ACTA Summit: Commission & Compensation Issues Rank as Travel Advisors’ Top Concerns

Hundreds of Toronto-area travel advisors and suppliers gathered yesterday for the ACTA Eastern Canada Summit, the annual update from the advocacy group that represents them.

The overarching message from ACTA President Suzanne Acton-Gervais during her opening speech is that travel advisors are operating in an increasingly complicated environment fraught with issues including economic uncertainty, geopolitical disruption, changing regulation, fraud, AI and changing supplier compensation.

ACTA’s message is that its advocacy efforts are becoming more important, not less. 

A Focus on Supplier Compensation

Acton-Gervais directly addressed changing airline compensation and made the point that when commissions or compensation are reduced, the advisor’s work doesn’t disappear. Advisors still deal with schedule changes, disruptions, documentation and duty of care; the cost of doing that work is simply shifted onto agencies, advisors and ultimately consumers.

ACTA’s 2026 member survey found that supplier commercial policies — including distribution, commission and compensation — were the No. 1 priority, cited by 65% of respondents.

She then made a broader argument: the economic value generated by the retail travel channel needs to be recognized, and decisions affecting thousands of Canadian small travel businesses shouldn’t be made without those businesses having a voice.

ACTA is Becoming more Proactive in its Advocacy

There’s a strong message that ACTA doesn’t want to wait until an industry crisis erupts before approaching government.

Acton-Gervais discussed the 49-year-old association’s first Parliamentary Hill Day in Ottawa, which brought travel agency leaders, advisors and industry partners face to face with MPs, senators and senior officials. 

“We cannot wait for crisis to build relationships,” Acton-Gervais said.

Big Picture: AI Won’t Replace Advisors

Acton-Gervais encouraged advisors to utilize expanding Artificial Intelligence tools to become more efficient, improve marketing and increase productivity.

But she drew a very clear distinction between information and professional judgement:

“Speed is not the same as judgement. Information is not the same as wisdom. And an itinerary is not the same as a well-designed journey.”

Her argument is that AI can provide thousands of answers, but an advisor understands which questions need to be asked first: Who is travelling? Why are they travelling? What are they celebrating? What could go wrong?

She calls that “authentic human intelligence” — listening, interpreting, reassuring, problem-solving and advocating.

“Technology changes. Trust endures,” she said.

Acton-Gervais asserted that the future belongs to professionals who combine smart technology with human judgement, efficiency with empathy, and data with relationships.

The Changing Advisor Value Proposition 

Acton-Gervais noted that an advisor’s value is no longer primarily access to information — consumers already have almost unlimited information at their fingertips. But there can be too much of a good thing.

The advisor’s value is the ability to turn that information into the right decision for a particular person, she said, observing that two travellers with the same dates and budget can require completely different trips.

There’s also a nice paradox in this section: consumers have more information and choice than ever, but not necessarily more confidence or clarity. That makes professional advice potentially more valuable.

The Amazing Resilience of Travel Desire

Acton-Gervais acknowledges a fairly difficult Canadian economic environment, defined by cost pressures, uncertainty and consumers watching household budgets.

But she argues that Canadians haven’t lost their desire to travel. They may change their timing, budget, destination or type of trip, but they’re still going.

And they’re going different place. Acton-Gervais notes that while the United States remains an important destination, Canadians are considering an increasingly diverse range of experiences in Canada, the Caribbean, Europe, Asia, Central and South America and elsewhere.

Short-Term Pessimism Versus Long-Term Growth

Acton-Gervais used several statistics to counter short-term pessimism driving by a tumultuous geopolitical environment. Global passenger volumes and travel’s economic contribution are expected to continue growing dramatically over the long term.

More travellers mean more journeys to design and therefore more opportunity for professional travel advice, she said.

Acton-Gervais’ conclusion is that travel isn’t becoming less important. It’s becoming more meaningful, as consumers increasingly value time, access,  personalization, authenticity and memories.

It was a message well received by an appreciative audience.