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“Luxury isn’t about five-star hotels anymore—it’s about experiences that feel personal, authentic, and meaningful.”
Welcome to Cheryl's Travel Blueprint! I’m a former Spanish teacher turned travel advisor, passionate about curating unforgettable experiences. My expertise lies in European adventures (with a special love for Spain), cruising, and all-inclusive Caribbean getaways. I specialize in creating tailored trips for families, multi-generational groups, and teachers—whether they’re traveling solo, with colleagues, or leading student groups.
In this podcast, we celebrate the joy of travel, uncover hidden gems, share practical tips and tricks, and embrace the spirit of adventure. Each episode features inspiring conversations with fascinating guests from all walks of life as they share their unique travel stories, lessons, and favorite destinations. Whether you're planning your next getaway or simply love to dream about the possibilities, this is your place to explore the world from wherever you are.
Let’s embark on this journey together! 🌍✈️
Have you ever dreamed of planning a trip that feels completely tailored to you, your pace, your interest, your style, without the crowds, the cookie cutter itineraries, or the pressure of navigating an unfamiliar destination alone? Today, we're pulling back the curtain on what truly custom travel looks like and why it's becoming one of the fastest growing trends in the industry. And to help us unpack it all, we have someone who sits right at the heart of it, Gina Bang, Sales and Marketing Manager at Avanti Destinations. Avanti is known for designing beautiful, curated, independent travel experiences across Europe, Asia, Central and South America. Trips that empower travelers to explore confidently and intentionally. Gina has been helping travel advisors craft unforgettable journeys for years, and today she's sharing insider knowledge you won't find on a website. So grab your notebook because this conversation is about to spark some serious wanderlust. Welcome back to Cheryl's Travel Blueprint, the podcast where we go beyond destinations and dive into the experiences that truly shape how we travel. I'm your host, Cheryl, and each week we explore the people, ideas, and stories behind meaningful, memorable travel, especially for families and multi -generational travelers. Gina, thank you so much for joining me. I've really been looking forward to this conversation because Avanti is such a powerhouse when it comes to independent, customized travel. For those who aren't familiar, can you briefly introduce yourself and share what you do at Avanti Destinations? Yes, and first of all, thanks so much for having me on the podcast. I'm so excited to share all my experiences at Avanti. My name is Gina Bang. I'm the Chief Sales and Marketing Manager at Avanti. I just celebrated 22 years at Avanti last month. I know. So I started kind of fresh out of college and have seen this company grown into something incredible. At Avanti, we're really that one -stop shop, that one call, one email to help you service an entire booking from start to finish. And it looks great, so we also of course, since we're B2B, we want to put the advisor and the agency foremost, their branding, their call to action. And we're kind of sitting in the background, as you had mentioned. So I always like to think of Avanti as the brand behind the brand. So we're here to support advisors and agencies. And now, you know, when I first started at Avanti, we only had kind of two regions of the world. Most people really know us for Europe. We service all, you know, from North to South, East to West, all the European countries, and then Central and South America that we actually added that in 1990. We were founded here in Portland, Oregon in 1981. So we have over 40 years of experience. We're maybe one of the last or few U . S. owned and operated tour operators that still exist. A lot of people have, you know, foreign entities that own them or maybe private equity. have a single owner, which means that we can move really quickly. So if we want to make a decision, if we want to do a pivot, if we want to launch a new destination, we don't have all of these layers of administration between the customer and our owner, which I think is much, much different for a company like ours. Um, a tour operator. So, you know, since the beginning, um, we've, um, more recently launched more destinations and this is all based on our travel advisors, what they've asked us for. They wanted more options in Asia. You know, this is now our number two region of the world after Europe. It's been booming, especially I'm sure this was, you know, 2025 was really the year of Japan. And I'm sure we're going to see that continue into 26. Um. But yeah, Asia's been going very well. We launched that just 10 years ago now, so we launched at the end of 2015. And then more recently, just over two years ago, we launched the South Pacific with Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji. And that has been doing extremely well. And I, I think, you know, you're talking about the trends of travel and customization. I think many people see it as kind of like the new realm of luxury. It doesn't have to