Welcome to The Home Based Travel Agent Show

Show Notes

Unlocking the hidden treasures in our cities is easy when you have a kind person showing you around; showing you the culture, exploring the food, and letting you in on the history. Finding these treasures is a real joy whether you are a first-time visitor or even if you’ve been to the city a few times in the past. There is nothing like visiting local small businesses where you will get the best cup of coffee or the best pizza in the city.

Touring neighborhoods and learning about the culture and the history of the neighborhood is a fantastic educational experience. Plus doing this in a small group of ten to fifteen people with an experienced guide gives you the opportunity to make friends, learn about the city and make plans for your stay as a result of all that you’ve learned on the tour.

Now, imagine giving your clients this opportunity to really enjoy the new cities you send them to. That is what we are talking about in today’s show. David Naczycz from WeVenture Tours is our guest and we will learn all about the services that WeVenture offers to you and your clients. WeVenture has been around for many years and has recently rebranded itself and they offer the experience you expect to give to your clients.

Please join us and take in today’s show and have your own learning experience and an opportunity to offer your clients an excellent travel product.

“We try to offer a little something for everybody families, young adults, seniors. We’ve got tours about music, food, about nightlife, history, sightseeing, and about all kinds things.“

“You’re with the guide in that small group and it’s just a different experience, it’s a more intimate experience, you really get to know the guide, the guide gets to know you. You form more of a relationship between human beings.“

“Each tour has a focus and that focus might be history, it might be food and cuisine, it might be music, it might be nature. Each tour has a focus but we also have a philosophy that we want to be telling whole stories and what we find is that you’ll get a little bit of everything. …We’ll give you all sorts of background so you will get a complete experience of a place. … And, because you have that personal relationship with the guide, often what happens is you start talking about whatever it is that you as a guest is interested in.“

Links to Items We Talked About in This Show

WeVenture Tours Website

Podcasts Related to This Show

This podcast is the first of its kind!

The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show. We invite guests to our show because they offer something of value to the travel trade community. The Home Based Travel Agent Show is funded from the resources of Barry Kantz.

Show Notes

Space tourism is all about looking down whereas astrotourism is all about looking up as Michael Marlin describes astrotourism in this podcast. We have lost a precious resource over the last twenty to thirty years and that is a dark sky where, with the naked eye, we can see the Milky Way and billions of other stars and galaxies. The vast majority of the world’s population and eighty percent of North Americans have never experienced a dark sky. Our dark skies have disappeared due to street lights and the far-reaching artificial light thrown off by our large cities. In fact, most of the world’s population lives in large cities or suburban areas where dark skies are all but obliterated with artificial light.

Astrotourism is growing by leaps and bounds because people want to experience the awe of observing the stars under a dark sky. A luxury resort, Clear Sky Resorts, offers luxury domes equipped with telescopes, private decks, modern bathrooms, pools, and best of all, expansive windows where you can observe the dark sky from the comfort of your indoor space.

Our guest in today’s podcast, Michael Marlin who goes by the name of Marlin, has written the book, “Astrotourism: Star Gazers, Eclipse Chasers, and the Dark Sky Movement.” The book takes an in-depth look at what astrotourism means for the travel trade community. Michael and I give you an overview of astrotourism in today’s show.

If you haven’t experienced a dark sky then you owe it to yourself to make a trip to find a dark sky. This is an experience you will never forget and it may bring tears to your eyes to see what you’ve been missing. And, you may return from your dark sky adventure wanting to share this experience with your clients. If so, there are resorts like Clear Sky Resorts where you may find commissioned opportunities to build your business with astrotourism.

Pick up Marlin’s book if you want to learn more. It’s available on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3n8Hvu9.

“There was a study done by a couple of PhD’s out of Missouri State University…they calculated that over the next 10 years the Colorado Plateau would generate 5.2 billion dollars … from astrotourism and create an additional 10,000 jobs every year.”

“Because 80 percent of North Americans can’t see the Milky Way anymore, more and more people are traveling to take in the last few remaining dark skies. “

Links to Items We Talked About in This Show

The Mind of Marlin – Marlin’s website

“Astrotourism: Star Gazers, Eclipse Chasers, and the Dark Sky Movement.”

Marlin’s phone number: (702) 274-8788

Podcasts Related to This Show

This podcast is the first of its kind!

The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show.

Show Notes

Today, for most people, travel is about the experience and not so much about acquiring things and partying. Millennials want to travel to have an experience they can share with friends on social media. Environmental awareness, healthy diets, exercise, spirituality, and a desire for new experiences are all a part of the Millennial lifestyle. Mix these ingredients with the desire to travel, along with the fact that Millennials are now the generation spending the most on travel, and you have a recipe for health and wellness tours.

In fact, traveling for health and wellness is a travel experience that resonates with all generations. All generations are looking for a travel experience that rewards them with real connections to other people, connections that include the ingredients of health and wellness travel.

Yoga retreats are an excellent form of health and wellness travel that have all the ingredients to fulfill the travel desires of your clients. Rachel Roberts of Bija Yoga Retreats joins me in this show to talk about how yoga retreats can be a part of your travel business. Rachel is ready to team up with you to create a yoga retreat in beautiful locations that nourish the mind and spirit.

