The Informed Traveler
The Informed Traveler
Airfare Myths and Other Travel Stories & 360 Adventures
There's been a lot of different news stories this past week in the travel world from the rising cost of domestic travel to airfare myth's. So, on this week's show travel expert Onanta Forbes joins me to break it all down. Then we'll talk with the founder of 360 Adventures, a company that specializes in a number of different tours through Arizona including The Grand Canyon so we'll learn all about those as well.
Well, hello and welcome to the Informed Traveller Podcast, a weekly travel podcast where our goal is to help you become a more informed traveller. I'm your host, Randy Sharman. There's been a lot of different news stories this past week in the travel world, from the rising cost of domestic travel in Canada to airfare myths. So in a few seconds, travel expert Onanda Forbes will join me to break it all down. And then we'll talk with the founder of 360 Adventures. It's a company that specializes in a number of different tours through Arizona, including the Grand Canyon, so we'll learn all about those as well. But first, let's kick things off chatting with travel expert Onanta Forbes, who joins us each week to discuss some of the travel news and travel trends. You can follow her adventures on Instagram, Facebook, and X at Onanta Forbes. Onantaforbes.com is her website. Hi, Onanta.
SPEAKER_01:Hi,
SPEAKER_03:Randy. We're going to go through a few of the news stories in the travel industry, mostly, well, some of it involves airfare, a lot of it. Usually that's the way it is when it comes to travel. Airfare myths. This was interesting that WestJet came out with their airfare myth busting article talking about some of the things that people may think is true and not necessarily so.
SPEAKER_01:Right. And one of them is that there's a notion that booking on a specific day, specifically or typically Tuesday in the early morning will result in lower fares. And according to the airline, there is no magic days. But I can see how people can see that because sometimes airlines do have certain days that are cheaper, but it doesn't mean that it's going to be all the time to all destinations. So keep that in mind. And another person myth is that last minute bookings offer the best value and WestJet says prices tend to rise as the departure date approaches due to demand
SPEAKER_00:and
SPEAKER_01:that early booking not only ensures savings but also a greater choice so and that is true too not just with air bookings but even with cruises people think oh I'll just wait to see what the last minute specials are well there might not be it might be like you know an inside cabin and do you really want an inside But anyway.
SPEAKER_03:Some people do.
SPEAKER_01:Yes, they do. I think you should be on a balcony. Me too. It also addresses technological or technical theories, such as the belief that searching in the incognito mode or on a mobile device changes prices. And they're saying that price, fair prices are the same on the website and app, regardless of how customers access it. So, So don't overcomplicate matters. And as far as the incognito mode, Western explained that the fluctuating fares are usually the results of sales activity and availability, not tracking individual searches. That's interesting to me because, you know, you hear the word algorithms
SPEAKER_00:and you think,
SPEAKER_01:yeah, that's what they're thinking, that there's a whole bunch of demand. So they're going to pop the price up. But they're saying no.
SPEAKER_03:Hmm. Interesting. And this, of course, is for do-it-yourselfers, people that are checking flights and things like that on their own. As a travel agent, what do you think of these myths? Is it true? Like, I always thought it was true that, and maybe it was 20 years ago, that if you checked on a Tuesday morning, the flights were different because they didn't have the computer systems or algorithms like they do now. Right. So what do you think?
SPEAKER_01:I do think that... I always tell my guests, you know, book early because, again, you get the availability, you get the price. It may not be the lowest price that may be for that, but you get what you want. And that's truly important, especially if you're traveling with multiple people, whether it's a family or friends and family or people from different gateways. Book early. That's one thing I really do promote.
UNKNOWN:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:The other thing I've noticed, I've even got a flavor of this yesterday. I was booking people going to Rome right in the middle of the booking process, had all their names in. Oh, your price has changed.
SPEAKER_03:Yes, I've seen that too, because it's in real time, right? Suddenly it went from$500 to$550.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. So that's why I think, you know, you have to go all the way through to the booking process till you know what the actual price is that you're paying.
SPEAKER_03:Interesting. And then WestJet in this article too offers some tips as well, is choosing the right airfare type. And this is even becoming, I think, more important because when you go on some of these booking sites and it's pricing, I don't know, I'm just going to use the example. Pricing started at$300, but that's the ultra basic fare. And just about every airline, and I know this is WestJet specific that they're talking about, but just about every airline offers an ultra basic fare now.
SPEAKER_01:Right. And that's what they consider their lead in fare. And that's what they usually advertise or market.
