Luxury Cruises: “Sea” the World from a New Perspective

“We were planning our small all inclusive destination wedding in Barbados, but Delta cancelled their flights unexpectedly. I had to change the date of the wedding and the resort or else a lot of my guests wouldn’t be able to go. Once I found out Barbados wasn’t going to work, Mike Kerbelis and his team went over the top to help me. I spent a whole Saturday with him. He said, ‘Show me what you want and we’ll work from there.’ And he did it! I told him I liked new, and he thought Grenada would be perfect, since his sister just spent her honeymoon there and loved it. They worked all the travel out for our guests too.”

“We worked with Southern Travel Agency travel expert Jane, and she gave a lot of advice on what to do on our trip through France. She took care of all planning and paperwork for us, and she did a great job. When we told her that we wanted to spend extra time in Paris, it was not a problem. While we live in Augusta, we flew out of Atlanta, so we drove to airport. Coming back from Europe, we got in at 9 at night, so Jane booked us a hotel — and the hotel provided 14 days free parking, which meant we got to leave our car there the whole trip. It was excellent. We’ve used Southern Travel before, and we find the team there very personable, and they go out of their way to help you.”

“We just returned from a two-week honeymoon at the Sandals resorts in Barbados and Grenada, planned by Southern Travel Agency. It was all so beautiful! As a true beach lover, I really appreciated how the atmosphere and focus of direction at the Sandals Barbados resort revolved around the incredible beach. Almost every restaurant had a full beach view. Thank you to Mike for finding the right fit for us. He truly listened to what we are looking for before making suggestions, and he set up beautiful packages for us. It was a very personal planning experience, and he helped make what we were wishing for a reality. Plus, he takes the stress out of planning. We never had to worry about timing or that things weren’t well organized. We’re already working with him on planning a family trip and another couples trip in the future!”

“We worked with Mike Kerbelis to plan our destination wedding at Beaches Turks & Caicos, and he was always there for me. He organized a wonderful email to my list of guests and touched base with them about booking flights and deposits, and he kept them on track about money due dates. Southern Travel Agency also had a relationship with the Beaches general manager, which helped us get “perks” like a room upgrade when there technically weren’t any available, and reserving the hibachi restaurant in advance. We also created travel welcome bags, and we wanted to hand deliver them at the resort. Mike got us a list of everyone’s flights and arrival times so we could greet them in the lobby. Between the Beaches wedding planner helping us with all the wedding details and Mike helping with all the travel arrangements, everything was covered.”

“I had a wonderful experience working with Lauren to plan a Viking European river cruise trip through Eastern Europe. She was a great help. When I wanted to book this package I sent her an email of what I wanted, and started with the “oh by the ways …” — she gladly took care of all of my special requests. She took care of getting us Delta Comfort seats, and she dealt with a little hiccup just a day before we left. In today’s world, you can do anything on the internet by yourself, but if something goes wrong it was nice to be able to have that kind of service.”

“Between the amazing amenities and friendliness, we felt completely pampered on our recent honeymoon at Sandals LaSource Grenada, planned by Mike at Southern Travel Agency. We couldn’t walk by anyone who worked there without them saying “hello,” and often engaging us in questions on how we liked the island. And the butler service was amazing — we just had to tell our butler what we wanted to do and when, and he made it happen. One afternoon we were surprised with a drawn bubble bath with chilled champagne and shrimp cocktail in our room! We’re already working with Mike to plan a family vacation to a Beaches property next. Mike has an incredible knowledge about the resorts, and he takes into account our personal tastes. When he tells us, “I know what you want,” he always delivers.”

“”We just returned from a two-week honeymoon at the Sandals resorts in Barbados and Grenada, planned by Southern Travel Agency – it was all so beautiful! As a true beach lover, I really appreciated how the atmosphere and focus of direction at the Barbados resort revolved around the incredible beach. Almost every restaurant had a full beach view. Thank you to Mike for finding the right fit for us. He truly listened to what we are looking for before making suggestions, and he set up beautiful packages for us. It was a very personal planning experience, and he helped make what we were wishing for a reality. Plus, he takes the stress out of planning; we never had to worry about timing or that things weren’t well organized. We’re already working with him on planning a family trip and another couples trip in the future!”

“I’ve used Southern Travel Agency for a long time, and I’ve never had a bad vacation. They’re very efficient and good with complicated logistics. My whole family goes on group trips together, but often we’ll arrive at the destination separately at different times — trying to keep that straight myself is confusing. But the travel agents at Southern Travel Agency know what they’re doing, and if there’s ever a problem I have a number to call. They’re very enthusiastic, do wonderful research, and are so excited to help.”

“I have used Southern Travel Agency to plan several trips for me and my family, including two that were very special. One was a family cruise for 13 people to the Caribbean, and the other was a honeymoon trip to Hawaii. Our travel consultant was Jane who did an outstanding job in planning both trips. Jane was very professional and arranged every detail including air transportation, rental car, hotels, cruise line and travel insurance. I highly recommend Southern Travel Agency to plan your next rip. I certainly plan to use them for mine.”

“The Sandals staff at Emerald Bay was so accommodating. There were so many restaurants to choose from and the spa was outstanding. Not to mention that magnificent blue water! We’re so glad we used Mike to plan our trip, and we will continue to use him. He made great suggestions on places we should go, made all the reservations, and supplied us with travel documents with an itinerary. All we had to do was just show up at the airport!”

“We had the most marvelous time of our lives on this cruise. I’ve never thought that I would be spoiled and pampered as I did for my birthday. The staff treated me like I was the only passenger on the ship, and the food — omg! you couldn’t get enough; they had so much of a variety to choose from! I want to thank you for your help on choosing this cruise for us and I’m already looking forward to next year!”

“We would like to recommend Southern Travel Agency in Augusta, GA. Our representative Jane, was especially helpful in arranging an ocean cruise from Los Angeles to Ft. Lauderdale through the Panama Canal. She provided us with excellent comparisons of available ocean cruises so we could decide which best fit our needs. Due to complications from knee replacement surgery, I am not able to walk long distances. Jane was most helpful in arranging for a handicapped accessible cabin. She also suggested a company where we were able to rent a motorized scooter. I was surprised to learn that they would put the scooter in our cabin in Los Angeles and we could leave it in the cabin when we reached Ft. Lauderdale. Jane was also very knowledgeable and helpful when we were planning our side trip excursions. We will surely use Southern Travel Agency and Jane to arrange our next cruise.”

"And the butler service was amazing — we just had to tell our butler what we wanted to do and when, and he made it happen. One afternoon we were surprised with a drawn bubble bath with chilled champagne and shrimp cocktail in our room! We’re already working with Mike to plan a family vacation to a Beaches property next. Mike has an incredible knowledge about the resorts, and he takes into account our personal tastes. When he tells us ‘I know what you want,’ he always delivers."

“The Sandals staff at Emerald Bay was so accommodating, there were so many restaurants to choose from, and the spa was outstanding. Not to mention the blue water was magnificent! We’re so glad we used Mike to plan our trip, and we will continue to use him. He made great suggestions on places we should go, made all the reservations, and supplied us with travel documents with an itinerary — all we had to do was just show up at the airport!”