Advisor Training and Education – Not New Recruits – Drives Exponential Growth
Delray Beach, Fla. (August 2, 2023) — Mega-host travel agency InteleTravel announced today the company and its network of independent travel advisors have reached over $765 million in total sales to-date in 2023, topping last year’s all-time high by 48%.
InteleTravel initially projected its total yearly sales for 2023 would amount to approximately $750 million. However, with that number already being surpassed, the company now expects to hit a record amount of over $800 million in sales, representing an annual growth of 50% or more.
“The assumption might be that InteleTravel grows simply by adding new advisors. The fact is that the advisor community grows by 10% to 15% every year, while travel sales have grown by 50% to 100% in most years,” said James Ferrara, president and co-founder of InteleTravel. “That means we are dramatically increasing productivity per advisor each year through our industry leading advisor education, which includes a proprietary learning and testing platform, large scale live events and the participation of nearly every major travel brand.”
InteleTravel’s land-based travel sales have increased by 30% compared to the year-end 2022. The host travel agency’s preferred partners that account for the majority of the uptick include ALG Vacations, Vacations Express, Delta Vacations, AA Vacations, and Goway Travel.
Cruises have also grown exponentially in popularity amongst travelers. Compared to pre-pandemic sales in 2019, InteleTravel finds that year-to-date cruise sales have risen by 104%. When it comes to premium and luxury cruise sales, that number has increased 124% over 2022 year-end sales.
“At the turn of the year, InteleTravel sold more cruises for 2023 than we had sold in all of 2019. On the land side of our leisure business, we didn’t begin the year as strongly as we did with cruises, but by the close of Q1 our demand for all-inclusive vacations had skyrocketed, exceeding our record selling years of 2021 and 2022,” said Dave Spinelli, senior vice president of industry relations for InteleTravel. “We attribute this success to increased travel advisor training and support, and competitive value-based pricing from top hotel chains, like RIU Hotels & Resorts, Hyatt Inclusive Collection, and others.”
InteleTravel’s premium and luxury partner’s that have experienced the largest increase in sales this year include Uniworld, AMA Waterways, Viking, Celebrity Cruises, Virgin Voyages, Holland America Line, Disney Cruises, Windstar Cruises, Oceania Cruises, Azamara, Silversea Cruises, Seabourn, and Regent Seven Seas Cruises.
InteleTravel’s 2023 growth in sales includes both domestic and international travel. According to recent reports, U.S. travelers are flocking to Europe in larger numbers this year. Several InteleTravel partners are seeing a spike in Europe sales compared to last year, including Goway Travel with a 102% increase in European sales, Globus with a 129% increase, Avanti Destinations with an 80% increase, Viking River Cruises with a 36% increase, and CIE Tours with a 31% increase.
Established in 1991, InteleTravel is the world’s oldest and largest host travel agency with a growing network of more than 90,000 independent home-based advisors across the U.S., U.K., Caribbean, Mexico, and Republic of Ireland (as of February 2023). The company is recognized by every major travel supplier, including every resort and hotel brand, cruise line, vacation company, car rental agency, and tour operator in the world. Over the course of its 30-plus-year history, InteleTravel has become known for its leadership in travel sales, robust preferred supplier relationships, groundbreaking agent education programs, and innovative travel technology. For more information, visit www.InteleTravel.com.