SPEAKER_00:So
SPEAKER_01:a traveler or consumer will think, oh, that's the fare I'm going to get. Well, not always. Again, you have to go through the whole process. And really, at the end of the day, if you think buying the ultra basic fare is going to be the best choice for you, are you taking check baggage away? Are you taking a carry-on? So do you want a seat assigned ahead of time? When you add on those components, compare it then to what really would be like an economy flex fair or another type of fair.
SPEAKER_00:That
SPEAKER_01:includes that already. So... And do you really, do you want, like, I would want access to the overhead bin. On an ultra basic, you won't have access to the overhead bin to store stuff. And they're getting pretty firm. And then, you know, there's other factors. Are you going to be last on to load or to board the flight too? So ultra basic might seem good for price sensitive travelers. But at the end of the day, the reality of your trip will be affected.
SPEAKER_03:Well, yeah, that's for sure. And, again, everyone's circumstances are different. If it works for you, fine. But, you know, things like the prepay for checked baggage as well, I always do that because it is cheaper to check your luggage online.
SPEAKER_01:Definitely. Good point, Randy, because if you do it at the airport, at your seats at the airport, or your bags checked in online or at the airport, it's a higher price.
SPEAKER_00:Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah. Okay. So let's move on to our other story. And this is some of our other stories. The cost of domestic travel for Canadians getting more expensive. And this is kind of, well, this story suggests this, that it's due to the fact that Canadians aren't traveling to the U.S. They're looking for alternate destinations such as, you know, at home in Canada. And it's more expensive and it's the old adage of supply and demand.
SPEAKER_01:It is. And especially in summer, traveling domestically in Canada has always been expensive. It's not something new. And I think even this article, it was like, it's cheaper to fly to Europe. Sometimes it is. Versus flying within your own country. Yes. Airfare has gone up. Hotels have gone up within Canada. For flights, it could be because of our high taxes federal airport taxes contributing to the overall expense. Perhaps the U.S. travel boycott may have contributed to the shift in demand, but it's also you have to look at even though a lot of things that suppliers buy, whether at the land or in land, sometimes can be based in U.S. dollars and then have to be converted into Canadian. So you have to consider that as well. But our government is trying to boost domestic tourism through initiatives like the Canada Strong Pass. And, you know, sometimes staycations are a lot of fun, too, with regards to exploring your own backyard.
SPEAKER_03:Exactly. But you're right, though. It's always been expensive to travel within Canada, specifically airfares. And yeah, I've noticed that hotel rates are not cheap anymore.
SPEAKER_01:No, they're not. And then you also have to consider, sometimes you have to pay locally at the hotel a certain tax that you can't prepay. So that adds to the cost as well.
SPEAKER_03:Exactly. Okay, our third story we're talking about specifically to YYC, Calgary International Airport, and this is actually sent to us by a listener. The story goes that you have to go through U.S. Customs within two hours of your takeoff time. So this, the person that was talking about this in the story saying it was kind of Idiotic is to use the word there. But I've never really noticed this because I always seem to catch those god awful 6.30 a.m. lights and the U.S. Customs doesn't open until 4.30. So I've never really noticed it.
SPEAKER_01:No. And, you know, when I read this report, my my thought was, well, I don't think this is new because granted, you know, COVID happened. But even before COVID, I don't think you could have gone through customs till two hours prior. But, you know, people do have to wear in this day and age because I think what can confuse people is airlines are encouraging people to get to the airport quite early. Yes. And that might be the conflict between what time the airline tells you to get to the airport to what time you can actually go through customs. So I think that's where people are getting a little bit confused. And then, you know, I had the next for a couple of years. And I really like Nexus. So when I am able to go through, I can just breeze through. I don't have to go through the security lines per se. YYC Airport has that opportunity where you can pre-book your time in line. And also you mentioned about the mobile passport control app where you can speed up your processing time.
SPEAKER_03:Yeah, exactly. That's what I've used before. Last time I flew, I was literally, it took me maybe two or three minutes. But again, it was a 6.30 flight. And so I was waiting for customs to open, actually. But as soon as they opened, I was like second in line. But I can see as later in the day, if you're catching a later flight, those types of things, maybe it gets backed up. And this is only specific for Calgary airport. Vancouver doesn't have any specific rules about going through U.S. customs before two hours, before takeoff time. Same with Toronto and all those other airports that do have the U.S. customs at the airport. So this is specific to Calgary. I guess it's just one of those things that be aware of so you know Right. And
SPEAKER_01:according to the airport authority, the two hour window is intended to reduce wait lines, streamline security and make the passenger experience smoother. So the more you know, you know, talk to your travel agent when you're when you're preparing to get to the airport, as well as other factors that will affect your trip.
