Recognized Travel Advisor
(RTA) Program

Learn the necessary skills and strategies you need to become a successful Travel Advisor.

Enroll today in our Recognized Travel Advisor (RTA) program and accelerate your career in the travel industry.

The Recognized Travel Advisor (RTA) Program

You know you want to build a successful travel agency, but you have no clue where to begin. This program will provide the tools necessary to:

 Recognized by: IATA, CCRA, and several host agencies

Design your future

Educator Biography

TARC’s RTA Program not only teaches you how to build and develop your travel agency, but also provides expert advice from instructors with knowledge and experience of various aspects throughout the travel industry. This program is provided through a comprehensive module-based online resource that you can complete at your own pace.

Check out some of our content below!

Here's what's inside:

13 Modules

Each lesson provides a general foundation to various aspects of the travel industry. Educated advisors can apply this knowledge in developing their business.

Videos & Presentations

Nothing beats traveling, but we offer different videos and presentations throughout this program to better immerse you in the client experience!

Online Delivery

The RTA program is web-based, allowing for convenience and flexibility. Our instructors are here to support you and check your results each step of the way.

Pricing

Get instant access to the Recognized Travel Advisor program for only $499!

$499.00

Recognized Travel Advisor Program

The Recognized Travel Advisor Program Includes:

Worldwide Accessibility

TARC provides online resources that can be accessed worldwide. This gives customers control of their learning environment, which ultimately helps develop a deeper understanding of each program.

Self-Paced Learning

TARC offers self-paced resources to increase flexibility, efficiency, effectiveness, and convenience. With self-paced learning, you can work programs into your schedule whenever it works best for you.

Professional Support

TARC instructors are here to help you succeed. They will navigate you through the different courses and answer questions you may have. Mentoring programs are also available for an additional fee.

Course Instructors

CINO - Chief Innovation Officer

Steven Gould

“Travel has always been more than just a hobby – it is my BIGGEST passion. I learned early in my career that travel is not just a way to see another destination, it’s about creating immersive experiences that will change your life! There’s something about venturing to new destinations, learning about different cultures, and coming back with a piece of you that wasn’t there before you left. I always encourage advisors to learn, experience, and grow in this amazing industry. We are afforded so many opportunities and I hope TARC helps enrich and enhance those opportunities for years to come!”

Recognized Travel Advisor Certificate

After completion of this course, you will become a Recognized Travel Advisor!

Here is why you need to check out the Recognized Travel Advisor program today!

Being a Recognized Travel Advisor shows that you have completed TARC’s program to jump-start your career in the travel industry. Using this knowledge and expertise will help set you apart from the competition and focus on the right sales and marketing strategies to find clients within your niche!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a Travel Advisor?
A Travel Advisor, previously referred to as a Travel Agent, is a person who simplifies the time-consuming and complicated process of planning travel for their customers in addition to providing consultation services and travel packages.
A Recognized Travel Advisor (RTA) is an educated travel professional who has completed the Travel Advisor Resource Center’s (TARC) Recognized Travel Advisor program, and has taken steps to advance and elevate their business in the travel industry. They have learned what it means to be a Travel Advisor, the benefits of using a Travel Advisor, how to find and cultivate the right clients, how to choose a niche market, and how to propel their business toward success.
After all of your hard work, we want to make sure you have the tools to effectively market yourself as an expert Travel Advisor! Once you pass your final exam, we will send you a personalized certificate from Travel Advisor Resource Center (TARC) to showcase your brand new achievement in the travel industry. This certif
Tourism accounts for 1 in 10 jobs worldwide and is part of almost every industry. Becoming a Travel Advisor is a lot of work, but it is also an extremely rewarding career. Sending clients on bucket list trips, watching them learn from other cultures, organizing events, or planning weddings are just a few of the great ways that Travel Advisors can work with clients. The fact is, people like to travel for personal reasons and many also travel for professional reasons; whatever the reason, they do it best with a trusted Travel Advisor.

