ASTA 2007 Corporate Report

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A New View A S T A

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R e p o rt

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ASTA’s Value to the Industry

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In 2007, ASTA stood at a precipice, poised to redefine itself and its role in the industry. ASTA, long a leader in fighting on behalf of its members and the traveling public, debuted its new business model which included a revamped membership and governance structure as well as enhanced benefits for all members.

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With the new structure came purpose—to ensure a retail travel marketplace that is a rewarding place to work, in short a marketplace that attracts fresh talent and investors to all sectors. ASTA’s role is to facilitate the business of selling travel and in doing so to provide its members with the necessary tools to succeed no matter their business model.

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As the year would unfold, ASTA found itself exercising its “One Voice” before a Congressional committee on the issue of passenger rights, submitting comments on Secure Flight and proposed passport regulations and working with Washington coalitions that represented travel agent views on matters concerning independent contractors, the tax gap, Internet regulation and excise taxes on car rentals.

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Even with a presence at the federal level, the one arena that would literally shape ASTA’s legislative agenda was its involvement in state legislative activities. Throughout the year, state budget proposals were introduced to raise taxes to fill state coffers and these taxes looked to service industries as their cash cows.

In each case, ASTA’s government affairs department and the local chapter, with help from the Corporate Advisory Council, jumped in to fight burdensome regulation that would negatively impact agents’ ability to do business successfully.

Over the course of the year, the Society would debut a new Web site with enhanced B-2-B services, specialized meetings and trade shows, and a wealth of tools to ensure members a competitive edge. The association would exceed its goals, by a large margin, for Travel Agent memberships and Premium Membership would grow almost daily.

ASTA would lead travel agents in incorporating environmentally conscious practices into their businesses and create an internal task force to implement new, green practices and improve current ones at ASTA headquarters.

Always moving forward, “discipline, focus and execution” became the internal motto of ASTA.

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Mission Statement ASTA’s (the American Society of Travel Agents’) mission is to

facilitate the business

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of selling travel through effective representation, shared

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knowledge and the enhancement of professionalism.

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Vision Statement ASTA seeks a retail travel marketplace that

is profitable, growing and a

rewarding place to work, invest and do business.

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A Statement From

Cheryl Hudak

As president and CEO of ASTA, my

job is to see the association presented in the best possible light before the industry and traveling public and to guide the Society as it continues to evolve. Thanks to the “new” ASTA, my job in 2007 was made easy. The results of ASTA’s rebranding speak for themselves; I couldn’t have been more proud to represent ASTA at this juncture in its history.

From chapter meetings to large industry events, I heard from members how pleased they were to be a part of ASTA. Perhaps more telling were the sentiments expressed by those no longer

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involved with ASTA. On countless occasions, I was approached by former members and even those who had never been a part of ASTA who told me how impressed they were by the positive

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changes effected by ASTA and the unquestionable impact the Society is making on the industry and how they intended to join ASTA.

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During the year, I canvassed the country and the globe, promoting the value that ASTA brings to the industry and that our members provide to the traveling public. What I heard time and again

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was that travel agents have a critical role to play and a powerful voice that will be heard. As a profession, we have gone from being ticket-takers to proactive sellers of travel, marketing ourselves and our industry as a thriving profession in which one can build a successful career. We are no longer in the travel business, we are in the business of selling travel. It’s ASTA’s sole mission to facilitate the success of its members. To that end, we made

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numerous changes to better focus ASTA’s resources and expertise.

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Whether it be the burgeoning Premium membership, the successful rebranding of the association, a host of top-tier

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business resources or any of the other many changes ASTA made in 2007, by year end it was clear we had made the right changes at the right time. To those who have stood by ASTA since the beginning, to those who have recently joined and to future members, the best is yet to come.

Regards, Cheryl Hudak, CTC ASTA President and CEO

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Current Executive Committee and Board of Directors President & CEO Cheryl Corey Hudak, CTC Travel Dimensions, Inc. Boardman, OH

Board Member Patrick R. Byrne, CLU M.P.B. Travel Service, Inc. Buffalo, NY

Board Member Irene C. Ross, CTC Ross Travel Consultants, Inc. Boston, MA

Vice President & Secretary Mary Peters, CTC Friendly Travel Inc./American Express Alexandria, VA

Board Member Robert Durant WD World Travel Vancouver, BC

Board Member Chris Russo Travel Partners Broomfield, CO

Treasurer George Delanoy Brea Travel/American Express Brea, CA

Board Member Lila A. Ford, CTC, DS, ACC Gallery of Travel, Inc. Rochester, NY

Board Member Kari C. Thomas, CTC, CNS Will Travel, Inc. Langhorne, PA

Exec Committee Member Roger Block, CTC Carlson Leisure Group Minneapolis, MN

Board Member Dan Lanser, CTC A Plus Travel Adventures Uniontown, OH

Board Member K. Hope Wallace, CTC ADA Travel Casa Grande, AZ

Executive Vice President & COO William A. Maloney, CTC ASTA Executive Offices Alexandria, VA

Board Member Lynda P. Maxwell, CTC Destinations, Inc. Ellicott City, MD

Board Member Ellen Bettridge American Express Travel Representative Network New York, NY

Board Member Michael L. McCulloh McCulloh Travel Service, Inc. Lake Oswego, OR

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Current Chapter Presidents Council ALLEGHENY Victoria L. Abel, CTC Odyssey Travel, Inc. Murrysville, PA

CENTRAL & NORTH FLORIDA Geraldine Gregorian, MCC, PhD AAA Auto Club South Port Saint Lucie, FL

LONG ISLAND Lois M. Howes Sterling Travel Freeport, NY

ARIZONA Laura Rodriguez-Verbera Marina Tours And Travel Arizona LLC Phoenix, AZ

CENTRAL ATLANTIC Jay M. Ellenby Safe Harbors Business Travel Group Baltimore, MD

MICHIGAN John I. Lovell, CTC Breton Village Travel Services, Inc. Grand Rapids, MI

CAROLINAS Joseph W. Bouknight Forest Lake Travel Columbia, SC

DELAWARE VALLEY Arlene H. Blosch Preferred Travel Mays Landing, NJ

MID AMERICA Dan Lanser, CTC A Plus Travel Adventures Uniontown, OH

CONNECTICUT Lokesh Sharma Universal Travels New Haven, CT

HAWAII Raymond Miyashiro Regal Travel Honolulu, HI

MIDWEST Joanne Gardner, CTC The Travel Specialist Wheaton, IL

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Current Chapter Presidents Council cont...

