CIRE Travel

Eric and his team are absolutely incredible. I had only experienced typical «travel agents» before working with Eric. I would tell them what I wanted and they would book the tickets. It was totally transactional. Working with Eric I now know that it can be transformational. He and his team take care of everything (even before I know I need it). I don’t have to lift a finger or an eyebrow. I would call his company a concierge service… but without the concierge pricing. You cannot get this level of service anywhere else. On the fence? Get off of it and book CIRE Travel. You won’t regret it.

If you are looking for a top-​notch travel agent that can literally make any of your travel demands or wishes a reality, look no farther. The CIRE team, under Eric’s meticulous leadership, is simply amazing and unmatched in the industry.
I first had the pleasure of working with Eric through a previous employer. My supervisor had a seemingly infinite list of travel preferences and quirks, not to mention complex multi-​country itineraries and revenue streams to cover his excursions. It was one of the most intricate logistical balancing acts I have ever encountered; Eric and his team handled both the requested itineraries and the egos with poise and tact.
Of the many itineraries that Eric helped out on, two particular experiences come to mind. In the midst of a snowstorm on the east coast, my supervisor had to travel along the NYC-​DC corridor and modes of transportation were slowly falling away with delays and cancellations. Backups were booked for the backup options, and ultimately my supervisor took the Acela and arrived to an awaiting pick-​up service that had been circling the train station for hours in the accumulating snow. I was also traveling in the inclement weather, and Eric checked in with me by phone around 9pm on my return train just to make sure I was making progress toward my final destination. On a second instance, on overseas travel with my supervisor, Eric and his team had reached out to the various hotels we were staying in to ensure personal preferences were paid close attention to. We had welcome notes from the management, bottles of wine, and some of our favorite snack items in the rooms. Such thoughtful touches make one feel immediately at home after long trans-​continental hauls.
Since leaving my previous employer, I have had the pleasure of continuing to work with Eric and his team. I have had Eric help book flights for long periods of overseas residence. One advantage to booking anything on United via CIRE is that any changes can circumvent the $ 300 change fee United charges its customers elsewhere. Eric and his team deal with everything — gone are the days of picking up the phone and awaiting an airline customer service representative! Seems like a great win-​win to me.
CIRE, Eric, and his entire team are gems. I will continue to recommend his services unreservedly to anyone looking for a professional, knowledgable, courteous, detail-​oriented, and extremely responsive travel agent. Keep up the great work, CIRE!

Eric and his team are awesome!
I had about 20 flight, train and hotel reservations to book for a work retreat and absolutely no time to do so. Eric and Suvarna saved me tons of time, money and headaches taking over all of the arrangements for me!
They were able to make a few special flight arrangements through their airline connections, change arrangements at no extra charge when a speaker suddenly decided to change their itinerary, and Eric even maintained communication over the entire weekend when a few of our flights were canceled due to inclement weather.
They are travel magicians who truly went above and beyond!

Eric = Awesome
We use CIRE at my new company, and I’ve never had the pleasure of working with a travel agent who is so flexible, quick, easy, PLUS nice! We have lots of complicated booking that (unfortunately) change all the time. Eric keeps a great attitude with all of our headaches, and knows how to work the system! Highly recommend for personal and business travel needs!

My professional relationship with Eric Hrubant began back in 2001 when I was working for a small global health association in Washington, DC. He was instrumental in the development of a complex international travel program that included destinations in Vietnam, Botswana & Ethiopia, along with other developing nations. He, and his team, were extremely supportive and highly skilled in managing multi-​destination itineraries. Now that Eric has assumed the new role of President, CIRE Travel, I have no doubt that he will expand his company into new areas and leave a greater footprint on the travel industry.

I’m pretty sure I would have lost my mind without Eric and the CIRE team. They are the quickest responders and able to handle my boss’s ever changing travel plans worldwide days, weeks, months prior as well as in the midst of. My boss was able to get to the most remote corner of Norway recently with no hassle as well as plan a last minute personal vacation to Belize for New Year’s. His relationships with airlines have saved my boss and our company easily thousands in change fees and his recommendations are always top notch on getting around other countries. I’ve always gotten quick responses from Eric and team and most certainly recommend CIRE for group travel.

I began working with Eric Hrubant in 2010.
For ten months, Eric kept my teams safe and on track throughout the duration a gruelling international project spanning every continent, over 100 destinations, every time zone, and 18 countries. He was absolutely always courteous, professional, reliable and on time.
At times I would make an error in my request and he would catch it, thus saving time, attention and money. Without complaint Eric adeptly juggled multiple billing codes.
Later in 2011 I was working with multiple teams travelling, when the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud cancelled flights across Europe, leaving travellers stranded during the UK half term break.
Throughout this stressful time, Eric was focused and professional, and always gave each traveller, and each journey his full attention.
My boss frequently changed flights, times and destinations at the last minute. Eric and his team always aptly accommodated.
Numerous times due to last minute changes I have accessed the after hours number, the staff there have always been just as responsive and professional as Eric.
I used to joke «You can’t fool Eric, I know because I have tried…»
Our team refers to Eric as «The Legend».
Regarding personal travel, I have benefited from Eric’s expertise when travelling to and across Nepal, Ireland, Canada, The Netherlands, Denmark, The Philippines and Austria, and find his attention to these ‘small economy bookings’ to be every bit as professional as his business and first class bookings.
Lastly, it has been my experience that Eric is culturally fluent. He understands and is respectful of the lovely variety of religious and cultural influences on our tiny blue planet. This cultural fluency adds a personal nuance to his travel planning that is extraordinary.
I wish Eric and his wonderful team every success, they definitely deserve all of these positive reviews.

