Weddings, wanderlust & the mic: How this travel advisor turned client love into a podcast

When Shalene Dudley, a certified destination weddings and group travel specialist, wanted to amplify the voices of her satisfied clients, she didn’t just gather testimonials—she handed them the mic.

Based in Mississauga, ON, Dudley is the founder of award-winning Latitude Concierge Travels, and now the host of a new podcast, called Passports & Promises, which she describes as her “Google reviews come to life.”

Launched in May, the podcast blends client experiences, wedding planning insights, and Dudley’s signature personality into a series of fun, candid and informative episodes.

“Most of the people on it are current or past clients, talking about what their wedding and planning process was like,” Dudley tells PAX. “The podcast is designed to be a lead magnet so potential customers can hear somebody actually talk about their wedding.”

While Passports & Promises naturally serves as a testimonial platform, Dudley is careful to prioritize authenticity.

“We can all build websites and say, ‘Here’s a quote from Jen or Mark,’ except no one knows if it’s true because they don’t know who they are,” she says. “I’ve always made sure the pictures on my website are clients I’ve worked with. I want to bring that authenticity through this podcast.”

Real-world stories

Each episode either features a real client reflecting on their destination wedding or Dudley—sometimes with members of her team—breaking down topics that often go unexplored in traditional wedding planning.

“It’s me, throwing it all out there, teaching people the basics,” she explains. “Like if you have teachers in a group booking, there’s some months you can’t travel.”

Dudley also revives #LatitudesLessons, a social media series and hashtag she started during the pandemic, to answer frequently asked questions.

These lessons have evolved into evergreen podcast content—practical for listeners at any stage of planning a wedding or group trip.

The first episode brings listeners into Dudley’s own family as her young children review a trip to Beaches Turks and Caicos.

“They’ve wanted a YouTube channel their whole lives,” she laughs. “And I’m like, ‘You’re not getting one. But here’s your chance.’”

What results is a refreshingly honest and humorous take on family-friendly travel. “I was expecting them to talk about things they didn't like, but they said it was one of the best places they’ve ever been to. My son talks about all the pools,” she says.

Subsequent episodes include a client who was married in 2017 at a Hard Rock resort, offering insight into why that property worked for her. There’s also some agent discussion, with one of Dudley’s team members, about common pitfalls in group bookings.

“There are some other agents I want to interview—like crazy things that clients have asked for,” Dudley says.

A one-stop podcast shop

The podcast’s production is managed by PodUp, a service that provides Dudley with equipment (like professional mics and lights), manages social media, and distributes the show across platforms like Spotify, Apple iTunes and Amazon Prime. Video recorded versions of episodes can be watched on YouTube.

“All I have to do is record it,” she says. “PodUp takes care of everything. They even made a trailer with graphics.”

The partnership, which involves paying a monthly membership fee, didn’t come without a learning curve. “The first challenge was making sure PodUp understood what I do as a travel advisor and destination wedding expert,” Dudley says.

But ultimately, it helped sharpen her brand messaging. She’s worked to ensure that the podcast echoed her business in tone and design, down to using the same colours and fonts.

Dudley has budgeted for 12 episodes in the first year, releasing them twice a month. It’s a strategic move, not just for outreach, but also to streamline her content marketing.

“It helps me a lot because I don’t have a newsletter—I never have time to write one,” she admits. “But it also creates my blog and social media. I’ll post social media clips from the podcast.”

While the show is geared toward potential clients, other travel advisors might find value—and humuor—in the content too. “Some of it is just funny,” she says.

Her dream guest? Blair Underwood’s wedding planner. “I want to know what that scale looks like,” Dudley says, referencing the actor’s high-profile, high-end destination wedding at Casa de Campo in the Dominican Republic. “I’m fascinated by celebrity weddings... I want to know if they have the same problems the rest of us have.”

An “insane” January

On the destination wedding front, 2025 got off to a busy (and somewhat chaotic) start for Dudley.

At her usual bridal show in January, which she describes as “insane,” everyone had this last-minute “fairy-tale idea that they could get married in May.”

“This idea of having to book a wedding or group trip one year out? It was as if a whole group of people have never thought about this before,” she says.  

Bookings also ramped up in the spring. And with 30 per cent of Dudley’s business coming from U.S. clients—many from Michigan, Georgia, Texas, New York and Minnesota —Dudley continues to pivot when needed.

In Canada, amid changing attitudes over U.S. travel due to the tariff situation, and rising costs, she has shifted Vegas-bound bachelorettes to all-inclusive getaways in Mexico and Jamaica, for example.  

For Dudley, it's no longer just a booking – it's potential material for a future episode of Passports & Promises.

To other travel advisors considering a podcast, Dudley offers this advice: “Come up with a clear topic that really conveys what you would like the podcast to explore,” she says.

“And you have to self-promote your work. Let your friends and family know. You have to get it out there as much as possible so people share it. Be proud of what you're creating.”

For more on Passports and Promises, click here.

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