MISSOURI VALLEY Cheryl Kent, CTA,ACC Carlson Wagonlit Travel O Fallon, MO

OREGON Doug Walker Walker Travel and Cruises Gresham, OR

SOUTH FLORIDA Nina Meyer, CTC,MCC,DS TraveLeaders Coral Gables, FL

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA Scott Pinheiro Santa Cruz Travel, Inc. Santa Cruz, CA

PACIFIC NORTHWEST Teri L. Trettin, CTC, MCC CWT/Travel Center Tacoma, WA

SOUTHEAST Susan H. Aft, ACC Discount Travel and Cruise Atlanta, GA

NEW ENGLAND Mike Spinelli, Jr. Vacation.com Windham, NH

PUERTO RICO/VI Luis O. Soto Gala Travel Agency Arecibo, PR

SOUTHWEST Frances A. Lindsey, CTC, ACC Oasis Travel Palestine, TX

NEW JERSEY Bonnie S. Kessler Lloyd Exchange Travel, Inc. Millburn, NJ

ROCKY MOUNTAIN Chris Russo Travel Partners Broomfield, CO

UPPER MIDWEST Wendy Weigel AAA Minneapolis Minneapolis, MN

NEW YORK CITY Barbara Jathas, DS Skyway Travel Service, Inc. Ossining, NY

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Daniel Genung Harr Enterprises Travel Redlands, CA

UPSTATE NY Patrick R. Byrne, CLU M.P.B. Travel Service, Inc. Buffalo, NY

ORANGE COUNTY Karl E. Rosen Towne Centre Travel & Cruises Diamond Bar, CA

SAN DIEGO Merris Gold-Drew First Class Travel San Diego, CA

WISCONSIN-UPM Sherrie J. Bindrim All About Travel, Inc. Mukwonago, WI

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Current International Chapter Presidents Council

15 BRAZIL Kishin J. Harjani Taj Mahal Tours Ltd. Manaus

GERMANY Hans-Joerg Schulze BBS Berliner Baeren Stadtrundfahrt GmbH Berlin

IRELAND Eithne Scott-Lennon Castle Transport & Marketing Services, Ltd Dublin

CHINA Xiong Yue, China Destination Travel International Corp Ltd Beijing

GREECE Paul J. Holevas Cruiseclub Holidays Ltd. Athens

ISRAEL Waleed Afifi Nazarene Tours Nazareth

CROATIA Andrea Blazekovic Speranza Travel Agency Zagreb

INDIA Rajeev Kohli Creative Travel Private, Ltd. New Delhi

ITALY Fabio Beninca Cima Travel Fasigest/Fasi Gestur Rome

EGYPT Mamdouh El Sebai Egitalloyd Travel Cairo

IRAN Massoud Nematollahi Pars Tourist Agency Shiraz

JAPAN Shigeo Adachi TopTour Corporation Tokyo

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Current International Chapter Presidents Council cont...

JORDAN Nasser A. Zaatarah Zaatarah & Co. Tourist & Travel Amman

PAKISTAN Mahmud Ahmad Bonds Travel Bureau Karachi

TANZANIA Faiza Punja Winglink Travel Limited Dares Salaam

KENYA Joshua Nyiera Acacia Holidays Limited Nairobi

PERU Veronica N. de Wicks Tucano Reps. Peru Latin Trails SAC Lima

THAILAND Pitsanu Gary Kongkunpai 24 Jan. Travel Bangkok

KUWAIT Naser Rezqalla Alraya Travel & Tourism Co. Hawally

PORTUGAL Joao Moita Citur Travel Portugal Lisbon

TURKEY Ceylan Pirinccioglu VIP Tourism Turkey Istanbul

LEBANON Lina Ghazi Ghazi Travel Agency Beirut

ROMANIA Petre Balas Peter Express Bucharest

UNITED KINGDOM Andrew F. Gilmour Montrave International Leven, Fife

MALDIVES Yousuf Riffath, Managing Director Capital Travel & Tours Pvt. Ltd. Male

RUSSIA Tatiana Baklanova Business Travel Group St. Petersburg

VIETNAM Truong Quang Le DirecTravelAsia Co, Ltd Ho Chi Minh City

MALTA Joseph A. Bugeja Globalair Travel Ltd Saint Julians

SINGAPORE Cathy Thang Green Island Tours (S) Pte Ltd Singapore

W CANADA Robert Durant WD World Travel Vancouver

MEXICO Gines Martinez Jumbo Tours Group Cancun

SOUTH AFRICA Jo Schutten Uni Travel Cape Town

NETHERLANDS Perry van de Wiel Travelhome BV Waalre

SPAIN Alexander Maximillian Gray Y Si Viajas S.L. Las Rozas

NIGERIA Edmund Yomi Jones Six Continents Travels & Tours Lagos

SYRIA Ghassan Aidi CHAMTOUR Damascus

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1st Quarter:

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New Year, New ASTA

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Just 10 days into the new year, ASTA unveiled the fruits of more than a year’s planning and preparation with a media event at New York City’s The Modern. Before an audience of ASTA members and key trade reporters, ASTA debuted its new logo, mission statement and brand identity, along with elements of the new business plan that would propel the trade association and its members to becoming the only industry organization solely devoted to the business of selling travel.

A new and simplified membership structure meant that now ASTA members could choose from Premium Membership, with concierge-level services such as customized research and business consulting, or the Travel Agent membership, an enhanced version of the Society’s already comprehensive standard member benefits.

Those 78 agencies which were among the first to sign on to ASTA’s newest membership category became Charter Premium Members.

