HotelChatter

Sitting facing Peter Greenberg and all his energy and yes, charisma was a bit daunting and certainly rendered our coffee obsolete. Without a doubt, we were awake. Right away, catch-phrases bubbled out from his lips as he listed off his various credos of the travel world.

The first thrown at us was:

"Travel has gone from the affordability of the destination to the accessibility of the experience". It sounds good, and TV ready but what does it really mean?

According to Peter, travel has become such a popular activity and there are so many pratfalls for one to encounter that the traveler must "bury the word destination" when they are considering their next trip and instead "focus on the process". For Peter, the key to a successful travel experience is: "know the process to understand the product".

With all these fantastic buzzwordy phrases we couldn't help but nod along and hope we had processed his product! We came real close to asking him what he thought the killer social software app for closed loop look-to-books was going to be, but we digress.

With all this his knowledgeable tidbits, we found ourselves wondering how Mr. Greenberg arrived at his current position of travel grand poobah, so we asked. Peter explained to us that he began his career as an investigative journalist for Newsweek and from there he took the skills he acquired, a packed suitcase in the trunk being one such "skill," and applied them to travel journalism, thus discovering and implementing his niche. He tells his background with such relish and certainty that for us aspiring travel journalists, it was hard to not want to follow his path exactly.

Somewhere along the way his title, the Travel Detective came forth. And speaking of...the updated version of his book, for sure we will give ole Peter a plug...he did take the time to sit down with us, and he didn't ask for this, so here is a link to his latest book, which hits bookstores this week, enjoy:

The Travel Detective: How to Get the Best Service and the Best Deals from Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Ships, and Car Rental Agencies

We leave you Hotel Mavens with another favored nugget of Peter's that highlights a very important distinction between the traveler and the tourist, and it has nothing to do with fanny packs. For Peter the tourist is a victim waiting to happen and the traveler is a tourist victimized. And because he sees tourists as prey, he has created his doctrine in hopes of ensuring their safety. What a standup guy! We say listen to him.

HotelChatter is grateful to Peter for his kindness and generosity with all of his contagious energy and expertise.