Why Affinity Groups Are a Growth Engine for Advisors

The concept of affinity travel — group trips planned around shared hobbies, interests, lifestyle or family ties — has been around for decades. But travel advisors today report that this segment has become an especially efficient way to exponentially grow revenue and a client base. 

“Beyond expanding your business into a market that many travel advisors haven’t tapped into, affinity group travel creates an entirely new revenue stream,” said Whytney Rawls, founder of Florida-based The Amara Escapes. “Instead of booking a single trip, you’re able to bundle flights, hotels, insurance, transfers, tours, activities and more into one itinerary, significantly increasing the number of commissionable components.”

Efficiency is another reason advisors like booking affinity travel, according to Michele Schwartz, founder and travel designer at Jet Setting with Me, a Virtuoso-affiliated agency in Austin, Texas.

“The research and logistics required to build a well-designed itinerary for a group of 12 takes roughly the same amount of time as building one for a solo traveler,” she explained. “The ability to compound the return on that time investment is what makes group travel genuinely attractive as a business model.”

In addition, group leaders can serve as a profitable gateway to new clients, according to Rawls.

“In many cases, you’re primarily communicating with one group leader while reaching 10, 20 or even hundreds of travelers through that one relationship,” she said. “That ripple effect allows you to maximize your time while growing your business at a much larger scale than individual bookings.”

Melanie Davis, account manager at TeamRetreats in Cary, North Carolina, agrees about the efficiency of booking affinity group travel.

“Affinity groups already trust each other and conversations tend to be smooth,” she said. “It cuts the sales cycle down to almost nothing.” 

What’s Selling

The affinity segment can be especially rewarding for advisors with sharply defined specialties, according to Schwartz. 

“Advisors who niche down compete on expertise and experience rather than price,” she said.

Her affinity bookings blend cultural, culinary and luxury experiences, often with “set-jetting” itineraries inspired by television series including “Emily in Paris” and “Bridgerton.”

When it comes to trending affinity travel, Rawls reports growing demand for wine travel, LGBTQ+ groups and pickleball. Davis also said that pickleball is her company’s fastest-growing affinity category, while golf remains a dependable source of bookings. Sororities, fraternities, fishing clubs, honors societies and even birding groups also present strong opportunities, she added. 

Marcos Ramirez, a Mexico City-based luxury travel advisor at Nuba, sees particularly strong demand for wellness and culinary travel in the affinity segment.

“Since the pandemic, people have placed real value on investing in experiences that genuinely impact their lives,” he said, noting that booking affinity groups requires an entirely different process than selling other types of trips.

“Finding these clients requires you to speak with real depth and awareness about a given topic, because the people drawn to these experiences often already know a great deal about it, and they’re looking for something deeper. This kind of expertise is what earns trust and, in turn, referrals.

Marketing Methods

Affinity groups often come with built-in marketing channels. Rawls is strategic in how she uses them.

“Providing value to certain online groups can be successful, but not by leading with selling,” she said. “If you do it tastefully and provide value instead of simply promoting yourself, it can be incredibly successful. Asking for referrals — especially from people you know who are involved in these groups — and creating excitement around their shared interest can sometimes be the best way to market yourself.”

For Schwartz, effective partnerships turn passion into bookings.Her set-jetting trips pair collaborators with built-in audiences, including a “Sex and the City” costume designer and a “Bridgerton” content creator.

Throughout the planning and sales process, her principle remains consistent: “Find the person who already has the audience you want, build something genuinely worth offering and let the passion do the selling.”

Smart Strategies

Effective communication is key, according to Ramirez.

“Having one point of contact — someone who can make decisions and speak on behalf of the group — makes all the difference,” he said. 

Above all, advisors must pay attention to details, Davis notes.

“A golf group needs tee times locked before anything else gets booked,” she said. “A yoga retreat needs a schedule set before excursions get added. Get that part wrong and the resort doesn’t matter — the trip falls apart anyway.”
Schwartz summarizes her approach in broad terms.

“The work on my end is not presenting choices,” she said. “It is designing an experience worthy of the passion that brought them together in the first place.”