TravelTube.com Podcast Transcript

Host: Mark Murphy

Welcome & About TravelTube

Hi, folks. I'm Mark Murphy, and this is TravelTube.com, the travel expert channel. That means you — the travel advisor, travel agent, whatever you want to call yourself. We're here to share your experiences and aggregate that experience in a single place: TravelTube.com.

Here's what we do: we go out and grab content that's on YouTube, TikTok, or wherever, and feature it. That's great, but a lot of you don't go out and shoot a bunch of content. So here's what you can do instead — reach out to me directly. Email me at mark@traveltube.com, or go to TravelTube.com and fill out the form saying you'd like to be interviewed and featured on the site.

It's not high pressure — it's very low-key. We just have a conversation, and you share insights into, say, that property in Maui you just visited. I take that and share it with your colleagues. Maybe we've got someone who's at a renovated Sandals resort in Jamaica, and they can share what that's like and why they like it — or don't. You're not beholden to any supplier, any destination, or to me. What I like to do is aggregate that knowledge base in one place, and that's the mission of TravelTube.com.

First, you've got to follow us. Sign up for the newsletter. Follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Amazon Podcasts — all of them, if you can. Follow us on social media too: we've got a Facebook page, and we're on TikTok and Instagram. The more people who follow us, the more visibility the site gets, which means more visibility for you, the travel advisor. It's a win-win.

I don't have a marketing budget, and I don't own all these media assets. Some of you may remember I created TravelPulse.com, Agent at Home magazine, Vacation Agent magazine, TravelAgentAcademy.com, and HotelRewards.com — the buyers of that last one never continued with it. We also created something called Agent Studio, which they killed after acquiring the business; they just wanted to be a media and events company. I get it — we were in software and a bunch of other things. But those are the brands that came out of my head to support you, the travel agent, over two decades. Now we're trying to support you even more with video and these engaging interviews.

We'd love to interview a lot of suppliers and destinations too, but they have to pay for that privilege. You don't. So follow us and sign up for the newsletter — that's all I've got to say about that (I might throw in a reminder partway through).

Today's Rundown

Here's what I'm covering today:

Is it time to start planning that winter ski or snowboard trip? The Farmer's Almanac has some insights.
Privatizing TSA — a number of airports already use private security, and a new program called "TSA Gold Plus" could accelerate that trend.
My own travels — I've been to somewhere between 70 and 90 countries and racked up millions of air miles. I'll share where I'd love to go back to, and where I'd never return.
The travel "haves and have-nots," and where the industry is heading.
The trend toward shorter, more frequent vacations — which isn't new, but it's picking up again.

Winter Ski & Snowboard Trip Planning

According to the Farmer's Almanac, the middle of the country — Colorado, Utah, and so on — has had some dry seasons with not a lot of natural snow. My kids are in Boulder, Colorado, and they love to snowboard; it was a pretty crappy winter this past year. But it looks like this coming winter is going to be a gangbuster.

I also saw an article in Travel + Leisure: "A snowy, cold winter is coming to much of the U.S., and these ski destinations could get the best snow." In the Northeast, that often turns to ice, but the powder skiers and snowboarders want is usually out west — and that's where the snow is expected to fall.

The challenge is that after a bad ski season, the following year's bookings tend to be soft. If you can book outside the holiday period — and I know some of you can't, because you're locked into school schedules — you should be talking to a travel advisor. And if you are a travel advisor, you should be reaching out to your database after doing a little research on where the deals are and where clients will get the biggest bang for their buck. People don't necessarily mind paying a lot; they just want to feel like they're getting more value than they're paying for. That's what you're the pros at.

Read up on the Farmer's Almanac, and consider posting that Travel + Leisure article on Facebook and elsewhere with something like: "Are you a skier? A snowboarder? Do your kids love it?" This may be one of the best winters in years to take advantage of — but move quickly, because as more people start looking at those dates, hotels apply revenue management and prices start climbing.

