A business you run with AI

Start a Travel Planning business while you keep your day job

Couples planning honeymoons, families booking group trips and executives all want a bespoke plan. Actionist researches the options, builds the full day-by-day itinerary and handles the admin. You bring the taste.

Actionist does the research and the build. You curate the choices and approve before anything reaches a client.

Your AI workforce
$500+per itinerary, you set it
$24,000a year at 4 itineraries a month
6phases Actionist runs

Starting a travel planning business used to mean expensive GDS software, a travel agent licence and years learning the trade. None of that is true today. Actionist is an AI agent that operates real apps the way a person does, so it can research destinations, compare hotels and activities, compile the options into a Google Sheets table and build the full day-by-day itinerary in Google Docs or Notion, working through each client brief in the background while you keep your day job. You bring the taste, the client relationships and the final judgement. Actionist brings the hours of research.

You do not need industry connections or a qualification to run a travel planning concierge. You need a genuine love of travel and an eye for what makes a trip great. Clients pay for your curation and recommendations, and Actionist does the legwork to make those recommendations well-grounded. The result is a business where every itinerary carries your personal stamp, and you are not buried in spreadsheets to produce it.

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01

Your opportunity

The opportunity

Why this works

Cookie-cutter package holidays are everywhere. A growing number of travelers want something built around them: the right neighbourhood, the right restaurants, the right pace. They will pay a planning fee for someone who gets it right.

Because Actionist handles the research and the document work, you can take on more clients than any solo planner could by hand, and your recommendations stay just as personal. There is no inventory to manage and no supplier partnerships to maintain before you start.

What matters to you
  • Clients who pay for curation
    Travelers who want a bespoke trip know generic itineraries waste their holiday. A planning fee for someone who gets it right is an easy yes.
  • Honeymoons, groups and corporate trips
    Couples, families, friend groups and executives all need the same thing: a well-researched plan they can trust. That is a wide market for one service.
  • Repeat business every year
    Happy travelers book again the following year and send their friends. A small client base can become a reliable annual income.
  • No inventory, no overhead
    You are selling research and taste, not flights or hotel rooms. No supplier accounts and no stock to manage before you take your first client.
Your projection

Run your own numbers

Your projection

Set the numbers, see the picture

Price per itinerary
$500
itineraries a month
4
Per month
$2,000
Per year
$24,000

Illustrative, based on the numbers you enter. Plus optional retainer to monitor the live trip.

Getting started

What it actually takes to start

Most people assume starting a travel planning business means a travel agent qualification, expensive industry software and a network of hotel contacts. Actionist handles the research work, so the real bar to start is much lower than that.

What you don't need
  • A travel agent licence
    You are selling itinerary curation, not booking tickets on behalf of clients.
  • GDS or booking software
    Actionist compares options the same way your clients would, just faster.
  • Hotel or supplier partnerships
    Clients book direct. Relationships with suppliers come over time.
  • To have visited every destination
    Research skills and taste matter more than visiting every destination.
  • To quit your day job
    Discovery calls fit into evenings. Actionist runs research in the background.
What you bring
  • A genuine love of travel and great trips
    Your taste is what clients are paying for. That is not something Actionist replaces.
  • A few evenings a week for calls and approvals
    Most of your time is discovery calls and reading each itinerary before it goes out.
  • A laptop and Actionist
    That is the whole setup.

If you can describe what a great trip looks like for a specific kind of traveler, Actionist can do the research to back it up.

02

How Actionist works

How it works

How Actionist builds the business

You do not run the day to day of this business; Actionist does. Here is how it works on any business idea, applied to a travel planning service: you pick it, the agent plans every task, works through the research and itinerary build, and brings you the few moments that need a human.

  1. 01

    You pick the business and your limits

    You choose the types of trips you want to plan, your pricing tiers and how many clients you can take each month. That is the only heavy thinking you do before Actionist maps out everything else.

    A clear brief Actionist can plan against.
  2. 02

    Actionist maps every task and subtask

    Actionist breaks the whole business into a staged plan: the steps to set up, the intake and discovery process, the research phases and the delivery workflow for each itinerary.

    A complete task plan for the business.
  3. 03

    It schedules the work and works through it

    Actionist picks up each task as soon as the last one is done: researching destinations, comparing hotels in a comparison table, drafting the day-by-day plan and building the itinerary document in Google Docs.

    Steady progress on every client brief without you driving it.
  4. 04

    It assigns you the human-only tasks

    Some steps only you can do: taking the discovery call, adding your personal recommendations and fielding a question that needs your judgement. Actionist assigns those to you with everything prepared, then carries on once they are done.

    A short, clear list of the moments that need you.
  5. 05

    It asks before anything reaches a client

    Before Actionist sends an itinerary, an invoice or any message to a client, it stops and waits for your approval. You decide how hands-on to be per task, from reviewing every draft to letting routine follow-ups run.

    You stay in control of every client-facing move.
  6. 06

    You keep your day job and check in

    You run this around your existing schedule. Check the board when it suits you, approve what is waiting, and message Actionist over Telegram or Slack to nudge or adjust anything. Client briefs keep moving forward between your check-ins.

