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Travel Daily News
15 hours ago
- Business
- Travel Daily News
Consumer concerns impact Summer travel bookings
Travel advisors report shifting consumer behavior due to economic and geopolitical concerns, with rising travel costs prompting budget-conscious booking strategies. ORLANDO, FLA. – Consumer concerns about the economy and geopolitical situation are sparking changes in travel bookings, according to a new survey of advisors affiliated with TRAVELSAVERS and NEST agencies. The networks revealed the survey results at their Travel Market conference, taking place June 4 to 7 at Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress Resort in Orlando. Travel Expense Top Client Concern The high cost of travel is the top concern clients are mentioning now, cited by 50 percent of the responding advisors. Related, 41 percent named inflation and rising prices as a client concern. Lack of consumer confidence in the economy was mentioned by 34 percent. Geopolitical anxieties were cited by 29 percent of the respondents, with 26 percent saying clients are worried about safety in certain regions. 'Regardless of their financial situation, we know that consumers are still eager to travel this year,' said Kathryn Mazza-Burney, TRAVELSAVERS Chief Sales Officer and NEST President. 'Given these prevailing headwinds, advisors are a traveler's best friend. A professional advisor can design a memorable, enjoyable trip that accommodates a range of budgets and preferences.' Advisors Shape Lower-Cost Options Uneasy travelers are turning to advisors for expert assistance in lowering the cost of trips, employing a variety of tactics to decrease spending. Selecting less expensive destinations was named by 35 percent of advisors, as was flexibility with travel timing to secure lower fares. Using loyalty points to fund travel was cited by 34 percent. Thirty-two percent of advisors reported that clients are taking fewer trips, and 26 percent said clients are taking shorter vacations. 2025 Sales Predictions Shift As a result of this changing behavior, advisors are adjusting their forecasts for 2025 sales. Forty-six percent predicted sales will rise this year, while 22 percent envisioned them staying at 2024 levels. Thirty-two percent foresee their sales decreasing. Last fall, 79 percent of advisors anticipated higher sales in 2025, compared with 18 percent who predicted sales would stay at 2024 levels. At that time, only four percent envisioned a slight decrease. Summer Bookings Largely Flat With some consumers taking a wait-and-see approach to travel, hoping their personal situation improves, summer sales are generally in line with last year. Thirty-six percent of advisors said their summer travel bookings are up from last year, while 39 percent reported sales are down. One-quarter of the respondents said sales are level compared to summer 2024. The Summer of Staying Close to Home Topping the summer travel list, advisors reported a mix of perennial European hot spots alongside destinations in the Americas. Almost half the advisors named Italy, followed by Alaska. Rounding out the top five were the Dominican Republic, Cancun and Greece. When asked which destinations advisors recommend to ease client concerns, North American locales largely took center stage. Alaska moved into first place, bumping Italy to second. Portugal, Canada and Hawaii also ranked in the top five, followed by Orlando, Cancun and the Dominican Republic. 'Wherever travelers are venturing this summer, advisors will be able to book them a trip with superior value,' commented Mazza-Burney. 'With their close supplier connections, advisors can secure exclusive discounts and promotions as well as complimentary amenities. Those benefits help travelers stretch their budgets even further at this time.' Survey Results 2025 Sales (results from April/May 2025) 34% predict sales will increase somewhat 12% predict sales will increase significantly 22% predict sales will stay the same 26% predict sales will decrease somewhat 6% predict sales will decrease significantly 2025 Sales (results from October/November 2024) 52% predict sales will increase somewhat 27% predict sales will increase significantly 18% predict sales will stay the same 4% predict sales will decrease somewhat Summer Bookings 14% up 10% or more from last summer 22% up between 1% and 9% from last summer 25% the same as last summer 25% down between 1% and 9% from last summer 14% down 10% or more from last summer Client Concerns 50% high cost of travel 41% inflation/rising prices 34% lack of consumer confidence in the economy 29% geopolitical issues 26% safety in certain regions Vacation Budgeting 35% selecting less expensive destinations 35% being flexible with travel timing for lower fares 34% using loyalty points to pay for travel 32% taking fewer trips 26% taking a shorter vacation Top Summer Travel Destinations 46% Italy 41% Alaska 21% Dominican Republic 21% Cancun 19% Greece Top Advisor Recommendations for Summer Travel 36% Alaska 23% Italy 19% Portugal 17% Canada 17% Hawaii Advisors from TRAVELSAVERS and NEST agency affiliates in the U.S. and Canada took the survey from April 22 to May 9, 2025.