Ever mindful of its mission to facilitate the business of selling travel through effective representation, shared knowledge and the enhancement of professionalism, in January, the association spoke out in favor of the Blueprint to Discover America, a three-point plan designed to increase foreign travel to the United States, and turned its lobbying efforts to battling a hotel booking tax on Montana travel agents and a gross receipts tax in Michigan. Fighting anti-travel agent legislation at the state level would prove to be the main thrust of ASTA’s legislative efforts in 2007, as was evidenced when, in February shortly after ASTA submitted testimony regard-

ing the Montana service fee tax, the state of New York proposed similar taxes. ASTA member John Giordano of Plaza Travel Center (Latham, N.Y.) testified before the N.Y. State Joint Senate Finance and Assembly Ways and Means Committees on two N.Y. proposals that would levy a tax on service fees related to hotel bookings and the negative effect these taxes would have on travel agents. Also highly instrumental in fighting this tax was Premium Member Don Johnson of Town & Country Travel (Pittsford, N.Y.), who “carried the flag” to critical meetings in Albany.

In the early part of 2007, ASTA found itself re-engaging on the issue of passenger rights, picking up the gauntlet in defense of airline passengers subjected to lengthy tarmac delays. (In 1999, ASTA became the lead industry organization to advocate for a legislated bill of rights; its pressure ultimately led to the adoption of the so-called ‘voluntary service commitments’ to which most major airlines subscribed in June 1999.) ASTA also spoke out in favor of one of the key elements of President George W. Bush’s proposed federal budget for 2008, in which the Bush administration called for the elimination of passenger ticket taxes on commercial airlines, in effect shifting the costs from consumers to business and private aircraft companies by 2009. In its statement, ASTA noted that it was a long-time proponent of the idea that consumers should not unfairly shoulder the burden of subsidizing the airline industry.

Members were on the receiving end of numerous white papers and reports as 2007 kicked into gear. Among

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the topics were papers such as the Travel Agents’ Guide to Airline Bankruptcies and Travel Agents’ Guide to Alternate Airline Booking Products. Premium Members received such comprehensive reports as the joint ASTA/ Sloan Foundation Study, which examined the strengths of highly successful American travel agencies, the Analysis of 2006 ARC Sales Statistics and later in the first quarter, Protecting Your Travel Business: Legal Issues Regarding the Use of Independent Contractors.

A wealth of data was made available to members in the first quarter of 2007 through such research reports as the 2007 ASTA Member Profile and the 2006 ASTA GDS Report, which analyzed GDS usage by travel agents, with an eye to matters such as market share, costs and incentives and contractual issues. Premium Members were privy to critical insights stemming from two entirely new reports: the Financial Benchmarking Report, which examined how agencies have shifted revenue sources and operation expenses to remain successful, and the 2006 Supplier/Travel Agent Relationship Marketing Report, which surveyed travel agencies and suppliers to determine which booking channels are used most often, the state of preferred supplier relationships and how incentives are used. The 2006 Technology and Web Usage Report, another Premium Member benefit, assisted agencies in evaluating their business practices with respect to technology, the Internet and Web sites and provided recipients with trends, benchmarking data and best practices. To ensure that Travel Agent members also would benefit from the knowledge contained in these publications, summaries of research reports were made available to all members through ASTA’s Web site.

In keeping with ASTA’s vision of a profitable and rewarding retail travel marketplace, making consumers aware of the value of using an ASTA travel agent was paramount to the Society’s public relations efforts. To that end, ASTA was featured prominently in a supplement on international travel escapes that ran in the Wall Street Journal in February and reached more than 2 million readers.

ASTA also took to the airwaves, with spots featuring ASTA on the “Laura McKenzie’s Traveler” program, and

a 26-week series of travel tips featuring ASTA travel agents that aired on Sirius Satellite Radio’s “Traveling with Paul Lasley and Elizabeth Harryman” show. By year end, a series of eight 2-column newspaper articles and two radio spots promoting ASTA’s consumer Web site, TravelSense.org, and the use of an ASTA travel agent, would be distributed to newspapers and radio stations nationwide thanks to a year-long partnership with the North American Precis Syndicate (NAPS). The first articles of 2007 stemming from this deal focused on new passport requirements and volunteer vacations.

A partnership with Global Volunteers culminated in February—designated as Travel Agents Care month— with a national video news release on the growing trend of volunteer vacations and the role travel agents play.

Other elements included materials educating travel agents on volunteer travel, a press release distributed nationwide featuring the efforts of ASTA members to give back to their communities, and articles on TravelSense.org educating readers to the benefits of taking a volunteer vacation.

As the first quarter drew to a close, travel professionals from across the globe headed to Jeju, Korea, for ASTA’s first International Destination Expo-Asia. The event, held March 25-29, 2007, and which marked the first Board meeting of 2007, focused on providing agents with firsthand knowledge of the destination and surrounding regions. Agents who took advantage of these educational seminars returned home as Asia Destination Specialists in such countries as Thailand, China, India, Cambodia, Laos, South Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan. In addition to classroom training, exhibitors at the event conducted product seminars to give agents an opportunity to learn about the latest travel industry products and services. In total, more than 1,300 travel professionals attended the IDE with many taking advantage of the more than 20 pre- and post-tours of everything from the Dazzling Diamond Mountain in Goseong, North Korea to Beijing, China. The 2007 IDE closed with the announcement that Lyon, France, would be host to the 2008 International Destination Expo, April 12-16.

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2nd Quarter:

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State of Play

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April showers may bring May flowers,

but all eyes were on the tarmac and the issue of passenger rights as spring came in 2007. In April, ASTA Senior Vice President of Legal and Industry Affairs Paul Ruden testified before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure’s Subcommittee on Aviation to address aviation consumer issues. In his testimony, Ruden noted that “the time for so-called ‘voluntary’ passenger service commitments has passed” and outlined steps Congress could and should take that would have potentially huge benefits in the area of customer treatment by airlines. A month later, ASTA was again in the forefront when it presented testimony before the U.S. International Trade Commission on the potential travelrelated effects of lifting the current U.S. restrictions on travel by U.S. citizens to Cuba.

At the local level, ASTA scored major victories for travel agents and small business owners when it—thanks to the hard work of its members at the grassroots level— realized the defeat of hotel occupancy taxes in Montana and New York and gross receipts taxes in Michigan, Oregon and Illinois. In Massachusetts, hotel merchant occupancy taxes took center stage. Premium Member Jeff Brown of Colpitts World Travel (Dedham, Mass.), testified before the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ Special Commission to Study the Corporate Tax Code.

