Travel Agent Professional October 2017 Issue 54
How to Be a Travel Influencer By Cindy Bertram
Auto Europe Renews Maine Seafood Rewards Program for 17th Year Earn Live Maine Lobsters for Business Class Package or Prestige Car Rental Auto Europe, the industry’s first global car rental aggregator, has renewed the Maine Seafood Rewards program for Travel Agents for the 17th year. Qualified bookings include a 7-day luxury or prestige car rental or a business class airfare travel package to Europe that includes hotel and/or car. For each booking, travel agents may choose to enjoy three Maine lobsters or two pounds of salmon shipped fresh to their door. “We’ve renewed this unique incentive for the 17th year at the request of our Agent partners. We’re proud to continue this one-of-a-kind program that not only supports our Agents but our local Maine businesses as well,” said Robert Ardino, Auto Europe’s Vice President of Sales. Maine Seafood Rewards can be redeemed by the booking agent or by their client at the agent’s choice. In accordance with ASTA, Agency owners/managers may choose to exclude their agency or individual agents. The program is valid until December 31, 2017, for travel anytime in 2017 and is open to US residents only due to shipping requirements. For more information or to claim your rewards call 800-223-5555 or email tasales@autoeurope.com.
About Auto Europe With over 60 years of experience in the rental car industry, Auto Europe specializes in helping travelers find the best car rental rates in Europe and other popular destinations around the world. Auto Europe’s deep understanding of the complexities of renting cars abroad paired with their knowledgeable team of rental specialists (available 24/7) allows Auto Europe to provide travelers with the highest quality service in the industry before, during and after their rental. To find the best rate on a car rental for your next trip abroad or to learn more about renting a car in Europe visit www.autoeurope.com.
October 2017
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Cindy's Inside Cruise & Travel Track, LLC
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Mix & Match the Unexpected for a Perfect Result By Paull Tickner
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Paull Tickner & Associates Ltd.
http://issuu.com/action/page?page=17
Cruise Ship Order Book Reflects Extraordinary Business Opportunities For Travel Sellers By Mitchell J. Schlesinger MJS Consultants
Showcase CruiseOne and Dream Vacations ...................20-21 TravelSavers .........................................................11
Ad Index
Cover Photo: Princess Cruises
Auto Europe ...........................IFC, 19 Host Travel Agency.com ...............15
Travel Agent Professional
Britain Greatdays.............................3 RCI ...............................................BC
2017
By Cindy Bertram
TAP
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How to Be a Travel Influencer
Travel Agent Professional October 2017 Issue 54
Travel Agent Professional Staten Island, NY 10312 E-mail: Ann@travelagentprofessional.com Phone: 718.360.3153
Joel M. Abels
Legend In the Travel Industry April 1927 to January 2007
Ann M. Hoek Publisher/Creative Design ann@travelagentprofessional.com Bonnie Walling Editor Bonnie@travelagentprofessional.com Alan Cohen Vice President Marketing Alan@travelagentprofessional.com
Meet Our Editorial Board Paull Tickner, Creator of Special Interest Britain ptickner@customgb.co.uk www.customgb.co.uk Cindy Bertram, Cindy’s Inside Cruise & Travel Track, LLC cindybert@att.net Mitchell J. Schlesinger President, MJS Consultants mjschlesinger@bellsouth.net Les-Lee Roland Owner of The Package Deal Sue Shapiro, President Shapiro Travel Resources sue.shapiro@gmail.com www.shapirotravelresources.com Rusty Pickett, ECC Shellback Cruises www.shellbackcruises.com Sherry Laskin, ACC Travel Writer/NACTA Webinar Moderator www.cruisemaven.com This online magazine is dedicated to the memory of Joel Abels, Travel Trade's editor and publisher. Joel and his life's work may be gone, but with your help it can live on.
Travel Agent Professional has its roots in Home Based Trade, the first magazine of its kind, started by Joel Abels in 2004. Joel and Lenore Abels ran Travel Trade for nearly half a century – it was started by her grandfather, John S. Lewis, and her father, Sidney Lewis, in 1929, and they took the publication over after her grandfather’s passing. Under Joel’s direction, the company grew to be one of the travel agent industry’s leading publications, reaching more than 45,000 agents throughout North America. It spawned a famous series of trade shows and three monthly magazines – Cruise Trade, Tour Trade and Home Based Trade. The Abels also garnered enormous respect – Joel received the Neal Award, called “the Pulitzer Prize of the business press,” for his hard-hitting editorials. On a personal note, after working with Joel for over a decade and staying with him until the end, I grew to truly care for and respect the man. He was like a second father to me. Joel was old school, he stood by his word and believed in his work. There will never be another. While nobody can replace this industry legend, we’re hoping that this new publication, which reunites the original Home Based Trade editorial board, will be able to carry on his passion for travel and those who sell it.