always be that five star hotel. It's really something more intimate, authentic, and tailored right to those customers. Are people, like as far as traveler preferences, had a shift where people are craving more flexibility in their travel? Yeah, you know, there's just so much life, lifing these days, right? So it's not always the traditional vacation anymore. It's a lot of mixed things happening. You wouldn't believe how many people that we have who's, children are going to school abroad and they're doing an exchange program and they want to go and drop off their their son or daughter at school in like Florence or in Barcelona or in Berlin and then they want to do a trip and then part of it they want to meet up later or Or people are going so many more destination weddings. I don't know what happened, but everyone wants to get married in like an Irish castle or an Italian villa. So people are going to these beautiful celebrations that then they want to extend. Or people going on a business trip, right? And then they want to extend kind of like that leisure market where can, where people are pairing up multiple experiences or even, um, a pre and post cruise where people love the 2 for 1 value proposition of having two distinct trips and one plane ticket. right? So they really want to find a great value. So they're doing these amazing onboard experiences on so many new vessels going out. But then maybe extend extending, you know, another land vacation for a week or even two weeks. I see some posts cruise, that's like six weeks. So, people just have so many different, I think, objectives and agendas. So, they really need a, you know, somewhere to go that is easier to work with, that is that one -stop shop. It can be flexible. So, in terms of the timing, but it's still full service, right? So you can still get everything that you need. You can still on the advisor side at that agency fee, you know, make sure that you are building your profits as you're building your business, which is really important as well. And really understanding like, okay, if I can service this correctly, like these clients are going to be my lifelong clients and, you know, help me grow and scale my marketing efforts. And, you know, one of the things that I've been noticing a lot, and I think that's what you're speaking to, is just all of these experiences, like you mentioned, like with students going abroad, business, you know, people are really valuing experiences so much more. It's great to see that it's a trend, and I hope it continues and just becomes the norm. Absolutely. So, why don't we talk a little bit more about authenticity and immersive travel, because we were talking about how people like to extend and kind of blend and things like that. How does your team approach designing experiences that avoid that touristy feel? Great, so that is such a passion point for me, especially now, you know, at Avanti, we have our headquarters here in Portland, but we also have two European offices, one in Manchester, England, and one in Barcelona, Spain. And if you've been paying attention to the news the past few summers, there's been a lot of talk in Barcelona specifically about, you know, rental prices and tourism coming into the city, especially during these peak summer months. So this over -tourism trend, hand, it does, you know, need to be addressed. And that's something that we actively work on. Uh, we are always trying to find the authentic moment. So, you know, we're not really doing big groups unless they're, you know, kind of like the multi -gen family, but really we're sending, uh, travelers in, you know, twos, threes, fours, up to six, very comfortably because you can do those private services at a great price. price point, you can have those amazing guides. So if you have a specific passion point, you know, we have armchair historians, outdoor adventurists, foodies, people that love going out into wine country. You've got those families, of course, you have people that just want museums and art and culture. They love theater. Um, there's all sorts of passion points. So authenticity to us really means giving someone something that's really endemic to that place, something that you're not going to find everywhere. That's not just run of the mill, ho hum, here's a building, here's a river walking through, right? Like you really want to know the context of the streets that you're walking through. We want the history, the vibe to really come to life and And for that traveler to like open their eyes and understand there's such a bigger world out there. And hopefully when they're traveling, they're making those connections. They feel like they're part of that place. My best anecdote is. if you're traveling and you start looking at like Zillow prices or the real estate offices that you might walk past with the listings in the window and you start imagining like what would it actually be like to live here because you feel that connection to that place. So oftentimes our our travelers are you know writing us these post -travel feedback surveys where they're really saying like, wow, I met Raul, we did a food walking tour, it blew me away because I thought that Spanish food was just this, right? And it really, you know, if people can come