Brown was invited to address the Governor’s proposed corporate tax loophole package, a plan that

would impose a new hotel merchant occupancy tax on services provided by travel intermediaries, and the effect the tax would have on the travel agency community. A month later Jean Deveber with Garber | FCm Travel Solutions (Chestnut Hill, Mass.), testified before the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ Joint Revenue Committee in opposition to H. 2866, a bill that would, among other things, also impose a new hotel merchant occupancy tax.

Nowhere was the power of grassroots work more evident in the second quarter than in the great state of Texas, where ASTA scored a major victory for all Texas travel agents when it won the right for travel agents to exclude “flow-through” funds from reported gross revenue for state income tax purposes so long as the travel agent also excluded those funds when reporting federal taxes.

The result—the culmination of significant grassroots work on the part of ASTA’s Texas chapter, working in conjunction with the Corporate Advisory Council (CAC) and ASTA’s Government Affairs department— was that ASTA saved Texas travel agents thousands of dollars in taxes. It was a huge victory for all those involved, and showed the power of ASTA’s One Voice at work.

June brought with it ASTA’s first Premium Member Summit, an exclusive roundtable event for Premium Members to discuss the critical issues that affect their businesses and the industry. The event, which brought together representatives from some of the industry’s top travel agencies, was held in conjunction with ASTA’s

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third Legislative Summit in Washington, D.C., and proved to be very successful in providing members the opportunity to shape the federal and state legislative agendas of their trade association.

The highly touted Legislative Day brought together close to 60 of ASTA’s politically minded members and key officials from such government entities as the Departments of State, Transportation and Homeland Security for the purpose of sharing critical information and opening a dialogue with the travel agent community. Participants were brought up-to-date on such travel issues as the latest passport regulation changes and had the chance to engage in a Q-and-A session with such high-level speakers as Ann Barrett, deputy assistant secretary of state for passport services with the Department of State.

The event closed on a high note with a $5,000 contribution to ASTAPAC, ASTA’s political action committee, by Sabre Holding’s political action committee, SABRE PAC, and the announcement that ASTA’s Corporate Advisory Council would again provide $25,000 in charitable match funds for the program—a $5,000 increase over 2006.

Additionally, ASTAPAC announced that it had created a new contribution category for donations between $1,000 and $4,999 called “NOVA;” ASTA member Dan Lanser, CTC, was the category’s charter member.

Premium Members received several reports exclusive to their membership this quarter, namely: Payment Collection Programs Report, which provided recipients with a detailed comparison of three payment options—the Airlines Reporting Corp.’s Travel Agent Service Fee (TASF) program, PayPal and a typical credit card merchant. Premium Members also received Credit Card Surcharge Laws, which examined how the laws of 11 states that ban credit card surcharges on certain transactions affect travel agencies and airlines. On the research front, Premium Members were given access to the 2006 Service Fee Report, a survey which examined,

among other things, service fee data by travel type, service fee collections and revenue. Additionally, as part of their membership, Premium Members received the Communications guide, Working with the Media, which provided real-life suggestions and plans for procuring favorable media coverage and working with local media.

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With the subject of Internet privacy gaining momentum just as a growing number of ASTA members were increasing their Web presence, ASTA issued an all-member report, Creating a Privacy Policy for Your Agency, which clearly explained the law pertaining to Web site privacy policies and offered privacy policy implementation tips as well as suggestions for managing the privacy of employee records within the office. Two other allmember reports, Travel Agents’ Guide to Debit Memos and Airline Exchange Policies, were also issued this quarter, adding value to every level of ASTA membership.

As spring turned to summer, the media buzz was all about the rebirth of travel agents. With articles discussing the return to more traditional means of booking travel and the value that travel agents provide their clients popping up in such national publications as SmartMoney, the New York Times and the Philadelphia Inquirer, travel agents were the belles of the season. ASTA travel agents, in particular, were the focus of articles appearing across the country on such subjects as tips for women traveling alone, purchasing travel insurance and using overseas ATMs thank to ASTA’s ongoing partnership with NAPS. By year end, these three articles would be read by more than 42 million Americans. Meanwhile, ASTA’s satellite radio presence moved from Sirius to XM Radio, and in doing so increased the number of times the ASTA travel tip was heard each week. And, thanks to a partnership with Business Travel News, ASTA raised the profile of its Corporate Advisory Council through a series of guest editorials focusing on the issues that face today’s corporate travel entity.

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3rd Quarter:

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One Voice Speaking for Many

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With summer in full swing, ASTA

moved into the final stage of its new governance plan with a new streamlined Board. Under a member-approved plan, ASTA’s new governance structure called for a Board of Directors consisting of nine national directors (elected at-large for two-year, staggered terms), three chapter presidents, the International Chapter Presidents’ Council (ICPC) chair and two Corporate Advisory Council (CAC) members, but it wasn’t until the mid-year elections that this Board was effectively elected into office.

The new national directors-at-large were: George Delanoy; Lynda Maxwell, CTC; Irene C. Ross, CTC; and K. Hope Wallace, CTC. They joined Lila A. Ford, CTC, Cheryl Hudak, CTC, Mike McCulloh, Mary Peters, CTC and Kari Thomas, CTC, previously elected Board members who were in the second year of their two-year term. Together, these directors-at-large, along with CAC representatives Roger Block, CTC, (Carlson Leisure Group) and Ellen Bettridge (American Express Travel Representative Network), ASTA Executive Vice President and COO Bill Maloney, CTC, International Chapter Presidents Council Chair Robert Durant (WD World Travel, Vancouver) and chapter presidents Patrick R. Byrne, CLU (M.P.B. Travel Service, Inc.), Dan Lanser, CTC (A Plus Travel Adventures) and Chris Russo (Travel Partners) would make up the 2007-2008 ASTA Board of Directors.

