai feel supported but so did their family back home. Charlie and his team have been on the phone the entire period of the crisis.

I offer this up not simply because I am proud of my son in law, but because his approach to travel is also part of the revolution in all business that I see unfolding. The new business puts the relationship and the personal first - this is where the value if found.

All business is undergoing the same kind of wrenching change. My bet is that "Commodity Travel" - price driven and set up by people who know nothing about where you are going and who have no local organization on the ground will have a tough time. Look at all those in Bangkok right now who are "lost" and "helpless". All they have is a cheap ticket and their hotel reservations. Also what did they experience in Thailand anyway: a beach, a few good meals?

The essence of Truffelpig is found in the metaphor. Pigs find precious Truffles that others cannot. Trufflepig is 3 young men who are themselves real "Travelers" and who were trained at B & R, has developed personal relationships with the "Pigs" of each area - people and local organizations that really know the place.

This is the experience that they offer their clients - to be able to visit a place supported by insiders. To surround the traveler with the experience of true local expertise and the feeling of being cared for as a person.

It all works because of the use of the network effect. The 3 founders look after their networks and they themselves have years of personal experience of the places.

Everyone wins. The local's get a flow of thoughtful guests. Truflepig do not have to "own" the costs of the network. The Guests get an unparalleled experience and the security of knowing that they have a deep back up.

Trusted Space comes to Travel!

Bespoke Suits - Bespoke Travel - Trufflepig

Hugh showed us via Tom Mahon what was behind a bespoke suit. For most of us, off the peg would have to do but everyman deserves one bespoke suit.

So too, most of us travel the same way that we buy a suit. We get a good enough trip. But don't we long just for once to have the trip that really was all about us?

This is what my son in law Charlie offers. Here is CNN on the experience.

   Canadian company Trufflepig is a bespoke travel firm that caters for high-end travelers and those with a demanding disposition to be shown something exceptional.

Founder Charlie Scott and his small team of luxury travel hunters use their extensive travel knowledge and local contacts to organize trips catered to their clients' desires and budgets, either giving them a detailed itinerary or putting them in contact with locals or guides.

While the company mainly plans longer trips, they do have clients that call them up at short notice.

"It's not something we specifically cater for at the moment, but we do get last-minute requests from previous clients who might call us from Rome for example and want a good place to eat or to be put in touch with great local guides. We're not built in the way that we can do much of this short notice stuff, we want to be, but we're just not at the moment," Scott told CNN.

"It's a bit like a having a suit made at a tailors. Once you've had a couple of suits made, you might come back and say 'I've got a really special dinner, can you help pick out a tie for me.' So, with short, last-minute trips, we're making the odd tie as it were for people we already have a relationship with."

While it doesn't come cheap -- prices can run from anything from $500 a day to well over $1,000 -- there is the possibility of the added personal touch when Scott or one of his colleagues embark on a trip with the clients.

"One client was a phenomenally last minute planner. He'd had some business in Paris and called me up on Friday at noon. The next day I was on a plane to France and on Monday we met him in Dijon and went biking in the vineyards in Burgundy for two days before he had to fly back to the States."

Travel Home - Stuck

Well I suppose it couldn't last. We turned back from PEI minutes from touchdown because of the weather.

We diverted to Halifax to be offered the following deal -

• Fly back to Toronto and have the ticket refunded
• Stay in Halifax but be on our own - Air Canada would not do anything more.

We elected to stay. I am at the airport hotel and we plan to drive at dawn tomorrow. The storm has ended and the roads should be Ok then. The bridge was closed to large vehicles.

I wonder how many seats there are for Charlottetown from TO this weekend with hundreds still on their way back from France?

When will this winter be over?

Home

Miracle - I got home last night from 2 days in St Louis on time with no problems. A few days rest and then off next week to the UK where I am starting the beta testing of Firestoker.

Home Safe and only 30 mins late

Phew!

Home at last. My flight of course was late from Boston and then once again there was no gate ready for our fight, so we waited for 20 minutes on the apron until 11.03 (my connecting flight was 11.40).

My stress levels were bouncing because if I missed this flight I would not get home by plane this weekend. I would have had to rent a car and drive 4 hours.

