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Peak Sports Travel is a one-stop shop for every team’s travel needs. Our staff will work with coaches/team leaders to organize their team’s trip through our highly sophisticated system and we will provide a customized website for each specific group. The organizer will also have the ability to send web links to their players so getting the proper information, signing up, and making payments can all be done in one convenient place.

Team Events

Peak Sports Travel will set up a team event page for you. We will set up an event page for each of the tournaments your club/organization is attending. This will provide all the information your players/family members need about the tournament and travel arrangements to the event. Also, players/family members will have the ability to book travel arrangements directly on the team event page.

Activities Guide

Why not get out and have some fun when you’re done with your games? Many of these tournaments are in areas that offer many exciting things to do and see. You’ll also be able to check out opportunities for team building activities in the area. Want to find good restaurants nearby? We’ll have all that information for you as well. Reach out to us today to learn more!

Peak Sports Travel can negotiate the best possible rate. We can negotiate the best possible rates and room blocks for your team’s trip to the next tournament and provide you with a team event page for your players/family members to book their accommodations. We’ll set up all of your lodging so you don’t have to. You can focus on leading your team to victory, while we focus on finding the perfect accommodations for your team and their families.

Peak Sports Travel takes care of flight organization. We carry the daunting task of research group flights, keep track of deadline/payment schedules, provide names to airlines, and keep track of tickets. Let our staff take this weight off your shoulders and do all the hard work for you. Through years of experience, we know all the ins and outs to make this process simple and easy for you as coaches/team leaders.

Transportation

Peak Sports Travel can make the transportation needs for your team. Whether you are looking for a charter bus, 12/15 pax vans, mini-vans, or just your basic car rental, we can provide you with the best prices and organize this part of the trip for your team and family members. In addition, you can add ground transportation to your team event page so that players/family members to book their own transportation directly.

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“A banner year” for Travel Leaders Network, and plenty of success in Canada with 42 new members

Post date: Feb 8 2024

Date: Feb 8 2024

By: Kathryn Folliott

TORONTO — At the end of 2023, and looking ahead to the start of 2024, Travel Leaders Network had the most forward business on its books, ever.

It was fitting for the end of one “banner year” and the start of another.

Every metric is up, said John Lovell, President, Travel Leaders Group, at yesterday’s press conference for the trade media. “Recruiting, retention, they’re all up. We’re in a really, really good position,” he said.

People are prioritizing travel like never before, he added, and that’s despite inflation and credit card debt. Not even the upcoming U.S. election – which normally brings a bit of a slowdown in the U.S. – is having an impact so far.

The cover of Travel Leaders Network’s 2024 Culinary Collection magazine

Meanwhile the value proposition for travel advisors just keeps improving. “This is the renaissance of the travel advisor. It’s a golden age,” says Lovell. Even Google searches for travel agents are at an all-time high.

It’s an important message for potential new recruits, as the retail travel industry continues to grapple with a major labour shortage: “Travel agents are thriving,” he said. “We just need more of them.”

Lovell said he’s hearing from some suppliers that the travel agent distribution channel is bringing in upwards of 70% of their business.

“The role of the travel advisor is stronger than ever. There’s no better time to be a travel agent,” said Lovell.

CANADIAN SUCCESSES & STATS

That’s just as true in Canada as it is in the U.S.

Drilling down to the stats, Travel Leaders Network in Canada added 42 new members in 2023. TLN members here brought in more than $28 million in sales from preferred suppliers. Total agency sales amounted to more than $167 million.

Christine James, VP, Canada, Travel Leaders Network, noted that land-product sales in this market are dominated by ITC packages, representing 95% of the revenue. ‘Fun & Sun’ was up 108% year over year. FIT and tours were up 91%. In the cruise segment, sales were up across the board, across contemporary, premium, luxury and river.

In November 2021 Canada’s largest host agency, The Travel Agent Next Door, made headlines when it joined TLN, after leaving Ensemble.

James and the rest of the team at yesterday’s media conference had nothing but praise for TTAND.

“Their volume speaks for itself,” said James. Both TTAND and TLN were recently honoured by Royal Caribbean International, just the latest in a string of top sales awards.

Roger Block, President, Travel Leaders Network, added: “They’re a class organization. They run a very good shop. They know what they’re selling.” And as Lovell noted, “we’re only as good as our membership allows us to be. It’s a good marriage between two organizations. And we think it will just make the Canadian membership stronger as a whole.”

TLN’s cross-Canada series of Mixers is on the calendar for 2024, plus PEAK Regional events.

Watch for those – and also watch for news about TLN’s site in this market, CanadianTravelAgents.ca.

The team is keeping a tight lid on their announcement about the Canadian URL, expected in the next month or so. But keep in mind that i n May 2023, Travel Leaders Group, LLC won the right to use the Travel Leaders trademark in Canada. The win was a major victory for the company, and capped a six-year legal battle.

The site is TLN’s lead generator in this market, showcasing member profiles. Stephen McGillivray, Chief Marketing Officer, Travel Leaders Group, calls it an “online marketplace of retail travel advisors.” More than 13,000 leads were delivered to Canadian members via CanadianTravelAgents.ca last year, generating $2.3 million in sales, with the average sale coming in at $6,000.

TECH UPDATES

Another initiative from Travel Leaders Network is TobyAI. Launched in December 2023, and part of a partnership with Travel Research Online, TobyAI is billed as an AI engine designed specifically for supporting travel advisors. In a typical session with TobyAI, TLN advisors can craft itineraries, draft a new bio for Agent Profiler (in the U.S.) or CanadianTravelAgents.ca, write client correspondence and curate social media posts. Members can get a free TobyAI subscription for one year.

“We are big believers that AI can be helpful when creating marketing materials and can improve efficiencies for members so they can concentrate on selling and serving clients,” said McGillivray. He added that one silver lining of the pandemic was that it “sensitized consumers to reach out to travel agents for validation on their choices.”

Cory Voss, VP, Product & Solutions, Travel Leaders Group, had another tech update with news that Cruise Compete (which debuted after CruisePRO wound down) now has 100+ agencies enrolled in Canada. A B2C version is now in beta testing.