Ann M. Hoek The opinions expressed in these columns are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Travel Agent Professional.
October 2017
4 C i n d y B e r t r a m
By Cindy Bertram Cindy's Inside Cruise & Travel Track, LLC
Today the word “influencer” is used
Who has influenced you?
now more than ever, and learning
Think about purchases you’ve made and how
how to effectively influence others
those came about, along with areas where
is a core focus of marketing and
you’ve made other decisions. Was it due to a
sales today. With so much information out there, people
referral from someone you trusted after doing some research? In the travel industry, I follow key people who are experts, learn from them
gravitate towards authorities who
and use their suggestions. When it comes to
have exper tise in their respective
professional business situations, a person who
fields, providing content and information that is valuable and
has influenced me is a fellow Loyola University Chicago alumni. An expert in sales, David is also president of our relatively new Loyola
unique. As travel professionals we
University Chicago Toastmasters Club (I’m a
bring that valuable and unique, ver y
member) and graciously shares some of his suc-
much needed content to our clients. We need to view ourselves
cessful sales tactics. He is a genuine influencer who has helped me tremendously, because we are all in sales.
as being travel influencers. October 2017
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Traits of Genuine Influencers In today’s social world, people look for people who are trustworthy, and what they share is valuable and unique. Another part of an influencer’s key traits? They nurture genuine relationships with others, are active listeners, and come up with creative solutions to problems, providing and supplying authority.
Key Things to Think About As travel professionals, we are actually influencers ourselves. Building our respective brands via social media, connecting and engaging with real people at different community, social and business events is also important. Keeping on top of our industry through training, attending conferences as well as continuing to educate ourselves is another way to continually build our expert status.
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Insights from John Chernesky, Vice President, North America Sales, Princess Cruises & Cunard Line While talking with John Chernesky, Vice President, North America Sales for both Princess Cruises and Cunard Line, I mentioned that the term “influencer” has become even more prominent today. And I asked John, “What comes to your mind when thinking about being an “influencer” who sells travel?” John said, “The most important quality is passion for what you’re doing and the stories you’re telling. Thousands of years after the Ancient Egyptians used primitive images on the walls of pyramids to pass on the stories of their culture, we’re still relying on the power of storytelling today. No matter how well traveled any influencer might be today, if you don’t have the passion you won’t be able to convince anyone of anything!”
October 2017
7 John then went on, “I’m personally drawn to someone who has visited the destination and has the ability to tell their own travel story. You can hear the excitement in their voice as they re-tell the tale of their journey, which gets me excited to do the same. I realize it’s not always feasible for each travel agent to personally visit every destination on the planet (wouldn’t that be nice?), but here’s a tip – ask your clients if you can “borrow” their story. Get some photos of their trip and get the details down, so when you’re talking to another client that passion comes through about how great the destination is. It’s the next best thing to being there yourself. Using real, authentic photos will always trump a glossy marketing shot. Try and create multiple stories for each of the major destinations around the world so you have everything covered, assuming you haven’t been there yourself.”
Yes, Travel Agents are Influencers! John and I then talked about how travel agents are actually influencers. Being actively involved on the travel agency side, I asked John about his insights on that. John gave some terrific insights, and said, “I definitely think of travel agents as influencers. If you’re not influencing your clients travel, then you’re just an order taker and where’s the fun in that? To me it’s all about the guest satisfaction once the trip is over. The way a good travel agent can influence that trip touches so many elements – from the destination itself to the type of stateroom they’re in to the excursions they experience. It also covers the more mundane things like travel insurance (highly recommended) and pre/post hotel stays.” John then gave a wonderful example, and explained, “You’re flying all the way to Barcelona and you’re NOT going to stay a couple of nights beforehand to acclimate to the time zone and stroll La Rambla and visit la Sagrada Familia? You’re going to Alaska but you’re NOT going to do a CruiseTour and stay at one of the Princess lodges in the wilderness and see Denali up close?? These are MUST DO experiences and you don’t want your clients coming home and feeling like they went all that way but still missed out on critical elements of the destination. Appreciating time and budget can influence the decisions your client makes, at the very least you want to share these opportunities with them so they’re aware of them. It’s amazing how people can suddenly find more time and a few more dollars when they’re motivated!”