back, they've learned something, they have a greater appreciation for, you different cultures and they want to keep traveling, that to me is really like a mission accomplished. And also, you know, just to kind of go back on the over -tourism, it's really the education piece. So we really try to work with advisors and, you know, if someone comes to us and they're like, oh, hey, I have a couple that, you know, they've gone to Italy five times, uh, what more do you have to offer? I literally have, uh, a hundred more options, right? Because every person that we work with there is so special, unique. That's why we really treat them well, our guides and the companies that we work with, so that the next season we get first dibs on those people again, because our travelers are so interested. They're so genuine about just really enjoying the experience, being in the moment. I would say like our customers, our travelers, they just, they want something real, right? They don't want something, um, over -doctored or just like Instagram pretty. They really want to know, you know, the good, the bad, the ugly of that place. And, you know, why those guides love what they do. I, that's what I hear time and time again from our guides. It's like, your clients are just like really interested in me, like what I do with my family during the holidays, what, you know, songs we sing, what traditions we have, what food we eat. So I, I think that there's a special connection when you're spending that time together and people are so open, like they, they travel with their hearts open that they, They just feel it, you know, so much more than someone talking at them. They're actually like living it with someone. So I want to touch, go back to what you said a little bit, you were talking about Barcelona being over, not just Barcelona, but cities that have so much over tourism. So when you look at your portfolio, what makes a destination a good fit for you? Oh yes, that's a great question. So I think it has to, you know, it has to be something special. We don't sell everywhere in the world. We have specific regions and even in the countries that we currently sell, you know, we don't sell every single city. So there has to be one infrastructure, of course. of good quality because we want to make, we want to set it up for repeat, right? So that more people like it. Uh, so there has to be like bare minimum good infrastructure and there has to be some great guides. Like if there's no one living there to bring them in, we, it can be done in like some of the villages, but we always want to support that local economy and make sure that that money is, you know, it starts here in the U S and And, you know, we have our U . S. base, but a lot of it trickles into the destinations that we service. Because for us, it's really important to have that symbiotic relationship that when we go to a destination, we leave it a little bit better than when we arrived. We always ask the question, you know, would they have us back? We want to make sure that our travelers, you know, and I would say it's always happening, like it's beyond respect. It's a lot of love being formed in destinations. So, you know, when we're looking at like Australia, for example, when we launched that two years ago, people have been asking for Australia, for years, like over 10 years. I've been in Avanti for 22 years. Ever since I started, people were asking me, do you guys sell service Australia? And we, it took us a long time to kind of make the leap because one, of course there was good airlift, there's beautiful hotels, but what can we bring to the destination that other companies aren't doing? Right. And for us, when we launched, what was really important is we went there ourselves and we found people that really helped us understand how we can do something different. And for us, it was the cultural. aspects. For example, in Australia, we work with an Aboriginal artist. She's become a dear friend, not just to me, but to Avanti and to our customers. She works with you know, not that many travel brands. She is, you know, a First Nations artist, so she takes the elements, the shells, the grasses, the pigments from the land, and she creates these beautiful pieces of home decor, of art, But she's recently transitioned, uh, transitioned more into fashion and, uh, she participates in Aboriginal Fashion Week in Australia. And she's now become kind of like a mentor to other creatives in that space. But we bring her over every year to really, um, tell the story of her people where she comes from this island. in Queensland and Really like how tourism has changed her her island but also Brisbane which is the closest large city to where she lives and Really what she wants people to understand when they come to Australia So we I think through her we've been really able to um, sensitive to what Australia as a country is going through and how we at Avantia and our travelers as Americans can work together to like really bring that story more forward of cultural tourism, of slow travel, of traveling intentionally and with purpose, but also to have like a really great time to enjoy the beaches, the wildlife, you know, all the things that we all already know about Australia, but bring like a layer of deep meaning