Continued membership growth at the Travel Leaders Network, as reported at the consortium’s recent annual international conference, further discredits the idea that travel advisors are being replaced by technology.
About 2,200 advisors from across the U.S. and Canada came to the 2026 EDGE International Conference by TLN, held this year in San Diego at the sprawling Gaylord Pacific Resort & Convention Center. This included 114 Canadian member agents and 44 Canadian supplier delegates.
They spent up to four days networking with suppliers at a trade show, listening to keynote presentations and attending training sessions on new travel tools that have been launched by TLN. EDGE stands for Educate, Discover, Gather, Evolve.
New member agencies
Travel Leaders Network added over 300 new agency members in 2025 (including 36 Canadian agencies), helping to establish a total of 5,700 locations across both countries. And 90 new agencies have been added in 2026 so far. These have all contributed to the growth of the consortium as confirmed by various measurement metrics.
For example, in 2025 they generated more than $300 million in annual preferred supplier sales, for an overall growth of about 15% YOY, at least partially driven by a high demand for personalized luxury travel and river cruising.
Attendees at the EDGE conference took in a trade show that was populated by 150-plus suppliers in a large exhibit hall at the resort.
“I walked into this huge room filled with supplier partners, and I was overwhelmed, the energy level was off the charts,” said the new TLN president, Lindsay Pearlman. “The advisors could never meet this many suppliers in even a year.”
Pearlman noted that the number of Canadian advisors was down slightly as compared to previous annual EDGE conferences, given the current geopolitical challenges, and that he respected their decisions to not attend this year.
Elevate shows coming
But the attendance cutback by Canadian members is not as severe as compared to the reductions in visits to the U.S. by Canadian travellers, he said. And the ongoing rift in cross-border relations has contributed to the decision by TLN to launch a new series of trade shows in Canada.
The new “Elevate” trade shows will replace the TLN fall regionals with programs that run over the course of two days rather than the current one day. They will be held in Toronto and Vancouver next October. And they address the reluctance by some Canadians to visit the United States at this time.
“Yes, there is a demand for this,” said Pearlman, referring to the attendance of over 200 advisors at the 2025 edition of the Toronto fall regional. “And that was just for one day,” he said, noting that the new Elevate event could serve as a “mini-version” of the EDGE conference.
“The feedback (on Elevate) has been very positive, so we’re going all in on this,” he said.
And the forecast suggesting the demise of travel advisors? That’s simply not in the cards, said Pearlman. “The one word we are not hearing here is ‘agent.’” said Pearlman. “The preferred description is ‘advisor,’ and that means something, it’s not an empty phrase, they have redefined themselves. So we are very happy that this has happened.”
CAPTIONS for Photos
1 – TLN travel advisors enjoyed the EDGE conference opening night reception.
2 – TLN president Lindsay Pearlman led keynote presentations during the EDGE show.
3 – A team of regional reps staffed the Destination Canada location at the EDGE trade show.
4 – Christine James, the VP Canada for the Travel Leaders Network at the recent conference trade show.
5 – Natalie Flaman, business development manager for Anderson Vacations, at the company display location during the TLN trade show.