SPEAKER_03:Well, and again, this MPC app that just so people know, what you do is you all you're doing is submitting your passport information, all your information prior, and you actually have to do it within a certain timeline, too. I think it's within four hours of your takeoff time. So you don't really do it until you get to the airport. You do it prior to going to US Customs. And then there's a separate line, and it will say MPC, and you go through that line. And nine times out of 10, it's way shorter, but now that we've mentioned this chances are more people will do it more people will get nexus and maybe it'll smooth things out i'm not sure yeah
SPEAKER_01:well it's at least a tool for travelers to consider um with regards to either nexus or um um you know going another way is to elevate your your class of service go business class and you have a separate line oh well
SPEAKER_03:yeah exactly exactly by the way the mpcf is free too so just so people know uh always good advice good tips uh Ananta Forbes is a travel expert. You can follow her on Instagram, Facebook, and X at Ananta Forbes. AnantaForbes.com is her website. Thanks so much, Ananta.
SPEAKER_01:Thank you. Have a good week.
SPEAKER_03:This is the Informed Traveler podcast. I'm Randy Sharman. Just want to remind you of our website, theinformedtraveler.org. That's where you can find our contact page if you have any questions or comments about the podcast. You can also email me, too, with any questions you might have or any show segment ideas. My email address is randy at theinformedtraveler.org. And if you want to get up-to-date travel info through the week or just see a few amusing travel stories and links, you can like us on Facebook at facebook.com slash informed Traveler on Instagram at informedtraveler or on X at informedtraveler. Plus, you can now sign up for our monthly newsletter. It's released at the beginning of every month. Our August issue is available now, so just go to our website, theinformedtraveler.org, click on the newsletter button, and it'll take you right there. Or better yet, subscribe to it and have it arrive in your inbox each month. Well, Arizona has always been a popular place for Canadians to visit, as Especially in the winter. So joining me now to talk about some of the outdoor activities Arizona has to offer is Bruce Ledbetter. He is the founder and owner of 360 Adventures, a company specializing in all things Arizona. Their website is 360-adventures.com. Hi, Bruce. Hi there. So tell me about 360 Adventures, how it all came about and how you got started.
SPEAKER_02:Sure. Yeah. So I actually started off as a hunting guide when I was in high school. and joined the Marine Corps, different kind of hunting, different kind of guiding, I suppose. But I always knew that I wanted to be outside. So when I got out to the Marine Corps, I wrote a business plan and took it through the college system and started a company called Arizona White Knuckle Adventures. This is in 1992. Over the years, we discovered that the name Arizona White Knuckle Adventures kind of didn't work. And so we dissolved that and started 360 Adventures. Still as a guide company. We guide mountain biking, rock climbing, hiking, backpacking, and canyoneering. Well, we started getting a lot of phone calls for other things. And so we decided to offer other things like that. And so now we specialize in places or adventures all over the state.
SPEAKER_03:And yeah, you focused in Arizona. Are you from Arizona originally?
SPEAKER_02:Yes, I am. Actually, I was born and raised. I was born in Tucson, raised all over the state, and now I spend my time living the full-time RV life, traveling all over the state, wherever the temperatures are nice.
SPEAKER_03:So is there a spot in Arizona, I'm just curious, that you haven't been, that you don't know? It's a big state, I get it, but it seems to me that if you're an outdoor guy and a guide, you've pretty much been everywhere.
SPEAKER_02:I've been to a lot of places, yeah. I guess there's got to be somewhere I've never been to. I don't think I've ever been to like– actually, why Arizona? I don't think I've ever been there. I might have been going through it.
UNKNOWN:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:guys i spend a lot of time outside in the in arizona that's for sure nice
SPEAKER_03:so um i'm looking on your website again it's 360 dash adventures.com you like you say you do all kinds of outdoor adventures from uh rock climbing and uh hiking and and biking and all that stuff how how fit or how how much of a diehard do i need to be if i'm just a beginner is that okay too
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. As a matter of fact, most of the people that come out here are beginners. Hiring a guide gets you that expertise that you don't necessarily need to have.
SPEAKER_03:What's included? What's a typical tour included? I'm assuming they're not self-guided. You do have a guide with you to lead you along the path and things, right?
SPEAKER_02:Correct. Yes. So each tour has, it comes with the equipment. And so, you know, you can bring your own bike or rock climbing shoes if you'd like to, but we have everything. You know, water comes, we actually got away from providing bottled water. So we asked people to bring their own bottles, reusable bottles, because we want to. reduce the amount of waste in the ocean. But each tour is a little bit different. So, you know, a helicopter tour isn't going to come with a bike, if that makes sense. But we do have the helicopter. You just don't get to fly it.
