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Travel Experts Summit attendees enjoy Seabourn’s Caviar in a surf experience on Seabourn Ovation – but with a pool! (Photo credit: Claudette Covey)
Sometimes when I tell people that I’m an editor and writer for the travel advisor publications they read, they ask, “Are travel agents still around?” I get a response.
It’s the reaction that always makes me laugh, but now more than ever. Not only do travel advisors still exist, but many of them are thriving more than ever.
This fact was highlighted at the third meeting of travel experts, which brought together 160 luxury hospitality agency consultants and 60 suppliers.
Travel Experts Agents show today’s demand for professional advisors in strong numbers.
In the year In 2019, Travel Experts consultants produced a comparative $382 million – rising to $534.9 million in 2022 – and an average commission of $95,000 per booking consultant. Overall, the average sales volume per booking consultant was $1.05 million, with a total of $48.3 million in commissions paid last year.
That business continues to grow exponentially for Travel Expert Advisors, but the growth comes with a caveat. Suppliers are being stretched to their limits to express unprecedented demand.
(Look for my TravelPulse story on this next month.)
The conference served as a great venue for travel consultants and suppliers to come together to address these and other issues.
One of the hallmarks of all travel experts is the focus on collaboration and bonding among members – something I saw clearly during the meeting.
“Because travel experts are made up entirely of ICs, we often operate in our own little bubbles,” says Margot Kong of Incomparable Travel. “This event is a great opportunity for advisors to break out of their bubbles and share with each other, share and compare similar business challenges, and partner on resources, strategies and practices.”
“The meeting was an incredibly rewarding experience,” added Traugott traveller, Jeffrey Traugott. “Meeting over 160 colleagues/peers to discuss best practices, get to know each other better, meet new people and see old friends in a neutral environment gave us the opportunity to learn more than rushing in and out of meetings.”
“And the time we spent meeting our vendors/suppliers and getting to know each other on a personal level was great. Our business is relationship-based and the stronger the relationships we have, the better we can work and interact.
Suffice it to say, the conference allowed both consultants and suppliers to strengthen their relationships – which always result in superior vacation experiences for their mutual clients.
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