Back when her kids were younger, Mindy Gilbert's husband had some frequent flier miles to use, so she planned a family vacation to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon.
This was in 1992 before the internet existed.
"I was painstakingly planning out the entire thing with AAA books and books from the library," said Gilbert. "I decided that I really enjoyed the research and took some travel classes at the local community college. Then I signed on as an outside agent with a brick-and-mortar travel agency."
About half of today's business at My Vacation Lady is honeymoons.
"The other half is a mixture of family travel, special occasion vacations, cruises, and more," said Gilbert, who is based out of North Brunswick, New Jersey.
After 9/11 and then the stock market crash of 2008, she realized that honeymooners were still anxious to travel.
"Lots of other people were canceling plans or not traveling, but I was still receiving requests to help plan honeymoons," she said. "The couples are usually so stressed with all of the wedding planning, they are anxious to work with travel professionals who could help them envision their honeymoon dreams and make it happen."
However, she's always available to help all of her clients. Just last month, clients Annmarie and Camille were on a Celebrity cruise in the Mediterranean to celebrate Annmarie's 60th birthday.
"They weren't well traveled and needed a lot of hand-holding," said Gilbert. "Two days into their cruise, my phone rings and it was Camille. She put her purse down for a second to take a picture in Ibiza and-you can guess what happened-it was stolen, along with her passport, credit cards and more."
Gilbert called the travel insurance company to see what would be covered.
"Especially if they were going to miss part of their cruise if they had to stay or travel to a different city to get a new passport," she said. "Then I followed up with where they could get a new passport on their cruise itinerary and made the appointment in Marseilles."
She kept the ladies apprised of what was going on, but there was a glitch: They wouldn't be able to stay on the ship and would have to get off in Ibiza.
"I spoke to the guest relations person on the ship who told me that it would be up to the port manager in Marseilles if he would allow them to disembark in his port without a passport," she said.
Then, she called Celebrity and was able to confirm that her clients were able to stay onboard and would be assisted in getting to the US Embassy in Marseilles. A new passport was issued.
"They were going to be able to enjoy the rest of their cruise," said Gilbert.
It takes a lot to be a successful travel agent, but Gilbert said one of the biggest obstacles travel agents face today is marketing themselves.
"No, we are not obsolete, but unless the public knows about you, no one will find you," she said. "We have to keep up on the current marketing trends to find the clients that we want to work with."
Her advice to others who want to become a travel agent?
"Persistence. This is not a business for those who think this is an easy business to make a lot of fast money in. You need to be constantly marketing and networking and looking for business."
Gilbert has been in business for almost 25 years and, she admits, she's ready to slow down a bit.
"We are expecting our first grandchild in February, and I want the opportunity to play grandma," she said. "I've already spoken to my current independent contractors about my desire to slow down, but still keep My Vacation Lady strong. I've built a brand that I'm proud of and want to maintain our reputation as the top-rated honeymoon specialist on Wedding Wire and The Knot."
She's put the wheels in motion to add a few more independent contractors to the agency who share her passion for the business and her commitment to customer service.
"While I'll probably never retire, I just need to stop working seven days a week," she said.
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In a long career, her favorite story is about a man named Richard.
"Richard was recommended by other clients, who I worked with to plan their honeymoon," she said. "Richard was in his late 70's and had a recent health scare. He wanted to take his entire family on a vacation, and we ended up booking a cruise for all 23 of them."
Gilbert worked with Richard and his friend, Leigh, on many other vacations.
"As the years went on, his health started declining and Richard ended up having to cancel his Tauck tour to China, but insisted that Leigh go on her own, since it was on her bucket list. That was the kind of man he was. When he called, he would always kid me that he loved calling and getting my voicemail because he loved to listen to my voice on the message."
Gilbert was working on a European trip for Richard and Leigh but hadn't heard from him in a while.
"Leigh called me to let me know that Richard had passed away, but that he really appreciated all that I had helped them with over the years."
If Gilbert could travel to her favorite place it would be Hawaii; she calls it her happy place.
"I would live there if I could afford a shack on the beach with a nice bathroom and internet access and if it wasn't so far from my family and my new grandbaby. We try to go as often as possible."
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