by Eric Bowman
Last updated: 2:05 PM ET, Sun October 19, 2025
ALG Vacations held its annual ALG Ascend conference in Cancun, Mexico on October 15-18.
We caught up Jackie Marks, Global Head of Trade Brands for ALG Vacations, to hear how 2025 is performing for the company and what made this Ascend conference special.
Marks also discusses what’s new with ALG Vacations and what travel advisors need to know.
Transcript:
Eric Bowman: We are at ALG Ascend in Cancun, Mexico, which we'll get to in a second. But first, Jackie, let's give the people a business update. How's 2025 going? Year over year from last Ascend, what's happening?
Jacki Marks: Oh, well, thank you for being here, first of all, and you know, 2025 has been a year I think that we all look back on and say it's a little bit of a tale of two cities – first half of the year, really strong going into the beginning, and we know we hit a little bump in the half of the year point, but we're coming out stronger than ever because of a lot of innovation and focus and just resiliency of the travel agency community to overcome the different challenges. So, I'm really proud of the team. I'm proud of our advisors to get through what was a little bit of a bumpy 2025 with a lot of energy going into 2026 for sure.
EB: A lot of excitement here at ALG Ascend. So it's a very popular event, as you said in the opening session yesterday, it’s one of the most sought-after events in travel. What makes you say that and how do you feel that 2025 has been elevated from years past?
JM: Yeah. I think that this Ascend Conference has become such that demanded event because it really gives advisors a chance to do three things. One is it gives them a chance to learn. And they really need that wealth of knowledge that we can bring them. That's not just about ALGV, but about how to be better in their business. And then the second thing is they need to connect with the best people in this industry. And we have a supplier showcase of 250 suppliers here.
And then the third thing is they need to have some fun and they need to get that energy back. You know, after a tough year, they want to be rejuvenated and inspired. So when they get those three things coming into Ascend and coming out of Ascend, it just makes them more energetic about approaching the new year ahead of them.
So this year for 2025, the biggest thing that we took away is we always try to listen to what our advisors say. And so, during this feedback that we got in our survey last year, they said that the supplier showcase is so valuable that they wanted a chance to have all of the suppliers over both days, because there's just not enough time in one day to see all the suppliers.
So we made the supplier showcase all 250 suppliers are here both days. And then the second thing is they really loved the inspiration they got in our keynote speakers. So we thought, why not have one each day instead of just one day? So just these little tweaks sometimes every year just make Ascend better and better.
And yes, we had 2,000 people apply for Ascend, but we only have officially 800 spots for advisors. So every year we try to make sure new advisors get a chance to experience it.
EB: So for those watching at home that want to be here next year for 2026, what are some things that they might need to do to be able to attend.
JM: Number one thing is connect with their BDM because your BDM is your connective tissue to our company. So let them know what your business goals are, let them know what you're trying to do so that they can ensure that they are advocating for one of those spots for you.
EB: Excellent. So a lot of the stuff, you know, that you've talked about here is some of the new things. So, what's new and exciting for ALG as we expand, and turn the corner to the holiday travel season coming up?
JM: Yeah, I don't know if we have enough time for that, but I'll give you the highlights. I'm going to say Ascend has been about three things and you heard us talk about this product. Product, progress and partnership. The three Ps of what we are focusing on. So, you're going to see a lot new product from us. We are going to be integrating Mr. And Mrs. Smith, our new glamping product Under Canvas. We just obviously launched the new Playa product. Now the Hyatt Inclusive Collection, we just launched Blue Sky Tours, which is our new expansion into the Indo-Pacific, in addition to the Hawaii.
So a lot of product stuff. Then when it comes to progress, it's going to be all about our new Amelia Chatbot that's going to be for advisors. We're going to have our new TA portal, which is the one stop place that they can aggregate all of their ways in which they do business with us and then be able to hopefully grow and figure out how they take their sales to the next level through that tool.
And then when it comes to the partnership, we always say that's the heart of the three piece. So, while we have a lot of product to focus, we have a lot of progress, if we don't have the right partnership, then the rest of it doesn't matter. So a lot of what they're getting here and what they're going to see from us is a continued investment in them and their wellbeing and their businesses, and even the most important thing that we do is educate the consumers about their value.
So traveladvisorsgetyouthere.com is all about, how do we drive more business in your doors and show to the consumer that you are the most important thing in booking a vacation.
EB: And they might see you guys on TV a little bit. You and Carson Kressley making the rounds in the media?
JM: Oh yeah, we do. We try to get on as many different ways that we can touch the media so that obviously the more we reach consumers, the more they're going to know. And let's be honest, Carson's got some media reach. So, Carson has been on Tamron Hall, he's been on Andy Cohen, he's able to really get out there and he just loves our Travel Advisor community.
EB: Can you expand a little bit on that new portal? When can advisors expect it and all the things that are going to be able to help them out?
JM: Yes. So it has been over a year in the making. And first quarter (of 2026) we'll go into beta. So there'll be some of you out there that might be testing it, giving us some feedback. By second quarter, we hope to get out the first version of the TA portal to all of you, and at which point that will be phase one. So we know there's things like travel credits and when your customer has redemption that you're waiting to see how many credits they have, there's going to be more things that the portal will continue to do over time. But you guys, I promise it is going to be worth the wait. You are going to so love this portal. It is going to be life changing. I call it your morning cup of coffee. Wake up every day, get your cup of coffee, log into the portal and every ticket you have open with us, everything about your sales structure, everything you need to know to be proficiently doing business with us will be there.
EB: Perfecting that one stop shop for the advisors.
JM: Yes. Yes, exactly.
EB: So one area of travel that is really booming over the last few years here is the luxury travel sector. So, what's buzzing in luxury travel for ALG Vacations?
JM: Yeah. So as you guys all know, we launched Luxe by ALG Vacations. Now we're coming up on almost two years. It’s kind of crazy. We've tripled our business in the lux segment and, um, we have a great attachment rate of first class. It's more than double any other area of our business. So as we look at what's next with Luxe, it's really making sure that we continue to add new product to it. Because we had, we started out, if you remember, with like 400 properties, now we're up to 520.
So the only way a property can be in the Luxe program is if they are either, Leading hotels of the World or AAA Five Diamond. We don't choose the hotels; they have to have the right accreditation. But, the more that we grow, the more we keep hearing from advisors about new boutique properties and new things that we could bring into it.
And then I would also say that getting more exclusive inclusions, we want to be able to give your luxury customers something they're not going to get anywhere else. We continue to negotiate new inclusion.
EB: Excellent. Alright, well thank you so much for having us. In closing, what would you like to say to the Travel Advisor community tuning in?
JM: I would say to the travel advisor community that we've been doing this for over 56 years and one thing that never changes is that our success doesn't happen without your success. So everything we're going to do is try to make you better in your business, give you the tools and resources you need, and we would not be the company we are today without these advisors. So just a lot of gratitude and I hope to see you at an event soon.
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