ET Family Travel is beyond thrilled to announce that we have been nominated for the second year in a row for Best Travel Agency in Bethpage Best of Long Island. After winning the title our first year nominated we are more determined than ever to prove that we are the best travel team out there. 

Owners Ellen Volpe and Victoria Tomasheski share a passion for travel, leadership, and communication. In just under three years, Ellen and Tori have grown their team to include 225 agents in 37 states around the country, been acknowledged as a Gold level EarMarked agency by the Walt Disney Travel Company and a U-Preferred agency for Universal Resorts, AND won the Bethpage Best of Long Island Best Travel Agency in 2020.

After starting out the year strong by winning Best of Long Island no one could have predicted the state of travel as the year went on. But not to fear, nothing – not even a global pandemic – can slow down these two amazing leaders! Read a Q&A with these two inspiring women.

Q. What was your reaction to winning Bethpage Best of Long Island Travel Agency in 2020?

A. It was such an honor and if we’re being totally honest, there was a lot of jumping up and down! We were coming off of a very successful 2019 and we were laser focused on making 2020 a banner year for the agency. Little did we know that it would turn out to be a devastating year for the travel business and our agents.

Q. What was your initial reaction to Covid and its effect on travel?

A. When Covid hit we knew right away that thinking outside the box was imperative in order to protect our wonderful clients and agents, and preserve our business that we worked hard to build. Canceling millions of dollars of bookings was nothing short of heartbreaking, but when you’re the best you find a way! On one hand we were dealing with clients disappointments, cancellations, refunds, and rescheduling. On the other, we had to keep our morale high and support our clients and agents to the best of our ability.

Knowing our clients would have trepidation about the usual bookings to amusement parks, cruises, and international travel, we pivoted our business to shift to more local travel. By adapting to the situation we added over 50 new suppliers and a few RV companies to our supplier list, and we have been able to offer our clients many local destinations all around the USA over the past few months.

Q. How are you advising clients now?

A. Now more than ever we are seeing many clients needing a break, and families are seeking getaways closer to home, or renting RV and planning road trips. We continue to strive for excellence in helping our clients match up with the best destination for their vacation goals. During these times of ever-changing lists and updated hotel protocols, it is even more important to have an agent to guide clients through the process.