EP 338: From Dallas Roots to Global Routes: Inside Strong Travel’s Family Legacy and Modern Edge

What makes Jennifer Strong and Angela Burns with Strong Travel a good neighbor?

What if your next great trip started with a neighbor who knows the world by heart? We sit down with Jennifer Strong and Angela Burns of Strong Travel, a Dallas-based, grandmother-founded luxury agency that has spent 50 years turning complex plans into smooth, memorable journeys. From a legacy built at a local desk to a network that spans cruise lines, hoteliers, and guides, they explain why expert advisors still matter—and how small details transform a good itinerary into the trip you’ll talk about for years.

We dig into the biggest industry myth—“no one uses travel agents anymore”—and replace it with real-world wins: saved time, better perks, smarter routing, and calm support when disruptions hit. Jennifer and Angela map the most in-demand destinations right now, with Italy leading summer travels and Spain, Portugal, and France close behind. For winter, they spotlight Japan’s rare mix of city energy and mountain powder, alongside Caribbean islands that deliver quick sun and easy access. Their case for cruising is practical and persuasive: unpack once, see multiple ports, sleep in the same bed, and capture a wide slice of the Mediterranean without repacking stress.

Strong Travel also opens up about how a legacy brand stays current—local magazines, community events, a content-rich website, social storytelling, and an annual team conference centered on AI and the tools reshaping planning. Underneath the tech is the core promise: personal connection. The team learns how you like to travel, then designs routes, pacing, and experiences that match your rhythm. Whether it’s a multi-country sweep, a family cruise, or a city-and-ski winter in Japan, you get efficiency without losing depth—and a steady hand if plans change.

Subscribe for more local stories from operators who measure what matters. If this conversation helped you rethink how to travel, share it with a friend who loves a great itinerary and leave a quick review so others can find the show.

To learn more about Strong Travel go to:
🌐 https://www.strongtravel.com/

Strong Travel
📞 214-361-0027

Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place

(00:02):
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Sophia Yvette.

SPEAKER_02 (00:09):
Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast.
Are you in need of a travelcompany?
Well, one may be closer than youthink.
Today I have the pleasure ofintroducing your good neighbors,
Jennifer Strong and Angela Burnswith Strong Travel.
Hi ladies, how's it going today?
Hi, it's going great.

SPEAKER_01 (00:26):
We're excited to be here.

SPEAKER_02 (00:28):
Great, excited to have you on.
Now we are also excited to learnall about you and your business.
Can you start off by telling ourlisteners just a little bit
about your company?

SPEAKER_01 (00:39):
Absolutely.
Well, Strong Travel is a luxurytravel agency located in Dallas,
Texas.
Um, it was started about 50years ago of the Strong Family
being in the travel business.
It was actually started by mygrandmother, who still comes to
the office every day while shenot while she might not be
selling as much travel as sheused to.

(01:01):
She is still very well connectedwith her clients and in the the
realm of the business and how weare planning to continue this
business in the future.

SPEAKER_02 (01:11):
Wow, that's amazing.
It sounds like it truly is afamily business.

SPEAKER_01 (01:15):
It is.

SPEAKER_02 (01:24):
Now, um, what is the most common myth or
misconception in your industry?

SPEAKER_01 (01:30):
I think, and I'll let Angela um elaborate on this,
but I think the biggest myththat a lot of people say is that
people don't use travel agentsanymore, and we can confirm that
they absolutely do.

SPEAKER_03 (01:43):
Yes, we come into the office every day, um, and uh
there are times of the year whenwe uh are so busy we can't keep
up with ourselves.
So um I would agree that's oneof the most common myths is that
people don't use travel agentsanymore, but um, I think we can
provide uh some added benefitsfor anybody who's looking to

(02:07):
plan a trip, be it small orseveral weeks to multiple
countries.
Um, we can we can provide a lotof efficiency for those clients.

SPEAKER_02 (02:19):
Now, um, what is the most common country people
typically like to go visit?

SPEAKER_03 (02:26):
I would say in the summertime, our most popular
country to visit is Spain,excuse me, Italy, followed
closely by Spain, Portugal, andFrance.
Um, but Italy is top tier in thesummertime.
And then in the wintertime, it'sreally very broad.
Um, Europe is still verypopular.

