Australian travel agents can double their standard commission to up to 20 per cent on eligible Inspiring Vacations tour bookings made before 31 August 2026.
Australian travel agents have been handed a welcome August bonus, with Inspiring Vacations doubling standard commission rates on eligible tour bookings to a maximum of 20 per cent.
The offer runs from Monday, 10 August to Monday, 31 August 2026. It applies to new Australian bookings made by phone or live chat with the company’s travel agent team. Online bookings do not qualify. Fly, Stay & Cruise and Fly, Stay & Tour products are also excluded under the published terms.
So, for once, reaching for the phone may pay rather better than reaching for the “book now” button.
The campaign follows what Inspiring Vacations describes as its strongest year yet for trade partnerships. Figures supplied by the company show travel agent sales rose 23 per cent year on year. It also recorded three record-breaking trade months during the last financial year.
July 2026 was the star turn, becoming the company’s second-highest trading month on record. New agents now make up 25 per cent of monthly trade bookings, the company says.
That growth tells a useful story. Tour operators are not only chasing travellers. They are also competing for the trust and attention of the agents who guide those travellers. A better commission gives agents one more commercial reason to put a product high on the shortlist.
Double commission, without complicated arithmetic
Under the August deal, an agent’s normal commission rate is doubled, but the total cannot exceed 20 per cent.
An agent normally earning 5 per cent would earn 10 per cent. An agent earning 10 per cent or more would receive the maximum 20 per cent. The higher rate applies to eligible bookings made within the promotion period.
“Trade partners have driven some of our strongest months on record, and this is our way of celebrating that. Doubling commission for the month means every booking works twice as hard for the agents backing us, they’re able to speak directly with our Travel Agent team giving them the chance to access expert advice and chat through the most suitable packages for their clients.” Cameron Hunt, Head of Trade Partnerships at Inspiring Vacations, said.
The company’s current Travel Agent Hub lists Hunt as Head of Trade Partnerships.
The direct booking channel has another benefit. Agents can talk through product fit, trip details and client needs with a specialist before the booking is locked in.
That support can be useful when clients want more than a simple point-to-point holiday which, these days, is roughly everyone who has discovered WhatsApp, Google and the dangerous phrase, “While we’re there, could we also…?”
New Zealand agents have a different deal
One important distinction applies to agents across the Tasman.
The Australian double-commission offer should not be confused with Inspiring Vacations’ separate New Zealand incentive.
New Zealand travel agents are being offered a 20 per cent commission rate on eligible touring products for new bookings made and deposited between 10 August and 30 September 2026. The New Zealand promotion has its own terms rather than simply mirroring the Australian August deal.
For Australian agents, the double-commission promotion ends at 11.59 pm on 31 August 2026.
More than extra commission
The August offer is part of the company’s broader trade push.
Inspiring Vacations’ Travel Agent Hub brings together monthly offers, marketing material, webinars, destination updates and trade contacts.
Its monthly agent webinar runs for about 30 minutes and covers current incentives, product news, destination ideas and sales tips. Attendees also go into a draw for one of three $50 Visa gift cards.
The company is also running Pax to the Max from 1 July to 30 September 2026.
Agents compete on the number of travellers booked, with the top three earning a place on a choice of five featured tours covering South Korea, Japan, South America, South Africa or Sri Lanka.
There is also a longer game.
The Top Agents Trip runs from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027. The top 10 agents, ranked by total booking value, earn a place on the company’s annual reward trip.
It is a time-honoured travel trade formula: sell well, support the brand and, if the numbers fall your way, swap the office chair for an aircraft seat.
Trade support also includes co-marketing, product sessions and tailor-made travel. The company currently lists Stephen York as Trade Partnerships Specialist and Claire Jones as Tailormade & Groups Specialist.
Velocity comes with an important caveat
Inspiring Vacations also partners with Velocity Frequent Flyer for eligible Australian direct bookings.
Velocity members can earn one Velocity Point per $1 of eligible spend and can redeem points on eligible Inspiring Vacations packages.
However, there is an important distinction for travel agents.
Current Velocity terms state that points earning applies only to eligible direct Inspiring Vacations bookings and excludes bookings made through third-party travel agents. Velocity Points also cannot be redeemed on purchases facilitated by third-party travel agents.
Agents should therefore check the applicable rules before promising Velocity benefits on a commission-earning agency booking.
Why this matters for travel agents
The bigger story is not simply the word “double”, tempting though it is.
Trade sales are growing for Inspiring Vacations. If the company’s reported 23 per cent year-on-year rise continues, agents will become an even more important part of its sales mix.
That gives the tour operator a sound commercial reason to keep investing in agent training, marketing, service and rewards.
For Australian agents, meanwhile, the August maths is refreshingly simple.
Make an eligible new touring booking through the correct phone or live-chat channel by 31 August, and the normal commission rate is doubled, up to a maximum of 20 per cent.
Travel promotions often come with enough fine print to require a strong coffee, a ruler, and perhaps legal counsel.
This one is easier to grasp.
Eligible tour. Correct channel. Correct dates. Double the standard commission. Maximum 20 per cent.
And in a business where margin still matters, that is a message travel agents can understand before the kettle has even boiled.
By: Bridget Gomez – © 2026.
Read Time: 4 minutes.
Author Bio:
Bridget has never been built for stillness. Of Portuguese heritage, she began as a nurse, tending veterans at the Repatriation Hospital, listening to stories as colourful as the life she was yet to live. It was worthy, steady work, but wanderlust, as always, proved louder than routine.
So, she traded starch for a backpack and disappeared for a year, chasing trains, sunsets and the occasional regrettable glass of wine. She wrote everything down: the dust, the laughter, the missteps, the magic. Those notebooks became a travel blog, then a habit, then a calling.
Eventually she found Global Travel Media, or perhaps it found her.
Today Bridget writes with heart, humour and a dash of mischief, still travelling, just now with words.
