It takes a special kind of business to make the Top 50 Travel Agencies by TTG, let alone win one of the regional categories for three consecutive years. Yet three-time TTG Top 50 Top Agency in Wales, Newport’s La Vida Travel, has done just that – and now they’ve also been crowned the UK and Ireland’s No.1.
The team of 13 spare their clients having to lift a finger from the moment they walk through the door of the agency’s well-appointed home to the moment they get back from their beach break, adventure tour, city escape, ski trip or cruise – there isn’t a holiday to which this team can’t turn their hands.
Now into its 13th year, 2024 was the culmination of everything owner Karen Marin Reyes and manager Lisa Miles, who both have more than 30 years’ experience selling travel, have worked towards so hard.
Chief among the agency’s achievements last year was adding surprise proposal planning to the team’s repertoire, as well as a new "wedding room scheme", which has raised La Vida’s wedding and honeymoons expertise to new heights – a tough ask given the business was already TTG Top 50’s reigning Top Weddings and Honeymoons Agency.
They’ve curated more than 20 proposals so far, complete with bubbly, a picnic and photographer at various romantic locations around the world, including a private beach in Thailand and a Croatian cave restaurant – even a mountain-top overlooking a fjord.
Should a couple then wish to book their wedding through La Vida, they’ll benefit from treat boxes, VIP lounge passes and a Marco Pierre White afternoon tea depending on how many guest rooms they add.
Love is always in the air at La Vida Travel, no more so than on Valentine’s Day when the agency was resplendent with heart-shaped bunting and red balloons as TTG came to visit.
In fact, every customer who made a booking over Valentine’s weekend received a bottle of bubbly and two flutes.
’Random acts of kindness’ policy
Gifts aren’t limited to seasonal celebrations, though; the agency’s “random acts of kindness” initiative sees La Vida send flowers if a client falls ill or loses a loved one or relative.
The team regularly gift clients flowers for the their birthdays, bespoke hampers for repeat bookers and baby gifts when clients welcome little ones and grow their families. The agency even covered the cost of EuroDisney tickets for a grandmother who didn’t have the funds to join her family holiday.
The business also donates to numerous good and important causes spanning cancer care, managing motor-neurone disease, stillbirth and cardiology charities, as well as sports clubs and local schools. So strong is La Vida’s commitment to community that in the past two years, it’s raised more than £28,000 for charity.
The team have also upped their sustainability game with tree planting for newlyweds and new borns, printing honeymoon tickets on seeded paper and enrolling two members of the team into Abta’s sustainability training course.
Savvy strategies
On the rare occasions last year when the La Vida team weren’t busy supporting the local community or making their clients feel like royalty, they were busy upgrading their technology, expanding their reach, attending supplier training events (59 in total), completing product training courses (31) and getting away on 12 familiarisation trips to ensure their knowledge remains the best it can possibly be.
Utilising a graphic design platform has allowed them to design eye-catching social media posts, build smart email templates and create branded e-vouchers for clients who want to surprise loved ones.
They’ve also hosted numerous customer events to drive sales, using QR codes on printed marketing to make engagement seamless, and collaborated with BBC Radio Wales. One major first was placing a six-month advertising campaign at a nearby railway station, which resulted in a £14,000 booking within days of the launch.