and connection that maybe some of the other operators they don't focus as much on, but for us at Avanti is paramount. And that goes back to what you were saying before about leaving it better than when you got there, because sustainability is so important. And then it helps the local economy. It's just everybody wins as a result. Exactly. And it should be like that, because for us, we know that travel is a luxury. It's a privilege, right? And what do we do with this great responsibility? Hopefully we use it for the best. And hopefully the world gets a little smaller for people because they can just get more of an understanding of each other because that's really the only way to make it a better place. That's another part of the equation for making it a better place. Exactly. Yeah, definitely. So if you're loving this conversation and want more insider travel insights, from destination experts like Gina to tourism boards around the world, make sure you subscribe to Emerald's Travel Blueprint. We release new episodes every week, packed with tips, stories, and inspiration to help you travel smarter and more intentionally. So don't forget to hit that subscribe button before we keep going. Partnerships are such an important part of the supplier -travel advisor relationship, so I asked Gina how they support advisors in this area. partnering on the destination side and hotels, like every time we have someone travel, we always ask them to rate everything and we have the policy internally. If a hotel is not faring well, it could be someone we work with for 20 years, but if for some reason we get three negative reviews, we investigate and we will not sell them anymore based on feedback. Like, because it's our brand, right? We're selling it, we have to service it. So those types of partnership opportunities, I think, are, um, you know, if you're really in it with us, you know that we do these things. But maybe people that aren't as familiar with us don't realize, like, we take, we're quality freaks, and we take it to the nth degree to make sure that their customers come back happy. Mm -hmm. And that's important for us as travel advisors, because we know that you have our backs, basically. And we can sell your itineraries with confidence and not have to worry about, you know, All of those things, like what you were saying with the negative reviews and all of that. That's all important. So you mentioned a little bit about destinations. What destinations, in your opinion, are trending right now with your travelers? I know you mentioned Australia being really, really hot. Are there any other destinations? Yes. Australia, I think they just have a great value proposition. They have a lot of new lift in. They just launched a new flight from San Francisco to Adelaide. So that is completely new and just brings those open jaw itineraries into Brisbane or Sydney and then out of Melbourne or Adelaide really to life. So there's not as much backtracking. um japan it has been the year of japan we've never had japan on our top 10 list this year it's number five in terms of passenger count and sales so a lot going on um in asia thailand's very popular as well um the tried and true right like the italy's ireland um france the uk spain germany those are always very popular greece i think is also just like every year we're seeing it on the rise. A few other places that I think for 26 are going to be even more popular than they've been are places like Iceland, Um, just so much connection. I just spent a week there, uh, last month and it was so much fun. I'd been there 10 years earlier and going in, I was like, I don't know, like done a lot of Iceland already. But 10 years later, I was like, wow, like their infrastructure is really good now. Lots of interesting tours. Um, lots of fun people, lots of like different kinds of independent shops and lots of new hotels. So there's a lot going on there. Um, Um, and I think Vietnam, if we're going back to Asia, like that is, uh, really, really, um, like when you're on the ground, it is an amazing super change of scenery and culture and food and climate and everything, I think. And the price point is perfect for people looking for luxury but affordable I and I think also you know I'd mentioned Peru anything in the Andes has been kind of I would say popping off too so from like Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and Argentina like all those kind of like mountain experiences people are really into all the stargazing stuff people are kind of like getting attracted to, like outside of the cities, get away from the noise and the light pollution, being somewhere really remote and seeing, seeing the galaxy, I guess, like seeing the Milky Way, all the like solstice or solstices and eclipses. That has been really, um, interesting as well. People flocking to like those dark sky preserves, learning more about the skies and yeah, that's been really fun. Cool. Have you noticed, is there any lesser known destination that you wish travelers would consider? Yes. So, I think Singapore is really underrated. It is kind of small, but they pack a lot in. Took me a, it took me a while to get there in terms of like how many years we've been selling Asian. I hadn't been yet, but I went for the first time