GUILFORD, CT—February 19, 2025, American Cruise Lines is pleased to announce that American Legend, the newest small ship in the company’s innovative Project Blue series, was officially christened in Key West, Florida last week. The celebration took place while the ship was docked at Mallory Square, just steps from the City’s vibrant town center. American Legend was visiting Key West along one of the company’s popular 8-Day Florida Gulf Coast & Keys cruises, which sail roundtrip from St. Petersburg, Florida. American’s new Florida itineraries are the only cruises exploring the Sunshine State that offer guests the exclusive opportunity to sail the region while remaining fully domestic, similar to the Line’s U.S. River cruises. Read the rest of this entry »

Pawtucket, RI (February 18, 2025) – Collette is offering a discount for select departures to Italy and France as a part of February’s Hot Deals. Travelers can save up to $550 when booking the July 7, 2025 departure of “Italy’s Treasures” and up to $500 the June 25, 2025 departure of “Essence of France.” Read the rest of this entry »

MONTREAL – (February 17, 2025) – Rental Escapes, a full-service luxury villa company specializing in providing unparalleled private villa rentals worldwide, today revealed its list of the most popular  destinations for 2025, highlighting the most sought-after locations across the globe. Based on Rental Escapes’ booking trends and traveler demand, this year’s must-visit locations span the Caribbean and Europe, offering unparalleled luxury, breathtaking landscapes, and unforgettable experiences. Recently named the Best Villa Rental Company of 2024, Rental Escapes provides a carefully curated selection of fully vetted and inspected villas in each destination, ensuring an exclusive and seamless travel experience. Read the rest of this entry »

Sacramento – February 12, 2025 – The California Coalition of Travel Organizations (CCTO) is pleased to announce the election of its 2025 Board of Directors, reaffirming its commitment to advocating for and protecting the interests of travel advisors and agencies across California.

CCTO is a statewide nonprofit organization dedicated to legislative advocacy and industry representation, ensuring that California’s travel professionals have a strong voice in government affairs. By working closely with policymakers, industry partners, and national organizations, CCTO plays a vital role in shaping policies that impact California travel advisors and the broader travel industry. Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM COLLETTE

Pawtucket, Rhode Island – Feb. 13, 2025 — Collette’s signaled its continued dedication to supporting the travel trade community with the appointment of industry veteran Stephanie Mirando to Senior Vice President of Global Marketing.

In this role, Mirando will oversee the strategic direction and execution of global marketing initiatives in alignment with the company’s growth goals. She’ll steward the continued evolution of the Collette brand and market presence globally.

“It’s an honor to have worked in such a dynamic industry for more than a decade,” says Mirando. “I’m eager to bring Collette’s ‘be a trailblazer’ value to life in this role; leading the evolution of our marketing strategies to meet the needs of our audiences and continually Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM AMERICAN CRUISE LINES

GUILFORD, CT—February 4, 2025, American Cruise Lines is kicking off the 2025 Mississippi Season early, with some special football fun this week. Big Game Travel has chartered two of American’s Mississippi riverboats to host their guests who purchased exclusive 3- and 4-night packages through the company for this weekend’s biggest game in New Orleans. American’s riverboats regularly sail to and from Port NOLA and several of the Line’s elegant modern riverboats are already docked in New Orleans in anticipation of the Mississippi River cruise season opening February 21st. This week’s Big Game guests will Read the rest of this entry »

IMPORTANT PRESS RELEASE FROM THE TRAVEL INSTITUTE

A third-party software glitch for The Travel Institute’s recently announced Educational Excellence Award nominations may have caused some applications not to be captured between Jan 22 – Feb 3. The issue is resolved and nominators are encouraged to check the status of their application here, despite any confirmation message, and resubmit as necessary.

The Travel Institute apologizes for any inconvenience; nominations are open through the end of March. Read the rest of this entry »

GUILFORD, CT—January 27, 2025, American Cruise Lines is pleased to announce 2025 will be the most exciting season ever on the Mississippi River. This year, the Line is operating five riverboats sailing 12+ itineraries on the Mighty Mississippi and tributaries year-round. The company’s Mississippi offerings range from 8 to 51 days and include an array of authentic American experiences in 10 states from New Orleans, Louisiana to St. Paul, Minnesota.

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE TRAVEL INSTITUTE

The Travel Institute accepting applications through March for 2025

FRAMINGHAM, MA, January 21, 2025 –The Travel Institute’s award nomination process is again underway for its annual Educational Excellence Award with applications accepted through March 31, 2025.

Established in 2022, the award recognizes “those organizations and individuals demonstrating a significant, ongoing commitment to quality education for travel advisors and making a substantial, meaningful investment to ensure delivery of education to the ultimate benefit of travelers and the industry.” Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM COLLETTE

Pawtucket, RI (January 21, 2025) – Collette’s January worldwide sale is now live through January 29. Travelers can save up to 10% off when booking departures through April 30, 2026. Offer code WINTER25 must be used at the time of booking.

