Human touch, real results: Why these travel advisors are winning in the age of AI

In an era when artificial intelligence can build an itinerary in seconds, two Saskatchewan-based travel entrepreneurs are proving there’s still enormous power in a real conversation across a desk.

Heather Calvert and Sheena Revet — the duo behind two thriving Marlin Travel storefronts in Regina and Moose Jaw — have built their business on something refreshingly old-school: human connection.

And they did it at perhaps the worst time imaginable.

Opening against the odds

“We opened our travel agency in the middle of the pandemic in September 2021,” Calvert says matter-of-factly, as if opening a bricks-and-mortar travel agency while global borders were snapping shut was perfectly reasonable behaviour.

It wasn’t, of course. But that’s partly what makes this duo so fascinating.

Together, Calvert and Revet bring more than 40 years of travel industry experience to the table. Calvert, who splits her time between Okotoks, Alberta and Regina, grew up travelling internationally after riding with the Calgary Stampede as a teen.

Revet, a Regina-based self-described “small town girl with a passion to see the world,” originally dreamed of working in event planning for the Calgary Stampede before discovering the travel industry could offer both logistics and global exploration.

Their paths crossed in 2010 while working together at Percy Hunt Travel, which, at one point, owned 23 Marlin Travel branches, which were sold in 2018.

Calvert focused on operations, training and accounting support, while Revet carved out a niche in group and incentive travel, producing Caribbean concert experiences with Canadian entertainers and organizing large-scale corporate trips.

“We always joked about being our own boss,” Calvert says.

Then COVID hit. For many travel pros, the pandemic was an extinction-level event. For Calvert and Revet, it became a catalyst.

“Why are we putting so much time in for someone else?” Calvert recalls asking. “We love this, we love working together. We love the business.”

What happened next sounds unbelievable in hindsight. While many agencies were downsizing or shuttering, clients kept calling them directly.

Upon bringing the Marlin Travel brand back to Saskatchewan, with the support of Transat Distribution Canada (TDC), one of their first major bookings involved a 500-person corporate incentive trip to Las Vegas – a complete with PCR testing logistics and constantly changing regulations.

Even Canadian country singer Johnny Reid came calling, lending his support, offering to do a river cruise collaboration.

Still: “We didn't know if we could make this work,” Calvert says.

Revet remembers her father’s reaction vividly. “He said to me, ‘You should probably upgrade your schooling and consider getting a government job when this is all done.’”

Instead, they signed a lease. By December 2021, fresh travel restrictions slammed the industry yet again. But they kept the doors open.

“Our door was unlocked,” Calvert says. “Clients came in saying, ‘Do we need an appointment? Do we need to wear a mask?’ We didn't have appointments. We were open regular hours.”

That accessibility became their superpower.

Why clients still walk in

Today, their Regina branch operates six days a week, staying open until 8 p.m., with after-hours emergency support routed directly to the owners themselves.

In Moose Jaw, where they opened a second Marlin Travel in 2025, they doubled down on the same formula: local expertise, real people, actual office hours (and in a location that has housed a travel agency since the 1990s).

“If the phone rings, you get a person,” Revet says. “You don't get a voicemail.”

That matters deeply in Saskatchewan, where much of their clientele comes from farming, oil and potash communities spread across rural areas. Customers may drive two (or more) hours just to sit down with an advisor face-to-face.

And these aren’t necessarily modest bookings.

“The Saskatchewan farming community is quite affluent,” Revet explains. “When they walk in, they're going to have on their local hockey team t-shirt and their elevator grain cap, but they're buying a $135,000 Emerald yacht cruise.”

That Prairie pattern shapes how the pair approach travel planning. Their clients aren’t chasing flashy trends for Instagram. They want value, expertise and experiences worth remembering.

“They want to be taken care of. They want everything planned for them from point A to point Z,” says Revet.

When human experience matters

Ironically, artificial intelligence has actually helped fuel demand for their expertise.

“People now have a tool that they have to engage with to build what they think they want,” Revet says. “But there's a lot of error in what it's producing. It doesn't necessarily know the logistics of travelling.”

That’s where human experience comes in. The lived kind.

Their nine-person team includes advisors who’ve lived overseas, hosted group tours and travelled extensively. “We don't just sell what's in a brochure,” Revet says.

And despite all the technological disruption, Calvert remains convinced the fundamentals haven’t changed.

“The internet's been here for 30 years,” she says. “Maybe we lost a few bookings to it, but it'll never replace the human touch.” 

That belief is now fuelling future expansion plans. 

“We're definitely looking at different books of business to grow,” says Revet. “Older agency owners are reaching out to us to see if we want to expand. We like the brick and mortar model. It works here.”

For Calvert and Revet, the future of travel retail lies in an old-fashioned idea: building real communities around travel again.

This article originally ran on May 6, 2026, as part of PAX's annual "10 Most Fascinating Travel Advisors" list to mark Travel Advisor Appreciation Day. To read the full feature, click here.

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