The instinct with a hit trip is to run it every year, it sold out, so obviously repeat it. My counsel is usually the opposite: make your flagship an every-OTHER-year event. Scarcity isn't just a marketing trick here; it's an operations decision that fixes three problems at once.
“That way we're not burnt out on it, and that way we have proper time to sell it and people have time to pay.”
What the alternate year buys
- A full selling runway: launched two years out, the trip gets sold properly instead of frantically, and clients get time to actually pay. A $6,000 trip on a two-year payment plan is an easy yes; the same trip due in seven months is a stretch.
- Host energy: running the same departure annually burns you out on your own best product. The gap year keeps the flagship feeling like an occasion to YOU, and guests can feel the difference.
- Demand accumulation: the year off builds a waitlist. Departures stop competing with last year's version of themselves.
Claire's own numbers
The framework, step by step
- 1
A full selling runway
launched two years out, the trip gets sold properly instead of frantically, and clients get time to actually pay. A $6,000 trip on a two-year payment
- 2
Host energy
running the same departure annually burns you out on your own best product. The gap year keeps the flagship feeling like an occasion to YOU, and gues
- 3
Demand accumulation
the year off builds a waitlist. Departures stop competing with last year's version of themselves.
Claire's own framework from this essay, in the order she teaches it.
Source: Claire B. Soares, from her own travel business and live trainings.
And never launch alone
The cadence pairs with my launch rule: never sell one trip at a time, because you're duplicating your effort every time. A launch is a machine, the emails, the webinar, the countdown, and the machine carries two offers as easily as one. So the flagship launches alongside a second trip: different price point, different vibe, same audience attention. The browser who isn't ready for the flagship books the smaller trip; the flagship waitlister stays warm. One launch, two products, half the effort per sale, and a catalog that breathes on a rhythm you control.
Common Questions
Should you run your best trip every year?
Often no. An alternate-year cadence gives a full selling runway, gives clients time to pay, prevents host burnout, and lets demand accumulate between departures.
How far ahead should a flagship trip launch?
Up to two years, because the payment plan is the product. A memorable trip becomes affordable in monthly installments only with a long runway.
Should you launch one trip at a time?
No. A launch is a machine that carries two offers as easily as one, so pair the flagship with a second trip at a different price point.
Written By
Claire B. Soares
Claire B. Soares is the founder of Travel AI University, a 6x Condé Nast Traveler Top Travel Specialist, and a Certified AI Consultant with a B.S. in Computer Science. A top 10% enterprise sales executive, she sold $3.4B+ in enterprise software to Google, Microsoft, IBM, Boeing, the federal government, and the DoD, then built $16M+ in luxury travel sales.
About Claire
