Eastern Europe is the most exciting destination to open up for independent travel in years. The food is tasty, the people are friendly, and the variety is breathtaking. Poland and the Czech Republic may seem like extensions of their Western neighbors, but they are extensions that were frozen in time for fifty years before the Iron Curtain finally fell some twenty years ago. Communism did nothing if not stop the clock; and what you find now are perfect specimens of old Europe, the one with the stunning architecture and the exotic city centers. Places like Russia and Romania are something else entirely, of course, and Turkey is one of the most popular destinations in the world. Best of all, prices are cheaper than in the West. The coming out and rapid maturity of Eastern Europe as a travel destination may be one of the most exciting developments in many years for all travelers, but hostels are the biggest thing that has occurred in decades for budget travel. Typically viewed as a luxury, international travel is now possible for almost anybody and everybody with the desire and the disposition, thanks to the explosion of hostels in the last few years. Hostels have long been around, of course, at least in Europe, but those were youth hostels. These are hostels for backpackers, and flashpackers, too, their more upscale urban cousins. Best of all, they aren't just for youth anymore. C U in Tallinn, or Istanbul, or Krakow, or Sarajevo, or...?

In this book I share many ideas on how to build a rock solid foundation to your whole sales approach. I start with showing you the roots through to creating a winning sales strategy. That is - understanding how your client is thinking. This is the foundation of solid sales skills. It's the beginning of mastering the meetings market. "After reading this book, you will know how to sell more. Ciara clearly walks you through how to build trust and confidence with the Meeting Planner so they want to do business with you." Andy Dolce - Owner and Operator of Dolce Hotels & Resorts, Voted one of the "Top 25 Most Influential Executives" in the Meetings Market "I was chasing a corporate client for 3 years, each year filling out the RFP and bidding on their business but not winning it. I worked with Ciara, I implemented just three of the strategies she recommended and boom. I won 75% of that client's meetings business for this year." Heather Thornton - Director of Sales, Yew Lodge Business Solutions, UK "I have completed my review of your training materials. I think they are absolutely fabulous as is. I don't think there is anything I would change." Jessie States - Manager of Professional Development, Meeting Professionals International "Ciara has a brilliant way of focusing you on the client and making the sale all about them." Sally Lopez - Regional Director of Global Sales, Hard Rock Hotels, Europe "We are always trying to get an edge, trying to figure out how to make Meeting Planners happy and win their repeat business. I really want to know their hot buttons. This is great because we get to learn what drives them nuts. We came up with a game plan, some bullet points. Some great things to apply with the team in Texas." David Townsend - Director of Conference & Convention Planning, San Louise Resort, Galveston Convention Center, Texas, USA "Opened Up a Whole New Market! Ciara helped us to open a whole new market segment that we hadn't considered possible for our hotel. We converted two conferences within a few weeks of applying her advice and tips. She just made it easy." Tara Cronin - Vienna Woods Hotel, Cork, Ireland "I certainly can relate to everything you are saying and believe you really understand the business when you highlight points about it all being about "YOU" and being passionate. Passion to me, is definitely the secret of everything we do." Ciara Mundrow - Head of International Affairs, European Society of Cardiology

North Europe may be the birthplace and historic heartland of hostelling, but South Europe has greater numbers nowadays, and the quality is as good, if not better. South Europe may just have the greatest number of hostels in the world, in fact, but the distribution of them might surprise you. For, while France may be the Number One tourist destination in the world, it's not at the top of the hostel list. No, the greatest number of hostels in the world is in the Iberian Peninsula, in modern-day Spain and Portugal. The quality in Spain and Portugal is very good, too, in fact, exactly the paradigm of what a modern 'flashpacker' hostel should be. There are almost 500 of them here in this book, complete with specs and details. But that's not all. Italy and the expensive Alpine countries of Austria and Switzerland are here, too, now affordable with the sudden wide spread of hostels. And Greece is here, of course, with its fabulous sun-soaked islands, timeless culture, and... self-contained party compounds. The smart money is on East Europe, though, with (almost) everything you can find in the West, and all at half the price. The Cold War is but a memory, too, with borders little more than formalities, if even that. In none of the countries listed in this book is a visa required of a Westerner. You can simply hop on the plane, or train, or bus, and go. C U in Barcelona, Lisbon, Rome, or... Belgrade?