One of the issues most concerning today’s travel professional is the dearth of qualified new entrants to the

industry. In laying the groundwork for a larger strategy to attract people to travel careers, the ASTA Foundation commissioned research from The State University of New York at Morrisville. The factors that go into students’ career choices were examined in the final report, Why Students Do Not Choose Travel as a Career. Another issue claiming the spotlight was that of employee classification under federal wage and hour laws. To assist in determining how to properly classify workers under the law, ASTA developed the Premium Member report, The Employee Classification Quandary. This paper examined the topic of where travel agents fit under existing wage and hour laws and provided an overview of federal minimum wage and overtime rules. Later in the summer, Premium Members received the Credit Card Fee Comparison Chart, comparing the major players and presenting results in an easy-to-read chart.

A month later, ASTA’s Legal department issued a white paper examining the Regulation of Commercial E-mail and CAN SPAM Laws. This report took an in-depth look at the landmark case involving ASTA CAC member Omega World Travel v Mummagraphics. Shortly after, the Industry Affairs department published the Travel Agents’ Guide to Travel Distribution Systems, a primer on global distribution systems, new entrants and other distribution tools. Meanwhile, that same month, ASTA’s Research department published its 2007 Suppler Travel Agent Relationship Marketing Report, to assist both travel agencies and suppliers in benchmarking their business arrangements.

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August and September proved to be a busy months in the halls of government. ASTA submitted comments to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Department of State regarding proposed documents required for travelers departing from or arriving in the United States at sea and land ports-of-entry under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. In its comments, ASTA applauded the government for its implementation of affordable documentation options, endorsed the government’s decision to permit the combination of documentation for cruises on a permanent basis; and supported the implementation of the passport card as an affordable alternative for travelers.

the future. In response, ASTA immediately began to evaluate possible legal options if continued talks with the group failed to prevent these exorbitant fee increases.

Elsewhere, September also proved a busy month as ASTA joined 16 industry partners in Las Vegas for the second annual THETRADESHOW (Sept. 9-11). The event, which saw more than 5,200 travel professionals in attendance, was a resounding success. For three days, delegates gathered at the Las Vegas Convention Center for one-onone business appointments, travel seminars and exhibits.

Among the exhibiting companies, 70 countries were represented.

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In September, ASTA testified before the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) with respect to the proposed Secure Flight program and told a panel of TSA officials that while ASTA supported the shift of security responsibility from airlines to the government, it was essential that the new rules be as consistent as possible with existing business practices in order to minimize retail industry costs of compliance. That same month, ASTA submitted comments regarding airline oversales and denied boarding compensation and responded to a report from the Department of Transportation’s Inspector General on airline passenger service commitments. In doing so, ASTA noted that the report reconfirmed most of what the Society has long argued are the actions necessary to effect comprehensive change in airline treatment of passengers, but fell short in two critical areas—failure to include consumer and travel agent representation in a proposed task force.

ASTA also filed comments in September on a proposed rule-making for cruise passenger with disabilities and responded to RCI’s plan to eliminate travel agent air commissions. Earlier this quarter, ASTA responded to Carnival Cruise Lines’ move to do the same.

It was the same month that the Airlines Reporting Corp. announced its intention to increase its annual fee by 172 percent as of Jan. 1, 2008, with larger increases likely in

During its annual meeting at THETRADESHOW, ASTA presented its 2007 Travel Industry Awards, sponsored by Enterprise Rent-A-Car: Allied Member of the Year Award:

Adam Goldstein, president, Royal Caribbean Cruises

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Lifetime Achievement Award:

Dave Stockert, director of sales and training, Holland America Line, Inc.

Travel Agent of the Year:

John Haskins, co-owner, Viking Travel Service (Naperville, Ill.)

Travel Hall of Fame:

Marilyn Carlson Nelson, chairman and CEO, Carlson Companies

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ASTA also held its annual Advocacy Dinner in Las Vegas, an evening during which speakers and special guests celebrated ASTA’s value in shaping political policies affecting the business of selling travel. The highlight of the event was a special showcase performance by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s current London co-production of The Sound of Music. Las Vegas was also the location for the second Premium Member Business Summit, in which ASTA’s Premium Members again gathered to share their business insights and hear from industry leaders on the state-of-play within the travel sector.

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At THETRADESHOW, ASTA’s Board of Directors convened to elect its new Executive Committee. Cheryl Hudak, CTC, was re-elected as ASTA president and CEO, to again serve with Mary Peters, CTC, who was re-elected to the position of vice president and secretary. George Delanoy was elected to serve as ASTA’s treasurer. Also serving on the Executive Committee would be Roger Block, CTC, as director-at-large, who was elected chair of the Corporate Advisory Council (CAC), and Bill Maloney, CTC, ASTA executive vice president and COO (ex officio). The 2007-2008 Executive Committee will serve a year term that commenced at the end of THETRADESHOW. ASTA’s International Chapter Presidents Council (ICPC) also held an election at its meeting. Robert Durant (Western Canada Chapter) was elected as chair of the International Chapter Presidents Council and accordingly will serve a one-year term on ASTA’s Board of Directors. Elected as vice-chair was Andrew Gilmour (United Kingdom).

Drawn in part by ASTA’s industry representation at the state and federal levels and in defending travel agents’ position with suppliers such as the Airlines Reporting Corp., by September the roster of Premium Members stood at 125 and counting. Premium Member Lee Rosenbluth, owner, Rosenbluth Vacations (Philadelphia) had this to say of his membership: “The new ASTA has exceeded my expectations with its thorough research and timely response on various issues. ASTA clearly understands the need to be effective and efficient on

behalf of all of its members.” Statements such as these gave weight to the fact that ASTA had made the right changes at the right time.

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ASTA’s political action committee—ASTAPAC—received an additional vote of confidence this quarter when Enterprise Rent-a-Car made a $2,500 donation to the PAC as a show of support for the valuable work the association does on behalf of its members on the legislative front.

The third quarter of 2007 also saw the association roll out an electronic version of its popular ASTAnetwork magazine, allowing members to read the magazine from the convenience of their desktop. A second supplement ran in the September 8 issue of the Wall Street Journal.

Seen by approximately 2 million people, this supplement focused on great fall travel escapes while still emphasizing the importance of using an ASTA travel agent to plan that next get-away or long vacation.

