Bookings are on the upswing now for Apple Leisure Group Vacations (ALGV), but the vacation package company is taking time to thank and honor their travel advisor partners.

"No one worked harder or longer hours during the pandemic than travel advisors," said Jacqueline Marks, executive vice president-trade brands. "Whether they were helping their clients cancel or rebook their vacations, they really showed the world the benefits of using a travel advisor."

ALGV proclaimed 2021 "The Year of the Travel Advisor" (YOTTA) because of the ways agents went above and beyond, helping their own customers and travelers who weren’t even their clients. The company helped advisors by providing webinars, expanded BDM support, more marketing assets on ALGV360 and consumer-facing assets to market themselves and expand their networks.

The Silver Lining

As difficult as 2020 was, the silver lining is that more consumers see the value of a trusted travel advisor. In fact, ALGV conducted a consumer study that found that Americans’ confidence in agents skyrocketed to the 90th percentile.

"In a traditional year, we would celebrate advisors with Travel Advisor Appreciation Month in May," Marks said. "But this year, we felt like advisors needed more than a month, so we decided to take it up another notch. In March we celebrated with giveaways and a ‘Year of the Travel Advisor’ announcement in Times Square, and we’ll continue with prizes and benefits all the way to our Ascend conference in Cancun in October."

ALGV’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. In September 2020, ASTA voted Apple Leisure Group as its Tour Operator Partner of the Year. ALGV brands include Apple Vacations, Funjet, Travel Impressions, United Vacations, Blue Sky Tours and Southwest Vacations.

Rebounding Business

Between the agent support and the company’s promotions, bookings are skyrocketing now.

"There is so much optimism due to the growing number of vaccinated Americans," said ALGV Group President Ray Snisky. "We have seen our business strongly return over the last two months. During this recovery we are indexing well over 2019 with solid doubledigit growth."

About 80 percent of bookings right now are new versus rebooking canceled vacations, Marks added, which is contributing to some decreased inventory for popular dates and resorts this summer.

Snisky said the Exclusive Nonstop Vacation Flights (ENVF) are doing particularly well.

"The demand for them was very high, and they performed extremely well. For some gateways, they are the only nonstop flights to vacation destinations, which contributes to travel confidence in today’s environment. We’re happy to see those flights filling up quickly, and we’ve had to add new flights to meet that demand," he said. "As ENVFs fill up, we are able to forecast what fall and winter travel will look like, and we can respond accordingly."

Domestic Sales

The company is seeing strong bookings to Florida, Hawaii and Las Vegas. "Some of that is due to people missing those incredibly popular destinations, but some of it is due to confidence in traveling in the U.S.," Marks said. "Internationally, Cancun, Punta Cana and Jamaica are our top sellers."

ALGV is launching the "You Only Live Once" (YOLO) promotion in May.

"These are vacations that step it up a bit," she said. "Many of our top partners are offering an additional 2 percent bonus commission on those upgraded rooms and suites, so advisors can earn even more with ALGV, and our ground handler, Amstar DMC, is offering private excursions for YOLO, so clients can have personalized, Insta-worthy experiences."

The YOLO concept is being tied in with the May Travel Advisor Appreciation Month – so the agent prizes are bigger, including a trip for 10 to the Mansion at Royalton Chic Punta Cana Resort & Spa and a multiisland getaway from Marriott Hawaii.

Instilling Confidence

Have clients who want to travel but remain a bit leery? Apple Leisure Group Vacations (ALGV) has some offerings that might help.

The company late last year eliminated brand change and cancellation fees.

"While there is tremendous pentup demand to travel, everyone has a different level of risk when it comes to traveling," said Group President Ray Snisky. "Eliminating brand change and cancellation fees allows clients to book a trip with confidence that if they are uncomfortable with the environment, they are able to easily make adjustments."

Also, Jacqueline Marks, executive vice president-trade brands, recommends agents sell the company’s Travel Protection Plus insurance plan.

"If advisors sell our Travel Protection Plus, there is a price protection feature with it that will give clients our lower price should their vacation be reduced after travel," Marks said. "Another bonus is if clients do cancel, the agent earns up to $200 commission as well."