Written by: Veerle Beelen, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Travel Coaching is a relatively new niche in both the coaching and the travel industry. You may be wondering what this means, and most importantly, why would you need a travel coach?
In this article, I will tell you everything you need to know, whether you are a traveler yourself or a company looking to hire a travel coach.
A Travel Coach is not the same as a Travel Agent
First of all, let’s start by clarifying that a travel coach is not the same as a travel agent. There is often confusion around this, but in short, travel agents are responsible for booking trips, making reservations, and organizing itineraries. However, a travel coach doesn’t do any of this but focuses on giving you the tools to find out the deeper purpose of your trip and how you can prepare yourself. Instead of focusing on a specific destination, a travel coach helps you to understand why you travel in the first place before figuring out the where and how of your trip.
“…a Travel Coach helps you understand why you travel in the first place, before figuring out the where and how of your trip.”
Depending on the type of traveler, travel agencies and travel coaches could complement each other to provide a full package of support. On the other hand, travel coaches can also empower travelers to take full control over their own travels by providing them tools to become more independent and confident in terms of creating their own itinerary. In addition, some travel agents also certify themselves to add coaching to their services, or vice versa. There are travel coaches who add the booking credentials to their resumes.
What does a Travel Coach do?
Travel coaches usually support travelers to focus on wellbeing, mindset, and personalized, transformative travel experiences. However, there are many niches within the travel coaching industry, and depending on someone’s needs, they can find a coach that can support them in their journey. Popular niches within the travel coaching industry are, for example, corporate/expat and business travel, solo travel, family travel, sustainable travel, local travel, and wellness travel.
“Some travel coaches focus more on the practical parts of a trip… while others also integrate mindset, personal development, and wellbeing.”
Some travel coaches focus more on the practical parts of a trip, like trip planning or finances and travel hacking, while others also integrate mindset and personal development, wellbeing, or a more spiritual approach.
Reasons why you want to engage with a travel coach are, for example, to receive support on getting clarity on your next steps in life, seeking to connect with yourself or with your loved ones, using travel to heal from trauma, or improving (mental) health issues, finding ways to use travel as a tool for self-empowerment and personal growth, taking a break from work to make better use of your annual leave days through travel, or improving your wellbeing and work/life balance during business travel.
“Coaching helps them through the preparation process of moving abroad and while transitioning into a new country.”
Personally, as a travel coach, I focus on assisting expats and other travelers who move to another country. Coaching helps them through the preparation process of moving abroad and while transitioning into a new country. This doesn’t only include helping them to figure out the practical steps of a move, like visas, housing, shipment, finances, etc. Also, the mental and emotional part, by focusing on mindset, is an important aspect of the coaching, including addressing problem-solving skills, ownership, and self-growth.
Besides that, I help expats, and other travelers transform their personal lives and careers through their travel experiences. I share more about the importance of focusing on expat wellbeing and how travel can be a powerful tool for personal growth further below in this article.
A Travel coach is not a therapist
Besides the fact that travel coaches are not the same as travel agents, they also shouldn’t be confused with therapists. In general, travel coaches focus on the future and how you can achieve your goals by providing empowerment and motivation. At the same time, therapists tend to focus more on healing from past problems and traumas and looking into solutions and how to deal with this in the present moment. A travel coach can support you in finding your own answers by asking you powerful questions.
“The focus is on the future and how travel can be a tool to, for example, gain more confidence to reach your future goals and create meaningful experiences abroad.”
The focus is on the future and how travel can be a tool to, for example, gain more confidence to reach your future goals and create meaningful experiences abroad. That being said, travel can have an incredibly healing effect on someone as well. However, it’s good to know the difference between coaching and therapy to find the right support that you need for your situation.
Life Abroad and Expat Coaching
As a travel coach, certified with the International Coach Federation, I specialize in helping people move to another country and transition into a new country. Coaching can cover the first step of planning a move all the way through the transition abroad and even up to the repatriation phase. This type of coaching is mostly focused on expats but can also be beneficial for other types of longer-term travelers, like digital nomads, international exchanges students, people on a gap year or sabbatical, or partners who accompany their spouse on an assignment abroad. In whatever capacity someone moves abroad, there will be challenges. As a travel coach, I support people through these challenges to feel good and thrive abroad in all areas of their lives.
“My personal experiences and challenges as an expat adjusting to a new life abroad, motivated me to become a certified coach and to help others during this process.”
I specialize in this area because of the gap I felt in this industry while being an expat myself. My personal experiences and challenges adjusting to a new life abroad motivated me to become a certified coach and help others all through this process. While working as an Immigration Specialist in the corporate global mobility industry for over 6 years, I have worked with many expats and their families. I realized that most companies, which have policies in place to support their employees with their moves abroad, are only focused on the practical parts of a move but often forget the wellbeing part and the challenges their expat population faces when adjusting and settling into a new country.