SPEAKER_03:Let's talk about, again, I'm looking on your website, 360-adventures.com. Up there it says, where do you want to go? And you've broken it down to three areas. You've got the Grand Canyon, which we're going to talk about a little bit, Phoenix, Scottsdale, and Sedona, Central Arizona. So just break down the different things that you do in those three areas, or do you do it all in the same areas?
SPEAKER_02:No, there are some things that are exclusive to locations. Obviously, canyoneering has to happen in one of the canyons. It doesn't happen in the Grand Canyon, unfortunately. They won't allow it, or Sedona. Rock climbing only happens in the Phoenix-Cottsdale area. Mountain biking happens in Sedona and the Phoenix-Cottsdale area. Hiking happens everywhere. All of the air tours, whether it's balloons, helicopters, or airplanes, originate in the Phoenix area. Our helicopter flights can go to Sedona, can go to the Grand Canyon, or the air tours do as well. The ground tours, that's just anything that's not a bike or, you know, feet. So that's Jeep tours, Hummer tours, ATV tours. Those happen in the Phoenix area. Obviously, the water tours happen in the Phoenix area as well.
SPEAKER_03:How big are the tours? How big would a tour get before it's, okay, we've got enough people now?
SPEAKER_02:So each tour kind of has its– one is the minimum in some cases. Four is the minimum in some cases. It just depends on the tour itself. We've done groups of 100 tours. for rafting and kayaking. It just depends on the amount of equipment or capacity. Airplanes fit five or nine people. The balloons, we can do a couple hundred people for the balloon tours because we just have more balloons. So it really depends on the tour itself.
SPEAKER_03:Okay, let's focus on the Grand Canyon tours, the ones out of Phoenix. These are full-day tours, but I have to admit, I haven't been to the Grand Canyon. I've flown over it a few times, and it looks absolutely amazing. So It's got to be spectacular.
SPEAKER_02:It is virtually impossible not to go to the Grand Canyon, whether it's the first time or your 100th time, and not be captured by it. It's indescribable. I mean, the best photographers in the world can take decent photos of the Grand Canyon, but you cannot capture the immense amazingness of the Grand Canyon in a picture. You just can't. And so I always tell people, if this is the first time you've ever seen it, then don't be surprised if somebody in your group makes a bad word. Holy moly. It's indescribable. And I can give you the best description of the Grand Canyon. And when you see it for the first time from the ground or even from the air, I mean, depending on how high you fly over, the airliner is kind of not as good as you can see it. But the first time you see it, you're like, I didn't expect this. Almost every time I take somebody to the Grand Canyon, it just blows them away.
SPEAKER_03:I guess that's why they call it one of the seven natural wonders of the world, right? It is the crown jewel of those seven. And again, like you say, you do hiking, there's air tours. Let's talk about some of the hiking. I wouldn't call myself an advanced hiker. And these are full day trips. There's no overnighting or anything like that, right?
SPEAKER_02:Nothing we do is overnight. No, unfortunately not. As a matter of fact, right now, most of the corridors in the Grand Canyon are closed due to the fire on the North Rim. But they're all single-day tours. Obviously, departing from the Phoenix area, it's a bit of a drive. It's a scenic drive. It's beautiful. But yeah, they're all single-day tours at this point.
SPEAKER_03:So what is the... typical day on a hiking tour for someone like me a beginner and I always kind of joke that hikers are liars because they'll keep saying they keep saying oh yeah it'll level off soon or we're almost there that's true yeah and then you know like you're so busy hiking you don't stop to take in the scenery and things like that but that's just me but just tell me what a day a typical day tour hiking tour the Grand Canyon would be like?
SPEAKER_02:So the term it'll level out almost never happens in the Grand Canyon. There are some trails for backpacking. There are some backpacking trails that do kind of level out But as far as the day hikes, nope. It's down and then it's up. And most people overestimate their ability and underestimate the effort it's going to take to get out of the canyon. But it is beautiful. And because of that, we do stop often. And, you know, there's the trail itself. It's got, you know, steps and rocks and stuff. So you got to keep an eye on that. But... why would you not look up at the grand Canyon? And again, it's just, it's so amazing. So people are aghast at the trails and stuff. And then once you get to the, you know, we do have a turnaround spot, depending on the hikers abilities, we do have certain turnaround spots. So, you know, beginners a little sooner than the advanced, but again, it's tailored to the hikers.
SPEAKER_03:Well, I wouldn't be one that's going to overestimate my ability. Don't get me wrong. I do love being outdoors. I do love hiking. But I don't need to torture myself to enjoy a hike here and there. So you mentioned all the equipment. I suppose on a hike, all you really need is shoes and water. Is there anything else that's specific to the Grand Canyon that may be different than other areas?