There are several certification programs that teach advisors general business principles and practices, business ethics, writing skills, customer service, teamwork, communication, and managing customer needs. Advisors may also learn about accepting credit cards, planning itineraries, and itinerary creation. Feedback from new travel advisors has shown us they find these courses lacking in providing real world skills and knowledge they need to hit the ground running and be successful in their new career/business.

The Recognized Travel Advisor (RTA) program briefly covers each of the topics listed above to help advisors regulate their business, but it is not our primary focus. Our certification takes advisors to the next level by exploring the different facets of the industry and demonstrating how to be a successful travel advisor, more than just a business owner. This certification was created by actual Travel Advisors, not just a travel corporation. We created the RTA program to be the “Next Level” option. When advisors are ready to cultivate leads, create their brand, and align their business the right way, we give them the knowledge they need. We teach them about niche markets, why they are important, and how to choose them. We go into each market segment (cruises, tours, all-inclusives, and land packages), as well as different niches in our industry (romance, groups, and Disney) to help advisors become experts when trying to find the right clientele. Too many advisors ask all the wrong questions about these subjects, and it is not their fault. It is because they have not received proper education to know which questions to ask or where to look for their answers. That’s where the RTA program comes in.
After learning about niche markets, we provide a module on Air Travel, Travel Protection, and an introduction about Customer Service, Sales, and Marketing. Our final section helps advisors develop their business. We discuss why relationships are important in our industry – with suppliers and with clients. We discuss the different industry affiliations (IATA/TRUE/CLIA/ARC) and explain what consortia are, so advisors can be better equipped to handle their introduction to the industry and know the terminology and best practices that they may not have been expecting.

We provide our certification program to new and experienced advisors looking to elevate their knowledge of this industry.

Definitely! You will get to request 1 round of revisions on your email designs before we implement them to your TERN account! You can also update your headers/footers personally in TERN. Our templates come with a custom pink or blue banner image to compliment your brand. If you would like to customize the banner images or if you have your own templates, we can add those for an additional fee.

 

Yes! You can customize every template we provide right inside your TERN account! You will have full rights and access to all of the templates provided in your account.

We estimate an average of 3-5 weeks from the time of purchase until we deliver the final product. We work diligently to ensure that your system is customized to your business, and that takes time. If you need us to expedite the build out process, please let us know during our Discovery Call — additional fees may apply.

Resource Lessons

Comprehensive Curriculum Framework

Chapter 1 - Welcome!

Lesson 1.1 - Welcome to the Recognized Travel Advisor Program

FREE PREVIEW

Lesson 1.2 - How to use the Learning Platform

Lesson 1.3 - Why Clients Use A Travel Advisor?

FREE PREVIEW

Chapter 1 Quiz

Join the Discussion!

