ASTA Celebrates Big Wins, Makes New Changes at 2024 Travel Advisor Conference

DALLAS – The American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA) had a few different surprises as it began the 2024 Travel Advisor Conference.

First, a storm came through knocking out the power at the Hilton Anatole host hotel just before the official start date of the conference. Hilton and ASTA pivoted and made things work. 

And then on day one of the conference, in a board of directors meeting, ASTA discovered they had essentially won their biggest ongoing battle.

American Airlines had announced it was, as ASTA’s President and CEO Zane Kerby put it, “doing an about face on NDC implementation and completely scrapping their previous anti-competitive, anti-advisor plans.

It was perhaps the ultimate way to showcase what ASTA is all about. ASTA’s grassroots efforts had paid off, and travel advisors and travel agencies everywhere benefited from their hard work.

It was an exciting way for ASTA to begin its annual conference, which was formerly known as the Global Convention. ASTA chose to rebrand their annual conference for 2024, changing the name to the Travel Advisor Conference and re-working the daily events.

“We wanted to create an event that was clear both in terms of who it was for and what it would promise,” Kerby said during his opening remarks. “This conference is meant for everyone—no matter where you find yourself in the travel industry. You belong here.”

The sold-out conference had over 1,400 travel professionals in attendance, ready to learn new things and make new connections to help grow their business.

“I am a fan of the re-branding and name change as this is a better fit for the conference and representation of the event,” said Beth Sparling of Honeymoons and Beyond.

Venus Williams gives keynote speech at the 2024 ASTA Travel Advisor Conference in Dallas, Texas. (Photo Credit: ASTA)

Focus on Education and Growth

This year’s rebrand included a greater emphasis on providing improved educational opportunities to advisors.

ASTA shifted to break it down into three different education tracks:

Cultivate: For advisors who may be newer to the industry.

Accelerate: For advisors focused on growth.

Innovate: For mid- to large agency owners and managers.

Advisors were able to customize their choices to best suit their business and growth plans. 

“I selected classes from all three of the education tracks as we were able to combine based on individual needs and preferences,” Sparling said. “Overall, the class offerings were good, and the presenters provided useful information and solid takeaways.”

“The different learning tracks and speakers were fabulous,” said Jennifer Doncsecz, President VIP Vacations. “I loved the session that Chris Voss taught and really thought the topics in other classes (AI, Communication, and branding) were very informative. The real highlight for me was seeing the travel community come together and rally behind ASTA and rejoice in the AA victory.”

Chris Voss at the 2024 ASTA Travel Advisor Conference (Photo Credit: ASTA)

The conference featured a strong lineup of speakers, highlighted by tennis-pro turned entrepreneur extraordinaire Venus Williams as the keynote speaker.

Williams spoke on what she learned from travel, being resilient, overcoming losing and preparing yourself mentality to in order to be successful.

“Preparing yourself to win a process,” Williams said. “It’s so important to understand what your process is so that we can replicate that process in order to win. Winning is a set of processes.”

Williams mentioned how one day she might like to add hotel owner to her list of businesses.

She also might have thousands of DMs from travel advisors hoping to secure her business after she openly admitted she needed a new travel advisor. “DM guys,” Williams said as she ended her speech, “if you find yourself amazing at travel…I’m looking for one.”

Revamped Verified Travel Advisor Program

One big announcement made this week was ASTA’s decision to add new requirements for its Verified Travel Advisor program. 

Advisors must now meet certain criteria to become a Verified Travel Advisor, which include either two years of experience and an annual sales volume of $500,000 or at least five years of experience and an annual sales volume of $250,000.

ASTA launched four new courses for advisors to complete: Legal Insights, Ethical Excellence, Legal Compass, Regulatory Guidebook.

Advisors will need to go through a recertification process every two years to maintain Verified Travel Advisor status.

Over 70 advisors were able to take part in a fast track here at the conference.

“I chose to do the fast track at the conference because it was economical and an excellent use of my time,” Cindy Coggins of Coggins Travel said.

“Having a Verified Travel Advisor accreditation not only boosts my own confidence as a travel advisor, it also makes a statement in the eyes of my customers, peers and suppliers,” said Coggins. “It shows you are serious about your craft.”

One-on-One Connections

Premium appointments and matched meetings were new this year to the Travel Advisor Conference.