Use the article to educate your clients on social media, and make yourself the call to action: "I've been specializing in ski and snowboard vacations for [X years] — send me a message or comment below, and I'll DM you some of the best deals out there." Just be prepared to actually deliver — don't let people DM you and then wait a week or two to hear back. Stay on top of it. This is marketing, and the beauty of it is that it's free.

One tactic: post that content on your Facebook page to find new customers, then boost it — you can choose the parameter you want to optimize for, likes or comments, whatever fits your goal. You can do the same on TikTok. As a side note, I posted a video of my kid playing one of his original songs, boosted it, and got almost 20,000 views in a couple of days. It doesn't change the world, but it gets more eyeballs on your content — and even people who don't take immediate action are now following your page, which means they can message or comment when they're ready.

(Do as I say, not as I do — people message me on Facebook, but I don't check it regularly. I'm not selling travel or moving product, so I get to it when I get to it. If you actually want to book more travel, stay on top of your messages.)

Also look at net rates on hotels through the different bed banks and compare them to published market rates — there's often a lot of room in between. Instead of earning an 8–14% commission, you as the travel agent can often price below the published "best rate guarantee" while making significantly more money for yourself. If you're not making a decent profit, you won't stay in business — and there's nothing wrong with making 20–30% commission on a trip if you're still net-net delivering more value than the published rate, especially since most clients will shop and fact-check what you tell them.

You can also make money on transfers. I remember going out to Vail — we booked SUV transfers with a driver, spent a couple of nights in Denver on the return trip, and booked a three-bedroom condo right at the slopes. Fantastic trip. I don't ski myself, though — I've had five surgeries on my right knee and three on my hip. I've skied in the past, never snowboarded, and despite my kids' pleas, I'm done. As my old Irish nun, Sister Lawton, used to say: "Mark, you're not done — turkeys are done, people are finished." That's your grammar lesson for the day, along with some Farmer's Almanac ski insights.

TSA Privatization & "TSA Gold Plus"

There are already about 20 airports in the U.S. where security is handled exclusively by private contractors, overseen by the federal government. Now the administration wants to create a program called "TSA Gold Plus," which would bring private contractors into airports currently staffed by TSA agents.

The pushback comes from the TSA union — and government unions in general. My personal take: I don't think government workers should be able to unionize, since they're paid by tax dollars. Before 9/11, airport security was privately run; afterward, it became government-controlled. I'd challenge anyone to name an industry the government runs where taxpayers get better value or execution than the private sector — outside of the military, which I'll leave out of this discussion entirely (that's its own can of worms).

Here's why travelers and travel advisors should like this shift:

Cost savings. The private sector generally manages expenses more efficiently because it has to maintain profitability — while still being held to safety standards by government oversight, just as it was pre-2001.

Fewer shutdown disruptions. During the recent shutdown involving DHS and ICE (ICE itself was largely unaffected since it's funded through 2029), travelers still felt the pain because government workers weren't showing up. Even though their pay would eventually be reimbursed, people still have bills to pay after 30, 60, 90 days without income — some quit for other jobs. Private security staffing could help minimize these disruptions caused by government shutdowns and the political dysfunction on both sides of the aisle.

To be clear, I don't think government workers should be able to unionize and collectively bargain against the government they work for. Right now, unions are suing for the release of records via FOIA requests, which means taxpayer money goes toward defending the government against union lawsuits.

Bottom line: I'm glad more airports are moving toward private screening. Ideally, this becomes a broader trend — shifting government workers to private contractors, saving the government money, and letting airlines, airports, and passengers fund it directly without worrying about shutdown-related disruptions.

My Personal Travels

People sometimes mistake me for a travel agent, which is funny, since I've never sold travel or worked in the travel industry — I owned a travel media company that reported on all things travel globally. TravelPulse.com, which I founded, was at one point the largest travel news site in the world; it's now owned by Northstar Travel Media.