“People seem really primed to want not only to travel but to have these curated experiences that are centered around mindfulness and wellness.”

“Out time is such a scarce resource for so many of us, so people want the ability to get away, to not want to invest a huge amount of time in planning it themselves, but to go with someone they trust whose already planned it. I know your listeners know this experience very well. So, they can experience wherever they’re going as fully as possible in the allotted amount of time, so they can rest and renew and restore and so that they feel like they actually sort of took care of themselves in the mix and so that is what a yoga retreat really does.”

“I’ll tell you what goes into making a good retreat, so people understand the cogs in a wheel. First, you need a compelling location. Those tend to be locations that have some spiritual aspect to them or some artistic aspect to them. … So, the destination matters. Then you need a resort or facility that has the space for a yoga retreat, and that space should be beautiful and compelling. … Then they need catering. … And then one or two excursions. … And then ease of access … and then figuring out who you are partnering with who would actually lead the students on the ground once they get there. “

Links to Items We Talked About in This Show

Bija Yoga Retreats

Rachel Roberts email: rachel @ theyogabars.com. [remove the spaces before and after the @. This is done intentionally to avoid spam bots from harvesting emails.]

Podcasts Related to This Show

435 – This is the Year of the Travel Comeback

The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show,

Show Notes

Rail travel has something to offer everyone; the speed of bullet trains, the scenic journey through beautiful landscapes, or the nostalgia of vintage trains. Rail travel isn’t about the destination as much as it is about the journey.

A rail journey is an excellent, pre or post, add on to a river cruise or a mass-market cruise. Or, an excellent stand-alone adventure for the FIT traveler. Traveling by rail is a worry-free journey to the Scottish Highlands, the Fjords of Norway, the center of Paris, or the national parks in the United States. These are a few of the fantastic trips you can offer your clients.

The amenities on a train may offer cabins where your clients can sleep in a queen bed and have a private bathroom in the cabin. The dining cars offer meals or you can have your butler deliver meals to your cabin. You can design rail travel to fit your client’s tastes and budget.

This podcast features Jim Marini, vice president of Railbookers and Amtrak vacations. Jim fills us in on some of the rail adventures and how Railbookers and Amtrak Vacations offer some of the best commissions in the business. Jim’s team is there for you seven days a week and can give you immediate quotes on your first call to them. Also, you can attend weekly webinars and receive help with social media marketing and materials with your own branding. All this is through their travel agent portal.

“I always say that the clouds look the same anywhere we fly anywhere whether here in the United States or around the world so why not see more of our own backyard or the beautiful countries all over and that’s what train travel gives all the listeners and the listener’s clients.”

Jim Marini

“In Europe alone, let alone Scotland, there are over 26,000 train stations throughout all of Europe.” “Interestingly enough in Europe, most trains actually travel during the day and that’s because of the high-speed network throughout Europe.”

“Clients won’t remember what they’ve spent when they have a memorable experience so for a little bit more they will get the trip of a lifetime.”

Links to Items We’ve Discussed

Amtrak Vacations – https://www.amtrakvacations.com/: Telephone – (800) 268-7252

Railbookers — https://www.railbookers.com/: Telephone – (888) 829-3040

Podcasts Related to This Show

Show 380 – The Alaska Railroad

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The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show.

Show Notes

Travel has its own set of challenges, the TSA, passports and visas, renting cars, finding a hotel, and many others. But, what if you add the challenge of traveling with a child who is on the autism spectrum? And, why is this important for the travel agent or the travel trade?

It’s important because your clients may want to travel successfully, enjoyably, and give their child the awesome experience of travel.

One in 44 children falls on the autism spectrum. That means the chances are good that you have clients, or will have clients, who want to travel with these special children. In this show, we talk about serving these families.

Our guest on the show is Dawn Barclay. Dawn has written a book, “Traveling Different: Vacation Strategies for Parents of the Anxious, the Inflexible, and the Neurodiverse. Here are some notable quotes from this show.

“By understanding how to help this community they’re going to widen the ability to help all travelers and widen their client base.”

“I don’t think a diagnosis of any kind should keep you from being a citizen of the world and learning what life is like in other places.”

“Not only is it important for the child to experience the world and for the parents to not feel like they’re sentenced to a life sentence at home.”

“It’s important for your travel agent listeners to understand there is training that they can get to become certified autism travel professionals. “

Links to Items We’ve Discussed

Dawn’s web page, Travelingdifferent.com

Internation Board of Credentialing and Continuing Education Standards

Podcasts Related to This Show

Specialize Your Travel Agency by Helping Families With Autism to Travel

The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show. We invite guests to our show because they offer something of value to the travel trade community. The Home Based Travel Agent Show is funded from the resources of Barry Kantz.

© 2022 All Rights Reserved

Show Notes

One of the most important aspects of your business, right along with making sales and servicing your clients, is to know your numbers. In fact, if you don’t know your numbers, there is a 90% chance that you will go out of business.