I ran to customs to find myself behind maybe 50 people with 2 agents only on duty. 45 minutes wait. Guaranteed to miss my flight. So I walked to the head of the line and asked for mercy from my fellow travellers. They were sweet and let me go next.

I get out of customs at 11.20 and run through the entire length of Halifax airport to security (why do that make you do this twice?) and then back down the other end of the terminal to my gate. I arrive at 11.30 to find that the flight had been delayed by 20 minutes.

I was then able to the go to the loo in a relaxed way - the alternative doesn't bear thinking about. Margaret was waiting at the airport with the dogs - dear Saint Margaret had looked after them while Robin and I are both away this week - and I was home in a few minutes.

It's so wonderful to be home.

Jet Blue - You Tube Apology and Explanation

This has been a travel week from hell for many people. I could not go to the waiting bar without posting this though.

David Neelman makes a public apology and offers his plans to do better on YouTube.

Talk about a bad time! I am sure that many Jet Blue passengers were mad as hell - BUT this is a corporate communications milestone. When you see him and hear the tremour in his voice - you know that this is a legitimate and authentic response. This is not a processed corporate spin. This is the right channel to use and his straight and his personal manner is the right  approach.

My bet is that many of those hurt, inconvenienced and angry passengers will feel better.

They have been HEARD. This is much more important than being paid off.

Look at the comments - they are going to him.

There is now a line in the sand. Spin and crap and the truth. Increasingly we will all know the difference.  Spin and droning is over as a strategy.

Ruk's Travails! - Customs and AC in Halifax

Well I thought that I had a bad day - but Peter's takes the prize!!!!

Icelandair Flies again from Halifax Summer 2007

The deal that I would love to see is Icelandair with a weekly flight from PEI. They got squeezed out of Halifax by you know who but are returning this summer.

New Canadian Gateway
Icelandair will again take off from Halifax, Canada beginning with its summer schedule next year. There will be three flights per week to Iceland that connect onwards to Icelandair’s many other destinations in Scandinavia, Continental Europe and the United Kingdom. "We are pleased to be flying from Halifax again," stated Eklund, referring to Icelandair’s renewal of its service after a several year hiatus. "The Halifax operations will provide an excellent opportunity to service the growing number of Icelandic companies in Canada, and for Atlantic Canada residents to visit Iceland, our unique and spectacular home country, on the way to some of our many destinations in Europe", he added.

Delta and PEI Summer Flights to Boston

Hey on the day I am waiting for 3 hours for a connection to Boston on Air Canada - Delta announce a summer direct flight to Boston!!!

"It's big to the airport but it's much more important, I believe, to the province. We can be marketed as a destination direct from the New England states," said Charlottetown Airport CEO Mike Campbell.

"But more so than that, at this day, when we're looking to establish the bio-tech industry in Prince Edward Island, with so many related companies in the northeast part of the U.S., this is huge."

Delta Airlines will offer its first direct flight between Charlottetown and Boston June 29. The flights will run through the summer to Sep. 16. They will leave Charlottetown at 2:50 p.m. and arrive in Boston at 3:30 p.m.

Campbell notes Boston also offers connections to more than 40 destinations around the world.

Northwest Airlines and PEI 2007 Schedule

Northwest Airlines- Northwest Airlines announced new seasonal nonstop service between its hub at Detroit and Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada. One daily flight will be offered from July 1 to Oct. 15, 2005, providing the only nonstop service between Prince Edward Island and the United States. The new Detroit-Charlottetown service will be operated with Northwest Airlink partner Pinnacle Airlines Corp.'s Canadair Regional Jet (CRJ), which seats up to 50 passengers. Flight 2896 will depart Detroit at 5:15 p.m. beginning July 1, arriving in Charlottetown at 9:08 p.m. The return flight 2897 starts July 2, leaving Charlottetown at 8:15 a.m. and arriving in Detroit at 10:38 a.m.

This new service is timed to connect with the four daily flights between Detroit and Japan and also permits quick and convenient connections from Northwest's Tokyo hub to 14 other destinations throughout Asia