The curtains just closed on ALG Vacations’ (ALGV) 2026 Elite Emerald Retreat, an annual event celebrating top-performing advisors who achieved “Emerald” status. And as attendees left sunny Miches, Dominican Republic, they undoubtedly returned home with a bounty of new and exciting updates to share with their clients in addition to countless new connections made throughout the week. From fresh product offerings and hotel renovations and openings to exclusive updates and news from some of advisors’ most beloved travel brands, here’s a recap of the announcements you might have missed from ALGV’s 2026 Elite Emerald Retreat.
ALG Vacations’ Promise To Advisors
Between natural disasters, headline-making events, major delays, shocking aviation incidents, rising prices and general uncertainty, 2026 has shaped up to be an eventful year for travel advisors, and ALGV recognized these hurdles at the event’s first session titled “Travel Outlook and Business Growth.”
“This industry is not without challenges,” said Jacki Marks, global head of trade brands for ALG Vacations. “[The first quarter of 2026] was tough, we all felt it, and we haven’t felt something like it in a very long time. But like anything, we’re resilient, we come with the good, and it comes with the challenges, but we always do it together.”
On the topic of collaboration, especially during turbulent times, Marks said ALGV will always listen to advisors and act with intention, citing the company’s open communication with travel pros via its up-to-date advisory pages, webinars, emails, social media content and text messages as examples of the brand’s ability to “manage the crisis vs. [letting] the crisis manage us.”
“We’re always going to communicate,” she said. “We’re going to over-communicate with all of you because communication is the one thing that keeps us tight and keeps us doing the right things. … I feel like that’s our job as tour operators, to make sure you have the information so that you can take care of your client. So, as we approach whatever we face, you’re always going to get communication from us.”
Of course, communication is a two-way street, and Marks said advisor feedback is something ALGV welcomes and considers invaluable, sharing that the company sources advisor feedback from its 20+ member advisory board, frequent surveys and responses shared with BDMs.
“I hope you feel this from us, the best thing about our company, I feel, is that we know you’re smarter than us, and you know what you need,” she said. “Your feedback is what drives our decisions. … You [travel advisors] are the heart of this company. We don’t exist as a company without you.”
Expanding on the topic of advisor-driven decisions, Marks said ALGV is working to roll out support in “more complex destinations” like Europe and the Indo-Pacific as well as new technology investments — including a fresh advisor portal and customer care updates — designed with advisor feedback in mind.
Updates From ALG Vacations, Hyatt Inclusive Collection and Amstar DMC
ALG Vacations
ALGV shared four major updates with advisors: 1) New product offerings in Europe, the Pacific and South Pacific, 2) Fresh hotel options, 3) Expanded and upcoming ENVF flights and 4) Rail offerings.
“We’ve invested a lot over the last few years into Europe and increasing the accommodations that we have there,” said Heather Hendrix, senior director of sales for ALG Vacations. “But recently, we also launched some new destinations in the Pacific and the South Pacific … so, if you’re telling us, ‘oh, my clients aren’t going to the Caribbean this year, they’re going to Europe,’ don’t forget us, okay? We know your business is growing, and so we have to grow ours as well. It’s not just the Mexico-Caribbean bread and butter you used to sell.”
On the topic of hotels, Hendrix said ALGV has worked closely with core brands to bring on 3,000+ additional properties including big names like Banyan Tree and Sofitel. Similarly, Hendrix said Mr. and Mrs. Smith recently launched alongside Hyatt, while the addition of Under Canvas, an upscale glamping brand, gives advisors lots to look forward to as ALGV grows its portfolio.
Regarding flights, Hendrix had exciting news to share. “We’ve launched three, count them, three, exclusive non-stop vacation flights in my region in the southeast … Tulsa, New Orleans and Raleigh,” she said. “[And] I’m going to let you guys in on a secret, we may be launching two more cities next year in Richmond, Virginia, and Columbus, Ohio.”
Hendrix wrapped up with another bit of highly anticipated news for advisors, ALGV’s foray into bookable rail products. “You guys have been asking for rail, and we now have our little toe in the shallow end of the pool with some Europe rail in Italy,” she said. “We are partnering with Acampora Travel, which is our DMC in Italy, and they’re providing these different rail schedules between Rome, Naples, Florence and Venice, and we’re really excited about it because now you can add that train component in.”