(02:48):
Uh, Japan is incredibly popularin the winter time.
Um, they have such a variety ofthings to do from city visits in
Tokyo and Kyoto to skiing in themountains.
Um, really has been spectaculardestination.
And then there's always thesunny islands in the Caribbean.

SPEAKER_02 (03:12):
Yes.
Now we know marketing is theheart of every business.
How do you ladies currentlymarket your business and who are
your target clients?

SPEAKER_01 (03:22):
Well, I would say with my grandmother starting
this business 50 years ago andcurrently being 91, the realm of
technology has been hard forsomething for her to grasp.
Um, but it has been fun tocollaborate with our local
magazines and uh people likeyou, spread awareness about

(03:43):
strong travel as well asFacebook, Instagram.
Um, we have a wonderful websitefull of great information, and
um we do like little pop-upevents with whether it's a
cruise line or a hotel year touh share promotions that might
be happening.

(04:04):
We also have a wonderful umconference at the beginning of
each year with the entire strongtravel team, and we bring in um
keynote speakers, and uh thisyear it's all going to be
targeted on AI artificialintelligence, which I think is
something that everyone canlearn more about.
So just keeping up with thetrends, and um, I will say that

(04:26):
strong travel is a very um theyhave clients for so many years
that continue to come back, andum the longevity of their
clients as well as staff reallyspeaks volume of um how well the
the travel agent is.

SPEAKER_02 (04:42):
That's amazing.
Now, have you guys ever thoughtof having your own podcast?

SPEAKER_01 (04:48):
Oh my goodness.
Yes, because my grandmotherwould be the star.
Um and I think that it would itwould be great, but I don't know
that uh you know we have thetimes or the means to write a
podcast.

SPEAKER_03 (05:02):
We're in the we're in the business of selling
travel, not podcasting.
Yes.
We'll leave that to the expertslike yourself.

SPEAKER_02 (05:11):
Now, please tell our listeners one thing they should
remember today about strongtravel.

SPEAKER_01 (05:18):
That strong travel is going to be your personal
connection to the world.
It's crafted, it'sdetail-oriented, you have um
such lovely um connections withyour travel advisor.
They get to know you well toplan your experience.
Um, and another fun thing thatis currently on right now is um
cruise lines.
Uh, there's always something newon the water, uh, and it's a

(05:41):
great way to capitalize on yourbudget.

SPEAKER_02 (05:44):
Amazing.

SPEAKER_03 (05:46):
And yeah, I would say specifically with regards to
cruising, it's a fantastic wayto see multiple destinations
without having to pack andunpack and move house every time
you want to visit a new city.
So you might start in Rome andend in Barcelona, but you're

(06:08):
sleeping in the same bed everynight.
You have the ability to unpackone time, and yet you're making
six or seven stops along the wayand beautiful destinations, and
really getting to see a goodslice of with that particular
itinerary, the Europeancoastline.

(06:29):
Um, so it makes it verycomfortable and efficient, and
you still can experience um thetrue luxury of the destination.

SPEAKER_02 (06:39):
Well, that sounds like a true adventure.
But what our listeners reallywant to know today is where can
they go to learn more aboutstrong travel?

SPEAKER_01 (06:50):
Yes, they can go to strongtravel.com, um, strong
travel on Instagram.
Um you can come into our office.
We're in person.
Uh, we love people to come by.
Um, and I do want to give agreat shout out to the strong
travel team, as you can imaginein the travel industry.
Um, there's a lot of problemsolving, whether it's flight

(07:11):
cancellations, a volcanoerupting, um, you know, a lot of
travel disruptions, and the teamhandles it with grace and
calmness and gets the clientsfrom point A to point B as best
as they can.

SPEAKER_02 (07:26):
Well, Jennifer and Angela, I really appreciate you
both being on the show today.
We wish you and your businessthe best.
Moving forward.

SPEAKER_01 (07:35):
Thank you, Sophia.
We appreciate you.

SPEAKER_00 (07:37):
Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor
Podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on the
show, go to GNP Frisco dot com.
That's GNP Frisco dot com orcall four six nine two two two
one nine three four five.