About Berkshire Travel and it's president, Lucy Hirleman, CTC, MCC
Berkshire Travel Inc. celebrated its 24TH birthday in September 2010. Over the last 24 years Lucy has chaired national committees on cruising, luxury travel and media relations. Lucy has taught cruise and professionalism seminars for travel consultants and agency owners and wrote a column on those same topics for Travel Weekly, a national trade press magazine. She is regularly quoted in consumer media and has appeared on a local Fox News affiliate in NYC and was a frequent guest on The Travel Show, hosted by Erik Hastings on WABC 77 AM radio.
Lucy Hirleman is a (CTC) Certified Travel Consultant and a (MCC) Master Cruise Counselor. These combined certifications, CTC from The Travel Institute and MCC from Cruise Lines International Association, represent the pinnacle of travel industry professionalism and a personal committment to continuing education. Lucy is also listed on the website http://www.discoverireland.com as a Shamrock Specialist and on Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau website http://www.gohawaii.com as an Hawaii Expert.
Trip Deposits…
If a NEW caller knows exactly what they want (e.g. I’d like a week in Aruba or I want an escorted tour of Ireland) we provide one courtesy quote with no deposit required.
If you are NOT a repeat client and the request is something that requires additional time or the planning of multiple travel options, we require a deposit that is non-refundable. This deposit is valid for one year and will be applied to the final payment of any land or cruise vacation arranged by Berkshire Travel. It is not applicable to the cost of airline tickets. The deposit amount is based on the complexity of the travel planning.
Fees...
We have a “ticket fee” for airline tickets. This fee is reduced if it is accompanied by a tour/cruise or other trip/vacation components. Consolidator tickets do not usually have a fee.
When we place clients in hotels, B & B's, apartments, villas, etc., that do not pay commission we have either a flat "trip planning rate" or a "per night fee" depending on the complexity of the trip or components involved. These fees are nonrefundable if a client cancels or changes their plans. Trip cancellation/interruption insurance is optional and always recommended.