Hyatt Inclusive Collection
Matt Brightman, regional sales leader for Hyatt Inclusive Collection (HIC), talked about hotels beginning with the recent openings of Secrets St. Lucia Resort & Spa, Secrets Baby Beach Aruba, Secrets Playa Esmeralda & Dreams Playa Esmeralda Resort & Spa and, lastly, Secrets Mirabel Cancun Resort & Spa. Next, Brightman discussed recent HIC renovations, spotlighting Zoëtry Agua Punta Cana, Secrets Playa Mujeres Golf & Spa Resort and Hyatt Zilara Cancun which is slated to reopen later this year. And finally, Brightman wrapped up with upcoming hotel openings for advisors to keep on their radar, teasing Hyatt Vivid Punta Cana and Secrets Macao Beach Punta Cana coming later this year in addition to Hyatt Ziva Punta Cana which is slated to open in 2029.
Lastly, Brightman touched on the reopening of HIC properties in Jamaica following damage from Hurricane Melissa last year. “I’m sure many of you saw the notification that came up, that we are delaying our rebuild to Q1 of 2027,” he said. “I know that seems like a long way away, but trust me, it will be here before you know it. This will give us the opportunity, not only to just rebuild after the hurricane, but to enhance. So, we’re going to be able to take all of that product, those resorts that you guys know and love, and bring it back bigger, better, stronger than ever before. So that’s really exciting.”
Brightman also touched on ways Hyatt is working to help its colleagues in Jamaica saying, ”Hyatt and Inclusive Collection, we’re still very committed to our colleagues in destination as well as their local community. So, even though we’re not open and supporting in that fashion, we are of course helping them out with charities and the like.”
Amstar DMC
James Reese, manager of U.S. sales and business development for Amstar DMC, shared what’s new with the beloved ground transportation company. According to Reese, Amstar recently added 31 new vehicles to its fleet across all of its top destinations in addition to launching Amstar Connect, a program where travelers can track their Amstar journey from start to finish.
“Basically, we email them [your clients] and let them know, ‘hey, we’re glad you’re here,’ and walk them through customs, walk them through immigration, they get their bags, we’re out in front — we still have our reps there as well, so, we haven’t scaled back on any of our employee staff, even with this program that’s running — they meet our staff, they get a picture of their guy, they get a picture of their vehicle, the license plate number, everything is GPS tracked, everything has Wi-Fi as well,” he said. “So basically, they’re off to the resort, easy peasy. Then, coming back, we notify them about three days in advance to make sure the flight information is still accurate, then we send them their return pick-up time and then it’s GPS tracked all the way back.”
Reese stressed the importance of providing accurate client information to ensure Amstar Connect works as seamlessly as possible for travelers. “This technology is only as good as the information you provided,” he said. “I know some of you [advisors] don’t like to give the client information in that Amstar section, but it’s solely used for this purpose. It’s not used for marketing, but it gives them [the Amstar team] that contact information to notify the customers when they land in the destination and to make sure that they know their return transfer.”
On the topic of new offerings, Reese shouted out four fabulous new experiences offered by the brand: Cirque du Soleil LUDO, Cana Bay Golf, Vallarta Whale Watching and Private Catamaran, each of which is available for advisors to start booking for their clients immediately.
A Word From Ray Snisky
Closing out the opening session was Ray Snisky, group president of ALG Vacations, who shared his gratitude for advisors and offered a glimpse into how ALGV plans to support them in the future.
“It has been a rocky beginning of this year,” said Snisky. “This industry is not perfect, our company is not perfect, but our intent to be your best partner is unwavering. … I think ‘relationship’ and ‘preferred’ are two words that are overused in this business. Everyone uses them for everything, but what we have together is special. And I think in many relationships, probably about 90% of relationships that don’t work is because one part of the relationship took the other person for granted. I commit to you we’ll never do that. Our focus is on distributing our product to travel advisors.”
Snisky continued saying, “I can tell you, there’s a lot of relationships and you have a lot of choices, but there will never be another team or another company that will care more about you individually in your business and try and do everything to be the best that you can be moving forward.”
As advisors know, the travel industry is anything but static, and Snisky said ALGV will be there for them as they navigate the rapidly evolving impact of artificial intelligence. “AI will never replace the empathy, the kindness and the knowledge that you have of what your customer wants and needs, not what the industry is doing at a certain destination and so forth,” he said. “So, I think that is a little moat of protection, that’s the phrase we’ve been using, how do we build a moat around our relationships from AI to protect our business, protect our relationships with our customers?”
Snisky said ALGV is working to use AI to the company and advisor’s advantage to deliver best-in-class capabilities including VAX Intelligence comprising a smart itinerary builder, AI deal finder and dynamic recommendations, fresh advisor tools like a BDM sales coach and AI-generated e-doc automation and an upgraded Service Concierge experience.
“We’re going to continue to work hard and smart,” said Snisky. “We’ve got lots of new things that we’re creating that we’re going to hopefully continue to enhance our relationship. But just know that of all the things I can speak to with certainty here is that there will never be another company that will care more about you than this organization and these people.”
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