Research has shown that expats are likely to suffer from more stress, depression, anxiety, and a risk to their overall wellbeing in general compared to other individuals who stay in their home country. This is caused by a variety of factors, like language and cultural barriers, lack of local knowledge in their new country, loneliness due to the lack of a support network, homesickness, uncertainties in terms of finances, health care and visas, high demands at their job abroad, etc.
Not only expats themselves, but also the companies they work for, should prioritize their wellbeing and find ways to seek support before and during a move to face all these challenges. This is not only beneficial for the employee but also for the company. When someone can have a successful transition and feels good in their new country, it positively affects their career, productivity, efficiency, and ultimately on sick leave. Even though most of the challenges that expats face take place outside of the workplace, it is not a luxury for employers to pay attention to their expat’s wellbeing.
Transformative Travel Coaching
An important part of travel coaching is creating transformations. That’s why it’s often seen as an extension of life coaching but specifically related to travel. Meaningful and purposeful travel experiences can have a life-changing impact and create transformative mindset shifts. It’s perhaps even more related to an inner journey first than the ‘outer’ journey that eventually takes place.
“Sometimes support from a travel coach can just be sufficient to take the stress off the planning process of a trip…”
Sometimes support from a travel coach can just be sufficient to take the stress off the planning process of a trip by discussing options and providing useful tips and tricks. Other times, depending on the specific approach, a travel coach can really help you to look into the deeper meaning of your trip, why you want to travel somewhere, and what outcome you are looking for when you return from your trip. By providing different types of exercises that you can do before, during, and after your trip, a travel coach can help you find a deeper transformative experience and further self-discovery. Besides that, travel coaches aren’t only there to support you before your trip and coach you during your travels or when you return home.
You could also think about other types of scenarios that lead to life transformations, like using travel as a career break, sabbatical or gap year, or even the opposite; to boost your career by relocating to another country or adding some extra travel to your business trip, so that you can see more of a country rather than just a meeting room and a hotel lobby and return to the workplace re-charged. Besides that, from an other-centered approach, travel can also be used to transform other people’s lives by combining travel to volunteer or to raise awareness about certain issues.
Eventually, whatever option applies to your specific situation, if you’re open to explore more and discover yourself during your travels, it is without a doubt that travel turns you into a storyteller and gives you new perspectives on life.
Why companies should work with a travel coach
While the above mostly focuses on working with a travel coach as an individual, companies can benefit from the travel coach approach. For example, companies can hire a travel coach for their expertise on how travel can boost their employee’s wellbeing. Whether that’s related to their expat population and helping them through the relocation, or whether it’s for the employees who don’t travel at all by raising awareness of the benefits to use their annual leave to travel.
“These initiatives help to raise awareness among employees on the importance of taking time off to re-charge.”
This could also benefit the business travel population and companies’ well-being policies to include more space for travel. These initiatives help to raise awareness among employees on the importance of taking time off to re-charge. Research has shown that taking time off work to travel boosts someone’s health. Even after returning to the workplace after an extended trip, travel coaches can keep employees on track with their personal and career goals, boosting their productivity and creating a healthy work/life balance.
Also, other companies within the travel and hospitality industry, like hotels and booking agencies, could benefit from working with travel coaches. While travel coaches gain a deeper understanding of the needs of their clients, they can refer to other travel companies for recommended accommodations, special retreats, offerings, or arranging the booking process. Besides that, they can advise the companies on what to focus on in their offerings so that it matches the current needs of travelers and make sure packages are tailored to the client's needs.
To summarize…
To summarize all of the above, travel coaching offers new opportunities within the travel industry. By bringing the importance of travel to the forefront in terms of transformational experiences, boosting wellbeing and productivity, or just in more practical terms, to make the travel process easier and smoother, both companies and individuals can benefit from working with a travel coach.
For more information about travel coaching and how you can work with Veerle Beelen to discuss your individuals’ or your companies’ needs, you can reach out to her here to schedule a call.
Veerle Beelen, Executive Contributor, Brainz Magazine
Veerle Beelen is an Internationally recognized Certified Travel Coach. As a Travel Coach, she empowers travelers to have transformative travel experiences and focus on their “Travel Mindset.” Her goal is to help expats, and other travelers transform their personal lives and careers through their travel experiences, guide them through the preparation process of moving abroad and coach them through the transition process of living in a new country. Besides that, Veerle inspires people to use travel as a tool for personal growth, self-awareness, reflection, and to boost their overall wellbeing. She has been featured in various online media publications and guides her clients during their journey through her eBook, blog, online videos, articles, and personalized coaching sessions.