Voss outlined plans to also build a CRM (customer relationship management) agnostic API (application programming interface), to expand integration capabilities and allow more members to efficiently load clients into TLN’s Engagement program, opening up more marketing opportunities.

LUXURY DEMAND SOARS

Travel Leaders Network is maximizing its alliances within its membership, for everything from high-end travel to ‘A&A’ (Active & Adventure).

Block outlined travel advisor participation in the group’s alliances, from the Honeymoon & Destination Wedding Leaders Alliance (98 members; 48% rejection rate; $994K average individual HM & DW sales; $97 million total Alliance annual HM & DW sales) to the Luxury Leaders Alliance (328 members, $1.37 million average individual luxury sales; $450 million total Alliance annual luxury sales), and several more.

The luxury market is exploding with high demand, says the team. Bookings for high-end product, on the rise for years, have increased exponentially post-pandemic as travellers splurge on bucket list trips and celebrations abroad.

Travel Leaders Network is riding the luxury wave. “We’re very well known for serving the contemporary and premium markets but we’re very strong in luxury too and it’s a space we don’t get enough credit for,” said Lovell. The Luxury Leaders Alliance, with its $450 million in annual luxury sales, has a 36% rejection rate for members who apply to join. It’s a dedicated group with advisors who are highly motivated and knowledgeable in the luxury travel space.

Block notes that a Travel Leaders Network travel advisor booked one of the highest category accommodation options on Royal Caribbean’s 274-night world cruise. The booking was worth some US$800,000. The commission for the travel advisor? Six figures.

Tags: Lead Story, Travel Leaders Group

Kathryn is Editor at Travelweek and has worked for the company since 1995. She has travelled to more than 50 countries and counts Hong Kong, Jerusalem, the Swiss Alps and the Galapagos Islands among her favourite destinations.

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Travel Leaders Network has been assisting travelers for nearly 30 years through our international alliance of agencies big and small. Backed by Travel Leaders Group – a powerful leader in both leisure and business travel – we represent all facets and styles of travel, giving us the unique advantage to plan every detail of your vacation or business trip to perfection.

Travel is our passion and our life. We have personally been to destinations worldwide, stayed at the top hotels and resorts, sailed aboard a wide range of cruise ships and embarked on the most memorable tours—and we use those vast experiences to recommend the ideal match for each client.

We also have established relationships with the travel industry’s best cruise lines, hotel chains and tour providers, enabling us to provide special offers and amenities you won’t find anywhere else—even online.

We combine our experience and our industry relationships to create unique and exceptional travel experiences for each and every one of our clients. In short, we help you travel better.

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CUSTOMIZED JUST FOR US We knew a Caribbean cruise would be an amazing vacation, but this truly exceeded our expectations. Traveling with a son with special needs, we were really concerned about accessibility, but we were taken care of from the moment we landed in Miami throughout our entire cruise. The attention to detail was incredible, our agent really thought of absolutely everything so we never had to worry about a thing. Being able to relax and seeing our son smile was worth every penny.

A BANG FOR OUR BUCK If you’ve never used an agent before, I HIGHLY recommend starting now. We actually SAVED money and because our agent has VIP status with the cruise line, we ended up being upgraded to a suite on the opposite side of the ship so we had amazing views of the coast every single time we pulled into port. We should have been using an agent long ago. After sipping our coffee in our pajamas watching the sun rise over the Mediterranean from our veranda, we will never go back to booking on our own ever again.

CRUISING SPAIN, FRANCE, ITALY & GREECE My husband and I really wanted to do a Mediterranean cruise for our honeymoon, but we really had no idea where to start and researching options was so overwhelming. We had never used an agent before, but we will never go back to trying to plan our own vacations after this. Our agent knew the perfect cruise right away. She arranged a three-day tour in Barcelona before we departed on our cruise and it couldn’t have been more perfect. From sending us all our documents in advance to staff knowing our names as soon as we showed up, our agent made it all so easy.

—Christine B.

BUCKET LIST AFRICAN SAFARI I can’t recommend our agent enough!! We just returned from a two-week safari in Africa. We visited three countries with ten different stops like Masai Mara National Reserve, Serengeti National Park and more. Considering all the planning that went into this trip for transfers and accommodations in each stop, our agent didn’t just pull it off, she made it a bucket list trip we will never forget. We couldn’t have done this without her and will definitely be using her again. We can’t wait to start planning our next trip!

DREAM WEDDING IN MEXICO I’ve always wanted to have a destination wedding, but I never thought it would be possible. Our agent made that dream a reality and we got married on a picturesque secluded beach in Riviera Maya with enough of our budget left over to plan a separate honeymoon. I was SO impressed with everything she did. Not only did our agent get a special rate for our family members to stay at the same resort, she also surprised us with a special sunset catamaran cruise as a wedding gift and even sent little gifts for the bridal party! All the personal touches made it really special.

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Shopping cart items, female adventure tour leaders at peak dmc.

With diversity and inclusion at the forefront of everything PEAK DMC does, in March 2017 they set a goal to double the number of female tour leaders globally by 2020 – a target that they achieved six months ahead of schedule.

When this target was first set, PEAK DMC had 153 female tour leaders around the world. By June 2019, they had more than 300 female tour leaders, and today they are proud to say that nearly 30% of their tour leaders worldwide are now female.

So, what’s next? With this target achieved PEAK DMC are now working on their next initiative. By 2022, they aim to double the number of female porters globally who assist travellers on mountain hikes in Tanzania, Peru and Nepal.

Increasing opportunities for women in tourism where they were previously limited is an important issue for the travel industry. While these targets may not be difficult in many countries, in traditional societies such as India and Morocco recruiting women is a much greater challenge.

Experienced leaders in training and recruiting, PEAK DMC have overcome a number of cultural and logistical barriers to achieve their targets. In one example, in the traditional environment of Peru, PEAK DMC visited women in their villages to guide them through the full porter training process, setting up separate training days and putting in a considerable amount of planning and time to ensure that that all the women felt comfortable and safe while on the Inca Trail. This year, they were proud to introduce their first group of female porters who will make the Inca Trail this year.

