22 Travel Agency Success Stories (2023)

Updated: July 23rd, 2023
Start A Travel Agency

22 Travel Agency Success Stories (2023)

Are you a passionate traveler with entrepreneurial skills? Then starting a travel agency can be a great career choice for you.

As a travel agency, you'll be responsible for linking travelers to providers of all the travel and tourism-related services such as accommodation, transportation, sightseeing, tour guides, local adventure, etc.

Starting an online travel agency is a lot easier than you might think. You'll need to perform market research, get a few necessary certifications (such as your IATA number), study competition, build a website, and do proper marketing.

To maximize earnings, negotiate discounts from the industry service providers, and charge travelers within the market rate.

Here are some real life success stories of starting a travel agency:

1. Spread Your Wings Travel Agency ($84K/year)

Marissa Waiters (from Dallas, TX, USA) started Spread Your Wings Travel Agency over 4 years ago.

Revenue
$7K / month
Team
1 founders / 1 employees

Case Study

Hey! My name is Marissa Daniels, and I am a millennial travel agent! I began Spread Your Wings Travel in February of 2019. Prior to 2019, I wanted an extra source of income just to have an extra cushion. I did mystery shopping, took surveys online, drove for Postmates and DoorDash, worked at a grocery store, anything I could find for extra money. I also did, and still do Brand Ambassador events as well- but those things didn’t fulfill me. I was doing them to get extra money, but it didn’t have a purpose and it wasn’t paying me as much as I wanted, so I stopped it all and just gave it to God. I let Him handle it.

Spread Your Wings Travel offers all-inclusive vacations (most under $1000 per person), cruises, luxury villas, cabins, domestic travel and more! The main thing that people like about my business is that I have a payment plan option. I like to have that option for them because not everyone is able to pay for a vacation upfront.

how-i-started-a-2k-month-side-hustle-selling-vacations

2. Luxpitality ($4.92M/year)

Patrick Burkhardt (from San Diego, California, USA) started Luxpitality over 8 years ago.

Revenue
$410K / month
Team
2 founders / 3 employees
Location
San Diego, California, USA

Case Study

We are Patrick Burkhardt and Rigel Bitterman, Co-Founders of Luxpitality. We work with 4 and 5-star boutique and lifestyle hotels that are either independent or part of small brands. We assist our hotel partners by generating incremental leads focusing on groups, meetings, retreats, and incentive trips.

Over the past 5 years, we have grown our hotel portfolio to over 650 hotels around the world that all compliment each other and are the perfect fit for our new-age corporate group clients. No matter where they go in the world we have the perfect option for their next meeting or program.

how-we-built-a-million-dollar-business-that-connects-companies-with-the-perfect-hotels

Learn more about starting a travel agency:

Where to start?

-> How to start a travel agency?
-> Travel agency plan
-> How to finance a travel agency?
-> How much does it cost to start a travel agency?
-> Pros and cons of a travel agency
-> How to get clients for a travel agency?

Need inspiration?

-> Examples of established travel agency
-> Marketing ideas for a travel agency
-> Travel agency slogans
-> Travel agency names
-> Travel agency Instagram bios

Other resources

-> Profitability of a travel agency
-> Travel agency tips

4. Flight Expert Bangladesh ($18M/year)

SALMAN BIN RASHID SHAH SAYEEM (from Dhaka, Bangladesh) started Flight Expert Bangladesh over 6 years ago.

Revenue
$1.5M / month
Team
3 founders / 60 employees

Case Study

Hello, I am Salman Rashid, Founder & CEO of Flight Expert. It is the first-ever online travel agency in Bangladesh. Our uniqueness was to build a state-of-the-art online travel agency with services focusing on Bangladesh primarily. This country has never before enjoyed taking assistance from any online travel agency.

However, the best part is that we achieved 50% more revenue in October 2021 than our pre-covid highest number on sales in a month, interestingly, and we are aiming to hit breakeven by March 2022 if all goes well in the market.

i-started-the-first-online-travel-agency-in-bangladesh-and-it-now-makes-18m-year

5. CuddlyNest ($2.8M/year)

Ritesh Raj (from Orlando, Florida, EE. UU.) started CuddlyNest over 6 years ago.

Revenue
$233K / month
Team
2 founders / 72 employees

Case Study

I’m Ritesh Raj, the co-founder, and COO of CuddlyNest, an accommodation booking platform for travelers. I have a travel tech background of over 13 years—so I’ve been at it since 2009!

