How to Speak "Travel Advisor"

Would you like to be an influencer? No, not the social media kind;?

I mean, a travel influencer, for me.

Here's the thing: as a travel professional I?

• ?? Receive over 200 emails a day from travel partners around the globe
• Spend an average of THREE Hours ?? a week reading trade articles, talking with colleagues, and doing continuing education on everything from destinations to what's new in custom travel

I have one HUGE challenge –

There is so much I could share! Right now, I am sitting on over 100 weeks of topics (NOT including current events in travel).

As early subscribers, you can influence my content –

I want to hear from YOU!

What are YOU interested in reading?

What burning questions do you have for the travel advisor? Comment below - I promise to engage!

Once I have some common questions and topics, I'll compile them into a poll and roll with the results—then, BOOM, you'll be an influencer!

? On another topic – Talk like a Travel Professional

There is a TON of travel jargon that travelers either are unaware of or don't understand. Some of it is pretty important. I hope to do a whole blog on that at some point, but for now, I'm going to start by introducing several terms that you need to know

(and that are often inaccurately defined by the internet):

• Consolidator: A wholesaler purchases airline tickets in bulk and resells them to travelers and travel agencies at a discounted rate. These fares tend to have numerous restrictions but may be less costly than buying directly from the airline, especially for international flights, flying in better fare classes such as Business or First Class. Also, it is a travel wholesaler with contracts to sell rooms and/or tickets in bulk, generally at a discounted rate.
• Destination Management Company (DMC): A destination specialist with local relationships for lodging, transfers, and experiences. DMCs often work only with a custom travel advisor/designer to curate unique travel experiences for the advisor's clients and only directly with travelers once the traveler is in the destination. Once the traveler is at the destination, the DMC often serves as the traveler's primary point of contact.
• OTAs: ?Online Travel Agents/Agencies. They often have a self-booking portal for DIY travelers and sell travel to the mass market, wholesale discount travel with restrictive terms and conditions.
• Transfers: How a traveler gets from/to their point of entry/exit of a destination (usually airport, train station, or ship-port), to/from lodging, experiences, etc. – Typically, private car, train, taxi, helicopter, or shorter flight; sometimes via a combination
• Travel Agent: A travel professional primarily serving as a "Booking Agent" for travel inventory widely available to anyone with a keyboard and time to spare. A travel agent is differentiated from a Travel Advisor primarily by the lack of personal customization of the travel experience. See also the Blog:?The Difference Between a Travel Advisor and a Travel Agent.
• ?Wholesaler (Travel): A business that purchases travel products in bulk from suppliers such as hotels and airlines and resells them, most often as pre-packaged discounted vacations, to travel "agents" and OTAs.

Watch for these terms in coming blogs and newsletters.

Buona Pasqua!?(Happy Easter in Italian)

It's the highest of Holy Weeks for Christian faiths around the world. I am a practicing Lutheran, and I've never missed the joy of an Easter Sunday (except one time when our son was severely ill while we were on vacation—a story for another time).?

Last year, I found myself in Desenzano del Garda for Easter. I attended a beautiful Roman Catholic mass that transcended all language barriers. In many ways, that experience bonded me with that community and got me to think about ways in which travelers can learn about a culture different from their own and yet find commonalities when traveling far from home…?

I guess I'm brewing up another blog topic ?? - Better hurry and give me some direction on what you'd like to read!

Finally, my mission is to create extraordinary experiences for busy travel lovers that make lasting memories and connect them to their loved ones and unique places, without the stress, hassle, and overwhelm of planning.

Let's chat if that's you or someone you know; just click HERE to request a complimentary consultation.

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Ciao for now!