UNKNOWN:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:Really? Day packs are obviously helpful if you've got something that makes it easier. The guides obviously carry, you know, packs, first aid kits, phones, you know, et cetera. But the only thing I would really suggest, I mean, trekking poles are kind of nice as well because it does take some stress off the knees. You know, mostly going down, you can help, you know, lower yourself. But other than that, no, I mean, just glasses, sunscreen, lots of water and snacks. So good salty snacks are helpful. Is lunch included? In some of the hikes, yes. Yes, for the hiking tours, yes, they are.
SPEAKER_03:Yes. I just scrolled down and just saw the lunch options, so that answered my question. Okay, let's talk about the other tours to Grand Canyon, the air tours.
SPEAKER_02:Okay, yes. So the air tours depart from the Phoenix area. There are two different helicopter tours. One is that... A tour, we take you to the Grand Canyon from Phoenix. We take you to the airport and put you on a helicopter. You fly over the Grand Canyon and then we take you back into the park. That's the colors and canyons one where it's kind of a ground tour and helicopter tour. But our helicopter tour from the Phoenix area does take you the scenic route to the Grand Canyon. We land and then we take you hiking or scenic tour or combination of both and then bring you back.
UNKNOWN:Okay.
SPEAKER_02:The airplane tours, again, from the Phoenix area, fly you there, fly you over, take you into the park, and then bring you home.
SPEAKER_03:So what is the most popular? Like, what are people looking to do? Or, you know, it just, I guess, depends on the person. But are they interested more in seeing it from the air or doing a little bit of both? Which one sells out the most or which one people talk about the most?
SPEAKER_02:So the ones that I'd like to suggest to people are the colors and canyons. Or what I call the signature flight. The Colors and Canyons is a van tour. It's a custom van. It's not the school van that we're used to. But it's a luxury van that takes you to the Grand Canyon, does a helicopter flight, and then takes you to the park. Or the signature flight from the Phoenix area takes you to the Grand Canyon, flies over it, lands, and you go into the park. I think that seeing the Grand Canyon from the air first... And then seeing it from the ground is the best way to do it. The airlines that go 30,000 feet over the Grand Canyon, you get to look down and see this crack in the ground. But when you fly over the Grand Canyon at 500 to 1,000 feet over the canyon, it's awe-inspiring. And then when you see it from the ground, it still blows your mind because from the air, it kind of gives you the scope. But from the ground, and I hate to use this word, you see the grandeur of the Grand Canyon. And it's indescribable. Like I said, I could not give you any descriptions or pictures that would prepare you for the first sight of the Grand Canyon.
SPEAKER_03:Wow. Well, like I said, the only way I've seen it is 30,000 feet in an airline. And even then, it's still quite spectacular. So I can only imagine what it's like when you do a tour like that. So what do you need to know just in general? Like if you're... touring the Grand Canyon, not on your own, but doing one of your tours. What are some of the questions that come up from your potential guests?
SPEAKER_02:A lot of the questions happen on the drive or the flight there. The drive is a neat way to see Arizona because you go from 2,000 feet to 7,000 feet in elevation and the topography and the landscape changes dramatically. And so what's that, what's that, what's that? A lot of kind of stuff like that. We do obviously kind of tell you stories about the history of Arizona, the geology, the geography, but it's kind of hard to, like I said, it's hard to prepare you for the Grand Canyon. And so most of the questions revolve around other things. When they get to the canyon, they'll ask, what is that feature? Or how long does it take to get to the Colorado River? So those are the kind of things, just having to explain what they're seeing is kind of common. But there's also great ways to see the Grand Canyon without a guide. It's obviously, you're not going to get the answers to the questions that you have or that guide experience, but everyone should see the Grand Canyon at least once in their life. I think so.
SPEAKER_03:And not from 30,000 feet. Well, it does sound amazing. People can check out your website, 360-adventures.com, for all the different tours, not just of the Grand Canyon, but other tours of Arizona. Bruce Ledbetter is the founder and owner of 360 Adventures. It was real fun chatting with you, Bruce. I do appreciate it.
SPEAKER_02:Thank you, Randy. I had a great time. Anytime you need anything, just reach out and ask.
SPEAKER_03:And that is our show for this week. If you have comments or questions, we'd love to hear from you. If you have a show idea, send that along as well. My email is randy at theinformedtraveller.org. And if you like what you heard, tell a friend. You can check out our website too at theinformedtraveller.org. In the meantime, thanks for listening. Travel safe and be an informed traveller.