by Pam Jarvis, MCC
Director, Cruise Programs
Travel Leaders Network

The relationship a travel agent has with their clients is not that much different from the ones you have with your family, friends or romantic partners. The key to any successful relationship is making the other side feel special. For family and friends, that can be as simple as sending flowers or having a good heart-to-heart conversation.

For your clients, the key is making them feel like VIPs. One thing we do really well here at Travel Leaders Network is provide the tools for agents to do exactly that. Through multiple cruise and hotel programs, our agents can provide unique bonus amenities and custom-tailored experiences, all of which add up to making their clients feel unique and special.

Our private tours program is growing fast—both in popularity among our agents and their clients—and with good reason. These personalized experiences can be completely tailored to the client, including such moments as a private winery tour, cooking demonstration by a local chef, private art gallery tour, or even VIP tickets to a special event, like Wimbledon or the Monte Carlo Grand Prix.

These tours are popular with clients not because they cater to all price points (which they do), and not because they include all the logistics, from safe, comfortable transportation to local guides and translators (which they also do). They’re popular because they make clients feel extra special, knowing their travel agent went above and beyond to craft these amazing experiences.

And they are amazing, because I’ve experienced quite a few. Last summer on a cruise, we stopped in Malaga, Spain, where we enjoyed a private tour of the Picasso Museum. After walking past the queues of people waiting to enter the museum, our tour began. To be honest, his abstract paintings didn’t make any sense to me. But our guide walked us through Picasso’s life, while explaining the significance of the paintings. After two hours, I had a whole new appreciation for the artist! This was something I would never have done on my own, but now I tell everyone not to miss this amazing museum.

Another memory is from a private tour in Tuscany. I was with a good size group and had arranged for a private tour of a winery. After learning about their wine-making process, we enjoyed a seven-course meal that was paired with wines made on the estate as well as some of the best balsamic vinegar I’ve ever tasted. That experience took place eight years ago, and I still look back on it fondly.

That is what your clients should do—they should look back fondly at the journeys you crafted for them. And with private tours, they will.