As a professional in the field of fashion and now executive coaching, I have encountered many travel companies that have caused me more aggravation than appreciation.
What a relief to have fortunately found a travel company that truly has your best interest at heart let alone the fortuitous opportunity to speak to the owner, himself.
Upon our first meeting, Eric Hrubant of CIRE travel worked round the clock to insure my family’s travel experience was nothing short of superb.
He and his company go above and beyond the call of duty, securing additional perks like complementary breakfasts and water views, not to mention the valuable knowledge regarding all travel aspects; the best places to stay, where and when to go.
Eric and his company are an exception in the big world of travel, taking the time necessary to maintain a high quality of customer care no matter your travel plans. I’m thrilled to have found a travel expert/​company that I can finally trust with all of my travel needs!

I have worked with Eric Hrubant and the entire CIRE Travel team on numerous business travel bookings and have been so impressed with their service that I have also started to use them for my personal travel. I have used CIRE for domestic and international travel, hotel bookings, and hotel blocks for large events. I have never been disappointed with their service.
Eric and his team are knowledgeable, professional, and courteous. It is comforting to know I can call them when I am traveling and encounter flight delays or other issues. They are always readily available and have helped get myself and my business associates out of tricky travel situations many times. I also appreciate that they easily pick up on the individual preferences of each traveler and are conscious of prices when booking. One area where they really excel is putting together an itinerary quickly, but they are also very patient when more options or time is required in order to make a decision on a trip. It is always a pleasure to work with them!

I was recently introduced to Eric Hrubant, the president of Cire Travel, by a colleague at work. I was looking for a travel agent who could help me arrange vacations to Romania and Prague.
We were introduced by email since Mr Hrubant is in New York and I am an expat in Abu Dhabi.
After our introduction I wrote back to Mr Hrubant on what was for me a Sunday, which was his Saturday. Two days later, on my Tuesday, his Monday, I wrote again to check in, telling him that I assumed that he hadn’t replied because it was the weekend and because he was now playing catch-​up, it being his Monday morning. I also expressed the hope that my email hadn’t gone to his spam folder.
When Mr Hrubant responded he said that my email HAD gone to spam and he apologized. He told me that he was working with clients all day and that he would reply to my email as quickly as possible.
Four and a half days went by and I didn’t hear from him. I’ve not worked with a travel agent before so maybe I was a little impatient. I don’t know.
Here’s what I knew at the time: My first email had gone to spam, and my research had shown that Mr Hrubant’s company, Cire Travel, had merged with a larger company, Tzell Travel Group, which is itself part of a global conglomerate called Travel Leaders Group.
The president of Tzell Travel Group crows about the fact that his people are on commission, unlike his competition where the travel agents are on salary. Are commissioned travel agents more motivated than those on salary? I don’t know. I’ll tell you what they ARE — Stressed! Maybe that’s why they have 11 job openings on
. High turnover. Or maybe they’re just very successful and are expanding. I don’t know.
Maybe your experience is different, but I’m not aware of any global corporations that have any interests beyond maximizing shareholder value. Personalized service is not on their agenda. Maybe Cire Travel is different. I don’t know.
Anyway, getting back to the point. Having all of this in mind, my reply to Mr Hrubant, after not hearing from him for four and a half days, was a bit sharp. I said to him that he must be terribly busy not to have replied back to me by now or that my email was still going to spam. I said that I thought I would have to tell my colleague that Mr Hrubant seemed to be too busy for new clients and that my colleague should not refer any more of his coworkers to Mr. Hrubant.
Now I can tell you, that got a response! He said that he was just sitting down to respond to me. Really? How serendipitous and coincidental! He wondered whether I had intended my email to be unprofessional and threatening, and said that he had interpreted it that way. He then, in so many words, told me he didn’t want my business.
Was I unprofessional and threatening? Well, I could have been more polite. But in today’s world how far do manners get you with a big corporation? Not very far, in my experience. Cire and Mr Hrubant appear to be quite successful in the world of corporate travel so I can see why doing business with me as an individual isn’t worth Mr. Hrubant’s time. I could have been nicer to him. But for a guy in New York City, working in a highly competitive market, doesn’t he seem a little sensitive to you? Did he react so strongly because I was rude, or because I hit a little too close to the mark? I don’t know.