Passionate About Planning Travel?
Departure Lounge is one of the world’s most innovative luxury travel companies, and we’ve been rapidly growing due to the success our Travel Advisors have with creating incredible experiences for delighted clients across the globe. We’re expanding our family of advisors and are looking for travel specialists in Chicago to join our luxury host travel agency.
As a member of the prestigious Virtuoso international travel network, Departure Lounge offers travel clients outstanding advice, insider experiences, perks, and upgrades. Our team of travel advisors have worldwide access to the finest travel providers and resources, along with top status in the preferred-agency programs of the top luxury travel brands.
If you are interested in joining the Departure Lounge advisor team of independent contractors, we’d be delighted to talk with you. While there are several host agencies you could partner with, we set ourselves apart through innovation and unparalleled support for both our travel advisors and our clients. We are seeking agents in the Chicago area who are established sellers of luxury travel and are looking to grow, along with who are ready to begin their travel advisor career.
Our compensation plan is as innovative as our business concept. For U.S.-based advisors, we provide three different compensation options: 1) commission split for individual advisors; 2) commission split for teams working under one contract; or 3) a monthly flat fee for individual advisors that lets you keep 100% of commissions for clients you have sourced. Our advisors generally have 50-100 affluent client households for which they arrange travel multiple times per year.
For travel advisors who are new or do not have much experience when it comes to selling travel but are knowledgeable and well-traveled, Departure Lounge can assist with developing strategies for finding and attracting new clients. Our agency also generates qualified leads, which are provided for our agency’s travel advisors in their respective cities.
Though you could build your practice on your own as an independent travel agent, partnering with Departure Lounge, a premier Chicago host travel agency, offers you support, leverage for exclusive deals, unique perks and complimentary upgrades for your clients, new leads, and opportunities to network with our partners and other agents—while also giving you room to learn, grow, and succeed as you help others with their travels.
Departure Lounge Travel Advisor Keys To Success
| Wanderlust & Experience | Sales, Skills & Service | Relationships, Connections & Kindness |
|---|---|---|
| Often times, travelers value working with a travel advisor who has “been there and done that.” That means your travel experience is essential hugely important, as is your familiarity with luxury travel providers and key attractions at destinations. If you have not “been everywhere,” your knowledge of a region or two, or familiarity with a specialized form of travel (such as cruises) can be a great starting point as a base of knowledge. Our global connections through the Virtuoso network enable our travel advisors to craft and arrange fantastic vacations even for destinations that the travel advisor has not yet personally visited. | Discussing and presenting travel options in an effective and passionate way is typically the easy part for a prospective travel advisor. You also need good computer skills and to be comfortable utilizing technology, online websites, forms and booking tools, as well as texting and email. You should also be thorough and strategic when it comes to keeping track of details, being responsive and communicating clearly with travel providers and clients. As your host agency, we will work to provide the resources and assistance you need to help ensure your success. | Ultimately, as a successful Chicago travel advisor, you need 50-100+ affluent households that regularly count on you to arrange travel throughout the year. That means that you, as a prospective team member, ideally need to have a solid personal network of affluent family members, friends, and colleagues who would entrust you with arranging their travel and would ultimately recommend you to others. Departure Lounge’s culture is built on kindness and a helpful spirit, so new team members need to demonstrate those same qualities. Our partners put people first and provide professional dedicated support for clients. |
In The News
Our award-winning organization is recognized because of the talented advisors and travel providers we work with. Each of our agents is gifted with the ability to help people plan their ideal dream vacations, then helps turn those dreams into reality. We don’t just provide travel services; we create unforgettable unique experiences by providing custom-tailored trips and exclusive benefits thanks to our partnerships with prestigious travel organizations.
We’ve been featured in the news multiple times and our team has received a variety of awards as we continue to set and raise the bar in the travel industry.
