No matter if you’re traveling for business or for vacation, travel is just plain confusing these days. From restrictions to the constant changes in what the transportation and hospitality industries are doing for safety measures, it feels like the only place you are going to get to for sure is “stress city.” According to Arthur Salus, the founder of Duluth Travel, “it’s also just plain wrong to book a trip online and not have anyone to help you when you run into these kinds of issues.”
“Many people don’t realize that a good travel advisor isn’t going to cost you any more than booking something online,” Arthur explains further. “You get far more value when you have someone working for you personally to make sure you have a successful trip.”
Having great customer service is something that Arthur Salus knew he wanted to provide his customers from the day he started Duluth Travel back in 1993. After years of growing the company, Arthur has developed a reputation as an expert resource on all things travel. He even earned the moniker, “The Travel Master” as he often appears on news outlets like WSB 750-AM where he shares his expert advice with audiences far and wide. And despite challenges, Duluth Travel is growing strong today. The company is a full-service travel agency providing corporate, leisure, government, and incentive travel services for over 27 years and has become known in Gwinnett as the local authority with world-wide connections. “We put our customers first and make sure they are getting everything they need from us.” Arthur shares on Gwinnett Magazine’s “Ask The Experts Podcast.”
In today’s online world, it’s easy to forget what a great customer service experience is like when we are traveling. In business, this means having someone to call when there is an unexpected delay or a shift in the schedule and you need to make itinerary changes. Having someone to call to take care of those kinds of issues can save you a few hours trying to rearrange agendas yourself. If you need to plan your next family vacation, then it makes a big difference when it comes to pre-planning and researching where you might want to travel and what is happening locally when you get there. Arthur has seen the landscape of his industry change drastically over the years, but he believes that nothing replaces the importance of serving a customer’s individual needs and that remains his first rule of business.
“We’ve been doing business for nearly 30 years now and we’ve seen some changes. We started out booking on phones, then the internet changed the industry, now the pandemic changes things again but we know this business and it’s our job to make sure that our clients and customers get where they need to go on time and on budget.” Arthur explains.
When calling airlines today is frustrated by wait times and the travel websites aren’t able to answer specific questions you might have, it’s a good reminder that travel advisors exist to meet their clients needs. So, if you need to book a trip for work or for family, take some comfort in knowing that companies like Duluth Travel and advisors like Arthur are there to help take that stress off your shoulders and make sure you have a great travel experience.
Want to listen to the full podcast? Listen to Authur’s full episode below on Gwinnett Magazine’s Ask the Experts podcast!
