From New to the Industry to Thriving: Building the Next Generation of Luxury Travel Advisors

There is no shortage of interest in becoming a travel advisor today. Travel is an appealing industry, entrepreneurship is attractive, and the independent advisor model gives people an opportunity to build a business around something they genuinely enjoy.

But there is an important distinction we shouldn’t overlook: entering the travel industry and building a successful travel business are two very different things.

I’ve spent more than three decades in this industry, and one thing I’ve learned is that enthusiasm will get someone started, but it won’t necessarily help them succeed.

Travel—particularly luxury travel—is a complicated business. A new advisor isn’t simply learning how to book a hotel or cruise. They’re learning how to run a business, develop clients, understand an enormous supplier landscape, qualify travelers, manage complex itineraries, navigate technology, charge professional fees, solve problems and ultimately earn the trust of clients who may be spending tens of thousands of dollars on a trip.

That’s a significant learning curve.

And I believe our industry has a responsibility to think more intentionally about how we prepare the next generation of advisors to meet it.

Training for a Business, Not Just a Booking

A few years ago, our team at Andavo Travel began asking an important question: What would happen if we approached new-advisor development differently?

Rather than giving someone access to a collection of training modules and expecting them to figure out the rest, what if we could walk alongside them as they learned the business?

That thinking led to the development of Andavo’s Advisor Advantage Program, our comprehensive 16-week development program for professionals who are new to the travel industry.

Nikki Miner, our Professional Development Manager, created and leads the program. Nikki has more than 20 years of industry experience, and the philosophy behind what she has built is fairly simple: new advisors need education, but they also need opportunities to apply what they’re learning.

Over the course of the program, participants move from industry fundamentals into the practical realities of advising clients and operating a travel business.

They learn how to conduct discovery calls and qualify clients. They explore service fees and client collaboration. They receive in-depth education across hotels, air, cruise, tour operators, travel insurance and our preferred supplier relationships.

But they’re not simply listening.

There are assignments, real-world scenarios and mock client conversations. Advisors practice what they will eventually have to do with an actual traveler sitting across the table—or increasingly, on the other side of a Zoom call.

That’s an important difference.

Knowledge is useful. Confidence comes from applying it.

The Value of Having Someone Beside You

I’ve always believed relationships matter in business.

We talk frequently about the relationship between an advisor and a client or between an advisor and a supplier. But there’s another relationship that deserves attention: the relationship between a new professional and the people teaching them how to succeed.

Starting a business can be isolating. Starting one in an unfamiliar industry adds another layer of complexity.

The individual attention built into Advisor Advantage allows Nikki to recognize when someone understands a concept—and when they don’t. Questions get answered in context. Challenges can be addressed before they become bad habits. Advisors aren’t left wondering whether they’re doing something correctly.

And the support doesn’t disappear at graduation.

Nikki follows participants at 30, 60 and 90 days after the program to help ensure they’re continuing to apply what they’ve learned and moving their businesses forward.

We’ve also learned that peer relationships matter. As Advisor Advantage continues to evolve, we’re incorporating more opportunities for participants to learn in very small groups in addition to their individual coaching. The goal isn’t simply more training. It’s to help advisors build relationships with peers who are at the same stage of their careers—people they can continue learning from long after the formal program ends.

Those relationships then extend into the broader Andavo advisor community.

Taking the Learning Into the Room

There’s also something that happens when you take learning out of a virtual environment and put people together in the same room.

Every graduate of Advisor Advantage has the opportunity to participate in Travelpreneur, Andavo’s fully hosted, three-day, in-person development experience for our newer advisors.

Travelpreneur brings graduates together with multiple travel industry suppliers for hands-on learning built around the situations advisors will actually encounter in their businesses. Supplier partners travel to the event to work directly with advisors on their products, using real-world booking scenarios to move beyond product presentations and into practical application.

Advisors also participate in breakout sessions and workshops designed to continue developing their business and industry skills.

But some of the most valuable learning happens outside the formal sessions.

They spend three days together. They meet supplier partners face-to-face. They ask questions. They share what they’re experiencing in their businesses. They learn from one another and begin building the professional relationships that are so important in this industry.

Our next Travelpreneur will take place later this month at our headquarters in Salt Lake City, bringing another group of newer advisors together with members of our team and supplier community.

I think experiences like this are particularly important for independent advisors. Independence is one of the great advantages of this business model, but it shouldn’t mean isolation.

