Travel Lingo 101: What's a DMC

The travel industry is full of jargon. Most of the jargon is exchanged between those that work within the travel industry. From time to time, we professionals forget that we are not speaking with those who work within the industry and we throw out terms to travelers that confuse more than edify. Some folks may see/hear terms or acronyms such as BAR or bulk or AI or "European plan" and be like...what the?

So we thought it might be helpful to once in a while explain what a certain term or acronym actually means. To kick this theme off we thought we would tell you what we mean when we refer to a company as a DMC. In the case of travel, DMC simply means "destination management company." Now you may ask, "what on earth is a destination management company?" Good question. Destination management companies are professional tour operators that offer expertise usually in one country or region of the world.

For example, when we are looking to put together a vacation for clients wanting to go to Spain, we could choose a tour company like a Funjet Vacations or Vacation Express and book hotels, airfare, tours and ground transportation. Some may go that route simply because of budget but the negative for doing that is that you are using a company that is NOT based in the country they are selling and possibly have no personal experience in that country as well. So instead of going with an Expedia or Booking.com or Funjet, we prefer to use a DMC or destination management company that is based in Spain and actually from Spain. This partnership ensures our clients are getting the best advice and service possible because our DMC KNOWS Spain and LIVES in Spain. They know the best hotels and restaurants and sites. They know what is worth seeing and what is not. Their tour guides are actually from Spain as well.

Typically using a DMC adds more to the travel budget but literally every aspect of the client's trip will be customized for that client. They will have true locals helping them and guiding them throughout the vacation. The experience will be night and day between a DMC and a generic global tour company which is why we always prefer to use DMC's whenever possible.

So there you have it. Now you know what a DMC is and will be better prepared for your next vacation planning conversation with your preferred travel professional.