You get what you pay for: Cost vs. Value

One of Warren Buffett’s most famous quotes is, “Price is what you pay; value is what you get.”  This is true with everything in life, there is no secret deal when it comes to travel. If an experience is on a deal, buyer beware; there is probably a reason. Leave the guided choices to the experts to help you decide what option is best for your family. Almost every time I am checking into a hotel I hear people next to me complaining at the front desk that they thought their room would have a different view, or have two beds. Again, you get what you pay for.

So, in travel what does the term, Cost vs. Value really mean?

The key difference is the price is random and value is the foundation of what you will experience when you are on vacation. Hmmm, this is not the turn you thought this article would take, is it? The key thing you need to know is that it is important you can find the difference between cost (price) and value (experience) when you are going to travel. What is important to you? What do you need to have? What will make your family more comfortable when you travel?

Andrea Brown
Andrea Brown
10/11/2023
Guru Travel planned the absolute best vacation from start to finish. I told Kelly that with 3 little kids, I needed everything to be as easy as possible and boy did she deliver. I didn’t have to think or worry about anything from the moment I stepped off the plane. It was truly my favorite vacation ever and I will cherish the memories for the rest of my Life. Thank you Kelly, Lexi and Karen!!
Thara Petropoulos
Thara Petropoulos
23/10/2023
Kelly and Lexi planned a once in a lifetime trip to Greece as a surprise to my husband. Every detail was planned for me from start to finish. No question was too big or too small to get their help. I was even able to contact them while in Greece when I was unable to check in for my flight home and they took care of it for me. I loved the video that Lexi sent me prior to my trip that walked me through every detail of what to expect so there were no unpleasant surprises. Kelly worked to make sure the trip for my budget but also made sure that every piece of the plan was safe, time effective, well planned out, and fun. It was such a relief when traveling to a foreign country to know that there was nothing I needed to stress about or figure out. I can’t say enough good things. Thank you guys for the trip of a lifetime! ❤️
Olivia Mac
Olivia Mac
17/09/2023
Kelly and Lexi helped me plan our entire trip and it was amazing! Highly recommend contacting them about planning your Disney trip
Jordon Willard
Jordon Willard
14/09/2023
My husband and I just took the most amazing trip to Italy this past month. Susan Dossey put our whole itinerary together for us. She did everything from flights, private cars, trains, hotels and tours together for us. All we had to do was sit back and enjoy it all. She made the planning process so easy. All we had to do was tell her where we wanted to go and some ideas of what we wanted to do. She worked with us for at least a month making sure everything was to our liking. I couldn’t be happier. We will be using Susan Dossey again in the future to plan other trips. Thank you so much!
Vali Welhoelter
Vali Welhoelter
13/08/2023
Megan awesome. Great experience. Very helpful and knowledgeable! Thanks Megan!
Kelly Plaza
Kelly Plaza
09/08/2023
Extremely helpful!! Helped make sure our trip went smoothly after our flight was canceled. Kelly and Lexi are the best. We loved our hotel which was recommended by Kelly.
Alicia Kotrba
Alicia Kotrba
06/08/2023
Tina is the best. She was patient with me even though I changed my mind so many times. We stayed at Margaritaville in Hollywood Beach, and that resort was excellent. I will definitely book my future vacations with Tina at Guru Travel.
Ricardo Vasquez
Ricardo Vasquez
06/08/2023
Tina is amazing! She planned our Disney World trip and helped us with reservations and tips for our vacation. Tina is very professional and responds in a timely manner. She is kind, respectful, and very knowledgeable. I am ready to book my next vacation with her.
Tamera Skeans
Tamera Skeans
06/08/2023
We had an amazing time on our Globus trip that Kelly scheduled for us! Kelly quickly responded to any questions or concerns we had when trying to decide which Globus trip to choose. Once we decided on the Imperial Splendors tour, Kelly took care of all the details. While Globus provided an app for this trip, Kelly also provided a Trip Plans app that we found easier to use. I highly recommend Guru Travel and will definitely use Kelly for our future trips!
stacy courtney
stacy courtney
31/07/2023
Guru was absolutely amazing to deal with. From start to finish they were always available for questions, help, etc. If a promotion came out that would affect your trip dates they made sure you knew about it which was amazing knowing I didn’t have to constantly check the Disney website for cost savings. They checked in during my trip and sent an amazing welcoming gift to our room. They were an absolute pleasure to deal with and I highly recommend them. I would definitely use their services again.
How is cost vs. value important with travel?

“There’s no such thing as a free lunch.” (Milton Friedman) We are approached to quite a bit to fixed poorly planned vacations. This makes us feel bad because we cannot pull people out of issues we did not create. We often find this is just a lack of education in terms of understanding what a real Professional Travel Advisor offers.

A Professional Travel Advisor does exactly what is in the name, we advise. Our job is to listen to what you are looking for and make recommendations based on your needs. While we are not in the practice of advising you to spend more than you wish, we are here to educate you on what you are getting and possibly add enhancements to make your stay more magical.

For example, one of my first clients who booked with me was looking for a Walt Disney World Vacation, easy, that is my specialty. She was telling me this is a redo trip from one they took a couple of years ago. She said they booked with a big box store to save a couple of bucks by receiving a gift card to shop in the store for booking travel with them.

That was mistake number 1, if they are giving away what they are paid, then you will not be getting any service.

She proceeded to tell me that her husband hated their trip because it was too much work, and he could not even get a good night’s sleep. I asked her, “why?” She then told me the beds at Disney are way too small. I thought that was a bit strange, so I asked her where they stayed. They stayed at a value resort.

Mistake number 2. There’s nothing wrong with value resorts at Disney, I stay at them as well. But her husband was 6 ft 6 and at the time, these resorts only offered two double beds or one king but with a family they could only get a room with two double beds. What she told me is that she was on a budget but had she been told about the beds she would have made it work to stay in a moderate resort.

I am not here to place blame on anyone involved here. What I am here to ask you is, “How much do you value your vacation?” Had my client originally booked with an expert who could listen and guide her through what will make her trip perfect, she would not have had the experience she did. For the extra savings of an in-store gift card, her trip was ruined, and her husband was not happy.

For the record, trip number two was fantastic, and they have been long time clients ever since.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is a deal is not a deal. Work with a Professional Travel Advisor to help guide you through your vacation choices. There are a ton, there is a fit for you, and we want to keep you within your range. If we do, this is good for us and good for you. We are not a call center; we do not give rebates. What we do is listen to you, craft your trip, and love every minute of planning with you.