The consumer press continued to extol the virtues of working with a professional travel agent—all told ASTA’s message was seen by more than 127 million people thanks to articles running in papers across the country.

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4th Quarter:

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Tsk, Tax

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As 2007 came to a close, state

legislatures continued to find new and innovative ways in which to tax travel agents and other small business owners. ASTA and its members were there every step of the way to see that travel agents and the tourism industry did not come out on the losing side. Perhaps no better example of this occurred in Michigan, when in a 48-hour period, the state legislature proposed and ratified a 6-percent service industries tax that could have severely threatened Michigan’s tourism industry.

Thanks to the help of ASTA’s Corporate Advisory Council, Michigan’s ASTA chapter was able to retain the Lansing firm of Muchmore, Harrington, Smalley & Associates (MHSA). Together they lobbied fiercely to repeal the 6-percent service tax that would have taken effect on Dec. 1, 2007. Michigan ASTA joined forces with the Michigan Chamber to repeal this tax and was a founding member along with 38 groups, including the National Federation of Business, in forming the Ax the Tax Coalition. The chapter also set up a fundraising mechanism to help defray the chapter’s financial responsibility toward MHSA’s contract agreement.

Several ASTA members testified before the Michigan Senate Finance and House Tax Policy on Taxation Committees: John Lovell, Michigan Chapter president, president of Breton Village Travel Services; Carol Wagner, president of Carson Wagonlit Travel/Travel Plus; and Lisa Hoehn, vice president/corporate sales for Passageways Travel/American Express.

Throughout its campaign, ASTA reached out to nonASTA Michigan agents to be a part of the fight through “One Unified Voice” and when all was said and done, more than 1,000 messages from travel agents were sent to legislators. The service tax was repealed, replacing revenues with the Michigan Business Tax that took effect on Jan. 1, 2008, providing cuts to 60 percent of Michigan businesses and cuts to small businesses.

In October of 2007, ASTA Premium Member Bob Malmberg, CTIE, president and owner of The Malmberg Travel Companies (Boston), testified before the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ Joint Committee on Financial Services in opposition to proposed Massachusetts House Bill 931, which would impose a $250,000 surety bond on all sellers of travel in the Commonwealth. In his testimony, he noted that no other state in the union requires the travel agency industry to provide a bond of that scale. ASTA member Jacky Keith, president of Esplanade Tours (Boston), also spoke at the hearing, endorsing Malmberg’s testimony. The surety bond bill received no positive support during the hearing process and the bill was still pending at year end.

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At the federal level, ASTA filed comments in response to the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Secure Flight Program Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in which the Society pointed to significant issues, namely those involving an unrealistic 60-day implementation schedule coupled with an extraordinary economic burden that would cause undue hardship to many travel agencies unless remedied.

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In its filing, ASTA noted: “[R]ules in the NPRM will impose an enormous unfunded mandate on the private sector, a major portion of which is going to fall on the travel agency industry that delivers the majority of passengers into the airlines’ seats. It is imperative, therefore, that the rules conform as closely as possible to existing business procedures and avoid imposing redundant work or costs.

That is the guiding principle of these comments. Given the magnitude of the costs imposed on travel agents under the proposed rules, we hope that principle will be reflected fully in the final regulations. Failure to adhere to this principle will lead to additional travel agencies being forced to leave the business.”

Among ASTA’s most significant concerns was the TSA’s underestimation of the financial impact of the proposed rules on travel agencies. For example, first-year costs associated with data collection were estimated by TSA to be $22 million. In comparison, ASTA polled its Premium Members and resulting estimates found that first-year costs, including implementation, would be $68.5 million, a substantial difference that would fall primarily on the backs of travel agencies.

In October, in recognition of the work ASTA did throughout the year to further the cause of travel agents, TravelPort’s political action committee made a $5,000 donation to ASTAPAC. Around this time, ASTA debuted its revamped and significantly enhanced Web site, ASTA.org. Sporting a new, more business-oriented look to mirror ASTA’s B-2-B focus, the new site featured enhanced information architecture, making it easier than ever for members to find exactly the information they need to better run their businesses. Before year-end, an online Buyers’ Guide would join such features as the searchable eLibrary, Learning Communities and RSS feeds.

ASTA continued to move forward with its plan to take ARC’s proposed fee increase before the Independent Arbitration Panel (IAP) in October, following a vote by

the Joint Advisory Board-Agent Reporting Agreement (JAB-ARA) to take the fee proposal before the ARC Board.

Thanks to the support of ASTA’s Corporate Advisory Council, the Society had the necessary funds to move forward in seeking relief for what it termed an “unconscionable fee increase.” In December, shortly after learning that ARC’s Board had voted to move ahead with the proposal, ASTA along with Carlson Travel Network Associates, Inc. and UNIGLOBE Travel USA LLC, all members of JAB-ARA, struck back by filing a notice of appeal with the IAP. A week later, ASTA scored a small victory when ARC announced that it would postpone collection of the additional fees to July 2008, by which point ASTA’s case would be decided.

With proposed changes to the interpretation of the Passenger Vessel Services Act, ASTA spoke out and filed comments with the Customs and Border Protections Office of International Trade. These changes, if accepted, would cause severe harm to the US cruise and port industries, including travel agents whose primary source of income is derived from cruise sales In 2007, ASTA saw its Travel Agent membership roster far exceed its goals. Premium Membership continued to grow throughout with 146 agencies joining the ranks by year-end. And, as part of ASTA’s mission to create a global workplace, the association launched an aggressive international membership campaign to up membership in this category by 50 percent in 2008.

Members continued to benefit from myriad reports issued by ASTA’s Research, Industry Affairs and Communications departments in the last quarter of the year. Members were privy to information collected from ASTA members on a range of technology issues from Internet research and booking patterns to Web site design and usage thanks to the 2007 Technology & Web Usage Report. The 2007 NACTA Independent Agents Report provided members with data on how independent agents’ book travel, split commissions with host agencies and their revenue share across travel segments.

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Data from these reports were included in Travel Weekly’s annual industry survey. The issue of how payment card industry data security standards apply to travel agents was covered in PCI Standards and Travel Agents.

