Jacqueline Dobson, president of parent company Barrhead Travel, hailed holidays-at-sea as one of the major areas to watch for this year, reporting Brilliant Travel members were experiencing cruise booking growth of up to 271% compared with 2019. 

Opening the group’s annual spring conference, Dobson also confirmed record trading levels for both homeworkers and managed service travel partners (MSTPs) so far during 2023, citing booking growth of more than 35% for homeworkers and 45% for MSTPs.

Held in Glasgow’s Grand Central Hotel on 3 and 4 May, the conference, titled Embracing Change, Diversity and Opportunity in Travel, brought together more than 40 of the group’s homeworking and MSTP members.

Day one saw member speed-dating sessions with suppliers followed by an evening trip to Glasgow’s Golf Fang, and day two the conference continued with sessions on industry and business insights.

Linda Pyle, director of Brilliant Travel, said: "I’m delighted we were able to come together for our first post-pandemic spring conference.

"Our business owners have had a storming start to the year and it felt like the perfect time to take stock, celebrate one another’s achievements and look ahead to the rest of the year."