That means focusing on all kinds of travelers, who are looking for all kinds of property types, with all kinds of budgets. Our inventory currently includes over four million properties of all types in 80k+ cities!

how-we-solved-a-major-pain-point-with-travelers-and-built-an-all-in-one-booking-platform-21m-sales-in-2022

6. Pack Up + Go ($6.6M/year)

Lillian Rafson (from Pittsburgh, PA, USA) started Pack Up + Go over 7 years ago.

Revenue
$550K / month
Team
1 founders / 30 employees

Case Study

Hi! My name is Lillian Rafson, and I’m the founder + CEO of Pack Up + Go. We’re a travel agency that plans curated getaways around the United States. The catch? Your destination is a surprise until the day you depart! Since launching in 2016, we have sent 25,000+ travelers to 100+ destinations nationwide.

  • Plane/Train Trips
  • Road Trips
  • Outdoor Road Trips
  • Staycations Each of our trip types includes reservations at a top-notch hotel, curated itineraries full of recommendations for things to do, see, and eat in the destination, and 24/7 in-house traveler support.

how-i-started-a-450k-month-travel-agency-that-curates-surprise-vacations

7. The Travel Secret ($1.2M/year)

David Adler (from San Diego, California, USA) started The Travel Secret over 5 years ago.

Revenue
$100K / month
Team
2 founders / 2 employees
Location
San Diego, California, USA

Case Study

TheTravelSecret gives you access to pricing on travel that is not available to the public. Membership automatically gives you access to our platform where you can book hotels, cars, cruises, flights, vacation rentals, homes, activities and even travel insurance at a discount. Unused timeshare inventory is also made available to our members where you can book weeklong stays for a steep discount at more than 500,000 different properties around the world.

We serve a wide array of demographics, from solo travelers to large families across all ages. Since you can basically book anything that you book right now, even business owners are now starting to use the platform to save money on travel.

how-i-started-a-30k-month-travel-discounts-website

8. Whisked Away Surprise Travel ($180K/year)

Charlotte Curry McGhee (from Charlotte, North Carolina, USA) started Whisked Away Surprise Travel over 6 years ago.

Revenue
$15K / month
Team
1 founders / 1 employees
Location
Charlotte, North Carolina, USA

Case Study

Hello! My name is Charlotte Curry McGhee and I started Whisked Away Surprise Travel. Whisked Away saves travelers from hours of planning and overwhelm, giving them the curated surprise trip of their dreams!

Since starting the business in March of 2017, I’ve seen revenue grow exponentially each year, with many clients booking their second surprise trips with Whisked Away within months (or weeks!) of returning.

how-i-turned-my-passion-for-travel-planning-into-a-successful-business

9. Rayna Tours ($6M/year)

Manoj Tulsani (from Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates) started Rayna Tours over 17 years ago.

Revenue
$500K / month
Team
2 founders / 670 employees
Location
Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Case Study

Manoj: Kamlesh Ramchandani and I (Manoj Tulsani) are the founders of Rayna Tours and Travels. Fueled by our deepest interest in travel and entrepreneurship, we kicked off our business journey a decade ago from a small travel counter inside a five-star hotel in Dubai.

Kamlesh: We’ve been in the industry for over a decade and have now become a niche provider of destination management services in Dubai. As a one-stop, customer-oriented business for all travel needs, our main organizational goal is to design and craft travel services and packages in such a way that each of them ideally responds to the dynamic market trends as well as our clients’ specific travel requirements. We offer our full suite of travel solutions through our wholly-owned Rayna Group.

how-we-started-the-35m-year-dubai-s-leading-tour-operator

10. The Vacation Hunt ($480K/year)

Roshni & Jeff (from Washington D.C., Washington, D.C., USA) started The Vacation Hunt over 6 years ago.

Revenue
$40K / month
Team
2 founders / 2 employees
Location
Washington D.C., Washington, D.C., USA

Case Study

Hi - we are Roshni & Jeff and we have sent hundreds of travelers on vacations around the world - without them knowing where they were headed!

Your surprise destination is the birthplace of an iconic government safety campaign! Surprise trip clue #1 for Jennifer, Grayson, & Andrew! #surprisevacation #familytrip #thevacationhunt

this-couple-makes-40k-month-planning-surprise-vacations

11. Urban Hiker SF ($45K/year)

Alexandra Kenin (from San Francisco, California, USA) started Urban Hiker SF almost 11 years ago.

Revenue
$3.75K / month
Team
1 founders / 0 employees
Location
San Francisco, California, USA

Case Study

Hi all! My name is Alexandra Kenin and I run a tour business called Urban Hiker San Francisco, or Urban Hiker SF.