Through years of shooting content and attending conferences, I've traveled a lot. I haven't made it to Antarctica yet, but I've seen plenty of magical places — some just a short drive away.

Death Valley. Camping there in December (not summer) is incredible — it's pitch black, and you've never seen stars like you see out there. Climb up on a rock, lie down, and look up. It's spectacular, and it costs almost nothing — a $150 tent and some gas money. During the day you can check out the painted rocks, and if you want, head into Vegas afterward (though if you gamble regularly, you'll lose — my grandmother, Ruth Godfrey, is the exception; she won the Women's World Series of Poker back in 1981, worth roughly $200,000–$300,000 in today's dollars).

Places I wouldn't go back to: Moscow. The city itself was fascinating — the subway stations have chandeliers and look like they could double as five-star restaurants, spotless and ornate. But the people seemed miserable, with a permanent scowl — maybe understandably, given the environment. I have zero desire to go back. It's the one place, if I had to pick just one, I wouldn't return to.

Places I'd go back to:

Bora Bora — a week at the St. Regis, roughly a $35,000 trip for two including airfare, but amazing.
Poland — I visited Krakow, saw the nearby salt mines, and visited Auschwitz I and II, which I think everyone should experience in person. I only saw a limited part of the country, but I loved the people and the destination — Poland is a hidden gem. Comparing it to Prague (which I also loved), I actually preferred Krakow.
Ireland — part of my heritage. I was only there for a few nights, which I wrote about in my book Travel Unscripted, in a chapter called "Emergency Rear-End Response." Short version: I drank too much Guinness, had some stomach issues the next day during a round of golf, and had to visit a tiny neighborhood pharmacy to (discreetly, with a line of people behind me) ask for the Irish equivalent of Imodium A-D. The pharmacist pulled out a box and explained, in detail and at volume, exactly how many pills to take after each "episode." I made it through the round of golf — barely — but it was a memorable, funny experience. I'd love to go back and actually explore Ireland properly, maybe find the town or village where my grandparents grew up.

Most of these trips happened while I was working — shooting content or passing through on the way to a conference — so I never got the full experience. Now that I'm semi-retired but still doing this, I have more time to actually embed myself in a place for two or three weeks. The only complication is my black lab, Ben, who has some separation anxiety since he's basically attached to me at all times. (You've probably seen him in some of our videos.) Follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook — I'll share more of these personal travel stories, whether it's dancing on the beach in Long Beach Island, New Jersey, or an experience from a decade ago in Ecuador.

The Travel "Haves and Have-Nots"

Over 4 million baby boomers will turn 65 this year. Some have already retired a bit early due to health issues — which is exactly why I'd tell people: if you're holding off on travel because you're waiting for "someday," don't. You can't spend money once you're gone. Be fiscally responsible, don't go into debt, but cut costs where you reasonably can — skip a $5 latte for a month and you've saved $150; do it for a year and that's $1,800, enough to fund a real vacation (or $3,600 for a couple).

Some people save for two or three years to take one luxury trip. Others prefer shorter, more frequent trips closer to home to decompress and improve their work-life balance — I'll get into that more in the next section.

Right now, the fastest growth in the travel industry is in the premium and luxury segments, driven largely by baby boomers, who control roughly 70% of the wealth in the country. If they stay healthy, many have 20 to 25 years of travel ahead of them. My 88-year-old mother-in-law dances for two straight hours at beach concerts while I sit back with a bourbon and enjoy the music — she did karaoke just last night. People are living a long time, and if you're retiring at 65 in decent health, you likely have a long runway ahead.

I got cancer at one point and beat it — it changed my life, and I still deal with some after-effects of treatment, but it hasn't stopped me from getting out and exploring the world, including a lot of domestic travel. That said, some U.S. destinations have priced themselves out of the market — I've mentioned Las Vegas before, where an $80 steak is not happening no matter how much money I have. I think some of these markets are starting to recognize they can't survive on ultra-wealthy travelers willing to drop $400–500 on dinner for two alone — they need to open up to a broader market.