Advisors and suppliers were able to connect one-on-one at exhibitor booths to further foster their relationships. 

The matched meeting system began with advisors and suppliers answering a 43-question survey ahead of the conference. ASTA then paired advisors with suppliers based on those answers for a total of 18 appointments that would give everyone the chance to learn more about each other in a brief 8-minute meeting.

“I find connections made at the trade show and throughout the conference to be invaluable,” said Coggins.

Trade show floor at the 2024 ASTA Travel Advisor Conference (Photo Credit: ASTA)

Focus on Fun  

Of course, no travel conference is complete without some fun festivities.

Kicking off the first night was a Texas carnival courtesy of Carnival Cruise Line. The weather shifted it inside the grand ballroom and hotel lobby, but that didn’t stop attendees from having a blast with carnival games, armadillo races, carnival themed food, a mechanical bull and the dance floor.

“A big shout out to Carnival Cruise Line and Southwest Airlines for going above and beyond to provide us with two very special evenings,” Sparling said.

The second night’s event took place at Southwest Airlines headquarters, spanning across all three floors. The night featured a live band on the first floor, a silent disco party on the second, and karaoke on the third. Watching from the rooftop to see Southwest planes take off and land was a highlight for many.

Carnival night at the 2024 ASTA Travel Advisor Conference (Photo Credit: Eric Bowman)

Awarding Top Suppliers and Partnerships

ASTA members vote each year to award members, chapters and supplier partners who best support ASTA’s overall mission.

The 2024 winners include:

Supplier Awards  

• Partner Company of the Year: AmaWaterways  
• Partner Representative of the Year: Kristin Karst, AmaWaterways  
• Airline Partner of the Year: Delta Air Lines  
• Transportation Partner of the Year: Enterprise, National and Alamo 
• GDS Partner of the Year: Sabre Corporation 
• Hotel Partner of the Year: Marriott International  
• Ocean Cruise Line Partner of the Year: Royal Caribbean International  
• River Cruise Line Partner of the Year: AmaWaterways  
• Tour Operator Partner of the Year: Globus Family of Brands 
• Travel Insurance Partner of the Year: Allianz Partners  
• North American Destination Partner of the Year: Hawai‘i Visitors & Convention Bureau 
• International Destination Partner of the Year: The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism 
• Supplier Medal of Excellence: Vicki Freed, Royal Caribbean International  

Partnership Awards   

• Travel Advisor of the Year: Velia Kennedy, Owner & CEO of Modern Family Travel 
• Consortium Partner of the Year: Signature Travel Network & Virtuoso   
• Regional Consortium of the Year: MAST Travel Network  
• Host Agency of the Year: Avoya Travel Network 
• Member Service Award: Hope Wallace with ADA Travel & Dave Hershberger with Prestige Travel Leaders Inc. 
• President’s Travel Advisor Leadership Award: Jean Paugh with All About You Travel Unlimited. 
• ASTA Chapter on the Rise: Greater New Orleans  
• George “Eddie” Woodham Chapter President of the Year Award: Senora Kelly, Missouri Kansas Chapter 
• Regional Director of the Year: South East Regional Director Shelley Phillips 
• Robert L. Duglin Chapter Excellence Award: Central Pennsylvania Chapter 

David Shull and his company Tern won this year’s Entrepreneur of the Year contest, which is put on in partnership with Gloria Bohan. Shull, the company’s CEO, says Tern is an all-in-one platform for travel advisors.

ASTA ended the conference with its annual Advocacy Dinner – a fundraising gala event that was held Friday night at the Thompson Hotel in downtown Dallas.

After awarding Gifted Travel Network’s Vanessa McGovern the Barbara O’Hara Advocacy Award and Virtuoso’s Matthew Upchurch with the Paul M. Ruden Industry Ambassador Award, ASTA was able to raise nearly $500,000 during the event.

The 2025 Travel Advisor Conference 

Registration is already open for next year’s ASTA Travel Advisor Conference, May 20-22, 2025, in Salt Lake City, Utah.

The first speaker is already set. Aron Ralston is a renowned mountaineer, adventurer and New York Times best-selling author of “Between A Rock and a Hard Place”, which inspired the Oscar-nominated film “127 Hours.”

For the latest travel news, updates and deals, subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter.

Topics From This Article to Explore