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Some Positive Influencers in John’s career Throughout John’s successful career in the cruise industry, he’s dealt with numerous people in his diverse roles. And I asked him, “John, do you have example of someone who has been a ‘positive influencer’ for you that you could share?” John first said, “I’ve been in the industry for more than 25 years, so I’ve been lucky to encounter so many people who have shared their knowledge, insight and passion for this business with me. I call it a business, but in reality it’s so much more than that. To some, it’s a way of life! I think my biggest influencers have actually been the amazing people who work on our ships, delivering our great product. They are on the front lines and traveling the world (often away from their own family), to help ensure our guests have an amazing vacation experience.” Then John mentioned, “Several years ago there was a Hotel Director on our ships named Cliff Brinkmann and he really influenced my outlook on travel, especially when it came to visiting off the beaten path destinations. He’s probably the reason I ended up on a scuba diving trip with my wife in Palau and Yap in Micronesia – something I wouldn’t have done had he not pushed me to consider more exotic destinations. From a career standpoint, my old boss Brian Langston-Carter (SVP of Hotel Operations) is the reason I’m still at Princess. He took me under his wing and really helped me grow. What an amazingly creative and dynamic leader he was.”
October 2017
9 Creating memories of a lifetime — Part of Travel Agents’ Role as Influencers I mentioned to John that with some of the tragic disasters that have recently occurred, people are now realizing that life is about moments. When traveling (including cruising) people are really looking to have those special life memory moments. This is what travel agents can do best - help their clients have those special life memory moments. Sometimes it’s getting those “behind the scenes” special touches pulled together. We talked a bit more about this, and John said, “I couldn’t agree more that life is about those special moments. When you’re at the end of your road, taking your final breath – what will you think of? Hopefully the amazing trip you took with your family. As a travel agent, I think so much of this has to do with knowing your clients and what their interests are, not to mention their budget.” Sharing a bit more about a personal experience, John explained, “I’ve personally had an amazing experience taking a helicopter ride to an ice field outside of Juneau, Alaska to go dog sledding. But that trip requires not only a level of adventure (not everyone is willing to fly in a helicopter!), but it also requires extra money. For a family of four, that’s an extra $2,000 just for that one excursion! While that may seem like a lot of money (and it is), it’s also the one thing my family and I still talk about from that trip. So, from a value perspective, it had a huge return for us. I will always remember the excitement of my sons during the helicopter ride (the look on their face was priceless), but also them running in the snow next to the dogsled trying to outrace the dogs!”
Creating positive buzz and being a real human being One of the exciting things I personally like about John is the diverse social media avenues he uses himself at in his role at Princess Cruises. John’s short videos, shows he’s a real human being, who creates that positive buzz and engages people. John and I talked about this and I asked, “John do you have any suggestions for travel agents who might think, ‘I can’t do that - I’m not a television or radio personality?’ Any tips?” John noted, “Everyone has their own unique voice and style. I guess I’m lucky that I’m comfortable in front of a camera or being on stage, but it doesn’t come without plenty of butterflies! Believe me, I take it very seriously and thus I stress over every presentation or video I do. As soon as I lose that stress, I’ll be in trouble. In terms of style, everyone is unique and they should embrace that. There’s an executive who works at Holland America Line
Travel Agent Professional
10 (Joe Slattery, the SVP of Global Sales & Marketing) who is pretty much the exact opposite of me.
I’m
young, he’s older. He’s incredibly smart, I’m not. He reminds me of a few professors I had in college. Joe will never be like me, and I will never be like him. But I very much enjoy listening to him speak as I always learn something new.”
More Ideas — Feed the Beast, Find your Voice, and use Videos As far as other tips, John went on, explaining, “I would encourage Agents to find their own voice and do everything they can to perfect it (which comes with trial & error and lots of practice). From a social media standpoint, you have to invest the time and energy into it or it won’t ever work. You truly need to ‘feed the beast’ so make sure you send out at least 2 posts per week on Facebook. If you send out engaging, meaningful content, your audience will be drawn to it. Pay close attention to your competition and do what you can to create something new and unique, otherwise you won’t stand out. Finally, make sure to stay up to date on the Facebook formula. Just because you post something doesn’t mean everyone in your network will see it. Videos have more reach than static posts with a picture or a web link. That formula may change, so stay connected! Good luck!”