There are a number of challenges that the travel industry faces and still needs to overcome in regard to gender equality. At PEAK DMC, they are doing their part to make this happen, helping women in countries all over the world to build careers that they have traditionally been denied – whether by societal norms, family pressure, or simply the lack of opportunities.

Voices From The Field - ATTA is providing this space for the benefit of our members for building awareness within our community. The views and opinions expressed in this column are not necessarily ATTA’s, nor do we endorse them by their publication.

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Why To Choose

The peak advantage.

There is only so much textbooks can do for your students. With Peak Advantage, you take them one step closer to greatness by giving them a unique opportunity to explore and perform around the world. Take on a breathtaking adventure in one of the best cities in North America and beyond.  Experience our exceptional customer service as we design the perfect customized tour for your students.

ALL INCLUSIVE

Save money and effort When booking student tours. With Peak Performance, we handle all the logistics so you can focus on inspiring your students and gearing them up for the road.

GUIDED TOURS

Experience sights from the eyes of a local. All educational student tours come with a full day guide who will be more than happy to inspire and discuss ideas with your students.

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Different students have different needs. At Peak Performance, we stay away from cookie cutter programs. Instead, we focus on building a tour from scratch to really help your students achieve their best selves yet.

Students Tours , Redefined

Music Travel

Let your band march proudly in the streets of Chicago. Encourage your dance troupe to compete in an international competition in San Francisco. Book your singers a festival spot in Nashville. Making their first career break happen is as easy as booking a performance tour with us.

Why Performance Student Tours Matter

Too many students spend their entire lives in studios and practice rooms. With early exposure to actual performance, your proteges will develop the discipline and skill necessary to progress in their careers.

MARCHING BAND

See your band proudly march the streets for a festival or event. With Peak Performance travel deals, you can take them out of the practice room and out in the road for an exhilarating musical moment.

CHOIR TOURS

Preparing for local, interstate, and even international choir competitions don’t have to be a hassle. Fine tune your choir for success and stardom, and let us handle the rest.

ORCHESTRA TRIPS

Taking your orchestra center-stage has never been easier. Give them the unique chance to perform for an incredible crowd in New York City or Los Angeles. Jumpstart their professional careers with just one click.

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Turn their dreams into a powerful musical reality. With Peak Performance, your students can take part in iconic Disney performances in Orlando, Florida and Anaheim, California. Sign them up for interactive performances and workshops.

Performance Travel

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Kickstart their dance career by booking them a local or interstate gig. Book anything – from competitions to workshops to clinics – with ease.

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Why educational travel matters .

Who said educational tours had to be boring? With carefully curated sites, a lively tour manager, and a well-rounded itinerary, you can create an exciting and informational field trip they will fondly look back on for years. Not all students are textbook learners. A learning opportunity that involves interaction with the environment helps a lot of students understand lessons better.

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CLASS TRIPS

Make your annual field trips better than the last. From poignant historical walks to interactive museum browse tours, we are here to freshen up your educational student tours and help you build the perfect itinerary from scratch.

DESTINATIONS

Your tour, your destination.

There is only so much textbooks can do for your students. With Peak Advantage, you take them one step closer to greatness by giving them a unique opportunity to explore and perform around the world. Take on a breathtaking adventure in one of the best cities in North America and give them an exclusive advantage with our student tours.he exceptional customer service as we design the perfect customized tour for your students.

Choose any of the destinations below, for possible itinerary inclusions:

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There is only so much textbooks can do for your students. With Peak Advantage, you take them one step closer to greatness by giving them a unique opportunity to explore and perform around the world. 

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Travel Leaders

Travel better, u.s. top ten ranked travel company.

Travel Leaders Network has been assisting travelers for nearly 30 years through our international alliance of agencies big and small. Backed by Travel Leaders Group – a powerful leader in both leisure and business travel – we represent all facets and styles of travel, giving us the unique advantage to plan every detail of your vacation or business trip to perfection.

Travel is our passion and our life. We have personally been to destinations worldwide, stayed at the top hotels and resorts, sailed aboard a wide range of cruise ships and embarked on the most memorable tours—and we use those vast experiences to recommend the ideal match for each client.

We also have established relationships with the travel industry’s best cruise lines, hotel chains and tour providers, enabling us to provide special offers and amenities you won’t find anywhere else—even online.

We combine our experience and our industry relationships to create unique and exceptional travel experiences for each and every one of our clients. In short, we help you travel better.

What makes us special?

Personal Service

Join our mailing list

Dedicated to helping our clients travel better, our experienced agents are passionate about sharing their industry knowledge and first-hand insights.

SEE THE WHOLE TEAM

Jill Vosters

Jody Piotter

Aimee Johnson

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CUSTOMER TESTIMONIALS

CUSTOMIZED JUST FOR US We knew a Caribbean cruise would be an amazing vacation, but this truly exceeded our expectations. Traveling with a son with special needs, we were really concerned about accessibility, but we were taken care of from the moment we landed in Miami throughout our entire cruise. The attention to detail was incredible, our agent really thought of absolutely everything so we never had to worry about a thing. Being able to relax and seeing our son smile was worth every penny.

A BANG FOR OUR BUCK If you’ve never used an agent before, I HIGHLY recommend starting now. We actually SAVED money and because our agent has VIP status with the cruise line, we ended up being upgraded to a suite on the opposite side of the ship so we had amazing views of the coast every single time we pulled into port. We should have been using an agent long ago. After sipping our coffee in our pajamas watching the sun rise over the Mediterranean from our veranda, we will never go back to booking on our own ever again.

CRUISING SPAIN, FRANCE, ITALY & GREECE My husband and I really wanted to do a Mediterranean cruise for our honeymoon, but we really had no idea where to start and researching options was so overwhelming. We had never used an agent before, but we will never go back to trying to plan our own vacations after this. Our agent knew the perfect cruise right away. She arranged a three-day tour in Barcelona before we departed on our cruise and it couldn’t have been more perfect. From sending us all our documents in advance to staff knowing our names as soon as we showed up, our agent made it all so easy.