I’ve sold over 8,000 copies since the book came out in November 2016. While working on the book has been fun, and I’m working on a second book, Urban Trails East Bay (Berkeley, Oakland, and other cities east of San Francisco), this is more of a branding play than a money maker. I’ve only made $5,000 total for the book for the countless hours I spent on it.

leaving-google-and-starting-a-hiking-tour-business

12. Cubby Inc ($24K/year)

Sangeetha (from Dallas, TX, USA) started Cubby Inc over 4 years ago.

Revenue
$2K / month
Team
4 founders / 1 employees
Location
Dallas, TX, USA

Case Study

Hello guys! I’m Sangeetha, the Co-founder, and CEO of Cubby. My love for travel coupled with expertise in customer service has been instrumental in the formation of Cubby. “Take memories, leave footprints”- has always been my traveling mantra! It’s interesting because that’s how cubby was born too - making memories without photobombing luggage!

We started out the year 2020 right by being selected to exhibit at the Startup Grind’s Global Conference 2020, at the Silicon Valley. We are very excited to expand across the nation and help many more travelers go un-bagged!

how-i-made-luggage-free-travel-experience-a-possibility

13. SkyAlliance ($33.6K/year)

Andrew Norton (from England, United Kingdom) started SkyAlliance over 4 years ago.

Revenue
$2.8K / month
Team
1 founders / 1 employees
Location
England, United Kingdom

Case Study

Hello. My name is Andrew Norton and I am the CEO & Founder of SkyAlliance Limited®. SkyAlliance is a travel search engine which allows you to find cheap flights, hotels, holiday packages and car hire all over the world.

5 years ago I knew nothing about web design, coding and software development, and today, I own a company that sends people away to various destinations and supplies them with another means of travel, all based on the 3 elements I knew nothing about.

how-this-airport-security-officer-is-building-a-profitable-travel-search-engine

14. HelpStay ($48K/year)

Shay Gleeson (from Dublin, Ireland) started HelpStay over 9 years ago.

Revenue
$4K / month
Team
1 founders / 3 employees
Location
Dublin, Ireland

Case Study

I’m Shay Gleeson and I started HelpStay in February 2014. HelpStay is a subscription-based volunteering platform where travelers of all ages can exchange their time, skills, and talents for accommodation. Our motto is ‘Give a little help, stay for free’.

It’s exciting to curate a real community where our members can travel the world with a purpose, and benefit the communities they visit. Our typical member is aged between 18-38 years old, time-rich but cash-poor - educated to a high level and interested in traveling and giving back.

how-i-started-a-4k-month-platform-that-offers-opportunities-to-go-volunteering-abroad

15. Visa List ($264K/year)

Hari Krishna Dulipudi (from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia) started Visa List over 5 years ago.

Revenue
$22K / month
Team
1 founders / 0 employees
Location
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Case Study

Hi, I’m Hari and I built Visa List a year back and is my third successful micro start-up.

Currently, Visa List has made $5000/month on average with 350K Monthly Active Users and its growing at 60%. Visa List has helped over 2 million users with their visa requirements

how-i-launched-a-5k-month-website-about-tourist-visas-and-got-150k-users-in-the-first-month

16. Five Star Thailand Tours ($720K/year)

Nok (from Krabi Province, Thailand) started Five Star Thailand Tours almost 8 years ago.

Revenue
$60K / month
Team
2 founders / 9 employees
Location
Krabi Province, Thailand

Case Study

Hey there! I’m Nok, co-founder, and director of Five Star Thailand Tours. We've helped over 30,000 travellers in southern Thailand connect with local boat captains to experience incredible and authentic private snorkelling and boat tours.

We are proud to employ 100% local tour guides and boat captains, contributing money directly back into the local economy, and providing a sustainable income for those who need it the most. Throughout our time in business, we have ensured our prices remain fair and competitive to our customers; while prioritizing a fair and sustainable income for our hard-working team.

how-we-started-a-60k-month-private-snorkel-tours-business-in-thailand

17. Gifted Travel Network ($500K/year)

Revenue
$41.7K / month
Team
3 founders / 22 employees

Case Study

Founded by Meredith Hill, Vanessa McGovern, and Jennifer Cochrane, Gifted Travel Network is a cutting-edge host agency that supports business owners in repurposing their love of travel into a successful enterprise and fulfilling lifestyle.

Gifted Travel Network promotes travel entrepreneurship success by offering exemplary service, award-winning professional development programs, and a supportive community.

The founders obtained a $100,000 loan from the bank to kickstart the business.

In 2019, they generated $30 million in sales from travel reservations made using their credentials.