Plenty of travelers are still deciding where to go this year, and Collette’s worldwide sale offers great savings on top 2025 destinations like Italy, Ireland, Japan, South Africa, and more Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASES FROM RENTAL ESCAPES

Luxury Villa Rental Company Expanding Global Reach and Enhancing Luxury Travel Experiences

Montreal  (January 20, 2025) – Rental Escapes, a full-service, award-winning luxury villa company specializing in providing unparalleled private villa rentals worldwide, has been accepted into Virtuoso®’s exclusive portfolio of luxury travel partners, comprising 2,300 preferred suppliers in 100 countries. Inclusion in Virtuoso will present new sales and marketing opportunities to the network’s luxury travel advisors and their highly desirable clientele. Virtuoso agencies worldwide sell an average of (U.S.) $35 billion annually Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE TRAVEL INSTITUTE

Robust Q1 calendar offers expert learning for professionals at all levels

FRAMINGHAM, MA, January 13, 2025 – The Travel Institute announces its Q1 2025 event calendar with a robust list of PEP Talks—complimentary live, online expert learning events, from its Professional Educators Program, or PEP. These professional educators are top trainers, thought leaders, and subject matter experts from both inside and outside the travel industry. Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE TRAVEL INSTITUTE

Non-profit education leader urges travel professionals to take ownership of career growth at all stages

FRAMINGHAM, MA, January 7, 2025 – The Travel Institute is again offering its dedicated TRIPKIT^SM Scholarship Fund, available throughout Q1 while funds last, with tuition assistance for the education leader’s award-winning, introductory education program for new and inexperienced agents. Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM CENTRAL HOLIDAYS

Moonachie, NJ – (January 08, 2025) – As Italy’s Jubilee Year 2025 commences, Central Holidays is proud to announce Guaranteed Departures on some of its most popular Escorted Tours to Italy, giving travel advisors the peace of mind that their clients’ dream vacations will go ahead as planned. With Italy being one of the most sought-after travel destinations during this milestone year, this exclusive offer sets Central Holidays apart as one of the few travel companies able to deliver on its promises during this highly anticipated year. Travel advisors are also encouraged to book as soon as possible as these guaranteed departures are in very high demand and filling up quickly Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM AMERICAN CRUISE LINES

GUILFORD, CT—January 7, 2025, American Cruise Lines is pleased to announce their biggest Alaska cruise season ever. The company will have 2 small ships in Alaska and 5 extraordinary itineraries, delivering once-in-a-lifetime experiences aboard sailings operating this May through September.

For 2025, American has repositioned small ship, American Constitution, to the West Coast for summer Alaska cruises and spring and fall Puget Sound cruises. Doubling capacity in the region, 170-passenger, American Constitution, joins sister ship Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM COLLETTE

The 14-day tour adds value with unique transportation and lengthy stays

Pawtucket, RI (January 7, 2025) – Collette’s “African Safari: Kenya and Tanzania” small group Explorations tour lets travelers dive into wildlife in two countries. This journey takes travelers beyond the guidebook with unique transportation and stays.

“Collette’s ‘African Safari: Kenya and Tanzania’ gives travelers and authentic, intimate safari experience,” said Jaclyn Leibl-Cote Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROMKHM TRAVEL GROUP

Award-winning host agency offers a new online experience to learn about becoming a travel agent

Brunswick, Ohio (December 11, 2024) – KHM Travel Group offers a comprehensive program for new and experienced travel professionals and now has a website that helps to fully showcase the benefits of partnering with this leading host agency. The modern look and refreshed content of KHMTravel.com provide a preview of the experience one can expect when joining KHM Travel Group’s growing agent community. Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM THE TRAVEL INSTITUTE

A Message from Diane Petras, CTIE, President, The Travel Institute

60 Years and Counting…

Amid Constant Change, An Unwavering Mission Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM COLLETTE

PAWTUCKET, RI (December 11, 2024) – In an upcoming virtual event, Collette will share what defines their premium experience and how it supports the needs and desires of the modern traveler.

Led by Collette employees Kelsie Marchetti and Gabbie Borgus, this virtual event will cover: Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM HOST AGENCY REVIEWS

Minneapolis, Dec. 11th, 2025 – Host Agency Reviews recently published its full agenda for its fifth annual Host Week 2025 event, which will take place Jan. 27th to Jan. 31st, 2025. A free weeklong virtual celebration of hosted travel advisors and the industry that supports them, Host Week is the only event of its kind.

Geared toward new and experienced advisors alike, this year’s Host Week will offer dozens of interviews with host agencies, franchises, and consortia to help familiarize advisors with company cultures of hosting agencies; plus 15 EduSpot workshops from industry leaders delivering actionable strategies on AI, BDM relationships, sales processes, client loyalty and more. Read the rest of this entry »

PRESS RELEASE FROM COLLETTE

PAWTUCKET, December 7, 2024 – Collette announces that it is extending its popular “Holiday Shopping on Us” initiative through January 2, 2025, offering gift cards to advisors for every booking they make.

Once qualified (make 2 deposited bookings), advisors will earn a $100 gift card for every booking they make through January 2, 2025. Bookings made during Collette’s Black Friday Sale will count toward qualification, with the full incentive window running November 18, 2024 to January 2, 2025.

“We loved seeing the impact this initiative had with our advisor community,” said Christian Leibl-Cote, Collette’s Executive Vice President of Global Sales. “Extending this initiative through the end of the year is a way of celebrating and supporting advisors who are closing the year out strong.” Read the rest of this entry »