—Christine B.

BUCKET LIST AFRICAN SAFARI I can’t recommend our agent enough!! We just returned from a two-week safari in Africa. We visited three countries with ten different stops like Masai Mara National Reserve, Serengeti National Park and more. Considering all the planning that went into this trip for transfers and accommodations in each stop, our agent didn’t just pull it off, she made it a bucket list trip we will never forget. We couldn’t have done this without her and will definitely be using her again. We can’t wait to start planning our next trip!

DREAM WEDDING IN MEXICO I’ve always wanted to have a destination wedding, but I never thought it would be possible. Our agent made that dream a reality and we got married on a picturesque secluded beach in Riviera Maya with enough of our budget left over to plan a separate honeymoon. I was SO impressed with everything she did. Not only did our agent get a special rate for our family members to stay at the same resort, she also surprised us with a special sunset catamaran cruise as a wedding gift and even sent little gifts for the bridal party! All the personal touches made it really special.

It was an absolutely MAGICAL trip. Thank you so much for everything you did to make our trip wonderful. We have been telling everyone how easy you made our trip and that we definitely recommend booking travel plans through you. We could not be more pleased! Thanks again for everything! 

—Tishara and Arnold B.

My agent, Amy did a wonderful job on helping us to decide the right tours, then handling all of  the reservations, connections and hotels in London, Scotland and Rome. She made our trip worry free. The bottle of wine waiting for us was a pleasant surprise! We will utilize Amy for our next vacation to either Wales or New Zealand.

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The ultimate tips for peak season travel

Nov 22, 2012 • 4 min read

Making a last-minute getaway in peak holiday season is not for the faint of heart. Prices are steep, train seats are scarce, and airports are chaotic as hordes of travellers scurry around to a soundtrack of piped-in Christmas music. But when my longing for sunshine outweighed my craving for Thanksgiving turkey and pies, I booked a quick four-day escape to Miami .

On my tightly packed airplane winging its way to South Beach, I had some time to ponder the joys and pitfalls of spontaneous holiday travel. Here's a short primer on how to travel gracefully over the holidays - whether it’s a last-minute package deal to Mexico or the standard trip home via train, bus, or three connecting flights.

Think outside the box

There are last-minute deals to be had. But when it comes to peak travel seasons, you have to be flexible about your destination. You’re less likely to stumble across a bargain-priced Christmas trip to Switzerland , for example: snowboarding in the Alps is generally enjoyed by people who make advance plans (or have plenty of expendable income). But if you’re open to a getaway to Costa Rica , New Orleans or the Irish countryside, you’ll discover a variety of last-minute options using the resources below.

Make the system work for you

The internet is rife with travel planning tools, but they’re not worth much if you don’t know how to set them up and tailor them to your preferences. If you’re interested in a vacation, log onto Travelzoo ( www.travelzoo.com ), where last-minute packages are listed by departure city. Catering to European travellers, Lastminute.com ( www.lastminute.com ) offers similar packages, but more popular destinations book out early. If you have time to spare, sign up for e-mail bulletins advertising deeply discounted travel packages, including Travelzoo’s Top 20 ( www.travelzoo.com/top20 ). Then log on to Twitter and follow travel magazines and websites like Condé Nast Traveler ( @CNTraveler ) and Budget Travel ( @BudgetTravel ) - both offer frequently updated travel deals and promotions you won’t see elsewhere.

If you don’t have plane tickets yet but your holiday destination is set - if you’re expected for New Year’s Eve in Los Angeles or Christmas in London , for instance - enter Kayak ( www.kayak.com ) and set up a flight alert. This user-friendly tool automatically keeps you posted if the airfare on your desired route changes: if the fare suddenly drops $80, you can pounce on it. Of course, your chances of scoring a decently priced flight increase dramatically if you enter several different combinations of airports, dates and travel times. Another site to try is Hotwire ( www.hotwire.com/deals ), particularly the ‘Deals’ section, where a sidebar allows you to see the cheapest fares from your departure city for upcoming weekends.

Streamline your itinerary

It’s worth considering paying more for a non-stop flight over an itinerary with multiple connections. Why? Most airlines do not offer compensation or accommodation assistance if your flight is delayed or cancelled due to wintry weather. So if freezing rain is falling at your layover airport, you’re stuck - and you might end up spending your hard-earned cash on a dingy airport motel room. If you book a non-stop flight, the worst-case scenario is that you’re stuck at home or at your final destination. Another choice airport tip from Condé Nast’s travel expert Wendy Perrin: to avoid getting bumped from an overbooked holiday flight, make sure you get a seat assignment ahead of time (read more here ).

Airports: do your homework

There’s no way around it. Moving through LaGuardia or Heathrow during the holiday rush just isn’t pleasant - the best you can do is pack light, arrive early (at least two hours ahead for domestic flights and three for international), maintain a Zen-like expression at the security line and indulge in a well-deserved cocktail at the bar by your departure gate. But if you do have any flexibility in your flight plans, opt for smaller travel hubs over major airports like Chicago O’Hare and Los Angeles International, identified by Orbitz as the two busiest airports in the US over the current Thanksgiving holiday.

Consider ground transportation

If you’re travelling last-minute, you’ll have better luck with bus and train tickets than airfares - and your trip is less likely to be cancelled due to weather. What, an eight-hour journey sounds excessive? Just remember how long the lines are at the airport.

Anticipate problems

Expect the unexpected, and leave some space in your budget accordingly. Even if you don’t have much cash to spare, be kind to yourself - when it’s snowing and there are one hundred people waiting in line for the public bus, $20 is a small price to pay for a taxi ride. When you’re facing an unexpected seven-hour delay at the airport, splash out and buy yourself a day pass to an airport lounge stocked with food and drinks, comfortable couches and wi-fi. Just consider it a holiday present to yourself.

For last-minute travel tips, hotel hacks and expert advice, snap up Lonely Planet's Best Ever Travel Tips .