Knowing your numbers is all about tracking your income, expenses, and the time you invest in your business. This is bookkeeping and probably not as exciting as prospecting for clients and selling those clients the vacation of a lifetime.

Our guest today, Lekesha Hill, the owner and CEO of Hill Bookkeeping, and a travel advisor as well, joins our show and talks about how to keep your books and she offers a lot of great advice. So, please join us and take away some important information.

Links to Items We’ve Discussed

Hill Bookkeeping

Email Lekesha at [email protected]

Podcasts Related to This Show

Show 401 – Where Did All the Money Go? How to Put to Work Every Dollar You Earn

Credits

Photo by Mikhail Nilov

The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show. We invite guests to our show because they offer something of value to the travel trade community. The Home Based Travel Agent Show is funded from the resources of Barry Kantz.

© 2022 All Rights Reserved

Show Notes

A commodity is a mass-produced or non-specialized product. The travel products you offer could fall into the category of a commodity. This is not where you want to be as a travel advisor. First and foremost you want to offer your clients an experience coupled with outstanding service. This is what will separate you from your large online competitors who specialize in commoditized travel products. My guest, Peter Klayman with Bottle Rocket, and I talk about strategies that will boost your client’s experience and we talk about how you can provide service that will raise you above all of your competitors.

Bottle Rocket is a premier company that helps companies and organizations design ultimate customer experiences. They help create experiences “that brands love and people crave.”

Links to Items We’ve Discussed

* Peter Klayman on Instagram* Bottle Rocket Web Site

Podcasts Related to This Show

* Show 415 – The Future of Travel* Show 361 – Are You Selling Details or are You Selling the Emotion of Travel?* Show 251 – Are You Selling Someone’s Product or are You Selling Youself?

The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show. We invite guests to our show because they offer something of value to the travel trade community. The Home Based Travel Agent Show is funded from the resources of Barry Kantz.

© 2022 All Rights Reserved

Show Notes

Airfares are chaotic, and the old models that tell you to book thirty days in advance, or any other time frame, no longer apply (if they ever did).  Airfares are affected by pandemic inspired consumer behavior,  labor shortages,  rising fuel prices,  new travel restrictions,  and many other things.  This makes predicting airfares almost impossible.  My guest on this show, Alex Malebranche, the founder of Plane Ahead, and  I discuss many of these trends and a way to get your clients the lowest airfare possible without changing your clients itinerary even after they’ve booked their flight.  

Links to Items We’ve Discussed

* Plane Ahead – www.planeahead.co

Podcasts Related to This Show

* Show 415 – The Future of Travel

The Fine Print

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show. We invite guests to our show because they offer something of value to the travel trade community. The Home Based Travel Agent Show is funded from the resources of Barry Kantz.

© 2022 All Rights Reserved

Show Notes:

The unkempt drifter crushes his cigarette into the pavement and slowly walks to the road that borders the bush station. He sticks his thumb in the air to flag down the next kind person who drives by in hopes of getting a ride. How many times have you watched a scene like this unfold in a movie or a television show? This is the impression many have of bus travel. But, our guest is going to dispel this image on our podcast. Luxury bus travel is what many people are turning to today to make their connections to cruise ports, theme parks, and airport hubs. Our guest, Florencia Cirigliano, in charge of marketing, sales, and public relations for Red Coach, joins the show to talk about what’s new in the travel industry, some trends, and how Red Coach, a luxury bus company, is satisfying travelers with a luxury travel experience. 

Links to Items We’ve Talked About:

* RedcoachUSA.com

* On Facebook and Instagram at RedcoachUSA

* Travel Agents – contact Red Coach for access to a special web portal for travel agents.

Podcasts Related to This Show:

* Show #437 – Easily Create a Tour and Expand Your Business

The Fine Print:

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show. We invite guests to our show because they offer something of value to the travel trade community. The Home Based Travel Agent Show is funded from the resources of Barry Kantz.

© 2022 All Rights Reserved

 

 

Show Notes:

The travel industry is leaping forward as we reach a critical mass of people accepting the risk of the virus and returning to travel. According to several surveys, people are ready to spend big on their vacations. Travelers are embracing open space destinations, upscale travel, and health and wellness travel. Hotels are rebounding, with many returning to full occupancy. I discuss these topics and more, with Philip Ballard, Chief Communications Officer and head of investor relations for Hotel Planner.

Hotel Planner works with travel agents offering them the full standard commissions while taking the hassle out of booking groups of rooms for itineraries in over 36,000 worldwide destinations. 

Links to Items We’ve Talked About:

* hotelplanner.com

* Become a work from home hotel planner

* Email Philip at [email protected]

Podcasts Related to This Show:

* Show #415 – The Future of Travel

The Fine Print:

Thank you for listening to the Home Based Travel Agent Podcast. Barry, or the Show, receives no compensation from the guests on our show, or from the companies they represent unless we state otherwise during the show. We invite guests to our show because they offer something of value to the travel trade community. The Home Based Travel Agent Show is funded from the resources of Barry Kantz.

© 2022 All Rights Reserved