Here’s the thing about my travel advisor at Fora Travel. He was the only one to convince me otherwise when I told him my new mantra: that bachelor parties aren’t about fun; they’re about spreadsheets. After all, I had the entire weight of this once-in-a-lifetime boys’ trip on my shoulders and every location in the United States was open to me. How do you make sure you’re choosing the perfect place? And the perfect activities in that perfect place?
Before Fora Travel, for me, the answer was spreadsheets. Spreadsheets and spreadsheets of Yelp reviews, Facebook comments, and old blog posts. Endless comparisons in pursuit of the perfect trip.
That is until Dionysus, the Greek God of bachelor parties (my friend Dan), sent me a dream vision (an email) — and I discovered Fora.
What Is Fora Travel?
Fora Travel is the modern update on the travel agency. Their website lets you look through wonderfully curated experiences in six continents and countless cities worldwide and have a trip completely booked on your behalf.
Whether you want to do exactly what’s in the guide or something more custom-made, a travel advisor from Fora Travel will work with you — one on one — to help narrow down all the possibilities into the best, personalized fit. And because they’re pros and well-connected, they’ll get you killer perks like free hotel upgrades while they’re at it.
The Fora Travel Game-Changer Feature
You don’t just have to search for the perfect destination, either. The Fora Travel website lets you search by “interests.” That means things like beaches, road trips, or arts & culture. You can search by “style.” Which means things like active or adventure, sustainable or family travel. Or you can even search by moments.
In all my googling — and I am an obsessive googler — I had never seen anything like that until I found Fora Travel. The ability to search by categories like honeymoons, bachelorette, and bachelor party destinations (ding ding ding). For me, it became that much easier to choose between two perfect options when one of them offered room upgrades, complimentary breakfasts, and resort and spa credits.
I have to say, the boys love spa credits.
To that end, I searched Fora Travel for an expert in bachelor parties, and before long, I found that I could delete my horrible spreadsheets in favor of my fantastic advisor. With me every step of the way, he pointed us to a really luxurious hotel in South Beach and got us room upgrades, free breakfasts, and a hundred bucks per room in credits to use throughout the property. Like I said, the boys love spa credits.
And even if that’s not your thing, your guide will find something that is. Fora Travel has partnerships with over 1,800 hotels and travel providers around the world, and they actually know the ins and outs of each place. Take this guide to Tokyo, for instance. Or this one to Morocco. Or this one to London. What you can tell is that they know the destination like it’s their own home city. And that they anticipate what you’ll feel, and need, as soon as you touch down.
“Tokyo can be overwhelming — and this is coming from a New Yorker — so it’s all about carving it up into doable doses,” writes Fora Travel advisor Brian Lonergan, in his guide to Japan. I’ve been to Tokyo. I wish I had gotten that advice before ending my confusing, sweat-drenched day of endless activities with a visit to a park swarming in mosquitoes.
The bachelor party couldn’t have gone better, but I decided that my next trip won’t be with eleven other men. This time I searched Fora by solo travel and, you guessed it, I’m not going back to Tokyo. Now I’ve got my sights on New Zealand — which also came up on my Fora Travel searches for adventure travel, off-the-beaten-path travel, and active travel.
The trip’s a long way off, but I already feel ready to hop on a plane. My Fora Travel advisor has my back, after all, with a guide to his favorite hikes, a dozen places to eat in Auckland, and a big ole bottle of bug spray.