    A business that grows around your schedule.
Your agent team

Actionist is your whole team

You are one person. Actionist is the whole team. Here is every role it plays to build and run the travel planning business, and the one part of each that stays with you.

~51 hrs/week of work by hand, run by your agents instead

Plan the business

turns your idea into a staged task plan

Before any client takes a brief, your assistant maps the full business: every stage, task and subtask from setup to first delivery.

If you did this by hand
Research how to structure the serviceList every step to set up and launchDecide pricing tiers and package scopeBuild a tracker to follow the whole launchRe-prioritise as things change
~6 hrs/ week
researching the steps and building the plan from scratch.3 days a month you do not have, handled for you.
What your agent does
One planevery stage, task and subtask
Day onescoped before you spend a penny
  • Map every task
    Breaks the business into stages and tasks, from registering to delivering the first client itinerary.
  • Set the order
    Sequences the work so each task starts as soon as the one before it is done.
  • Keep the plan live
    Re-plans around your schedule and updates the board as the business progresses.
Your part

You set the trip types you want to plan, your pricing and the hours you can give each week.

Apps your agent could useSee full Actionist App Store →
03

Your task plan

The task centre

Every task it takes, and who does it

This is the plan Actionist builds to launch and run the travel planning business: every stage, task and subtask. The work is split across your Actionist agents, from setting up the service to delivering each itinerary and keeping clients coming back. Only a handful of tasks and approvals stay with you.

29 tasks·89 subtasks
Actionist 24You 1Approval 4Actionist handles ~83%
Done
Executive Agent
Pick the trip types you will plan (honeymoons, group trips, corporate)
Done
Set your pricing tiers and what each package includes
Done
Write a one-line offer to use in pitches and introductions
Done
Research what similar planning services charge in your area
Done
Done
Operations Agent
Check the business name is free
Done
File the registration paperwork
Done
Save the certificate to your records tracker
Done
To do
You
Done
Operations Agent
Waiting
You

An example plan Actionist builds for this business. Yours adapts to your trip types, your pricing and your pace.

Under the hood

What one automation looks like

Trigger·A client confirms they want to go ahead after reading your proposal.
Confirmation
Step 4
Human
You read through the research and the draft, add your personal recommendations and approve it to send
Saved per run
~4 hrs
Runs / week
~4×
A polished itinerary and invoice delivered in one approved step.
04

The payoff

Your week

All it asks of you

Here is what a week actually looks like once the service is running. Your agents handle the research and the admin every day. You step in for a handful of moments, the ones worth your personal judgement, and the rest of your week stays yours.

You
A couple of hours

across the whole week, on your own time

5 touchpoints · about 80 min all week

Your agents
Every day

researching destinations, building itineraries and keeping past clients warm

7 jobs running in the background

Your team
Your full team runs in the background, every day.
  • Approve the outreach batch10 min
    mon · A quick yes before the agent sends.
  • Take a discovery call30 min
    tue · The agent briefed you; you show up.
  • Review a client itinerary before sending20 min
    thu · Add your personal recommendations.
  • Approve the invoice5 min
    fri · One click before it goes to the client.
  • Skim the weekly summary15 min
    sun · What shipped, what is next.
Your team, every day
  • SA
    Sales Agent
    Researches potential clients and drafts the outreach for your review
  • TA
    Technical Agent
    Researches destinations, hotels and activities for each active client brief
  • DA
    Developer Agent
    Builds and formats the day-by-day itinerary documents
  • RA
    Reception Agent
    Books and confirms discovery calls with interested enquiries
  • SA
    Support Agent
    Answers client questions and sends progress updates during planning
  • CA
    CRM Agent
    Keeps past clients warm and drafts the follow-up messages for next year
  • OA
    Operations Agent
    Sends the intake forms, prepares invoices and tracks what is owed
The payoff

What you walk away with

  • No inventory
    Zero overhead to start
    You sell research and curation, not flights or hotel rooms. No supplier accounts, no commission splits and no stock before you take your first client.
  • Recurring
    Clients who come back each year
    Happy travelers book again the following year and refer their friends. A small client base becomes a steady annual income with very little fresh outreach.
  • Your taste
    Every itinerary carries your recommendation
    Actionist does the research hours. You curate the final choices and add the personal touches clients are actually paying for.
  • Evenings only
    Runs around your day job
    Discovery calls and itinerary approvals fit into evenings and weekends. Actionist handles the research in the background so the business grows without you clearing your calendar.
Before and after

Doing it alone vs with Actionist

On your own
~33h / week
every job below lands on you
With Actionist
minutes to review
it runs all 10 in the background
  • 1Destination research
    8h/wk
    Hours of manual searching

    You comb review sites, travel forums and blogs by hand to compare destinations for every client brief.

    ActionistOff your plate
    A structured comparison table

    Actionist researches destinations, hotels and activities and compiles a comparison table in Google Sheets for you to curate.

  • 2Building the itinerary
    6h/wk
    Days per client

    You write the full day-by-day plan from notes, then format and proof the document yourself.

