Signature Travel Network has announced the arrival of its Signature Educational Journeys program for 2024. There will be 23 journeys around the world this year, all aimed at helping Signature’s travel advisor members deepen their expertise on the destination they’ve traveled to.
Of the 23 trips, 22 will include voluntourism activities that highlight the service and sustainability efforts of preferred Signature partners in the destination. Cindy Chambers, owner of Beyond Group Travel out of Houston, Texas, recently returned from a nine-night educational journey in Botswana, South Africa and Zambia with AndBeyond, for example. The nine-night adventure brought advisors to destinations including Cape Town, the Okavango Delta and Victoria Falls.
In Botswana, advisors experienced Sandibe Okavango Safari Lodge.
Credit: 2024 Cindy Chambers
“AndBeyond is the perfect partner for Signature luxury clients,” Chambers said post-trip. “The properties they use in Africa simply showcase our professionalism. We had a fantastic experience in [the destination], but a particularly memorable highlight was meeting a recipient of the Travel Elevate Grant, which empowered the community through vegetable farming — an encounter that deeply resonated with us.”
In the coming months, approximately 190 advisors are expected to participate in educational journeys. Offerings include a six-night trip in Northern Ireland with Brendan Vacations; a nine-night adventure in Kenya and Tanzania with Abercrombie & Kent in Eastern Africa; and a six-night tour in Costa Rica with Memorable Travel Group. On all trips, advisors will gain insight on local sustainability efforts around wildlife conservation, cultural preservation and more.
David Zenchuk, an advisor with Bursch Travel, is gearing up to join the aforementioned Costa Rica journey.
“I am very much looking forward to the in-depth cultural experience of visiting local families in Los Tesoros,” Zenchuk said. “I am an avid nature lover, as well, with a strong fascination with trees, so the hiking [will be exciting]. And I am going a day early in hopes of booking a food or city tour in San Jose, to soak up even more of the culture.”
After advisors experience the local landscape and culture, Signature hopes that they will feel significantly more confident selling a destination. That’s just how Laura Krugly, an advisor with Well Traveled Texan, felt upon returning from a Signature journey in Nepal with operator Dharma Adventures.
“Giving my clients guidance about Nepal and Bhutan is a gift and a tool I can use over and over,” Krugly said. “From how to handle the altitude to the fabric of religion and beliefs of the people, there is so much to share with clients. And Dharma Adventures — who have been an essential part of the tourism story for over 30 years — is our secret weapon to clients' successful and meaningful journeys.”