Premium Members received two Communications guides—The Travel Agents’ Guide to Blogs and Media Training, both part of an ongoing dialogue in helping members leverage their media relations and consumer awareness.

On a national level, nearly 170 million Americans either read or heard ASTA’s message, encouraging consumers to use an ASTA travel agent, thanks to its national article campaign through NAPS, while an additional 132 million were made aware of the value of using an ASTA agent thanks to articles running in such outlets as USA Today, Miami Herald, Arizona Republic, St. Paul Pioneer Press and the Sacramento Bee. As a result of several campaigns to increase readership, the number of SmartBrief subscribers increased by 181 percent in 2007 to 16,923.

ASTA’s president and CEO, Cheryl Hudak, CTC, addressed the issue of multi-generational travel at World Travel Market’s meeting in London, and later spoke on a panel with other key industry leaders at PhoCusWrights’s meeting in Orlando. In December, she was the keynote speaker at Travel Trade’s Leisure Travel Conference where she spoke of ASTA’s many accomplishments on the legislative and regulatory fronts over the previous 12 months.

Green travel was the subject on everyone’s mind as the year came to a close and ASTA was no exception. ASTA

Executive Vice President and COO Bill Maloney, CTC, spoke to an audience at World Travel Market in London on how the reality of being an environmentally conscious travel entity could prove profitable, and addressed a group on the ways in which climate change impacts the travel industry at a meeting entitled Climate Information: Responding to User Needs, sponsored by the University of Maryland, NASA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the American Meteorological Society.

Internally, the association formed its own task force to examine ways in which the company could become more environmentally aware in its day-to-day operations and quickly began implementing new policies on paper usage and recycling. Joining forces with Tourism Cares, a group of staff volunteers participated in World Responsible Tourism Day and volunteered their time and efforts to rebuild wildlife habitats and assist with reforestation projects at Mount Vernon, George Washington’s historic home along the Potomac River. Work was also begun on a program for travel agents and suppliers—set to debut in 2008—that would assist travel companies in putting practical “green” practices in place in their own businesses.

Finally, with the holidays fast approaching, ASTA’s Board of Directors and Chapter Presidents Council met in Washington, where members received updates from ASTA staff on the association’s accomplishments over the previous year and approved the budget for 2008.

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A Message

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FROM THE EXECUTIVE OFFICE

It’s been said that success is the result of preparation and hard work. Given that, 2007 was a year of tremendous achievement for ASTA. As the year dawned, we unveiled our new business plan, mission and governance to great response. The invigorated ASTA was the culmination of years of planning and hard work to ensure that the organization that emerged was better, stronger and agile enough to react our members’ needs, whatever those might be.

As the year progressed, we were able to see that hard work pay off. Premium Membership proved to be a big success, thanks to top-level concierge services that provide members with everything from custom research and public relations assistance to in-depth white papers on such matters as the use of independent contractors, financial benchmarking and employee classification. Concerns that our core members, the Travel Agent, would be disenfranchised proved groundless as by year end we had handily surpassed our membership goals, proving that travel agents, from all types of agencies, value what comes with membership in a professional organization that speaks out on their behalf within the industry and legislature.

As part of our intensified focus on creating a retail travel marketplace that is a profitable place to work and do business, ASTA concentrated its legislative efforts at the state level. Whether it was fighting hotel occupancy taxes in New York, Massachusetts and Montana, gross receipts taxes in Texas, Michigan, Oregon and Illinois, or surety bonds in Massachusetts, ASTA was there, defending the rights of the travel agent. At the federal level, ASTA again spoke out on behalf of the travel industry. Whether the issue was passenger rights, Secure Flight, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, or cruise regulations, ASTA was there to ensure that the travel agent was represented. No other industry group does this.

The new ASTA brought with it a re-energized commitment to ensuring that all members receive the types of benefits that will allow them to grow their business and market share. From a redesigned Web site with added features and enhancements to global networking opportunities at events such as ASTA’s International Destination Expo and THETRADESHOW, travel professionals from every spectrum of the industry saw first-hand ASTA’s impact in 2007.

The year was one of accomplishment and pride, as ASTA regained its place as the leading travel association for retail sellers of travel. Looking forward, I see only great things for this industry and I know that whatever comes, ASTA and its members will be there, leading the charge and paving the way for those who follow.

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Bill Maloney, CTC Executive Vice President and COO

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Our Premium

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AS THE LIST OF PREMIUM MEMBERS GROWS WE RECOGNIZE the companies stepping up to support the

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travel-agency industry by taking leadership roles within ASTA—the world’s largest travel agent association.