That gap between ultra-luxury and everyone else is widening, and it's an opportunity for budget and mid-tier brands to capture that market and drive up occupancy and profit through volume. People will spend money, but $300 for a Hampton Inn off the highway isn't going to cut it. What frustrates me is when someone calls a hotel directly at 11 p.m. looking for a room, and instead of trying to win that booking, the answer is just "that's the rate — $300 plus tax."

If you're in a destination that can capture some tourism dollars, look at Thursday–Saturday stays and build packages — pair the room with a restaurant, bar, and activities to drive real value. Yes, your average daily rate might take a slight hit, but you could push occupancy to 90–95% in a market that normally drops off on weekends. There's a big opportunity here — most hotels don't fit into the "luxury/super-premium" bucket, and that gap is exactly where the growth opportunity lies.

The Trend Toward Shorter, More Frequent Vacations

This isn't a new trend — it dates back to the 1990s, when people wanted trips of under three hours' travel time, closer to home, taken more frequently.

I came across an article — I believe from USA Today — with the headline: "57 cruises later, one influencer says the four-day trip is the only one worth booking." I have to push back on that headline a bit — someone who's taken 57 cruises saying only the four-day trip is worth booking seems like a stretch. The influencer in question, Kat Pacher (@KatPacher), shares her take on why Gen Z and millennials are gravitating toward shorter trips.

If you're working and want shorter trips closer to home, a cruise can be a great option. After 9/11, "homeport cruising" became popular, with cruise lines positioning ships around the U.S. so most of the population was within about six hours' drive of a port. I live full-time in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, so I've got Cape Canaveral, Miami, and Port Everglades all within reach — short cruises, long cruises, luxury, budget, even cruises to nowhere, or a ferry over to Bimini. My nearest port is about 20–45 minutes away depending on traffic.

Where I disagree with the article is the idea that this is a new, Gen Z/millennial-driven trend. Thirty years ago, baby boomers at that same life stage were doing exactly the same thing. I don't think that pattern is going to change.

What is interesting about shorter trips is how well they suit group travel — say, a three- or four-night bachelorette party, or a group of singles traveling together. Pricing works out per person (with a single supplement if you want your own room), everyone can share cabins or book their own, and everyone buys their own drink package, so no one's stuck splitting a bar tab. My friend Joe Pike runs something called the Sober Travel Collective, an agency focused on sober travel — drinking is down significantly in the U.S. right now, whether due to health trends or COVID-era burnout, and this niche skips the drink package altogether so non-drinkers aren't subsidizing everyone else.

This is a great niche for travel advisors: bachelorette and bachelor parties, destination weddings at sea, any group trip. It costs the group nothing to use you, and it turns into a built-in referral network — you deal with one point person, do all the work, and get paid your commission, while everyone else just clicks a link and pays. For roughly 50% more effort than booking a couple on a cruise, you could book a group of ten and make five to ten times the revenue — plus you've now got ten (or twenty, counting spouses and partners) potential future clients.

Group cruises can also work well with extended family. When my daughter was four months old, she was the youngest passenger on a Celebrity cruise to Bermuda. We brought both grandmothers along for built-in babysitting — which worked great until we hit international waters and the casino opened. Turns out my mom, being the daughter of a World Series of Poker champion, had gambling in her blood and abandoned babysitting duty entirely to hit the tables. Luckily my mother-in-law picked up the slack, and once we reached port and the casino closed, we got some relief.

Closing

That's it for this week. I hope you have a great week, and I'll see you next time on TravelTube.com. Don't forget to sign up for the newsletter, follow us on your favorite podcast app, and follow us on social media — we're everywhere. The more you follow us, the higher we rank, the more consumers discover us, and the more we can expose your expertise to new leads who reach out to you directly. But I can't share your expertise if you don't support the platform. That's all I've got.