Maximizing Group Travel Success: Tips for Streamlining Sales and Delivering Unforgettable Experiences

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Group travel has long been a lucrative niche for travel advisors, and this market segment shows no signs of slowing down. From multigenerational family trips to destination weddings, corporate retreats, and special interest tours, group travel appeals to travelers seeking connection and shared experiences as they journey to new and favorite places around the world.
For travel advisors, commissions are multiplied when booking one trip for an entire group of people, and repeat bookings are typical with this specialty. However, selling group travel requires unique strategies, strong organizational skills, and a fair share of finesse to manage the trips to everyone’s satisfaction. Here are key tips to help travel advisors maximize their group travel success in 2025.
The all-important supplier relationship
At the crux of a thriving group travel business is the all-important supplier relationship. Building strong relationships with key partners ─ including airlines, hotels, cruise lines, tour operators, and DMCs ─ fosters seamless experiences for clients. Suppliers also often offer advisors tools, templates, and dedicated group specialists who can make the planning process more efficient.
“Close collaboration with suppliers is critical,” says Cari Miles, owner & travel stylist, Miles in Style Travel. “Negotiating perks like complimentary rooms, upgrades, and added amenities not only enhances the group’s experience, but also provides a unique selling point that sets your agency apart. These perks, often unavailable through online travel agencies, can help close deals and build trust with group leaders.”
Lauré Poffenberger, destination weddings & luxury travel consultant, Travel & Luxury Vacations, LLC, also places relationship building above all else. “Relationships and being kind to your suppliers and resort team members are key. Their support can make all the difference in successful group events with additional perks.”
The right technology
Streamlining the booking process is also essential for managing group travel effectively. By adopting the right technology to handle logistics and communications, advisors can save time and provide a smoother experience for their clients. Among these tools are group booking platforms, communications apps, CRMs, and the latest AI-empowered systems.
About her best travel tech, Miles explains: “A CRM helps automate communication, track client preferences, and send reminders, while an itinerary builder ensures every traveler has access to a polished, professional schedule. Real-time updates can enhance the travel experience and reduce stress for both the group and the advisor. These tools are essential for managing the complexities of group travel efficiently.”
It can be daunting when choosing which technology to implement. Poffenberger relays that she was slow in embracing a CRM, but once she found one that truly fit her agency’s style, it was a total game-changer.
Collaboration and teamwork
A strong internal team is the backbone of any travel agency specializing in group travel. From researching destinations and negotiating with suppliers, to handling logistics and ensuring clear communication with clients, each team member plays a crucial role. Collaboration allows the agency to address challenges quickly, provide personalized service, and ultimately exceed client expectations.
Miles says having a dedicated team member, such as an assistant or planning specialist, to assist with day-to-day tasks is crucial. “Our agency’s assistant is an invaluable part of the operation, handling essential tasks such as client communication, payment tracking, creating/updating itineraries, and following up on important deadlines. This allows me to focus on the bigger picture, like securing exclusive deals and crafting memorable experiences.”
Social media consistency
Many travel advisors report that the majority of their group business comes from referrals, but a consistent presence on social media is also a powerful way to connect with potential group clients. Post ideas are virtually endless, but just to name a few, advisors can share testimonials from past group travelers, videos of destinations that are ideal for groups, or other engaging content like “Top 5 Reasons to Travel as a Group in 2025.”
“We actively market through our dedicated Social Group Trips page on Facebook, where we share exciting upcoming group travel opportunities, trip highlights, and exclusive offers,” says Miles. “This platform not only helps us reach new clients, but also creates a sense of community among travelers.”
Advisors may also choose to run targeted ads to reach specific demographics, such as newly engaged couples or companies seeking incentive travel options. Platforms like Facebook and Instagram allow for precise audience targeting, which is invaluable when promoting group packages.
Highly personalized service and hand-holding
The internet is rife with stories of travelers who underestimated the complexity of planning group trips on their own, and then faced the challenges of coordinating schedules, researching destinations and accommodations, facilitating communications with all group members, and dealing with unexpected travel and personal issues. Group travel is one of the areas where travel advisors can shine bright, given their vast experience and network, and truly help travelers make the most of their time together.
One way to stand out from the crowd, according to Miles, is to “provide a highly personalized experience, ensuring that every group leader or couple feels supported from start to finish. For example, we take the time to understand their vision and tailor every detail, from destination selection to curated excursions. Our ability to navigate complex group dynamics, negotiate added perks, and provide consistent communication with all parties involved in the process sets us apart. Plus, our experience with weddings ensures that couples can trust us with one of the most important days of their lives.”
Hand-holding forms the foundation of Poffenberger’s client strategy, as well: “We’ve successfully brought together hundreds of social groups and destination weddings, and we are available to guide our clients every step of the way ─ no question is too small or ‘silly.’ Hand-holding is our specialty. Getting a group to a pre-determined foreign destination and resort on a certain date requires experience and knowledge. We have done it over and over and know how to pull it all together.”
Lifelong clients
Group travel clients often become loyal, repeat customers. Satisfied clients can be the best ambassadors, referring friends, family, or colleagues for their next group trip. By keeping in touch after the trip, advisors can nurture those one-off group travelers into long-term clients.
“We focus on maintaining connections by following up with personalized thank-you notes, exclusive offers for future travel, and reminders about significant milestones like anniversaries,” notes Miles. “For wedding guests, we often highlight services like honeymoon planning or anniversary trips to keep them thinking of us for their next adventure. This approach ensures our clients see us as a trusted partner for all their travel needs, well beyond the initial trip. By going the extra mile in service and communication, we turn one-time group travelers into lifelong clients.”
Selling the fun
Any business owner, including travel advisors, can sometimes get weighed down by the endless tasks required to run a successful operation. But Poffenberger has a reminder for us all, a harkening back to the why of travel, after all, the desire to experience fun and play around the world.
“At the heart of our business is the understanding that we sell FUN! Our goal is to create memories and experiences that are laughed about for years to come,” exclaims Poffenberger. “Our clients are excited and dreaming about spending time with their friends and families to celebrate a special event or milestone. The hiccups are the stories that will be remembered. Handle it all with kindness and a smile.”
Group travel continues to grow as people seek meaningful shared experiences to celebrate life’s greatest moments. The market is there for the taking, in virtually every region of the globe. Travel advisors can use the strategies discussed here to carve out their share of group travel bookings, streamline operations, build strong client relationships ─ and create unforgettable experiences that keep clients coming back year after year.
FROM THE SPONSOR:
Managing group bookings efficiently means choosing the right partner, and the brands under the ALG Vacations® umbrella have decades of experience in expertly coordinating groups and putting together special offers to help you close the sale. Along with a specialized groups department, ALG Vacations® gives you the tools to make arrangements easy, coordination simple, and details organized – no matter the size of your group – including custom event pages and features like Auto-Inventory Drop.
Get your group to the beach faster with Exclusive Nonstop Vacation Flights (ENVFs) that allow you to hold group inventory. Don’t forget to take advantage of the customizable marketing tools available on ALGV360° and TravelBlogue to reach both new and existing customers.
Start your group journey with ALGV today at www.algvacations.com/groups. And, don’t forget to follow along with us on Facebook and Instagram for all the latest updates.