Yes, we’re Influencers Part of our branding is being an influencer. We share our specific knowledge and expertise to our clients, and it’s also a good viable way to build future clients. “Walking the talk” is really a key when it comes to being travel influencers.
October 2017
Showcase
HomeBased Travel Agents Take Center Stage at NEST FEST 2017 NEST FEST hosted its 3-day conference at the JW Marriott this week in Orlando, FL (October 12th14th). NEST, (The Network of Entrepreneurs Selling Travel), gathers members to connect with other home-based agency owners, meet with preferred suppliers and of course, hear and learn from top travel industry leaders. “This conference provides the opportunity for our NEST members to truly connect, exchange ideas and help take their business to the next level”, says NEST President, Kathryn Mazza-Burney. “Our agenda of educational sessions, supplier networking opportunities and product workshops help position our members for success in an ever-changing travel market”. This year, the NEST FEST agenda was dynamic as always and including some new features – The latest of which was an interactive element, allowing agents to experience products hands-on as preferred suppliers provide unique perspectives, which offer a competitive edge and new insight to sell with confidence. Also new this year, was a Preferred Supplier Trade Show and Genius Bar – where agents could preview and experience live demos of various software and technology to sell and market their business. KEYNOTE ADDRESS: Delivering this years’ keynote address was travel industry veteran, Paul Wiseman. A travel agent for over 35 years, Paul currently owns and operates his own company, Partner Learning Solutions – dedicated to creating fun, educational and insightful sales growth opportunities for agents, agencies and company leaders. His address to NEST members took an in-depth look at realistic methods to grow business, how to seize opportunities and setting goals. NEST member and attendee, LuAnn Lisell, owner of Lisell Travel, LLC in Plano TX said, “Paul delivered a high energy, fast paced session that kept us captivated. He helped us understand our individual strengths as well as guiding us through a practical approach to developing a business plan. We all left the session with specific goals for building our business in 2018”.
Travel Agent Professional
Paul Wiseman, (center) former President of Trafalgar, now owner of Partner Learning Solutions, poses with Nicole Mazza (L) and Kathryn Burney-Mazza (R) of TRAVELSAVERS, after delivering keynote address at NEST FEST 2017 in Orlando Florida, (Oct. 13, 2017).
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Mix and Match the
P a u l l T i c k n e r
Following last month’s suggestions for early season February-May garden tours, here are some more but this time for the JuneSeptember period. Putting them together, I’ve been struck by an important thought. Because your clients are travelling between 3,000-6,000 miles for their customised tour, every itinerary should be spiced up with owner/head gardener visits. These special touches add a few extra dollars to the overall tour cost but their impact on the quality of the experience is huge and worth every
By Paull Tickner
penny.
Paull Tickner & Associates Ltd.
Paull Tickner, owner of U.K.-based Custom GB, is renowned for his expertise in creating and operating imaginative, value-added tours of Great Britain and Ireland. Visit his website at www.customgb.co.uk and E-mail him at ptickner@customgb.co.uk
October 2017
Unexpected for a Perfect Result
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This month’s collection illustrates how you can mix and match outstanding garden shows in Dublin, North Wales and Edinburgh and at Chatsworth, Hampton Court, Blenheim Palace and Woburn Abbey. I’ve added some colourful cathedral flower festivals in Chichester, Ely and Winchester. Don’t forget that with a bit of careful manoeuvring, each of these bright ideas can be converted into a pre or post cruise extension.
Bloom, Castles and Chatsworth Your garden loving clients won’t have seen this tour before. It starts in Dublin with Bloom 2018, Ireland’s premier garden festival before a fast ferry to Holyhead for 3 days at the North Wales Festival of Gardens. With visits to 12th century castles, Roman Chester and Wedgwood it finishes with a day at the RHS
Flower
Show
at
treasure-filled
Chatsworth. Fly into Dublin and out of Manchester or offer them a 2-hour train ride for a 2-3 night London extension.
The Power of Flowers This unique tour idea begins with a fabulous floral display at Ely Cathedral (probably my favourite) before rubbing shoulders with other garden lovers at the Blenheim Place and Woburn Abbey Flower Shows. With some privately-owned Cotswolds gardens, a tasty visit to the National Herb Centre it finishes with a visit to an edible garden. This is another combination that your anglophile clients will not have seen before.