When you’re building a career in a relationship-driven industry, there is still tremendous value in getting people into a room together.

From Learning the Industry to Building the Business

Another lesson we’ve learned is that training can’t stop with travel knowledge.

Once advisors understand how the industry works, they still have to build the infrastructure around their business.

Our Operations Director, Meredith Price, helps advisors understand the technology and operational systems they’ll use every day—from booking platforms and commission tracking to proposal and itinerary tools and reporting.

From there, our Advisor Relations & Marketing Development Manager, Sonia Lenzi, works with advisors on the business they’re trying to create: their brand, positioning, ideal clients, marketing strategy and business plan.

That progression is intentional.

Learn the industry. Learn the systems. Build the business.

Too often, new entrepreneurs are handed all three at once. That’s when information becomes overwhelming rather than useful.

A structured progression allows someone to build one layer of competence on top of another.

What Success Can Look Like

We’re now seeing the results of that approach in the advisors coming through the program.

One example is Melissa Nichols, founder of Traveling Laundry.

Melissa entered the industry through Advisor Advantage and has quickly developed into one of Andavo’s fastest-growing new advisors, building a specialization around cruise travel. In approximately her first year in business, she has approached $1 million in sales and sold three world cruises—an extraordinary start for someone relatively new to the profession.

But when Melissa talks about what helped her get there, she doesn’t start with sales numbers.

She talks about preparation and support.

“The Advisor Advantage Program gave me the tools, confidence, and practical knowledge I needed to quickly build the foundation for my travel business. Nikki helped me understand the steps to succeed, provided valuable resources and guidance, and gave me the confidence to start putting my business into action right away. The best part of this program is the sense of community and support you receive from day one at Andavo!”

— Melissa Nichols, Traveling Laundry

I think Melissa’s experience illustrates something important.

A good training program doesn’t build someone’s business for them.

It gives the right person the foundation to build it themselves.

Melissa brought the entrepreneurial drive, discipline and willingness to put what she learned into practice. The program gave her a framework, resources, relationships and people to turn to as she did it.

Both sides of that equation matter.

Not Everyone Should Become an Independent Advisor

This may be an unpopular thing to say, but I think it’s an important one.

The independent travel advisor profession isn’t the right fit for everyone.

At Andavo, we’re intentionally selective about who enters Advisor Advantage. We’re looking for people who want to build real businesses—not people primarily looking for travel perks or a casual side hobby.

Successful independent advisors are entrepreneurs.

They have to find clients. They have to develop expertise. They have to market themselves. They have to manage finances, follow up when someone doesn’t respond, keep learning and continue working when the early results don’t arrive as quickly as they hoped.

Training can shorten the learning curve.

It cannot replace drive.

That’s why selecting the right people is just as important as developing the right curriculum.

“Our goal isn’t simply to teach someone how to make a travel booking. It’s to help develop capable business owners who can build sustainable careers in this industry. When you combine the right person with structured education, experienced mentorship, strong supplier relationships and a community that wants them to succeed, you give that advisor a much better opportunity to turn potential into a real business.”

— Mike Cameron, Owner, Christopherson Business Travel & Andavo Travel

Building the Next Generation

Advisor Advantage is now entering its fourth year, and we’re continuing to refine it based on what we’ve learned.

That’s important because the profession itself continues to change.

Technology will change. AI will change how advisors research, communicate and operate their businesses. Client expectations will continue to evolve. New suppliers, destinations and business models will emerge.

But I don’t think the fundamentals of developing great advisors will change nearly as much.

They need knowledge.

They need practical experience.

They need strong relationships with suppliers.

They need to understand how to build and operate a business.

They need people they can call when they don’t know the answer.

And they need a community that helps them keep getting better.

The travel industry has always been a relationship business. If we want the next generation of luxury travel advisors to thrive, I believe we have to apply that same principle to the way we develop them.

We shouldn’t simply give new advisors information and wish them luck.

We should give talented, entrepreneurial people a pathway to become exceptional travel professionals.

If we do that well, we’re not just training more advisors.

We’re building the next generation of our industry.

Ready to Build Your Career in Luxury Travel?

If you’ve got the entrepreneur drive ready to turn your passion for travel into a serious, sustainable business, Andavo’s Advisor Advantage Program provides the education, mentorship, tools and community to help you build a strong foundation from day one.

Learn more about the Advisor Advantage Program and apply today → Apply Here