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A & I Travel Service, Inc., Memphis, TN * AAA Hoosier Motor Club, Indianapolis, IN * AAA Minneapolis, Minneapolis, MN * ADA Travel, Casa Grande, AZ * Adelman Travel Group, Milwaukee, WI ADTRAV Travel Management, Birmingham, AL Aladdin Travel & Meeting Planners, Winston Salem, NC Alamo Travel, San Antonio, TX * All About Travel, Inc., Mission, KS * All Seasons Travel Agency, Inc., Birmingham, AL All Travel, Los Angeles, CA * Allied Tour & Travel, Norfolk, NE Altour, New York, NY * American Express Travel Representative Network, New York, NY * America’s Vacation Center/American Express, Vista, CA * AMT/American Express West, Covina, CA ATP International USA, New Haven, CT * Azumano Travel Service/American Express, Portland, OR * Best Travel, Inc., Chicago, IL * Betty Maclean Travel, Inc., Naples, FL Blue Ribbon Travel, Edina, MN * Bon Voyage Cruise & Vacations, Inc., Waterford, WI * Brea Travel/American Express, Brea, CA Brentwood Travel, Saint Louis, MO Brownell Travel, Inc., Birmingham, AL * Bursch Travel/American Express, Alexandria, MN Cardoza Travel Services, Inc., Palo Alto, CA * Carlson Leisure Group, Minneapolis, MN Carlson Wagonlit/Albertville, Albertville, MN * Carrousel Travel, Minneapolis, MN Casto, Santa Clara, CA Cerritos Travel, Inc., Cerritos, CA Child Travel Services, Colchester, VT Cole Travel, Lexington Park, MD * Colpitts World Travel, Dedham, MA Colwick Travel Corp., Dallas, TX Conference & Travel - Carlson Wagonlit Travel, Fort Wayne, IN Conlin Travel, Inc., Ann Arbor, MI Corniche Group, Inc., West Hollywood, CA CWT All About Travel, Inc., Garland, TX CWT/Garner Travel, Inc., Memphis, TN CWT/Thomas Hogan Travel, Myrtle Beach, SC * CWT/Travel Plus, Commerce Township, MI DCM Travel Services, Tampa, FL Douglass Travel Inc., Middle River, MD * Ensemble Travel, New York, NY * Expedia, Inc., Washington, DC * Express Travel Service, Inc., Oklahoma City, OK FCm Bannockburn Travel Solutions, Bannockburn, IL * Flathead Travel Service, Inc., Kalispell, MT * Forest Lake Travel, Columbia, SC Fox World Travel, Inc., Oshkosh, WI * Friendly Travel Inc./American Express, Alexandria, VA * Geraci Travel, Fort Myers, FL Goli’s Avenues of Travel, Ltd., La Crosse, WI Goway Travel Limited, Toronto, ON * Grueninger Cruises and Tours, Inc., Indianapolis, IN Hess Travel, Bountiful, UT Hickory Travel Systems, Inc., Saddle Brook, NJ HNL Travel Associates, Honolulu, HI Hub Travel Center Inc., Bedford Park, IL Hurley Travel Experts, Inc., Portland, ME * Jurni, Southlake, TX * Karell Travel, Miami, FL Leisure Travel Alliance, Inc., Austin, TX * Linden Travel, New York, NY * Macnair Travel Management/American Express, Alexandria, VA Mann Travels, Charlotte, NC Mansour Travel Company, Beverly Hills, CA * Marathon Travel & Cruise Shops, Stevens Point, WI Marina Tours And Travel Arizona LLC, Phoenix, AZ Maupin Travel, Inc., Raleigh, NC * Menno Travel/American Express, Goshen, IN * Montrose Travel, Montrose, CA

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* MSP Travel Group, Inc., Saint Paul, MN * MTS Travel, Ephrata, PA * Mundi Travel, San Jose, CA National Travel Service, Charleston, WV Nexion, Southlake, TX * Omega World Travel, Fairfax, VA * Orbitz Worldwide, Washington, DC * Ovation Travel Group, New York, NY * Passageways Travel/American Express, Traverse City, MI Peak Travel Group, San Jose, CA Plaza Travel, Encino, CA * PNR Travel/American Express, Venice, CA Poe Travel, Little Rock, AR Polk Majestic Travel Group, Denver, CO * Prestige Travel & Cruises/American Express, Las Vegas, NV priceline.com Inc., Norwalk, CT * Protravel International, New York, NY * RADIUS, Bethesda, MD Reid Travel of Florida, Inc., Boca Raton, FL Rich Worldwide Travel, New York, NY * Rosenbluth Vacations, Bryn Mawr, PA Rudi Steele Travel, Inc., Dallas, TX * Safe Harbors Business Travel Group, Baltimore, MD Salentine Travel, Mequon, WI * San Diego Travel Group, San Diego, CA * Signal Travel and Tours, Inc., Niles, MI * Signature Travel Network, Marina del Rey, CA Singer Travel, Wyomissing, PA * STA Travel, Lewisville, TX * Sterling Travel Agency, Inc., Huntsville, AL * Strong Travel Services, Inc., Dallas, TX * Tempo Travel Dba Bay Travel Center, Bay Village, OH The Malmberg Travel Companies, Boston, MA * The Travel Authority/TTA, Inc., Jeffersonville, IN * The Travel Team, Inc/American Express, Buffalo, NY TLG Travel Management/Carlson Wagonlit, New York, NY * Tower Travel Management, Oakbrook Terrace, IL * Town & Country Travel, Inc., Pittsford, NY * Travel and Transport, Inc., Omaha, NE * Travel Dimensions, Inc., Boardman, OH Travel Dynamics Group, Inc., La Jolla, CA * Travel Group, Englewood Cliffs, NJ * Travel Organizers/American Express, Englewood, CO Travel Resources, Inc., Palm Beach, FL * Travel Solutions, Inc. (MI), Grand Rapids, MI Travel Solutions, Inc. (OH), Columbus, OH * TraveLeaders, Coral Gables, FL Travelfocus, Dallas, TX * Travelink/American Express, Nashville, TN * Travelocity, Washington, DC Travel-On, Ltd., Beltsville, MD Travelstar, Inc., Aliso Viejo, CA TravelStore, Los Angeles, CA * Tzell Travel, New York, NY Ultramar Travel Management International, New York, NY * Uniglobe Travel International, Irvine, CA * Uniglobe Wings Travel, Blue Bell, PA * Vacation.com, Alexandria, VA * Valerie Wilson Travel, Inc., New York, NY * Vanguard Travel Unlimited, Golden Valley, MN * Viking Travel Service, Naperville, IL * Virtuoso, Fort Worth, TX * Welcome Aboard Vacation Center, Inc., Scottsdale, AZ * Wilcox Travel/American Express, Asheville, NC * Will Travel, Inc., Langhorne, PA Willett Travel, Studio City, CA Williamsburg Travel Management - AMEX, Atlanta, GA * World Travel Bureau, Inc., Santa Ana, CA World Travel Service, LLC, Tulsa, OK Worldview Travel, Santa Ana, CA Young’s Travel Service, Inc., Auburn, MA Your Travel Center, Inc., Santa Barbara, CA * Premium Charter Membership

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ASTA’s Proud Partners Thank you for your unwavering support of ASTA and the travel agency industy.

Our Proud Partners provide outstanding support to travel agents and ASTA throughout the year.

This support allows ASTA to represent our agent members effectively.

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Travel Insured

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INTERNATIONAL

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DEDICATED TO THE BUSINESS OF SELLING TRAVEL

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Dedicated to the Business of Selling Travel

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American Society of Travel Agents 1101 King Street, Suite 200 Alexandria, VA 22314, U.S.A. 800.ASK.ASTA

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