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Peak Travel Pilot Transcript

Peak travel pilot episode.

We are in the early stages of Peak Travel , and we need your input to help develop the show. Your insights and ideas will help us shape the series, ensuring that it’s informative and entertaining. Please listen to the pilot episode, and share your honest opinions and insights in this survey .

TARIRO MZEZEWA, HOST: What happens to a city when entire neighborhoods of people can no longer afford to live in their homes? Or to a culture, when generations of families are forced to move?

ALEXANDRA DUNNET: Every single apartment is an Airbnb now, so you can’t live anywhere.

TM: Alexandra Dunnet was born and raised in Mexico City. In 2017, she found her dream home: a two-bedroom apartment in the Condesa neighborhood. It ran her 9,000 pesos a month — about 500 U.S. dollars. She was part of a thriving community. Some of the neighbors had lived there for decades. They would meet up at locally owned taquerias and coffee shops.

[MUSIC, STREET SOUNDS FROM MEXICO CITY]

AD: Those places were filled with stories, like my first date, the first time I had a fight with my best friend. Those were the spots, because that was the life.

TM: But in 2021, her landlord told everyone in the building that their leases wouldn’t be renewed. One by one, each tenant was forced to leave. The apartments were remodeled, and soon, they were occupied not by Mexico City residents — but by Americans and other foreigners.

AD: They turn it into this, like, pretentious. Mexican, but not really, boutique Airbnb hotel for like digital nomads. And it was very depressing because, like, you would see them going in and they would just like, like they wouldn’t even say hello.

TM: These new tenants also drove the rent way up.

AD: And it was shocking because it was like about $5,000 a month, while I was paying $500. And like, the same flat, the exact same flat than mine.

TM: It wasn’t just Alexandra’s building. This rapid turnover was spreading — especially in popular neighborhoods at the center of the city, like Roma and Condesa.

The apparent culprit? Foreigners who could afford to work remotely. They’d stay for six months or a year at a time, bringing their high salaries to a city with cheaper rent and fewer rights for tenants. They came in, and — whether they meant to or not — displaced people.

AD: And now because of like, some f—ing bunch of gringos want to come here, like, give yourself the experience to live in Mexico City, it’s like now you’re ruining lives in a way, like you’re destroying lives.

[THEME MUSIC]

TM: This is Peak Travel , a new podcast from WHYY about how travel shapes local communities around the world. We’ll share the wonder and awe that comes with exploring new places, as well as the profound harm that our travel habits can cause. And we’ll try to figure out how we can do it better.

I’m your host, Tariro Mzezewa. I’m from Zimbabwe; I grew up near Washington, D.C. and I’ve lived in LA, Rome, New York and Atlanta.

Travel is part of who I am. My earliest memories are road tripping from Harare to Durban with my family; standing in front of Victoria Falls in total awe, and later, getting on a plane to leave an increasingly unstable country, with the hope of finding opportunity in another.

In my work as a travel journalist, I’ve talked to influencers, politicians and leaders of tourism boards. I’ve also interviewed performers on cruise ships, safari guides, hotel housekeepers and airport restaurant workers. I’ve come to realize that though travel can offer personal fulfillment, it often comes at a cost.

[MONTAGE OF VINTAGE TOURISM ADS]

When Mark Twain wrote that, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness,” I don’t think he had influencers flooding his Instagram feed.

The truth is the modern day travel industry is selling us a fantasy: bungalows in the Maldives, bamboo treehouses in Bali, or bottomless rum and cokes at all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean.

Worse yet, “Must-see” lists and TikTok trends are leading us all to the same angel-wing murals and pastel-colored homes. But these Top Ten lists have a real impact on people’s livelihoods, and the planet. So, what can we do about it?

In this episode we’re exploring this question in one of the most beautiful cities on earth. Nestled in the Sierra Madre mountains, with balmy weather year-round and bustling streets filled with song, Mexico City is the oldest and most populous city in North America. But it’s currently in a housing crisis, fueled by travel.

EMILIANO RUPRAH: Often people who visit Mexico speak of a country that’s kind of imbued with a sense of magic realism, where nothing is what it seems. And it’s true. It has that aspect where you could walk into a street and find yourself in an incredible garden, or visit the home of a famous painter.

TM: Emiliano Ruprah grew up here. He treasures what the city once was.

[STREET SOUNDS FROM MEXICO CITY]

ER: One of my earliest memories is walking along the street with my mom and passing by all these ,like, little mom and pop shops. There was the carpenter. There was the shoe shiner. There was the tortilla stand, and you could smell, like, the sweet smoky corn being processed into tortillas. I remember a lot of street salesmen selling candy that smelled like mango or tamarind, always covered with, like, a dust of chili and lime powder.

[ORGAN MUSIC FROM MEXICO CITY]

And then the other element is the sounds, like the organilleros who have these organs, which they churn and make this really kind of sad music, or the flutesman, or the lone saxophonists, or the mariachis, you know, wailing out as they walk down the street.

[SAXOPHONE MUSIC FROM MEXICO CITY]

TM: But thanks to social media, the rest of the world got wind of what a well-kept secret the city was. Corporations bought in, airlines added routes there and, naturally, tourists came. When they arrived, things started changing. The city began catering to the visitors.

RACHEL LANGLEY: I’m Rachel Langley. I’m from Austin, Texas originally, and I’m 32. And I live in Mexico City. I’ve been there since 2018.

TM: Rachel started out as one of these visitors. She first came on a six-month tourist visa, and she never left.

RL: What has kept me in Mexico for as long as I’ve been here is just this sense of trust here that I don’t, I never experienced in the U.S.

TM: At first, she didn’t realize the impact her presence could have on her neighbors.

RL: At that time I didn’t see it as a place that was being necessarily gentrified, and that was like a little bit of my own ignorance to what was going on in the city at that time.

TM: What began as a trickle turned to a flood. Instead of regulating the wave of foreigners, the government dove in head first.

CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM PARDO: Y están muy contentos ayer se presentó aquí en la Ciudad de México, una alianza entre el gobierno en la Ciudad de México, Airbnb y UNESCO para promover a la Ciudad de México como capital del turismo creativo…

TM: In 2022, Mexico City’s then-mayor, Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo, signed a deal making the city an official partner of American tech giant Airbnb. They said their goal was to, quote, “promote the city as a global hub for remote workers.”

On some level, the deal made sense. The pandemic hit city governments across the world hard — and local officials expected the partnership would bring Mexico City an influx of $1.4 billion. Sheinbaum Pardo promised that new money would trickle down to native residents.

News of the deal immediately went viral, worldwide.

[MONTAGE OF INFLUENCERS FINDING DEALS IN MEXICO CITY]

Emiliano has seen the effects firsthand in his neighborhood.

ER: Think of the difference of a city where, for years, the tenant and the homeowner knew each other. When a corporation takes over buildings and apartments and kind of rules from the outside, that dynamic completely changes.

TM: Alexandra also felt the shift — in big ways, like losing the apartment she loved…

AD: I was so scared. It’s like, where am I going to live? Like, if everything is this expensive, what am I going to do?

TM: And in her everyday life. It’s been frustrating.

AD: I was, I went to this one the other day and they gave me, um, a menu in English, and I was like, are you serious? As I am in Mexico, I would like to read the menu in my own language. Thank you very much.

TM: Eventually, Alexandra moved in with a friend. But she misses her old neighbors.

AD: It’s like a thing that I don’t allow myself to think about very much, because I find it very painful. It’s not just like you lose a flat. You lose a life.

TM: We reached out to Airbnb and the Mexico City government for comment. Neither of them got back to us.

Since the mayor announced the partnership, she has walked it back — saying she never intended for rents to rise, and that she would consider regulating Airbnb.

Still, what happened to Alexandra’s building is now common in Mexico City. In the last two decades, the number of short-term rentals has more than tripled — from about 22,000 units to nearly 72,000. At the same time, more than 20,000 low-income families are forced to leave the city every year because there isn’t enough affordable housing. Sometimes, the stakes are life and death.

ESTI ROMERO: My name is Esti Romero.

TM: Esti grew up between Dallas, Texas and Mexico City — where she says she was…

ER: …always at my grandmother’s house. She lived there my entire life up until the very end. My whole family has lived in that neighborhood for, like, over 50 years.

TM: Like many grandmothers, Esti’s abuela had a lot of influence in her community.

ER: Her name was Olivia Romero Garcia. And this woman always had her lipstick on, always had her nails done. She was very famous for the amount of blush that she would put on every day. They called her La Chappy, which is just a way to say blush in Spanish.

TM: She wasn’t just known for her looks. Esti’s grandmother was genuine and giving.

ER: No one ever went hungry around her, or if anybody needed a night to stay at her house, she was always that person.

TM: Her home was a gathering place for Esti’s family for generations.

Esti: My family would throw a party for, like, the opening of an envelope like. We always wanted to be together.

TM: Then, the city started to change before Esti’s eyes.

ER: I started noticing that there was a lot more people who were international coming to Mexico City. And I was like, okay, you know, this happens all the time. But they go back.

TM: The tourists seemed to be staying much longer. And soon, their presence would affect her family directly.

ER: My grandmother never owned her home. The landlord that she had for most of her life passed away and left the property to his daughter. She almost wanted to start over with the building.

TM: The new landlord raised the rent multiple times. But Esti’s grandmother wasn’t going to leave without a fight. She was the last tenant remaining in the building.

ER: And it came to a point where she just literally asked my grandmother for the house. She said she had all these plans for it to make it a short-term rental. And that day was a very, very dark day. You know, we got the call, and I thought someone had died. Because we knew what it meant.

TM: It meant that the life Esti and her family shared would be permanently upended.

ER: She was, you know, an older woman. She had advancing dementia. And she moved into a, basically a studio. Tiny. Really, really tiny. And that was really like the beginning of the end for my grandmother. As soon as she moved, her dementia just got… It happened so quickly. And she had a cardiac event and passed away.

It was so sad because we all grew up there, like we all grew up at my grandmother’s house. And she had lived there for so long.

TM: Coming up on Peak Travel , we’ll hear about the policies that are forcing displacement in Mexico City, and how travelers can visit without making life harder for locals. That’s after the break.

[MIDROLL BREAK]

CARLA ESCOFFIE: We were really mad, because the Mexican government, they are doing an agreement without even knowing how this is going to affect the people in Mexico City.

TM: That’s Carla Escoffie, a housing advocate for tenants across Mexico.

CE: And I deal mostly with cases that involve a right of housing. TM: When the city announced it was partnering with Airbnb, Carla was shocked.

CE: Obviously, my reaction, I think most of the people and mostly from Mexico City, was frustration.

TM: To Carla, the city was neglecting its citizens for profit.

CE: The problem is that the government of Mexico City, it’s not that they just haven’t regulated Airbnb, but they are promoting Airbnb. So the situation is like really, it’s really sad.

TM: But then, people started to push back.

[SOUND OF A PROTEST, CHANTING IN SPANISH]

CE: There was a protest in Mexico, a march in Mexico City for their right of housing. It was the first time that this new generation, the young generation, take the streets to protest because of the right of housing.

TM: Rosalba Loyde studies urban sociology and the emergence of Airbnb in Mexico City. She agrees with Carla, and says that activists and residents are fighting two connected battles: one against Airbnb, and another for housing rights and protections for tenants.

ROSALBA LOYDE [TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH]: So, when a foreigner arrives and says, ‘I’m going to pay you in dollars,’ and he’s also light-skinned and has light-colored eyes and speaks English, well, it’s easier to rent to that person than to give it to someone in the city.

TM: She doesn’t think digital nomads are to blame. The real problem is the system, which lures visitors and prioritizes them by making it easy to settle without regulation.

RL [TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH]: I always say that the issue is with foreigners because we can put a face to them, right? They do have a face and we can point the finger at them like, oh the problem is the one coming here, right? Rather than understanding the processes of, well, the system, how public policies have worked, how the financial system works at a global level, how technology works a little bit, and those things don’t have a face, right? So we fight more with what we can point to.

