Travel Agent

4 Travel Agent Success Stories [2024]

Pat Walls

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Updated: October 7th, 2024

Travel agents offer advice on destinations, plan trips, and itineraries, and make travel arrangements for clients. In addition, travel agents sell transportation, lodging, and admission to entertainment activities.

Starting a travel agency can be fun and rewarding.

To get started, complete relevant tours and travel training, do market research and competitor analysis, then create a website so you can be found by travelers.

In this list, you'll find real-world travel agent success stories and very profitable examples of starting a travel agent that makes money.

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

Salman Rashid, Founder & CEO of Flight Expert, came up with the idea for his business after realizing the potential of online travel agencies in Bangladesh. Seeing the decline in revenue in his family's offline-based travel agency, Salman suggested starting an OTA to his father. Despite initial skepticism, Salman recognized the need for better technology, service culture, and the value of brand trust in the industry, leading to the launch of Flight Expert in 2017.

How much money it makes: $18M/year
How much did it cost to start: $80K
How many people on the team: 60

I Started The First Online Travel Agency In Bangladesh And It Now Makes $18M/Year

How a first-time founder grew the first-ever online travel agency in Bangladesh to 700+ airlines and one million-plus hotels worldwide, with a 50% increase in revenue in October 2021 compared to pre-Covid sales and aiming to hit break-even by March 2022.

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2. Baboo Travel ($3.6M/year)

Paul Sarfati, the Founder and CEO of Baboo Travel, came up with the idea for his business after experiencing the decline of his previous travel company, Bamba Travel, due to the pandemic. Wanting to create a platform that offers customized trips and connects travelers directly with local experts, Sarfati drew inspiration from companies like Evaneos. With his extensive knowledge of the travel industry and a focus on creating a better business model, Sarfati aims to revolutionize the travel industry and provide customers with personalized experiences at better prices.

How much money it makes: $3.6M/year
How much did it cost to start: $650K
How many people on the team: 15

My Travel Hobby Fueled Me To Build A $600K/Year Custom Trips Platform

Baboo Travel's CEO Paul Sarfati successfully launched an easy-to-use travel platform that connects customers with local in-destination travel experts, reaching $180,000 in sales in the first four months of launching through targeted marketing strategies, incorporating growth hacking techniques, and prioritizing content marketing and search engine optimization for long-term success.

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3. CuddlyNest ($2.8M/year)

Ritesh Raj, the co-founder and COO of CuddlyNest, came up with the idea for the accommodation booking platform after years of traveling to over 100 countries and realizing the pain points of finding diverse types of accommodations. Alongside his co-founder, they decided to create a centralized platform that offers all kinds of properties for all types of travelers. Since its launch, CuddlyNest has raised over $14 million in funding and has plans for continued growth and expansion.

How much money it makes: $2.8M/year
How many people on the team: 72

How We Solved A Major Pain Point With Travelers And Built An All-In-One Booking Platform [$2.1M Sales in 2022]

CuddlyNest has become the only online travel agency that offers all types of accommodations in one platform, with inventory currently including over 4 million properties of all types in 80k+ cities, and is expecting to hire more than fifty new employees in the coming months.

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4. Golf Trip Junkie ($1.98M/year)

Sean Petersen, the founder of Golf Trip Junkie, came up with the idea for his business while playing a game of golf. As a passionate golfer and traveler, he wanted to combine his two passions into a successful business. From the first successful vacation he planned, Sean realized that helping people enjoy life and de-stress through golf was his true motivation, and that fueled his drive to create a thriving business.

How much money it makes: $1.98M/year
How much did it cost to start: $50K
How many people on the team: 5

How I Built A $1.98M/Year Business Planning Golf-Inspired Vacations

Golf Trip Junkie founder Sean Petersen shares how he turned his passion for golf and travel into a profitable business, with average monthly revenue of $165,000, by designing personalized golf vacations for middle-aged men and companies looking for a unique corporate outing experience.

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Read by 5,217 founders