As thoughts of retirement started to loom, Cestaine F. Glover, owner of Sistah With a Bike Travel, found herself at a crossroads. A lawyer by trade, she was ready to move on from the legal field but wanted to continue to fill her days with something she loved. After wracking her brain, the answer came easily: travel. But, between blogging, podcasting and planning, she wasn’t exactly sure what that looked like. Finally, she landed on “travel agent,” and the choice felt natural.
“Like many moms, I had planned all our family trips, accommodating dietary needs, location interests and activities … add to that, we aren’t ‘sit on the beach people,’ so it was always a lot of detailed planning,” Glover said.
Speaking of not sitting on the beach, Glover's love of outdoor activities led her to gravitate toward adventure travel. She has a soft spot for cycling but, funnily enough, didn’t always have a passion for the sport. “My husband is a former professional athlete, and he has cycled since we were in college. When my oldest child went to college, I took up kickboxing, but it was really hard on my body,” she said. “He recommended that I try cycling and I was not all in. He took me to a local cycle shop to pick out a bike and I told him to make sure he could return it. I was hooked after the first ride.”
Since that fateful ride, Glover has embarked on countless escapades, and she’s encouraging her clients to do the same. With adventure travel being more popular than ever, The Compass picked her brain to learn more about the rising trend and how advisors can break into the niche.
Qualifying Clients
“(The) biggest trend is seeing more and more people looking to include something in their trip that requires them to move,” said Glover. “That can be a hike, cycling or photography.”
Adventure travel looks different for everyone, and the first step to cracking what it means to your clients is simply taking the time to ask. Glover noted questions like “How do you envision your trip?” or “Have you considered seeing the city on a bicycle?” are good places to start.
From there, advisors can hone in on the specifics including which excursions and activities might be the right fit. “Once I know what activities the client may be interested in, then I ask the particulars,” she said. “I may need to know how mobile the client is, are they experienced at the activity, and it’s important to ask how comfortable they are with the recommendation.”
In addition to asking questions — or examining all sides of the argument in legal speak — Glover says nothing can compete with first-hand experience. “The best way to recommend activities is to try different activities,” she said. “When I go to destinations, in addition to looking at properties, and going on tours, I try to find something that allows me to move. I have hiked waterfalls in Costa Rica and done Bikram yoga in Norway. There are so many options so I try to open my clients to different activities they might not have thought possible.”
Advice for Advisors
Are you looking to break into the adventure travel niche? Glover has three tips for advisors: 1) Be adventurous, 2) Do not limit yourself and 3) Be open to different experiences. “Try not to think of adventure travel as an all-or-nothing,” she said. “An adventure trip may be a trip that has cycling daily on a multi-day trip, but it can also be one day out of a long trip.”
Above all, if you do your research and work with the right suppliers, diving into this exciting world can be easier than it seems. “I want people to not be afraid of adventure travel,” she said. “There are a lot of resources and suppliers that can help you plan that single bike ride in a city or an African safari; do not be afraid of the unknown.”
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