Destination Frustration
I was on the radio yesterday morning doing an interview to promote the new edition of my how-to-charter book, called Dream Cruises. The program’s host was one of those media personalities with a highly America-centric view of the world, a guy whose experiences outside the country were limited to gated resorts and cruise ships.
“Nobody should ever go to Mexico,” he told the audience listening on some 300 affiliated stations. “I went to Acapulco once, and it was horrible. They just want to rob us. Why do you think we have to build fences to keep them all out? Me, I would only go to St. Thomas. At least we own that island, so you know it’s safe.”
I’ll tell you, the comments floored me. It’s hard to be a polite guest when such backward thinking is enunciated so clearly for so many people to hear.
I tried to be kind by saying something like, “You know, I’ve been to Mexico onboard yachts, and they go to places other than Acapulco, which is a big commercial port for cruise ships. I’ve never had a problem, and I actually found the Bahia Navidad area to be quite beautiful.
“As for St. Thomas,” I continued, hoping not to offend my host or his loyal audience, “I was just there in November, and crime is still a concern where the cruise ships come in. There are plenty of Caribbean islands that have pockets of criminals waiting to pounce on cruise ship passengers because they know when and where they’re arriving with pockets full of money. But when you go onboard a yacht, you don’t go to those parts of the islands. You go instead to private marinas or secluded beaches. That’s what makes charter such a better vacation option.”
This guy didn’t want to hear it, of course, and so he reiterated for his audience that even if I gave him a free yacht charter in Mexico, he wouldn’t take it.
Suffice to say that I don’t think any of his listeners will be buying a copy of Dream Cruises or coming over for a look at CharterWave anytime soon.
It’s a real shame, primarily because if more people like this radio host actually opened their minds to the fact that yacht charter is different than the mass-marketed trips they’ve experienced in the past, they would see that the world really can be a terrific place to experience by way of the water. You just have to get away from the crowds, which do have a tendency to attract criminals. That’s not a problem with yacht charter, because the whole point of chartering is to get away from the masses.
I’m sure that I’ll encounter more radio hosts like this one as the publicity campaign for Dream Cruises continues. All I can do, I suppose, is continue to take the message right to them and hope that at least a few listeners are willing to open their minds to a different message.