Tell us a little about yourself and how long you’ve been in the industry?
I’ve always been an entrepreneur at heart. I was a professional photographer for over 10 years, doing commercial and wedding work. After taking a group of travellers to Machu Picchu on a photo tour, I eventually decided to change careers and become a travel advisor. In 2012 I left entrepreneur life behind to work at a storefront as a travel advisor but by 2014, I knew office life wasn’t for me. I went home-based that year, with the same company and took my life and work on the road. I travelled the world for the better part of three and a half years as a digital nomad, earning money as a travel advisor. Part way through my travels, in 2015, I joined Trevello (then, TPI) as an independent advisor and went back to being an entrepreneur instead of an employee. I’ve travelled to more than 50 countries and I’ve now been selling travel for more than 12 years.
What do you specialize in and why?
My company, Love the Way You Travel, specializes in adventure and responsible travel. I believe travel can be meaningful and life changing both for travellers and for people who welcome us to their countries. As I learned more about the negative impacts tourism was having on our environment and people around the world, I wanted to be part of making sure that tourism was a force for good. When Covid shut down the world and tourism was stopped in its tracks, I rebranded my company to Love the Way You Travel, with a specific focus on adventure and responsible tourism. I knew when tourism came back that I wanted to help our clients have a positive impact rather than a negative one.
I recently read a study that women above the age of 50 will drive $746 billion in travel spending by 2035 – coming in right after millennials. Does that align with your clientele? What’s the age of the majority of your clients?
Our clientele is primarily retirees. The average age of our clients would be around 60 – 65. We have a good mix of couples and solo travellers in that age range. Most of our solo travellers are female, so the study certainly doesn’t surprise me. Statistically, women live longer than men. We have a lot of solo women who used to travel with their husbands, but they’ve now passed and the women still want to explore the world! I think over the past 10 years it has become more acceptable and accessible for women, both younger and older, to travel solo. With people living longer now than they did generations ago, many people are still travelling in their 70’s and some are lucky enough to continue travelling into their 80’s and beyond.
Are you noticing any interesting trends from the bookings you have?
Where we work in adventure and responsible travel, the trends we see may or may not be typical of what the industry sees as a whole.
For us we are seeing people travelling for extended periods of time, in all age ranges. We have multiple clients doing two-month trips. We have a family with kids aged 9, 11 and 13 doing an around the world eight-month trip and two 30-year olds setting off on a one year around the world adventure. Almost all of these have had Asia or South East Asia as a main component of their trips. Australia and New Zealand following up close behind.
We’ve also seen a resurgence of interest in Africa as a whole. This includes safaris but also off the beaten path destinations such as West Africa. We regularly have people asking about sustainable safaris which makes our hearts happy. It is good to know that people are truly beginning to understand the importance of protecting the land and animals.
River cruising is still growing exponentially for us as well. While the bulk of clients are still choosing European Waterways, we have a steady increase of clients heading to the more exotic destinations of the Mekong Delta, the Nile and Colombia this year.
We definitely see solo women’s travel on the rise, but we also see the hesitancy for many women to travel alone. We’ve not delved into it as a specialty, but it’s clear there is a demand for solo-only trips and women’s only trips. We’re glad to see suppliers now offering these options.
What’s your biggest piece of advice for travel advisors right now?
My biggest piece of advice is to stand out from the crowd. Now is not the time to do what everyone else is doing. This is the time to define your differences and find your specific clientele.
Be you. In a time when people are bombarded with fake news, AI driven images and constant imagery of lifestyles from travel influencers that are not attainable or sustainable for regular people with a one- or two-week vacation, people just want the real, authentic you. They don’t want more click-bait headlines. They want to cut through all the crap, reduce the overwhelm and ensure their vacation dollars are spent wisely with reputable companies. Share your thoughts, experiences and expertise with your clients. They choose to work with you.
Stop wasting your time on time-wasters. Time is money. By chasing people who want the cheapest of everything you are spending your time actively trying to make less money for your business. Let someone else fight for less money. Take that time and spend it on education to help you better market your services and find higher value clients. The pay off in the long run will be so much more rewarding.
Start charging fees because you are worth it. If you don’t believe you are worth it, change that mindset! If you don’t know why you are worth it, ask some of your clients for testimonials or why they choose to work with you so you can hear from other people what you do best and why they choose to work with you. Don’t know anyone else charging fees in your town? No one else in your town charges? So what! Stand out. Stand proud of the services you offer and start being compensated for your knowledge and expertise.
What are your thoughts on FAM trips? Are they valuable? Why? Do they help you sell more? How can they be improved?
Not all FAM trips are the same. Not all are free, financially, and all have an expectation that you give something back, be it in direct bookings or your time to market a destination or product. We look at FAMs as business opportunities and part of our education, not free (or discounted) trips.
FAMs can be an incredibly valuable tool for advisors. They provide first-hand knowledge and experience with product or a specific destination. This hands-on, in-person experience can never be replaced with online learning. We look for FAMs where the experiences we’ll gain will be life changing for us and for the locals we meet. The stories we can share from these powerful experiences set us apart from our competition.
I’m able to confidently share stories with clients of what to expect while mountain biking in Colombia because I did a FAM with Pro Colombia and Trail Hunters. I had the incredible opportunity to travel to Nepal with one of Intrepid Travel’s co-founders, Manch, in 2019 and learned about human trafficking from young adults who had been through it, sharing their own powerful stories. I’m able to speak about sustainability with confidence because nearly all of the FAMs I’ve been on during my career have had components of community tourism, animal protection and in general, being better for the world. When I travelled with Wilderness in Zimbabwe, I got to meet an anti-poaching unit and learn first-hand about their dangerous struggles and great achievements. We also learned about programs in place in the communities for education around the bushmeat trade. In Zambia we met rangers who were protecting endangered rhinos in the wild and got to track the rhinos on foot.
Not all FAMs result in immediate business, but I do believe the experience and education leads to sales long term. If there is a product you want to sell and you have the chance to experience it, that’s the best way to share it with clients. Don’t be disappointed if no one buys it immediately when you return home. It took me years to sell my first Wilderness trip in Africa. The sales did not come immediately after my FAM trip. Five years later I’ve had multiple clients travel with them and in 2025 I will host two groups with a total of 19 passengers going to South Africa, Zimbabwe and Botswana. It’s all about sowing your seeds now so you can pick the fruit later. FAMs are a long term investment for both advisors and suppliers.
Nominator:
I’d like to nominate Shari for her dedication to promoting responsible tourism. She is a passionate advocate for educating travellers on how tourism can be a force for good, fostering meaningful connections between people, places, and cultures. Her commitment to supporting tour and cruise companies that prioritize sustainability and cultural appreciation is truly inspiring. It’s a pleasure to work with Shari and witness the impact she has in guiding people toward transformative and enriching travel experiences.
