Self-Employed Travel Consultants
Start your Travel Business
In Partnership with Ponteland Travel Services
Enjoy the freedom and flexibility of working from home, or anywhere in the world!
Self Employed Travel Consultant
As a self employed travel consultant you will be your own boss and will have the freedom and flexibility to choose how you want to run your business:
Choose to work from home or anywhere in the world as all systems are online - you just need a laptop / computer and internet access.
Choose to work full time or part time.
Sell everything or choose a niche market and become an expert in your field.
Go completely solo or hire staff to help.
Run this business as a side hustle alongside your main job or make this your main focus.
Whatever you decide, we’re right behind you to support you every step of the way!
You Choose Your Setup
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Trade Independently under our banner
Build personal connections with your customers with our name behind you for credibility.
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Establish a branch of Ponteland Travel
Focus on selling holidays and growing your business whilst benefitting from our marketing.
*One off territory exclusivity fee applies
What our Business Partners have access to
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Complete Software Solution
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100% Financial Protection for your Clients
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Supplier Contracts with all Major Tour Operators
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Ability to Dynamically Package under our ATOL
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Integrated Merchant Facility
Why Ponteland Travel Services?
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No Long Term Contracts
We believe you should stay because you want to work with us, not because you’re tied down by a contract.
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No Joining Fee
We don’t charge you to join us, but if you are new to the industry you are required to take a training course at a cost of £995 (+vat).
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Low Monthly Cost
Low fee of £35 (+vat) per month to cover licensing costs for access to all software.
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Generous Commission Split
You keep 70% of all the commission you generate. There is no minimum requirements from us.
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No Card Fees
We absorb the merchant fees, so you can concentrate on selling holidays rather than worry about costs building up.
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Easy to Navigate Systems
Our systems are designed to be user friendly making it easy to run your business.
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Trust Account Trading Model
All customer funds are placed in a trust account to provide 100% financial protection to the customer.
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Ongoing Business Support
We’ll be there to support you every step of the way as you grow your business.
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Marketing Support
You will have access to a regularly updated database of media assets to help you engage your customers on whatever platform you choose.
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Supplier Flexibility
We don’t dictate which suppliers you should or shouldn’t work with.
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ATOL Licence
We hold an ATOL licence allowing you to create your own packages where required.
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Giving Back to the Planet
Every booking you make automatically generates a donation to our chosen local and global good causes.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Ponteland Travel Services is designed for any individual or company who wants to run a successful travel business with freedom and flexibility.
We provide all the tools you need to operate allowing you to concentrate on running your business your way.
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No, we do not charge you any fees to join us.
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If you are new to the travel industry you will be required to take a course (delivered by us) introducing you to the world of travel. This will include the basics of selling in this industry, the legalities that you need to be aware of and our systems. The cost for this is £995 (+vat). Once you have completed this course you will be ready to launch your business with our guidance behind you.
If you have previously worked in the travel industry, we will give you an induction to our systems which is free of charge. We will check to see if your are comfortable launching your business, and if required we may recommend that you take the course above. You can opt in to take the course of your own accord.
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The £35 (+VAT) per user per month covers the licencing cost for all software required for running your business.
Each user will have their own personalised email address along with access to all the software required to run the business.
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When you join us you are required to sign up to a minimum term of 12 months. After this you are free to leave at any time by serving a 1 month notice.
We want you to stay with us because you enjoy working with us and your needs as an individual and/or company are being fulfilled. We don’t believe in tying you down with long term contracts and long notice periods.
There is a minimum initial 12 month period because of the efforts required to set you up on the systems and we pay for some licenses on an annual basis.
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The business support available is tailored to each individual or company. We will work with you as you grow your business and will provide support as and when required.
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You will have access to a regularly updated library of media assets which you can use on your social media.
We can also arrange other forms of marketing for example a website, email marketing, printed media for a small additional cost.
We will guide you with the different forms of marketing so that you can reach your ideal clients.
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You will retain 70% of all of the commission that is received from our suppliers when you book holidays, cruises, …in fact any type of travel arrangement.
We will take 30% to cover our costs for managing these bookings in the background on your behalf. Our duties include (but not limited to) managing supplier contracts, invoices, managing the trust account, managing supplier payments etc.
We also absorb the card processing fees when you take payments from your customers.
This is a generous split in the travel industry. This is a flat rate on all commission generated, we do not apply a tiered approach where you split more of your commission for your first so many bookings every month, or even a minimum commission split forcing you to give up more commission if you don’t do certain amount of business each month.
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When a customer pays you for their holiday the merchant provider charges a fee for handling the payment. These fees vary depending on if a customer pays using a debit card / credit card / American Express (AMEX) / reward cards etc.
The bank also charges fees for all money going into and out of the trust account.
The good news for you is that we absorb all of these costs, nothing is passed onto you. You can concentrate on selling holidays and building your business without worrying about these costs.
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Commission is paid out to you after the customer has departed for their holiday.
This provides 100% financial protection to the customer as their money is kept safe in the trust account so that the customer can be refunded in case or cancellations, changes or supplier failure etc.
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Ponteland Travel Services is part of a trade association (TTA) of Travel Agents, Tour Operators and Travel Organisers, that operate trust accounts, in order to provide financial protection for the consumer.
The TTA lays down strict guidelines on how customer funds may be handled and each member must adhere to these guidelines. Every TTA member puts customer’s funds’ into a designated trust account, which is supervised by an independent trustee. The trustee is a banker, Chartered or Certified Accountant, or Solicitor.
The funds are held in this account and may not be released unless the customer receives their holiday or the funds are released to another company that becomes responsible and provides for the financial protection.
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No, there are no restrictions from our end. As long as the supplier is happy to work with travel agents you can use them.
If we don’t already have a contract with a supplier, this can be arranged on request.
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Air Travel Organiser’s Licence is a financial protection scheme designed to safeguard travellers who book holidays that include flights.
Holding an ATOL means our team and business partners can create and sell bespoke packages that include flights.
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At Ponteland Travel, we believe travel and global responsibility go hand-in-hand. We're committed to making a positive impact by embedding our giving back promise into every booking made with Ponteland Travel.
For every holiday you book, we automatically make a donation on your behalf to a selection of world-leading and local charities and good causes. Your bookings contribute directly to vital global causes, from poverty relief and child welfare to wildlife conservation and reforestation.
Let’s Work Together
Get in touch to find out more about our proposition, and let’s talk business!
Who We Are
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We believe in keeping things simple, smart, and human. Everything we do revolves around our team and business partners. Our mission is to make running a travel business enjoyable and rewarding.
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Integrity, transparency and trust guide our approach. These principles are more than words - they form the basis of everything we do.
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Ponteland Travel was established in 2013, operating as a local travel agency based in Ponteland, Newcastle upon Tyne.
Having worked with different consortia over the years, it became apparent that the travel industry was lacking a consortium which put their team, business partners and members first.
Ponteland Travel Services was launched so that we could give our colleagues in the travel industry a platform to trade with freedom and flexibility. We like to keep things simple, putting the needs of our team and business partners first.