last year and I was blown away. Like it is first, it's very easy for Americans. It's English speaking first. Um, it's a huge mix. It's a melting pot of cultures from all over Asia. So it's really fun. Um, lots of great food everywhere. And it's very affordable at the hawker centers where it's like state regulated. But you have one person making one dish and that's all they make. So they just become masters at it. You get to walk around. It's basically like a food court and like try, try, the world in one sitting. So that's really fun. And it's also like captured by heart because of its sustainability mission. It really in terms of environmental impact. So when, you know, and it's a relatively new country, like just born in the sixties. So, um, yeah. And of course, crazy rich Asians, it's my go -to. on the flight if I can't find anything new so I've always just it is a magical place it's definitely great nightlife, night markets, great shopping, beautiful hotels, super cool history. For every new building that they built there, they have to match every square foot of concrete with a square foot of green space. And there's not that much land. So of course it has to go up. So you see all these like hanging gardens and vertical gardens. It's just amazing. I love it there. It's definitely on my list. I've been planning it for a while. We'll see when it happens for me. So, in all of your years in this industry, what travel lesson has stuck with you the most? That's a good one. You know, there's so many different ones. One, just packing. I'm horrible. I used to be so much better when I Um, didn't have any airline status and I didn't have any, uh, extra luggage to check. But, um, I would say that, you know, my personal preference is, I think travel is just a great connector. So always having that open mind, of course, but beyond the destination for me now, it is who I'm going to meet in this place. That's going to make this. like so memorable for so many years to come. So I guess my travel lesson is even if you're a solo traveler maybe you know someone in destination. I just for me I'm a huge extrovert. I love people. We are in the people business and travel if you didn't know. So I just I love to meet people that I know and new people. So it's just putting myself in situations that I can accomplish that. So whether that's, you know, reaching out to people before I go somewhere, Hey, is anyone in this place? Let's meet up for dinner or coffee or something. Or, um, you know, just making sure I have like a, either a small group tour or shared tour so I can meet more people. Um, I also love anything foodie. So one of my favorite things to do is start every trip with a food tour, every new city with a two hour food walking tour, if I can find one. Cause it's like part flavors, part places, part history. And then typically people that love food, just like they love travel, love to talk about other things too. Like other restaurants, what's new, what's happening. They seem to be like the most, um, in tune with like current pop -ups, places to go, so I think that's always really fun too. Yeah, that's what it's all about. I think that's the key. I mean, if you're going to travel, you have to meet people. That's the only, you know, when you look back, when I think back on trips that I've gone on, I can think about people that I've met, and it could be from so long ago, but those things stick out in your mind. Yeah, I mean, sometimes it's like I guess it's also like, don't be scared to get lost, because that's part of the fun of it. like not having every moment planned. That's why I love travel. Like it's not my day to day. It's not the schedule. Like even here, I take different routes to come into the office all the time just to like see what's going on and to hopefully get into some kind of trouble. know like those are the funny things that make every day like a little bit different a little exciting but also memorable and you put yourself out there and just like sometimes it's just like building that tolerance of putting yourself out there that helps you tackle other things that you need resilience for. Beautiful. I think that, so the main takeaways that I have from our conversation are sustainability, making connections, being resilient, and just getting all those great experiences in there. That's to me what, you know, what travel is all about. Oh, yeah. That's a great summary. Yeah, well, I really enjoyed talking to you. This has been such a valuable conversation. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise and giving us a deeper look into what makes Avanti Destinations such a powerful partner for customized travel. And to everyone listening, if today's episode inspired you or sparked a new travel idea, make sure you subscribe to Cheryl's Travel Blueprint so you never miss an episode. We have more incredible guests, insider tips, and destination deep dives coming your way. And if you're ready to start planning your own custom journey with Avanti, reach out. I'd love to help you bring your travel vision to life. And again, Gina, thank you so much for your expertise. And we would love to have you back on the podcast any time. It was so fun. Hope everyone just keeps traveling. Sounds like a good idea to me. Thanks.