    ActionistOff your plate
    A draft document ready to personalise

    Actionist assembles the day-by-day itinerary in Google Docs from the approved research, ready for your personal touches.

  • 3Client communication
    4h/wk
    Back-and-forth all week

    Clients message at all hours with questions on progress, changes and what to expect next.

    ActionistOff your plate
    Updates sent as milestones land

    Actionist sends progress updates at each stage and handles routine questions so you only handle the calls that need your judgement.

  • 4Finding clients
    3.5h/wk
    Messages you never quite get around to

    Writing personal outreach to potential clients and referrers is easy to defer when client work fills the week.

    ActionistOff your plate
    Drafted outreach ready to approve

    Actionist drafts the introduction messages and follow-ups; you approve before anything sends.

  • 5Writing recommendations
    3h/wk
    A blank page for every trip

    You write the restaurant picks, activity summaries and practical tips from scratch for each itinerary.

    ActionistOff your plate
    First-draft copy in place

    Actionist writes the recommendation sections from the research so you refine rather than start from nothing.

  • 1Briefs and intake
    2h/wk
    Chasing incomplete information

    Clients reply to brief questionnaires slowly and always miss something you need before you can start.

    ActionistOff your plate
    Brief collected and filed automatically

    Actionist sends the Typeform intake questionnaire and chases missing answers so research starts without delay.

  • 2Following up on enquiries
    2.5h/wk
    Leads that go cold

    Interested enquiries stop hearing from you while you are working on a current client, and book elsewhere.

    ActionistOff your plate
    Timed follow-ups that go out

    Actionist watches the pipeline and sends the polite nudge before a warm lead drifts.

  • 3Invoicing and payment
    1.5h/wk
    Invoices you forget to send

    You raise invoices late after delivery and chase unpaid amounts only when you notice them.

    ActionistOff your plate
    Invoices raised on delivery

    Actionist prepares the invoice in Stripe and sends it once you approve, then flags anything overdue for a chase.

  • 4Post-trip follow-up
    1.5h/wk
    No contact until they message you

    Past clients hear from you only when they are already planning a trip, by which point they may have found someone else.

    ActionistOff your plate
    A check-in and a next-trip teaser

    Actionist drafts a post-trip message and an annual teaser via Brevo to keep you front of mind for next year.

  • 5Tracking client preferences
    1.5h/wk
    Scattered notes you cannot find

    What each client loved, their dietary needs, their travel style: it lives in email threads and memory.

    ActionistOff your plate
    A searchable client database

    Actionist logs trip details and preferences in Airtable so every follow-up and proposal is based on what you already know about them.

That is roughly 33 hours of work handed off every week, while you keep your day job
The tools

The apps Actionist operates

05

Stay in control and start

Already run this business?

See how Actionist can automate your life. Enter your website for a free analysis and a personalised demo built from your own business.

Trust and control

You stay in control

Your clients trust you with their holidays. Actionist asks before it sends anything to a client or moves any money, and keeps a clear record of every action so you can see exactly what happened.

You approve every client-facing move

Sending an itinerary, an invoice or any message to a client always waits for your yes.

Everything is logged

Each action the agent takes is recorded so you can review the work and stay confident in what went out.

Your accounts, your data

Actionist works inside your own Gmail, Google Drive and Stripe. You keep ownership of every client relationship and file.

Choose how hands-on it is

Pick approval modes per task, from reviewing every message to letting routine follow-ups run once you are confident.

FAQ

Questions about this idea

Can I start a travel planning business without being a qualified travel agent?
Yes. You are selling itinerary planning and destination curation, not booking flights or hotels on behalf of clients. That is a research and advice service, not a regulated booking function. Clients make their own reservations from your recommendations.
Can I run this alongside a full-time job?
Yes, that is the point. Actionist works through each client brief in the background and only comes to you for a handful of human tasks: the discovery call, adding your personal recommendations to the itinerary draft and approving each delivery. The research hours happen around the clock, not in your lunch break.
How does Actionist research destinations and hotels?
Actionist operates real research tools and apps the way a person does, browsing and comparing options across the web without needing specialist travel software or API integrations. It compiles the results into a structured comparison table in Google Sheets for you to review and curate.
Does it send itineraries to clients without me reviewing them first?
No. Every itinerary waits for your approval before anything reaches a client. You read through the draft, add your personal recommendations and approve it to send. Actionist only delivers once you give the go-ahead.
How do I take payment from clients?
Actionist prepares the invoice in Stripe and, once you approve it, sends the client a payment link. You see and approve every invoice before it goes out, so no money moves without your sign-off.
What types of trips can I plan with this service?
Honeymoons, anniversary trips, family holidays, group travel, solo adventure trips and corporate multi-city itineraries all work with the same approach. You define the trip types you want to specialise in and Actionist researches to that brief.
How do I get my first clients?
Most travel planning concierges start with warm outreach to their existing network: friends planning big trips, colleagues who travel for work, people who have mentioned wanting to go somewhere special. Actionist drafts the introduction messages for your approval; you send to the people you already know.
Ready to start?

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