TM: Rosalba and Carla say tenant rights in Mexico have been neglected for far too long. There’s no public housing system, and no fair housing authority like in the U.S. That makes it easy for landlords to dissolve leases, evict locals at a moment’s notice — and replace them with higher-earning foreigners who can pay more in rent.

RL [TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH]: We don’t know who rents in Mexico City, who are the landlords, right? How many, how many houses do you have? And how many apartments? The issue of paying income taxes on real estate for housing in Mexico City is opaque. We don’t have any information.

TM: Other cities have taken a tougher stance when it comes to regulating Airbnb. Montreal banned them in some neighborhoods entirely to preserve housing for residents. New York City requires Airbnb owners to register their properties, and prove that they live in the units with their guests. If they don’t, they can be fined thousands of dollars.

Carla says Mexico City’s not just losing residents to the Airbnb boom. The city is also losing what makes it special. Many locals say they feel like their home is being taken over by tourists.

CE: I think when people say colonization, it’s because they’re feeling that something is getting lost, that they are not going to get back. A lot of people in social media are saying that they are scared because right now the salsas in the restaurants and in the taquerias is not spicy anymore. They are feeling like foreign people in their own city.

TM: Rachel, who moved to Mexico City in 2018, has become more and more conscious of the dynamic she’s involved in, especially after living in a rapidly gentrifying part of town.

RL: I didn’t really love taking up space there, you know? I was like, ‘I’m just one other white woman taking up an apartment in this neighborhood.’

TM: She’s trying to do it better. Rachel has become fluent in Spanish. She’s working toward her citizenship and has a Mexican ID. She wants to invest back into the country that she’s been living in. Housing advocates say that this self-awareness is a good start.

RL [TRANSLATED FROM SPANISH]: I think it would be worth it if when, when that migratory process occurs, they recognize, let’s say, what process they’re participating in and how they’re inserting themselves into the city where they are doing it.

CE: If you’re going to move someplace, you have also to make an effort to understand that sad part, because any city, any place has problems, has social and political problems.

TM: But ultimately, it’s up to elected officials to clean up the mess.

AD: It’s like, oh wow, how exciting that you get to work and also live in Rome for three months. That sounds like a dream, obviously. I mean, I don’t blame them. I would be in the same position, but I think it’s our government’s responsibility to make sure that the people that live in Mexico are taken care of, and their rights are being protected.

TM: After the break, we’ll talk to a travel journalist who’s seen the industry evolve firsthand, and get some guidance on how we can travel more ethically. That’s coming up, on Peak Travel .

TM: After learning what’s going on in Mexico City, I wanted to find out how widespread this problem is, and what travelers should do differently. So I called my friend Sebastian Modak.

Thanks for joining us. I want to talk to you about so many things. I’m kind of overwhelmed about where to start, because I’m just like, I feel like we’re so lucky we got you.

SEBASTIAN MODAK: Likewise. It’s good to be here.

TM: Sebastian is a travel writer from Brooklyn. In this episode, he’s going to help us unpack the themes we’ll be exploring for the rest of the season — how special travel can be, and also how we can try to do it without hurting people. He said he’s not surprised that Mexico City is struggling.

SM: It’s frustrating to see this happening so rapidly, and with such a huge impact in Mexico City, because it’s happened already in so many other places that I feel like, why haven’t we learned from this?

TM: He’s keenly aware of the harmful effects the internet can have on our wanderlust.

SM: We have been told through travel journalists like me, through social media, etc., that to be a quote-unquote traveler is to go to a certain list of places.

TM: And how it distorts our expectations and experiences.

SM: I think it leads directly to places being overrun, It leads to, that like expectation, reality dichotomy that you see in places like Bali where it’s someone riding a swing over fields of rice paddies, and you turn the camera around and it’s a line of tourists trying to get that exact same shot.

TM: This new reality paints a bleak picture of our romantic ideals.

SM: Can you think of anything more horrific for tourism than a machine that is just telling you what to do based on what everyone else on the Internet is already doing and saying? Like that is the exact antithesis to why we should be traveling.

TM: Sebastian feels it’s critical to consider the reason for a trip before you book it.

SM: A big part of it I think is down to intentionality, right? Like, I think it’s like, you’re asking yourself why before, hopefully, you’re asking yourself where.

TM: And prioritize connecting with others, over sharing your trip on social.

SM: The more I travel, the more I think that the true luxury is access. Having that connection to someone who’s going to show you something that they might not show everyone, anyone else, creating that real human connection. That, to me, feels way more like a luxury than, I don’t know, a $1,400 a night hotel room with a waterfall shower.

TM: This opportunity to build relationships, learn a new language, and change your perspective, Sebastian says it’s why we shouldn’t just stop traveling.

SM: Absolutely not. I shudder to imagine a world without the cross-cultural exchange, the interactions, the mutual understanding that comes out of travel. We’re better people when we travel and we interact with the world around us. I just think we have to think a little deeper about how and when we do it.

TM: This season on Peak Travel …

[SOUND OF A TRAIN ENGINE]

RODNEY PASKO: Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, the lounge car is once again open and serving.

CADEN OINE: It’s mind blowing on what the train can do.

TM: … We’re going to travel all around the world, to destinations near and far.

[SOUND OF SWIMMING, PEOPLE CHEERING]

Like Hawaii, a place whose identity has been shaped by the colonial roots of travel…

HAWAII RESIDENT: The irony of it all is that the thing that caused the demise of our culture and our people and our way of living is what we are forced to thrive with today.

TM: Which is?

HAWAII RESIDENT: Tourism.

HAWAII RESIDENT: Just take a walk down Kalakaua Avenue and how many of those accommodations are locally owned?

TM: And Swedish Lapland, where Indigenous people have started to profit from their own centuries-old traditions…

REINDEER HERDER: I have found out it’s good to meet people from all around the world. And I tell about Sámi culture, tell about the reindeer herding.

TM: We consider our responsibility in protecting the places that we visit, like Australia’s Great Barrier Reef.

