I have been in the travel industry for just about 15 years. Two of those years I worked on cruise ships and just over 13 years as a travel advisor and now agency owner. I started working on ships as a means to explore the world. I started working as an advisor as a means to be at home… and explore the world. It just so happened that I actually loved helping people do the same. On my quest of exploring the world (and by the time this article is printed) I will have visited 90 countries with a goal of 100 before I’m 40! (Three years to go!) Being in the industry has kept feeding my ability to travel but also allowed me the ability to do what I enjoyed most and that is to provide travellers with amazing experiences from start to finish.
I always knew I would end up in the travel industry, but I fell into the role of travel advisor. After working on cruise ships, I needed a job… and when an advertisement popped up I applied and the rest is history. I had no intention of staying in the industry, it was meant to be temporary. I even applied to go back to school at the same time that I was hired really believing it would be temporary. To my own surprise, it turned out not only did I love being a travel advisor, I was really good at it too. It is nothing what I thought it would be. I love it more than anything, but my goodness, was it ever (and continues to be) more work and skill than I could have ever imagined at the time. I never realized how much creativity, problem solving and expertise ever went into it; but the ever-changing scope of travel kept me on my toes and was most certainly never boring- which is probably why I never looked back. The idea of constantly being challenged and making travel dreams come true keeps at the same time is what I love most about this career.
There’s no way to say it without being a huge cliché — but I love making people’s travel dreams become a reality. The idea that someone is coming to me, to be able to check off a bucket list experience, create a family moment, start a marriage with an incredible honeymoon, have a reunion with friends or family or just give someone the confidence to travel on their own for the first time and they choose to do it with me is incredible. I take all of these moments very seriously and it gives me immense satisfaction to hear all about someone’s experiences.
Anytime you need to deliver any kind of bad news to a traveller when there is no solution. The idea of disappointing someone is just too much for me. So things like policy changes, resort changes, flight cancellations — ugh, just being on that end of news delivery, especially when it is out of your control and you’re just the messenger.
The industry is constantly changing and as a successful advisor you need to constantly change with it. There are thousands of advisors out there so find a way to stand out. Perhaps that is a niche product, perhaps it is a niche demographic- whatever it is, do it well and be the best at it. Being “okay” at multiple things will never make you stand out and will not make you sought after. And just remember, you can’t be an expert at everything! And more practical advice is to take your time and focus on all the details. It only takes the smallest little thing to derail a whole reservation.
It seems to be never ending and to be honest, I don’t think we’ve even reached the peak of this yet. I’m happy to ride this wave as long as possible, and I love to see travellers getting back out there!
Because I have the best team in town. We also chose to stand out from an online world by going back to the brick and mortar model and opening a location in 2022 (during the peak of the pandemic), which has given us the ability to be a person-to-person business in its truest form, and we have never been busier because of it. Generally, we lead with our expertise and our customer service and it shows. Online information is overwhelming and travel has never been more complicated because of it. This is where true experience and expertise really makes the difference between having an okay trip and an amazing trip, and we always aim for the amazing trip.
I could not pinpoint an average age if I tried, I’d really need to dig deep into the stats to get that because I feel there really is a vast range. The biggest surprise I do have is how many younger clients we have booking with us. I think a lot of people assume only older travellers use travel advisors, but in recent years the amount of travellers we’re booking under the age of 30 is quite high. I think everyone is getting overwhelmed with information and more people are seeking expertise and human connection.
I am so fortunate to have travelled as much as I have and with that have created countless memories. A more recent memory was when I qualified for G Adventures’ Changemakers trip to Peru. It was a week filled with incredible memories, supporting local communities, seeing the impact of positive travel and all of that was capped off with the most incredible party that I could not believe I was able to be apart of. It was honestly such a surreal experience where you really need to pinch yourself and wonder if this is in fact your life.
A more recent one was over $150K for a couple. It was a sabbatical comprised of multiple tours, individual components, cruises. With that being said, I feel like the last two years, the overall average spend has gone up so much, it’s not rare to have $50K bookings on a regular basis.
Tn going to work for clients and a booking and management fee collected at the time of final payment. A client will view and understand your worth when, as a Professional you value your own worth first.
