Virginia March, owner of March Travel Group of Dream Vacations, talks with Alan Fine of Insider Travel Report about receiving the Opal Award recognizing outstanding female travel advisors during Women’s History Month. She also discusses her transition from a 25-year career as a public library director into the travel industry, building a Dream Vacations franchise with her husband and mentoring advisors while supporting military families in Jacksonville, N.C. For more information, visit www.dreamvacationsfranchise.com. 

Michelle Buttigieg, Malta Tourism Authority representative for North America, talks with Alan Fine of Insider Travel Report about Delta Air Line’s new seasonal nonstop service from New York JFK to Malta starting June 7 and what that means for travel advisors and tour operators. She also discusses Malta’s growing appeal as archaeologists continue pushing the island’s history back beyond 8,000 years, meaning visitors can keep discovering even more Malta. For more information, visit www.visitmalta.com. 

Amanda Frasier, president-standards and ratings for Forbes Travel Guide, talks with James Shillinglaw about what we missed at last month’s Forbes Summit in Monte Carlo. The Summit proved to be a combination think tank and star-rating awards celebration for top luxury suppliers, including hotels, resorts, cruise lines, spas and more. Frasier also details how Forbes decides on who gets how many stars and much more. For more information, visit www.forbestravelguide.com. 

Chuck Palmer, manager-Americas for Dream Yacht Worldwide, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about his charter company offering yachts around the world where you can book your clients on their own private vacation and get commission. Palmer talks about the kinds of boats Dream Yacht offers in some of the poshest marinas in exotic islands and harbors. For more information, www.dreamyachtcharter.com. 

Ron Fenska, vice president and head of North America for RateHawk, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about his B2B travel booking platform designed for travel advisors and tour operators. An online booking tool that aggregates hotel, flight, transfer, and car rental inventory from hundreds of suppliers worldwide, RateHawk can give travel professionals access to a wide range of travel products all in one place. And now the company is targeting growth in North America. For more information, visit www.ratehawk.com. 

Natalya Leahy, CEO of Lindblad Expeditions, talks with James Shillinglaw of Insider Travel Report about her first year on the job, which resulted in record financial results, new products and itineraries, and the renewal of the company’s partnership with National Geographic. Leahy details where Lindblad, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary in business, will explore next and why expedition cruising and adventure tours have become so popular. For more information, visit www.expeditions.com. 

Eileen Ross, an InteleTravel ambassador advisor, talks with Alan Fine of Insider Travel Report at Quest, the InteleTravel national conference at the Hard Rock Resort in Punta Cana, about how she discovered the host agency and built her travel business over the past decade. She also discusses helping develop InteleTravel’s ambassador program, which trains and mentors new advisors, along with the company’s broader education programs and new opportunities from acquisitions including Major Travel, MGME and Tickitto. For more information, visit www.inteletravel.com. 

Jamie Tarr, owner of Jamie’s Vacation Experience and an InteleTravel ambassador advisor, talks with Alan Fine of Insider Travel Report at Quest, InteleTravel's national conference at the Hard Rock Resort in Punta Cana, about how she discovered the host agency during the pandemic and built up her travel business over the past five years. She also discusses InteleTravel’s training and advisor support and new opportunities from acquisitions including Major Travel, MGME and Tickitto. For more information, visit www.inteletravel.com. 

Dana Lattouf, founder and CEO of Tickitto, talks with Alan Fine of Insider Travel Report the InteleTravel national conference in Punta Cana, about how her InteleTravel-owned global ticketing infrastructure platform connects travel advisors to more than 90,000 concerts, sports and entertainment events worldwide. She also discusses how Tickitto integrates event inventory directly into travel booking systems and how travel advisors can add event tickets to client itineraries through white-label tools and API connections. For more information, visit www.tickitto.com  or www.inteletravel.com. 

Tara Minson, president of InteleTravel, talks with Alan Fine of Insider Travel Report about the host agency's $1.5 billion in global travel sales, its 140,000 advisors worldwide, and how commission payouts and long-term career growth define its business model. She also discusses global expansion into the U.K., Ireland, the U.A.E. and Germany; acquisitions including Major Travel, MGME and Tickitto; and technology investments to support advisor success. For more information, visit www.inteletravel.com.