San Diego ASTA President’s Newsletter: August 2025
Hi members,
I hope all are enjoying our perfect San Diego weather. Whenever I travel it feels so GREAT to come home to the best climate on the planet!
Our Board has met over the summer and we are working on finalizing our last few events for the year.
1) Fall Festival September 16th – please sign up as soon as possible. We have 30 suppliers attending – 4 breakout sessions, Copa Airline tickets and many other prizes will be given away!
2) October 16th exclusive Princess Cruise tour and lunch aboard the Royal Princess. Watch your email for the invitation. This is ONLY for our chapter and limited to 30 advisors.
3) Friendsgiving – our ASTAPAC fund raiser November 19. Broken Yolk in Carmel Mountain. This will be a Family Travel Theme. More information to follow.
4) San Diego Travel Industry Holiday Party – December 16th Rancho Bernardo Inn (by popular demand!). Invitations being sent out next month.
The River Cruise event will be re-scheduled for next spring.
It is time for elections for our San Diego ASTA Board. If you have ever thought about being a part of our planning committee or have a desire to be more involved with the chapter, now is the time. How about nominating someone you think would be a great addition to our organization? Ballots will be sent before the end of the year for our new board in 2026.
FAM trips
Costa Brava FAM trip is sold out! Thank you to those that applied.
Scottsdale trip was postponed to early summer 2026.
National Events – Legislative Day October 6 – 8! This is what ASTA is all about. Walk the halls of Congress and the Senate to meet face to face with our legislators. It is one of the my most memorable experiences with ASTA to date. Feel like you are part of the process of decision making in government. Sign up today!
River Cruise Expo March 11 – 15, 2026 – with the addition of 3 more ships, registration has re-opened for General Admission tickets. Book now before they are all gone.
ASTA Advisors Conference – May 27 – 29, 2026 HERE in San Diego! Let’s make a HUGE showing to support ASTA in our back yard! Register on the website today and use our local discount code SANDIEGO for a 25% discount off the cost of the conference.
Advocacy Update from Laura Vogel:
1. Congress is in recess! August is the perfect time to stop by your legislator’s office and introduce yourself. Tell them a little bit about yourself, your business, and the industry. Many members of Congress will host town halls or other events to meet their constituents. Attend one, wear a “Travel You Can Trust” shirt (if you have one), and let them know that ASTA will be on Capitol Hill in October for Legislative Day.
2. Speaking of Legislative Day… We’re still looking for advisors from the following states: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont, Utah, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Wyoming. This is the event where you can truly make a difference, educating legislators and staff about travel advisors and the business!
Be sure to visit our website to read about upcoming events and other news: https://www.astasandiego.com/
Attached is also an update from our Advocacy team. Don’t forget to make your donation to ASTA’s own lobbying arm, ASTAPAC. Click on the link below and be sure to select San Diego in the dropdown menu: ASTAPAC Donation
Thank you for your support, and I hope to see you at our next event!
Tracy Anderson CTC
San Diego ASTA President