MARINE BIOLOGIST: It’s so important that we save this. It’s, there are so many animals that are relying on us to not ruin what we have. TM: And we’ll experience wonder from breathtaking sites across the globe,

[SOUND OF TRAVELERS CHEERING]

TM: That’s coming up this season, on Peak Travel .

SM: Oh, my God.

TM: This is Peak Travel . I’m your host, Tariro Mzezewa. Our producers are Michael Olcott and Michaela Winberg. Our executive producer is Tom Grahsler. Original music and sound design by Catherine Anderson. Our engineers are Charlie Kaier and Tina Kalikay. Our tile art was made by Nick Rogacki.

Special thanks to Naomi Brito, Danya Henninger, Jordan Levy, Therese Madden, Sarah Moses, Asha Prihar, Sophia Schmidt, Kayla Watkins and Avi Wolfman-Arent.

Peak Travel is a production of WHYY. Find us wherever you get your podcasts.

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• IATA passenger data reveals peak travel season ending on high note in August 2022

While the month of August continued to show momentum in air travel recovery, the international traffic, as recorded by International Air Transport Association, rose 115.6 percent versus August 2021 with airlines in Asia delivering the strongest year-over-year growth rates. Domestic traffic for August 2022 was up 26.5percent compared to the year-ago period.

• ETTravelWorld
• Updated On Oct 7, 2022 at 02:40 PM IST

Bologna Airport records 909,899 passengers in September

The number was recorded with an increase of 1.8 percent in comparison to September 2019. Flight movements were 6,668, a decrease of 0.5 percent on 2019 (+33 percent on 2021), meaning September’s load factors were higher than in 2019. Air freight recorded a strong growth as well with 44.4 percent on 2019 and +19.9 percent on 2021.

• Published On Oct 7, 2022 at 01:23 PM IST

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5 facts about presidential travel abroad

American presidents and other world leaders frequently travel internationally, most commonly for conferences and bilateral meetings. This face-to-face diplomacy can offer insights into political priorities, partnerships and tensions, as well as key international issues.

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted international travel in 2020 and 2021, but diplomatic travel picked up significantly in 2022. Here are five facts about presidential travel abroad:

Pew Research Center conducted this analysis to examine the international travel history of recent U.S. presidents and other heads of government through Jan. 20, 2023.

Dates and destinations of U.S. presidential travel prior to 2021 are from the U.S. Department of State’s Office of the Historian, which has recorded international presidential travel since 1901. Travel data for 2021 and 2022 was compiled from White House press briefings. Information on visits to Ukraine by other world leaders were independently verified through official government websites.

Only trips where the head of government met face-to-face with another head of government are included. For example, Biden’s trip to the UK for Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral is excluded as Biden did not hold any diplomatic meetings with the British prime minister or other world leaders. Visiting leaders were only counted if they were the head of government at the time of their visit. Depending on the country’s political system, “head of government” could mean president or prime minister, but not both. Heads of state, monarchs and interim leaders are excluded from the visiting leaders count.

U.S. President Joe Biden has traveled internationally less frequently than his last two predecessors did. Biden traveled to 17 places outside the United States in his first two years in office, visiting some more than once. He made six international trips in 2021, all of them to Europe. In 2022, he made 12 trips, including to Europe, the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East. And in early 2023, Biden traveled to Mexico for the North American Leaders’ Summit.

All told, Biden’s international visit count trails those of former Presidents Donald Trump, who made 23 international trips to 20 places during his first two years in office, and Barack Obama, who made 32 trips to 24 places in the first two years of his presidency.

Biden’s first presidential trip abroad was to the United Kingdom, while Trump’s was to Saudi Arabia and Obama’s was to Canada. A president’s first trip is often used to signal the importance of a strategic alliance. On his trip to the UK in June 2021, Biden reaffirmed the U.S.-UK partnership and committed to close cooperation throughout his presidency. Typically, U.S. presidents visit a close ally on their inaugural trip: Canada was the first international destination for both Obama and Bill Clinton, while Mexico was the first destination for George W. Bush.

U.S. presidents have visited the UK the most in the past decade – a total of eight times. American presidents have worked closely with their British counterparts over the past decade, cooperating on issues from defense and counterterrorism to climate policy . Travel to the UK has largely centered around conferences and summits, but in 2019, Trump made a ceremonial state visit to the UK .  

In the past decade of presidential travel, Belgium (home to NATO headquarters ), France, Germany and Japan are the second-most visited destinations, at six times each.

So far, Biden has made the most trips to the UK and Belgium – two each. (Biden’s additional visit to the UK to attend the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II is not included in this count, since he did not hold any diplomatic appointments.) Just as these two European allies stand out in Biden’s presidential travel thus far, France stands out in Trump’s administration and Germany stands out in Obama’s – they visited those respective countries four times while in office.

Biden is among 38 heads of government who have visited Ukraine since the beginning of the war there. Biden traveled to Kyiv as part of a surprise trip in February, days before the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion .

While many heads of government visiting Ukraine have come from neighboring countries or countries in Europe (such as Poland’s prime minister, who has visited five times since the beginning of the war) that is not always the case. For example, Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei and Guinea-Bissau’s President Umaro Sissoco Embaló traveled to Ukraine in July 2022 and October 2022, respectively.

Biden hosted 28 heads of government at the White House as of the end of 2022. Foreign leaders come to the U.S. for events including conferences, summits and bilateral meetings. Among those to visit the White House in 2021 and 2022 were then-Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson of Sweden, who met with Biden to submit her country’s application for NATO membership ; Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who traveled to the White House on his first known wartime trip abroad ; and French President Emmanuel Macron, whose trip marked the first state visit of Biden’s presidency . In fact, the president of France has been the first leader to make a state visit to the U.S. for the past three presidential terms, with Macron visiting Trump in April 2018 and his predecessor, François Hollande, visiting Obama in February 2014. In April 2023, Biden hosted the second state visit of his administration , meeting with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

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Sarah Austin is a research assistant focusing on global attitudes research at Pew Research Center

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