Chapter 2 - Niche Markets & Geography

Lesson 2.1 - Discover a Niche

Lesson 2.2 - Travel Styles

Lesson 2.3 - Types of Clientele

Lesson 2.4 - Geography of the World

Lesson 2.5 - Geography of Africa

Lesson 2.6 - Geography of Antarctica

Lesson 2.7 - Geography of Asia

Lesson 2.8 - Geography of Australia

Lesson 2.9 - Geography of Europe

Lesson 2.10 - Geography of North America

Lesson 2.11 - Geography of South America

Lesson 2.12 - TARC Continents & Rivers Chapter 2 Quiz

Chapter 3 - Cruises

Lesson 3.1 - Introduction to Cruises

Lesson 3.2 - Cruise Itineraries

Lesson 3.8 - Carnival Vista Ship Tour

Lesson 3.9 - Norwegian Bliss Ship Tour

Knowledge Check 1

Lesson 3.3 - Onboard Experience

Knowledge Check 2

Lesson 3.4 - Selling Cruises

Lesson 3.5 - Cruise Add-Ons

Lesson 3.6 - Useful Tips & Tricks for Cruises

Lesson 3.7 - Cruise Terminology

Chapter 3 - Additional Cruise Training Resources

Chapter 3 Quiz

Chapter 4 - All-Inclusive Resorts

Lesson 4.1 - Introduction

Lesson 4.2 - Destinations and Inclusions

Lesson 4.3 - Resort Experiences Knowledge Check

Lesson 4.4 - How to Book

Lesson 4.5 - Selling Add-Ons

Lesson 4.6 - Useful Tips and tricks for All-Inclusives

Lesson 4.7 - All-Inclusive Terminology

Lesson 4.8 - Family Resort Tour - Generations Riviera Maya

Lesson 4.9 - Adults Only Resort Tour - El Dorado

Chapter 4 Quiz

Chapter 5 - Land Vacations

Lesson 5.1 - Land Vacations

Lesson 5.2 - Escorted Tours

Lesson 5.3 - Disney Vacations

Lesson 5.4 - Useful Tips for Land Vacations

Lesson 5.5 - Land Terminology

Chapter 5 Quiz

Chapter 6 - Groups

Lesson 6.1 - Groups

Lesson 6.2 - The quickest and best way to grow your travel agency business – Groups

Lesson 6.3 - Useful Tips & Tricks for Groups

Lesson 6.4 - Group Terminology

Chapter 6 Quiz

Chapter 7 - Air Travel

Lesson 7.1 - Introduction to Air

Lesson 7.2 - How to Book

Lesson 7.3 - Types of Airfare

Lesson 7.4 - Airfare Liabilities

Lesson 7.5 - Air Travel Extras Chapter 7 Quiz

Chapter 7 Quiz

Chapter 8 - Travel Protection

Lesson 8.1 - Introduction to Travel Protection

Lesson 8.2 - Why Travel Advisors should offer Travel Protection

Lesson 8.3 - What might be covered with Travel Protection?

Lesson 8.4 - Travel Advisor Liability

Lesson 8.5 - Offering Travel Protection

Lesson 8.6 - The Seven HIDDEN SECRETS You Didn't Know About Travel Protection

Chapter 8 Quiz

Chapter 9 - Customer Service

Lesson 9.1 - Customer Service

Lesson 9.2 - Tips for becoming the best service-focused travel advisor

Chapter 9 Quiz

Chapter 10 - Sales

Lesson 10.1 - Sales 101

Lesson 10.2 - The Sales Cycle

Lesson 10.3 - Qualifying Questions

Lesson 10.4 - Downloadable Qualifying Questions

Chapter 10 Quiz

Chapter 11 - Marketing

Lesson 11.1 - Introduction to Marketing

Lesson 11.2 - Setting up your Facebook and Instagram

Lesson 11.3 - Understanding and Effectively Using a Call-to-Action (CTA) in the Travel Industry

Lesson 11.4 - The Ultimate Guide to Email Marketing for Travel Advisors

Lesson 11.5 - Tips for Using Paid Marketing

Lesson 11.6 - 10 Ways To Jump-Start Your Travel Agency and Reach New Customers

Lesson 11.7 - Creating an Engaging Biography

Chapter 11 Quiz

Chapter 12 - Developing Your Travel Business

Lesson 12.1 - Travel Industry Accreditations

Lesson 12.2 - Industry Affiliations

Lesson 12.3 - Relationships and Resources

Lesson 12.4 - How Commissions Work

Lesson 12.5 - Professionalism and Ethics

Lesson 12. 6 - Time Management

Lesson 12.7 - Cover Your Assets

Lesson 12.8 - Why Travel Agents Are Rebranding As Travel Advisors

Chapter 12 Quiz

Chapter 13 - Becoming a Recognized Travel Advisor

Lesson 13.1 - Final Exam Process

Lesson 13.2 - Customer Service Exercise

Lesson 13.3 - Sphere of Influence Exercise

Lesson 13.4 - Marketing Plan Exercise

Chapter 13 - Additional Resources

Lesson 13.5 - Final Exam Prep Notes and Sign-Up

Ready to launch your travel career?

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*Please note that TARC does not endorse or recommend any specific travel related resources. Each agency, advisor, supplier, and/or user must do their own research and make a decision to access/purchase resources based on their own findings. All sales are final. TARC does not own or manage many of the resources provided on our site, so please look into them before signing up or purchasing them. Keep in mind that you are accessing and using these resources at your own risk.

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