Get the training you need to become a credible travel entrepreneur

Have you always dreamed of booking dream holidays for a living, sending your customers to incredible places around the world while running a business that you’re in control of? It sounds like the perfect career for anyone passionate about travel, doesn’t it?

However, becoming a successful travel agent – or travel entrepreneur – isn’t something that can be achieved overnight. It requires extensive training, ongoing support, and the right tools and technology to ensure that you can provide the very best service to your customers. It’s not just about selling and booking – it’s about crafting truly tailormade trips and providing unrivalled service that sets you apart from other agents out there.

In this blog, we explore how Travel Counsellors can equip you with everything you need to become a credible travel business owner – and how by joining us in the coming months, we can get you ready to take advantage of the post-Christmas peaks season.

Begin your journey with a thorough 10-day induction

Unlike other travel franchises whose inductions are more like a fast-track than a deep dive, we offer all new business owners a thorough 10-day induction that’s uniquely tailored to their levels of experience within the travel industry.

You’ll be guided by our expert training team who will show you how to get the best out of Phenix (our world-class booking platform). You’ll put together dummy quotes, learn how to package up tailormade trips, discover how to manage your customer base, and get an in-depth overview of Phenix’s time-saving features.

Our induction isn’t all about Phenix either – you’ll also get to grips with marketing as well as covering some of the softer skills needed to boss your travel business.

Build on the basics with our ‘in-flight’ training’

Following on from your induction, you’ll continue your onboarding programme by completing six months of independent ‘in-flight’ training, where you’ll build on your expertise while starting to grow your business. During this time, you’ll expand your product and destination knowledge while meeting regularly with your dedicated Relationship Manager who will work with you to make sure you’re achieving your business goals.

You’ll mark the end of your in-flight training with a celebratory ‘touchdown’ day at our Venus Support Hub in Manchester. Think of it as graduating as a fully-fledged, trusted travel business owner.

Ongoing opportunities to enhance your skills and knowledge

One of the great things about being a Travel Counsellor is that the end of your onboarding isn’t the end of your learning. There are so many ways in which you can continue to build on your knowledge, including:

Access hundreds of online training courses through Discover: Discover is our online learning platform, where you’ll find an on-demand library of interactive training courses, covering everything from marketing and time management, to sessions focused on specific products, destinations, or specialisms.

Takeover Days: While training videos are great, nothing beats meeting suppliers face-to-face and building those personal relationships we’re known for. And that’s exactly what our ‘Takeover Days’ allow you to do. We’ve previously held these events for specific destinations (such as Australia and Canada), or particular holiday types (such as honeymoons or adventure and touring).

Bespoke events: Our valued supplier partners regularly invite Travel Counsellors to a range of exclusive bespoke events throughout the year. The events are a great way to learn more about a product or destination while taking part in a fun activity with fellow business owners. This year, our suppliers have kindly invited us to sushi-making classes, stargazing evenings, and wellness retreats.

FAM trips: Anyone who works in travel knows the best way to sell a product is to experience it – and that’s why we work hard with our suppliers to offer a packed calendar of FAM trips throughout the year. We’ve even secured exclusive trips just for Travel Counsellors with the likes of Virgin Voyages and Disney Destinations International.

On-the-road workshops: In addition to all of the above, our Support Hub colleagues regularly venture out on the road to deliver training sessions to our Travel Counsellors up and down the country. These sessions cover a wide-range of different topics, from social media and marketing to mindset and valuing yourself – all skills that any travel entrepreneur worth their salt needs to run a successful franchise.

With us, you can rest assured that you’ll always have the right training and support you need, whatever goals you have for your business. Sarah Mott joined us via our Travel Academy in January 2024, and after exploring other franchises on the market, she could tell that Travel Counsellors was a cut above the rest.

Sarah said: “I did explore other franchises before signing with Travel Counsellors. Some of the ones I investigated felt more like an MLM than a true travel agency, so I discounted them quickly. I also felt with some other franchises, you would be very much on your own. I know that I need support, especially in these early days - so Travel Counsellors won on that front.”

Are you looking to join a travel franchise that’s invested in your development? Look no further than Travel Counsellors. We’ve got inductions running over the coming months, but spaces are limited! This means now’s the perfect time to act if you want your franchise to be up and running ready to take advantage of the busiest time in travel – the post-Christmas ‘peaks’ booking period. Imagine what an incredible start to 2025 you could have!

If you’d like to find out more about what sets Travel Counsellors apart in the crowded world of travel franchises, book onto one of our upcoming Discovery events to meet our team and have your questions answered. There’s no pressure or hard-sell – it’s simply an opportunity to get to know you a little better and give you a taste of whether running a travel franchise with us is right for you. Book your place today.