I am 57 and have been in the industry since 1993. I started off working for an adventure specialist in The Netherlands. Soon after I moved to Canada and in 1996 started working for Adventure Centre in Toronto, part of Trek Holidays. I worked there until 2015, at which time I decided to start as an independent advisor under my own brand, Adventure Coordinators. by the travel biz. Time flies when you’re having fun.
I actually made a conscious decision to become a tour leader. I was offered a seasonal tour leading job and I made accepting it conditional on getting a full-time office job after the tour leading was done. At first I got to do a lot of grunt work but once I had my foot in the door, positions started opening up. First I headed the Nepal desk (a desk of one), then I moved to the Africa desk. Is it everything I thought it would be — yes, and more!
I love dealing with clients and making their dream trips come true. When a client returns from a trip and tells me all about it, I get a kick out of that.
Admin. That, and paying taxes.
Travel. Anyone can book a trip but only if you travel can you speak to a destination from your own experience. Invest in yourself by booking trips for yourself.
I am not a fan of the term — what exactly are you taking revenge on? A virus? But I do still see some pent-up demand, albeit less than last year. strong desire to travel will continue into 2025.
From what my clients tell me, “an agent who gives you options and the best advice” and “super knowledgeable, friendly, honest, thorough and client focused.” And post-pandemic, I think a lot of people were “out of shape” where it came to travel. They needed more hand-holding and by doing that, I gained some new clients.
The average age of my clients is 56. I have now been in the business long enough that children of clients are starting to book with me. And there are long-time clients who now have children and they book a trip for the entire family. But overall, younger travellers do not seem to use agents as much. I am not sure if that is because they don’t feel the need, or if they just are not as adventurous and more career focused. Those younger travellers who do book with me are always pleasantly surprised. As one remarked: “I never had a high opinion of travel agents until I met you.”
I met my wife on a trip in South Africa and we adopted our daughter from Vietnam and went to pick her up there. Do I need to say more? Travel means the world to me (pun intended) — I love exploring new places; each time I am out it feels like I am discovering something new.
A US$100k African safari for three people and a US$50k Antarctica cruise for one person.
Fees have a place — I charge them for airfares because they take a lot of time and pay little commission. But fees can also turn a customer off — in particular a ‘plan to go’ deposit can do that when asked right from the get-go. But you can use this to your benefit too; every so often you get a tire-kicker and once I get a sense of that, I throw a “plan to go” deposit at them. It makes them go away pretty quickly.
Be professional but show your personality when you deal with clients. It will attract like-minded clients and make your job a lot easier.