Travel Daily News
2 days ago
- Business
- Travel Daily News
TRAVELSAVERS and NEST offer exclusive innovations
TRAVELSAVERS and NEST enhance advisor competitiveness with AI tools, lead-gen campaigns, digital storefronts, and revamped education through the KORE program. ORLANDO, FLA. – In today's crowded travel marketplace, TRAVELSAVERS and NEST are providing their affiliated advisors with state-of-the-art technology, novel lead-generation programs and marketing initiatives to enhance their competitive edge. The networks shared the latest updates on their innovations at the Travel Market conference, being held June 4 to 7 at Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress Resort in Orlando. 'We've been producing innovative technology that helps advisors sell more and work smarter for our entire 55-year history,' said Nicole Mazza, Chief Marketing Officer, TRAVELSAVERS and NEST. 'Our technology team continues to bring out forward-looking tools that give our advisors the advantage they need to stay ahead in an industry that's always evolving.' AI Connect Powered by Toby Through our collaboration, advisors can seamlessly access and promote exclusive offers with AI Connect Powered by Toby, making it easier to enhance their marketing efforts and streamline their workflow. This partnership ensures that AI Connect Powered by Toby provides valuable tools while offering special benefits tailored to advisors' needs. As subscriptions grow each month, so does the opportunity for advisors to leverage cutting-edge AI to save time and create polished, professional content. AI Connect helps advisors tap into the $28+-billion opportunity that generative AI represents for the travel industry. Exclusive partner offers are sent directly into the platform, so advisors build blog posts, social media captions and landing pages faster using real-time promotions. AI Connect recently debuted a Destination Arrival Guide, featuring more than 600 professionally written destination briefs, which are updated regularly. With the Generate with Toby feature, advisors can create guides tailored to client preferences, interests and travel styles. Coming soon: translation and newsletter tools for multilingual and multi-format content. Lead-Generation Initiatives Digital campaigns have been the cornerstone of the TRAVELSAVERS and NEST lead-generation strategy since their introduction two years ago. Video and social media ads attract consumers looking for travel expertise, who are then driven to network websites. These ads in Meta have delivered nearly 3.5 million impressions and more than 78,000 clicks to sites, producing quality leads for advisors. These campaigns meet the growing appetite among travelers for immersive experiences, building connections with key market segments such as guided vacations, adventure travel, romance travel and new-to-cruise customers. Another initiative driving leads to advisors is enhanced agency profiles. Travelers can search for and select an advisor who's a fit for their preferences based on location, specialties, destination expertise, languages spoken as well as accolades and certifications. Since their debut last fall, 78 percent of advisor profiles have been updated, highlighting their strengths to consumers on a valuable marketing platform. Profiles appear on the TRAVELSAVERS U.S. and Affluent Traveler Collection consumer websites, as well as two new sites: TRAVELSAVERS Canada and Your Vacation Specialists, which features NEST advisors. OnlineXpress Digital Storefronts TRAVELSAVERS and NEST agencies are the only networks with a website creation and hosting program purposely built for our advisors, OnlineXpress. With this unique advantage, they can invite customers and prospects to experience their engaging digital storefronts. Agencies in the U.S. and Canada use OnlineXpress to polish their online presence and market to consumers. The program has shown remarkable growth this year over the same time in 2024, with 3,500 leads generated, 725,000 pageviews (up 82 percent) and 1.7 million emails (up 20 percent). Technology Innovations The industry-leading tripXpress booking platform now offers a feature solely available to TRAVELSAVERS and NEST advisors. They can deep-link directly to tripXpress from their webpages, blog posts or social media. The link will take consumers directly into the booking process and automatically attribute the booking to the advisor. Another tripXpress innovation coming soon will provide advisors with an all-in-one dashboard for marketing tools and insights. The dashboard will consolidate data and list management for direct mail, email and OnlineXpress. Advisors will be able to order direct mail and emails through the dashboard and manage preferences, including targeting clients. TRAVELSAVERS and NEST have also introduced a custom-branded URL at the agency or advisor level that will stay the same for every marketing campaign. Advisors can easily drive consumers to this single link for promotions, showcasing offers through the link in their email signature and on social profiles. 'Our advisors tell us they need new ways to find clients and market to existing ones,' said Mazza. 'At the same time, they tell us they're in overdrive managing their businesses and don't have spare hours to waste on complex platforms. That's why we're dedicated to creating easy-to-use tools to send business to advisors and give them back time within their day.' KORE Education Enrichment The KORE program – launched in 2021 to train the next generation of professional travel advisors – is undergoing a major revision. The refreshed curriculum will update topics, create shorter modules, add more interaction through exercises and gamification, and build a community of learners through the web-based platform. Agencies will also be able to create customized KORE versions for their advisors. KORE equips new consultants with the essential skills and real-world knowledge to be successful travel professionals and business owners. It provides learners with a thorough, self-paced online curriculum. KORE is the sole advisor education program that offers mentoring with an agency owner or manager, as well as a placement service to match candidates with leading agencies.