They leverage a strong network of 311 capable travel advisors to assist their valued clients, and their revenue model is commission based.

article

Listen to the full podcast on mixergy.com ➜

18. Blue Sky Luxury Travels ($5M/year)

Revenue
$417K / month
Team
1 founders / employees

Case Study

Shanna Dickerson founded Blue Sky Luxury Travels in St. John, US Virgin Islands.

Blue Sky Luxury Travels is a boutique ultra-luxury travel agency that has offered its services worldwide since 2010.

People can book luxury villas, private islands, and yacht charters, as well as plan tailored and unique itineraries for their loved ones with this agency.

Over the years, this travel agency has become a multi-million dollar company.

Their network of luxury villas, private islands, and yacht charters has weekly rates ranging from $10,000 to more than $1 million.

article

Read the full article on 30a.com ➜

19. Tripadvisor ($1.37B/year)

Get ready for the new TripAdvisor! Face to face with Stephen Kaufer, CEO of TripAdvisor, this interview during ITB Berlin Convention reveals insights into the world's largest travel platform. You'll get to know the importance of trust and sharing experiences in this business and gain first hand know…

Stephen Kaufer, Langley Steinert, Nick Shanny & Thomas Palka (from Miami, Florida, USA) started Tripadvisor over 23 years ago.

Revenue
$114M / month
Team
4 founders / 2956 employees

Case Study

Tripadvisor was founded by co-founders Stephen Kaufer, Langley Steinert, Nick Shanny, and Thomas Palka in February 2000. When they first launched Tripadvisor, they emphasized official words from newspapers, guidebooks, or magazines.

Tripadvisor, now the world’s leading travel advice network, assists hundreds of millions of people in becoming better travelers, from planning to booking to traveling.

Travelers use Tripadvisor to get bargains on lodgings, book activities, reserve tables at wonderful restaurants, and discover excellent locations nearby.

Kaufer co-founded TripAdvisor in 2000 to assist tourists worldwide in planning and having the perfect trip. The business idea came about when Steve was preparing for a vacation, and he searched the internet for a vacation idea, and his experience wasn’t pleasing.

At that moment, he decided to work on a travel search engine that would find those backwater pages, insights, and opinions of what other travelers found.

Their original search engine would search what was already out on the web, find biased information, pull it back into a central database, and then license it as a B2B model to other travel providers.

Their first client came a year after its founding when Lycos, the number 3 web search engine in 2001, allowed TripAdvisor to power the travel sections on Lycos and provide all the travel-related content.

Before co-founding TripAdvisor, Kaufer was an independent software vendor and CenterLine Software’s co-founder and vice president of engineering, where he directed the creation of many award-winning programming environments.

The platform has over 1 billion reviews and recommendations from almost 8 million companies. This travel guide firm works across 43 markets and offers services in over 22 languages, making trip planning simple regardless of the sort of journey.

The global revenue of Tripdavisor, Inc. increased by approximately 49 percent in 2021 over the previous fiscal year after dropping sharply in 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Overall, the company’s revenue worldwide amounted to 902 million U.S. dollars in 2021, rising from 604 million U.S. dollars in 2020.

article

21. Total Travel Solution ($240K/year)

Nishan Rajakaruna (from Colombo, Sri Lanka) started Total Travel Solution about 12 years ago.

Revenue
$20K / month
Team
1 founders / 5 employees

Case Study

Hello, My name is Nishan Rajakaruna and I’m the CEO & Founder of Total Travel Solution in Sri Lanka. I’ve been featured in 3 world-class magazines: Bucknell, LMD, and the CEO Sri Lanka as one of the leading “young” entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka!

At Total Travel Solution (TTS), we sell the best quality Sri Lanka & Maldives tour packages to tourists from all over the world! I formed this company on 23rd September 2011 and for 7 years my company was ranked in the top 10 in Sri Lanka in the Spanish market. From 2012 to 2018 we’ve done roughly 800 bookings making almost 2000 clients happy while touring Sri Lanka or Maldives. Through these 800 bookings, we generated a sales revenue of about USD 2 million.

how-i-built-a-niche-travel-agency-that-pulls-in-300k-year-sri-lanka

22. Captain Experiences ($1.2M/year)

Jonathan Newar (from Austin, TX, USA) started Captain Experiences over 3 years ago.

Revenue
$100K / month
Team
2 founders / 10 employees

Case Study

My name is Jonathan Newar and I am the Co-Founder and CEO of Austin-based Captain Experiences, a platform for booking outdoor sports guides. Since launching in March 2020, we've quickly become the largest platform for booking fishing guides in the US, and are well on our way to unlocking the outdoors across all outdoor sports and geographies.

how-we-make-100k-month-booking-thousands-of-fishing-trips-in-the-us

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