Travel Leaders Network, which represents more than 5,700 travel agencies across the United States and Canda, had a lot to celebrate at its Edge 2024 International Conference, held June 8-10 in National Harbor, Maryland.
With approximately 2,000 travel industry professionals in attendance at the event, the consortium shared that 2024 bookings in most segments are outpacing 2023 sales; this includes luxury, premium, contemporary and river cruises, as well as land FIT and touring and theme parks. The only category not outpacing last year is “fun and sun,” which is on par with 2023 at this time.
“It’s the strongest I’ve seen this industry in my 44 years,” said Roger Block, president of Travel Leaders Network.
Block’s tenured career in the industry was another special focus of the conference, following the recent announcement that at the end of this year, Block will step down from his position as president of the network and take on a new role as senior advisor, beginning Jan. 1, 2025.
And while Block’s title may be changing, he was quick to point out that he’s not going anywhere.
“It’s not like January 1, I’m out,” he said. “This is not what I would call the typical ‘retirement.’ I don’t see myself walking away in any shape or form.”
On the contrary, Block says he’s excited about all the ongoing projects at the organization and looking forward to seeing them implemented.
Following are status updates on a few such projects, along with other highlights discussed during the conference.
Updates From Travel Leaders
Among the biggest focuses for Travel Leaders was its new Snap booking tool, which was two years in the making and debuted in April of this year (it will become available to Canadian members on July 2). Powered by Sabre, the exclusive tool helps advisors bundle air, car and hotel options for clients — and, notably, helps them make commission on airfare with increased ease. More than 2,600 agents have enrolled in the program so far (which is free to all members), and Snap has already proved successful in helping members “easily get in the air game,” according to Stephen McGillivray, chief marketing officer at Travel Leaders Group.
“Commissionable air is back,” added Block. “The opportunities, especially for international air, using [this tool] are going to give everybody a chance to add a significant amount of revenue with very little work.”
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Another Travel Leaders tool, Cruise Complete, is running more smoothly now than when it debuted at last year’s Edge, according to Cory Voss, chief information officer of Travel Leaders Network. While the consortium “had a hard time managing demand” for the cruise booking solution upon its debut, Voss promises that any rollout issues “have been in the rearview for several months now.” Advisors can use the tool to see real-time availability and pricing for 19 cruise lines, as well as compare up to four sailings across different lines. A convenient comparison grid can even be sent to clients. (Cruise Complete is available to members for an annual fee of $300 per agency, a cost which can be offset with credits of $5 per booking up to $300).
Agent Universe, the digital “home base” for Travel Leaders advisors, is also getting an update for a cleaner, easier-to-navigate experience. Following an in-depth user experience study with members to identify what was working and what was not, McGillivary notes that issues have been identified and addressed. The revised dashboard will roll out later this summer.
Credit: 2024 Kelly Rosenfeld
The Women of Travel Leaders Network is another new addition to the consortium as of last fall; it launched as a platform to support and elevate female members. In addition to promoting networking and collaboration, professionalism and business acumen, wellness and doing good, the program includes quarterly webinars featuring inspiring women in the industry (nearly 1,000 advisors have registered for each session so far).
Travel Leaders also shared that it plans to roll out a dashboard (hopefully this year) that will allow members to provide information on the status of leads received through Agent Profiler, the network’s lead-generation platform. Agents will be expected to report on whether the lead is converted to a sale, in order to help the network gather useful data.
“There’s so much great intelligence that we can get from the advisor telling us what happened with the lead,” McGillivray said.
Trends and Takeaways
During the conference, both Travel Leaders executives and supplier partners shared noteworthy trends, research and company updates, including the following:
1. Younger Travelers Are Using Advisors
During a media briefing, McGillivray referenced recent MMGY data showing that millennials and Gen X clients are increasingly using travel advisors, even more so than Baby Boomers. To explain the trend, he referenced the busy “life stage” these generations have reached, as well as lingering memories of bad experiences from the start of the pandemic. That said, McGillivray notes that advisors serving these generations need to “up their game,” as these travelers have more knowledge than the typical client and are looking for more unique experiences.
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“They’re coming to you already informed,” he said. “They’ve done their research. They’re looking for validation, and they don’t have time to package the whole trip up [themselves].”
2. Consumers Value Services That Advisors Provide
Data presented by Travelport revealed that consumers place high value on their time, and spend a lot of it doing research. And although 98% do research weekly, only 53% actually buy something. Travelport also found that consumers want custom offers (64%), transparency (90%) and customer service from a person (83%) — all of which advisors can deliver. And when it comes to travel consumers specifically, the No. 1 want is personalization.
3. River Cruising Remains in High Demand
In addition to Travel Leaders’ 2024 river cruise bookings exceeding 2023 numbers, Avalon Waterways shared further proof that the market is only getting hotter. According to Google data shared with the line, searches for the term “river cruising” currently number 33 million, with demand up 22% from 2019 to 2023.
Credit: 2024 Kelly Rosenfeld
4. Normalization of the Market
Travel Leaders shared that it’s seeing a “normalization of the market,” which it explained as less of the unpredictability of the last few years, and a return to more traditional seasonality. It noted that demand remains high, with some pandemic-era trends still in effect, including celebration travel (up 65% over the last few years) and music tourism (up 40%).
5. News From Suppliers
Suppliers highlighted an array of noteworthy updates; just a few included AIG Insurance’s new Advisor Connect tool and the launch of direct United flights between the U.S. and the new airport in Tulum, Mexico. Marriott shared updates on new all-inclusive properties, including one in Isla Mujeres, Mexico (Almare, a Luxury Collection Adult All-Inclusive Resort), and the upcoming W Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, among others. Funjet Vacations, meanwhile, touted the new Luxe by ALG Vacations portfolio of hotels, its first luxury collection, which will launch this month and offer exclusive additional amenities for guests at many properties.
On the cruise front, Virgin Voyages highlighted its upcoming introduction of Alaska cruises in the summer of 2026, while Princess Cruises shared details of its new ship-with-a-ship concept, the Sanctuary Collection, which will include luxury accommodations, a private restaurant and access to an exclusive club when it debuts on Sun Princess this October, and Star Princess in the fall of 2025. Windstar Cruises announced a return to Alaska in 2026 onboard the new Star Seeker, which will also sail to Japan. And on the rivers, AmaWaterways highlighted its plans for 10 upcoming river ships, including a second AmaMagna offering to come in 2027.
Giving Back
Edge attendees also helped with a noteworthy cause: raising funds for Travel Leaders’ nonprofit organization, the Family Bonds Foundation, which awards grants to travel advisors, suppliers and individuals within their communities who are experiencing hardships. In addition to gathering donations, the event featured a silent auction and a raffle with prizes donated by partners and Travel Leaders Network to raise money for the foundation.
The fundraising was so successful, in fact, that the monetary goal was updated at least three times during the event, as contributions exceeded the original $150,000 and second $250,000 targets, resulting in a third goal of $350,000.