Apple’s Makeover at 50

Apple Vacations is celebrating its 50th anniversary in a big way—by expanding into exotic new places as well as more familiar domestic destinations.

“We wanted to diversify our portfolio while sticking to the sun-and-sand formula that we know best,” said John Tarkowski, president of Apple Vacations, the flagship brand of Apple Leisure Group (ALG). “These are destinations our travel advisor partners saw a demand for, and we didn’t want them to go elsewhere for these products. Now they can book a larger percentage of their business with Apple Vacations which, ultimately, will help them maximize their revenue.”

New Destinations

Domestically, Apple is expanding into Florida, California, Arizona and Nevada, along with a return to Las Vegas. Among the more far-flung destinations are the South Pacific, Belize, European beach destinations and “exotic Caribbean.”

“One thing I hear from travel advisors consistently is that many Apple vacationers are looking for something new and different,” Tarkowski said. “One of my first priorities as president was to deliver the breadth of product they’ve been requesting from us. We’ll continue to focus on our top-selling destinations with value-added offers and special incentives for advisors, but sooner or later many clients will request something different and extraordinary—and we needed to be able to accommodate those clients.”

Tie-In with AMResorts

The new European beach destinations are in Italy, Greece and Spain. Part of the impetus for the European expansion is sister company AMResorts’ new properties there, such as the Secrets Mallorca Villamil Resort & Spa. “Travel advisors are looking for new places for their clients,” Tarkowski said. “The client that booked the same resort or destination year after year is an endangered species these days. The ‘been there, done that’ mentality dominates the market now, and these European beach destinations offer a new twist on the classic sun-and-sand vacation.”

Don’t expect European city vacations from Apple, though. “We know what we do best and we’re doubling down,” Tarkowski said. “So while we aggressively expand our portfolio both domestically and abroad, we’re sticking with the tried-and-true sun-and-sand destinations, which is our expertise.”

Apple’s return to Las Vegas comes after an absence of 20 years. “Las Vegas isn’t the same destination that it was 20 years ago,” Tarkowski said. “Its iconic brand remains a major selling point, but Vegas now has a much broader appeal, which makes it a better fit for Apple Vacations.”

Agent Selling Points

So what is Apple’s appeal to travel agents? Tarkowski said value and service are two of the primary reasons travel advisors book with Apple Vacations; this extends beyond included transfers and enhanced commissions. “Features like Exclusive Nonstop Vacation Flights and the availability of in-resort Amstar representatives offer a competitive advantage you can’t put a price tag on,” he said. “Clients simply won’t find these products on the most popular airline and OTA websites. As the flagship brand of ALG Vacations, we’re able to leverage our volume to create compelling offers your clients won’t be able to resist.”

Apple Vacations helps agents sell its packages through VAX Vacation Access, the booking tool that became part of ALG when it acquired The Mark Travel Corp.

“From our agent content on VAX to the new ALGV360 marketing program, we continue to strive to give agents the tools they need to succeed in what we do,” Tarkowski said. “This means more training to increase advisors’ proficiency on VAX and get them more comfortable with its advanced time-saving features. It means empowering our dedicated BDMs so they can provide the level of personalized support our partners need to close important sales. The vast majority of our vacations are sold through travel advisors. We’re investing millions in marketing to drive consumers to our valued advisor partners.”

New Online Marketing Tool

ALGV360, introduced in September, is an online marketing tool with an easy-to-use portal to help enhance and streamline travel agents’ marketing, advertising and social media engagement. “The new ALGV360 is a one-stop-shop travel advisors can use to promote Apple Vacations’ products,” Tarkowski said, adding that it “features everything our partners need to create dynamic print ads, radio spots and more.”

While Apple Vacations has a team dedicated to calling on host agencies and their top members, Tarkowski noted that home-based agents are of particular importance. “Our implementation team assists home-based advisors who book fewer than 50 passengers annually to expand their business with Apple Vacations,” he said. “In other words, you don’t need to be a top performer to get our attention. We’re committed to giving you the tools and the support you need to grow.”

Differentiating Brands

When Apple Leisure Group acquired The Mark Travel Corp., it gained a new vacation brand—Funjet Vacations—which may appear similar to Apple Vacations. How should travel agents differentiate between them?

“While some of our products may overlap, Apple Vacations has our own loyal travel advisor following and our own preferred consortia agreements, which differentiate us from our sister brands,” said Apple Vacations President John Tarkowski. “Our exclusive sales are negotiated specifically with our travel advisor and consortia partners in mind.”

Also setting Apple Vacations apart is its Golden Apple awards to resorts and destinations. “Apple Vacations is the only tour operator to rate resorts based solely on traveler feedback,” Tarkowski said. “The Golden Apple awards are based on surveys completed by Apple Vacationers upon their return home.”

He added, “Our exclusive Square Deals feature the lowest-priced vacation packages clients will find for the promised Apple hotel rating, while our Preferred Partner program generously rewards top-performing advisors with special perks. Apple Vacations also includes roundtrip transfers in our package pricing, unlike the other ALG Vacations brands.”

The company also makes selling air a profitable proposition for travel agents. “Our Exclusive Nonstop Vacation Flights are often the only nonstops available from certain departure cities, and they feature convenient flight schedules that maximize clients’ time in resorts,” Tarkowski said.

Apple offers up to 15 percent commission on land-only and Exclusive Nonstop Vacation Flight packages, and 5 percent on scheduled air. Travel agents can also boost earnings on optional in-flight services such as Premium Seating and Preferred Perks.