travel Intel
shelter from the storm
When vacation challenges arise,
AmA Travel counsellors jump into action to
ensure you’re taken care of like family
Terry Maser was flipping through
TV channels in his family’s Orlando
hotel room. On broadcast after
broadcast, grim-faced news anchors
were talking about Irma, a Category 5
hurricane brewing off the Florida
coast. The Masers—Terry, Linda, nine-
year-old Emily and 12-year-old John—
were in the middle of their first-ever
family vacation, a two-week trip to Walt
Disney World Resort and Universal
Orlando Resort.
Irma’s landfall was becoming more
likely with each passing day. “As it was
unfolding on the news, my anxiety
started to grow,” Maser says. So he
phoned their airline to see if there were
plans to evacuate Canadian customers.
“The call-centre rep didn’t know
anything about it. He kept saying, you’re
fine, you’re fine. I got off that call not
feeling very fine.”
But within hours, the Masers got a
welcome surprise: an email from Diana
Dzikowski, the AMA Travel counsellor
who helped book the family’s trip.
They hadn’t expected to hear from her
after their initial transaction, when
she’d skillfully arranged all the pieces
of their trip of a lifetime—from flights,
accommodations and travel insurance
to their Disney, Universal Studios and
Blue Man Group tickets.
Dzikowski asked if the family was
okay. She’d been monitoring the
situation and said she could make
alternate travel plans to bring the
Masers home to Medicine Hat.
“After that first email, I felt better,”
Maser says. “Somebody was looking
out for us and actually knew what was
going on.” Before long, a new itinerary
appeared in his inbox. Dzikowski had
booked the Masers on an evacuation
flight leaving a day earlier than their
planned departure.
an early return made easy
“It was seamless. I didn’t have to do
anything at all,” Maser says. The family
was back in Alberta shortly before
the storm hit Florida. They watched
as Irma became one of the strongest
Atlantic basin hurricanes ever recorded;
it flooded streets, battered buildings,
ripped up trees and left millions
without power across nine U.S. states.
The day after the family’s return,
Dzikowski called to check in. Maser
was floored. “We already held her in
the highest regard,” he says. “This
just put it over the top.” Dzikowski
helped put together an AMA Travel
insurance claim to cover the family’s
lost vacation day. (The claim’s success
meant the Masers recovered more
than $500.) “Her professionalism,
courtesy and caring was stellar all the
way through,” Maser adds.
Though touched by the kind words,
Dzikowski is quick to note any of her
colleagues would have done the same.
For this, she credits AMA’s culture
of treating customers like practically
family. The moment an alert about any
storm or potentially trip-altering event
comes in, a team at AMA jumps into
action to determine affected travellers
and ensure they’re contacted by one of
the organization’s 200 Alberta-based
travel specialists. It’s an extra layer of
security for your trip offered exclusively
by AMA Travel.
above and beyond
Even when there’s no emergency,
AMA Travel counsellors are on call
24/7 to assist customers, whether
they’ve booked online or in person.
Most of AMA’s agents, like Dzikowski,
have been in the business for decades.
You just don’t get that level of care or
experience with self-serve booking
companies.
AMATravel.ca is a comprehensive
website offering convenient bookings
and exceptional deals—at prices that
compete with or beat the online-only
players. You also get the assurance that
every AMA Travel booking is backed
by Alberta’s largest network of support,
resources and travel expertise.
Of course, 99.9 percent of trips do
go smoothly. But if a problem crops
up you want a dedicated agent like
Dzikowski watching your back. And
an organization like AMA supporting
her. “They really go above and beyond,”
Maser says.
Learn more about AMA Travel
counsellors: AMATravel.ca/Experience
AMA INsIder
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