A Spectacular Floral Cascade For clients who can’t fit in a springtime UK visit next year, persuade them to take an early September tour that combines the festival at Wisley, the Royal Horticultural Society’s flagship garden, some privately owned gardens, Jane Austen and the magnificent flower arrangements and installations cascading through the great Norman cathedral in Winchester. There’s a visit to Hampton Court Palace before reaching London.
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The Hampton Court Flower Show Billed as the world’s largest flower show, a day at the Hampton Court Flower Show (3rd-8th July 2018) provides a spectacular finish to any UK tour. Precede or follow it with a tour filled with some of the finest castles, stately homes and gardens (both large and small) in the south east of England. I can recommend some great pubs for lunch!
The National Garden Scheme Most of my garden tours will include properties participating in the National Garden Scheme. From February to October, over 3,700 of them across England and Wales take part and most of them are privately owned. From the quirky to the grand, they only open when at their peak for colour, fragrance, profusion and are perfect for tea and cakes on the lawn. North of the border, check out Gardens Open Scotland.
October 2017
16 Cruise Ship Order Book Reflects M i t c h e l l J . S c h l e s i n g e r
By Mitchell J. Schlesinger Chief Marketing & Sales Officer, MJS Consultants, mjschlesinger@bellsouth.net
The cruise ship order book, with over 70 new ships arriving in between 2018-2015!, reflects a staggering array of ships of varying sizes across all product segments, offering a myriad of experiences onboard and ashore providing more opportunities to appeal to more repeat and potential cruisers than ever. And this presents extraordinary sales opportunities for travel sellers with top notch marketing and sales skills. Since the mid 1990’s cruise brands have dramatically expanded the geographic horizons for ship deployment to continue to offer new and interesting itineraries for brand loyalists and attract new cruisers. In the early days, existing ships were deployed to destinations around the world. However, as time has progressed, cruise lines having been building more “purpose built ships”, specifically tailored to operate in specific regions of the world and enhance the experience for guests. This is particularly evident for regions including Antarctica, the Arctic, river cruising around the world, soft adventure destinations, etc. Even more favorably, there are now more ship alternatives than ever to offer different experiences in similar cruise destinations. Clearly, cruising through the Baltic, Northern Europe, west and east Mediterranean on ships carrying 600-1,000 guests provides a very different experience than ships carrying 3,000+. And that in itself provides numerous sales opportunities based on
October 2017
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Extraordinary Business Opportunities For Travel Sellers
the psychographics of the guests and the prefer-
quee ports and offering more of a resort experi-
ences they seek between intensive shore immer-
ence onboard with multiple dining alternatives,
sion versus an experience with more big ship
expansive spas and casinos, large scale entertain-
onboard features.
ment, etc.
And this is where your marketing, sales and guest
Your job is to clearly present these different alter-
profiling skills become important to your sales suc-
natives to clients and give them the opportunity to
cess.
I have always postured that no one really
select the experience that fits their intended
buys a cruise for what the ship looks like from the
desires. And this extends to burgeoning destinations
outside. But they do buy cruises based on 2 critical
including north Europe, Arctic, costal Scandinavian
factors; what features the ship offers onboard and
regions and more. There are numerous new ships
the experience provided in the selected destina-
planned for these regions and they vary from 35
tions.
This is the different preferences of itiner-
guest exploration vessels to 200 guest luxury ships.
aries with more ports, including ports bigger ships
Again, similar itineraries in the same regions with
cannot visit, more time in port, port overnights,
multiple ways for guests to experience these new
special events in port vs. bigger ships visiting mar-
destinations.
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The crucial aspect of “selling� is always to let the guest make the ultimate decision based on the features and benefits provided.
If they ask your opinion, your response should be based on the information you have gath-
ered during the profiling discussion. This is most important where the choices of ships and destinations are more similar, including big ships from major brands with itineraries in the Caribbean, Alaska, Mexican Riviera, etc. Here the guest must understand the different aspects of onboard dining features, programming, entertainment, stateroom alternatives, service reputation, etc.
In many cases experienced cruisers are less loyal in the
mainstream sector, opting specifically for the newest ships offered by different brands. Again, your role is to guide them based on past choices and expectations. The cruise industry is investing billions and billions on new ships to be delivered over the next 10 years. And they are investing in the travel agency community, just as they have for the past 40 + years. And while, like every other business industry, guests have the capability to book direct, travel agents still are responsible for upwards of 90% of bookings for cruise lines depending on their size and market sector. If you would like to see the order book, go to www.seatradeinsider.com, click on the Order Book link and you will be able to download the list of ships currently on order through 2025. I promise it will magnify the opportunity for you to dramatically increase your cruise sales and profitability.
October 2017
Travel Agent Professional
CruiseOne & Dream Vacations Receive Two Prestigious Recognitions from the International Franchise Association Franchisee of the Year Honor and Operation Vetrepreneur Wins Franchising Gives Back Gold
National home-based travel franchise CruiseOne and Dream Vacations were recently recognized during two awards ceremonies at the International Franchise Association’s (IFA) Annual Franchise Action Network Conference in Washington, D.C. CruiseOne Franchisees Richard & Cheryl Butz were recognized as Franchisee of the Year, and Dream Vacations’ military initiative Operation Vetrepreneur was recognized as a gold Franchising Gives Back winner. “We are in the business of creating dream jobs for entrepreneurs, and as a franchisor, there is no higher honor than to be recognized by the Shelly Sun, IFA Chair and Founder & CEO of BrightStar Care; Richard and Cheryl Butz, CruiseOne International Franchise Franchise Owners; Tom Baber, multi-unit franchisee of both Money Mailer and IHOP (DineEquity); and Neema Ardebili, Vice President of Business Development & Global Franchise at ADP. Association,” said Debbie Fiorino, senior vice president of CruiseOne and Dream Vacations. “As a low-cost, home-based travel franchise, it is really something special to see our name share the spotlight with major household names in the franchise industry.” The Franchisee of the Year award is an annual recognition for a select group of franchisees who have demonstrated excellence within the franchising community. Laurys Station, Pa. residents Richard & Cheryl Butz were recognized because they have grown from a home-based operation to one of CruiseOne’s most successful storefronts nationwide. Their strong work ethic, tenaciousness and persistence feed their success. “I am so proud of Richard and Cheryl for how they have grown their business and become mentors to others within our franchise network,” noted Fiorino. “They are two of the most deserving people to receive this recognition.”
October 2017
Michael Isakson, chairman of the IFA Franchise Education & Research Foundation Board of Trustees; Janet Harris, CFE, Franchise Development Manager of Dream Vacations; and Eric Stites, chair of the Foundation’s VetFran Committee.
In conjunction with the IFA’s Franchise Education & Research Foundation, the Franchising Gives Back program was established by a generous donation from Roark Capital Group and it salutes the best, most innovative community leaders and charitable programs nationwide. Dream Vacations’ was one of five gold winners and was recognized in the “Support our Veterans” category for its Operation Vetrepreneur initiative, which has awarded 30 military veterans free franchises since 2012. “Military veterans are a vital part of society and awarding veterans a free franchise is just one way we are able to give back to those who have done so much for our country,” added Fiorino. “This award truly solidifies our standing as the best franchise opportunity for veterans.” The Franchise Action Network Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. brings together more than 300 franchise business leaders to raise awareness with policymakers and other D.C. influencers about the industry’s continued success and economic contributions. Existing travel agents, military veterans and those who are passionate about travel with an entrepreneurial spirit who are interested in starting a travel agency, should visit www.DreamVacationsFranchise.com or call 888-249-8235.
About the International Franchise Association Celebrating 56 years of excellence, education and advocacy, the International Franchise Association is the world's oldest and largest organization representing franchising worldwide. IFA works through its government relations and public policy, media relations and educational programs to protect, enhance and promote franchising and the more than 733,000 franchise establishments that support nearly 7.6 million direct jobs, $674.3 billion of economic output for the U.S. economy and 2.5 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). IFA members include franchise companies in over 300 different business format categories, individual franchisees and companies that support the industry in marketing, law, technology and business development. About CruiseOne® / Dream Vacations Ranked in the top three percent of all franchises worldwide and a member of the International Franchise Association, the home-based travel franchise CruiseOne® has been in operation since 1992, and its sister brand Dream Vacations launched in April 2016, giving franchisees a choice in how they want to brand their travel business. As part of World Travel Holdings, CruiseOne / Dream Vacations franchisees are given premium resources to plan and create a seamless vacation experience for the customer while offering the best value. CruiseOne has received partner of the year, a top-ranking status, by all the major cruise lines. For more information on CruiseOne / Dream Vacations, visit www.DreamVacationsFranchise.com. Like on Facebook at www.facebook.com/DreamVacationsFranchise, and follow on Twitter at @Dream_Franchise.
Travel Agent Professional
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