Fun In The Sun Travel
Fun In The Sun Travel is a privately held, Topeka, Kansas-based travel agency founded in 2003 that delivers personalized cruise, destination wedding, honeymoon, group, and family vacation planning services to individual and small-group consumers via a small team of advisors earning supplier commissions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2003
- HeadquartersTopeka, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Fun In The Sun Travel does
Fun In The Sun Travel is a privately held, sole-proprietorship travel agency headquartered in Topeka, Kansas, founded in 2003 by Karen Marlow. The firm provides personalized travel advisory services across four primary verticals: destination weddings and honeymoons (with specialization in Sandals and Beaches Resorts), cruise bookings (Royal Caribbean and Carnival), family vacations and tours, and organized group travel. Customers are individual and small-group consumers — families, couples, sports and special-interest groups — primarily in the U.S. with bookings extending to the Caribbean, Mexico, and Europe. The agency operates without proprietary technology, relying on a Weebly-based website (built by Voyager Websites), VacationCRM for group reservations, and supplier-direct booking systems with major cruise lines, resort brands, and shore-excursion providers (Amstar DMC, Shore Excursions Group, Venture Ashore). Service delivery is consultative: customers initiate contact by phone or email and pay a $100 non-refundable travel research deposit before receiving vacation package quotes.
The business model is commission-driven. The agency earns transaction-based commissions from cruise lines, hotels, resorts, and tour operators on each booking, supplemented by the $100 research deposit that converts into either a credit toward a booking or, if no booking occurs within 60 days, a retained service fee. Pricing is per-cabin or per-package; published examples include Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas balconies at $2,677.46 per cabin (Sept 2027) and Carnival Conquest interiors at $1,008.00 per cabin (Aug 2027), rates based on double occupancy excluding gratuities, insurance, and air. Distribution is direct-to-consumer with no digital advertising spend; marketing channels are limited to the website, a Facebook page, and word-of-mouth. The team comprises three named individuals — owner Karen Marlow, Travel Advisor Tammy Switzer (joined 2018, former 190th Air Refueling Wing, Kansas Air National Guard), and Cruise Specialist Millisa "Missy" Neff (joined July 2019) — with firmographic headcount stated at 11–50. There is no external investment, parent company, or disclosed revenue; the agency operates as an independent lifestyle business.
Fun In The Sun Travel firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Fun In The Sun Travel
- Legal name
- Fun in the Sun Travel
- Website
- https://funinsuntravel.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2003
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Fun In The Sun Travel is a privately held, Topeka, Kansas-based travel agency founded in 2003 that delivers personalized cruise, destination wedding, honeymoon, group, and family vacation planning services to individual and small-group consumers via a small team of advisors earning supplier commissions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Fun In The Sun Travel industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Travel Agency Services
- NAICS
- Travel Agencies (561510), Tour Operators (561520)
- SIC
- Water Transportation (4400), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Island, Beach & Resort Travel Agencies (THAKAFAL)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Retail Cruise-Only Travel Agencies (Leisure) (THAKAKAA), Honeymoon & Romance Travel Agencies (THAKAFAC), Group & Small-Group Custom Itinerary Planning (THAKAOAF)
Keywords
Where Fun In The Sun Travel is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Topeka
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Fun In The Sun Travel business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Travel Agency Commissions: Earn commissions from cruise lines, hotels, resorts (Sandals/Beaches), and tour operators on bookings made for clients.
- Travel Research Deposit: $100 deposit required prior to providing quotes for vacation packages. Applied to bookings when package is made; retained as service fee if no travel booked within 60 days.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Royal Caribbean Allure of the Seas (Sept 4-12, 2027) |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Carnival Conquest (Aug 2-6, 2027) |
| Other | One time/ perpetual license | Travel Research Deposit |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels3 records
Fun In The Sun Travel product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Fun In The Sun Travel is an independent travel agency that sells personalized travel planning and booking services to individual consumers, couples, families, and groups. Its core offerings include destination weddings and honeymoons (specializing in Sandals/Beaches resorts), cruise bookings across major lines (Royal Caribbean and Carnival), coordinated group travel, and family vacation and tour packages. The agency earns commissions from cruise lines, hotels, resorts, and tour operators on bookings made for clients, and charges a $100 travel research deposit that is applied to a booking or retained as a service fee.
Product overview
Fun In The Sun Travel is a travel agency offering personalized travel planning services. The company provides a unified service offering centered around vacation planning, with core services including destination weddings and honeymoons, cruise bookings, group travel packages, and family vacations/tours. The company operates as a service-based travel agency rather than a software platform. Services are delivered through travel advisors who provide booking assistance, itinerary planning, and travel consultation across cruise lines, resorts, and tour operators.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Destination Weddings & Honeymoons Planning and booking services for destination weddings and honeymoon packages, specializing in beach resort destinations such as Sandals and Beaches resorts, including resort accommodations and referral coordination.
- Cruises
- Group Travel
- Family Vacations & Tours
- Travel Specials
Companies that use Fun In The Sun Travel
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Fun In The Sun Travel technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Fun In The Sun Travel partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Royal Caribbean Cruise LinecoreOfficial group booking partner for Royal Caribbean cruises. The agency coordinates group travel for Royal Caribbean sailings including Allure of the Seas group trips with designated cabin categories and reservation links.
- Carnival Cruise LinecoreAuthorized agent for Carnival Cruise Line bookings. Manages group bookings for Carnival Conquest with specific itineraries and cabin pricing.
- Sandals Resorts InternationalcoreOfficial referral partner for Sandals and Beaches resorts. Agency specializes in Sandals/Beaches destination weddings and honeymoons with referral links to official resort pages.
- Shore Excursions GroupminorPartner for cruise shore excursion bookings. Offers excursions at various ports of call including Curacao, Aruba, and Dominican Republic.
- Venture AshoreminorShore excursion provider offering cruise excursions with booking links integrated into agency cruise pages.
- Travel InsuredminorTravel insurance provider recommended on the Know Before You Go page. Offers optional travel insurance forms for client travel protection.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Fun In The Sun Travel competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Cruise Planners: Cruise-focused franchise travel agency network with home-based advisors selling cruise vacations and related packages. Highly comparable to Fun in the Sun Travel given the shared cruise-centric service model and supplier relationships with major cruise lines.
- Dream Vacations (CruiseOne): Home-based travel franchise under World Travel Holdings focused on cruise and resort vacations. Operates with the same independent-advisor-plus-supplier-partnership model that Fun in the Sun Travel uses, making it a directly comparable peer.
- Avoya Travel: Host travel agency network that supports independent advisors with cruise, tour, and vacation package bookings. Directly comparable in structure (independent advisors selling through a host) and product mix (cruise and resort vacations).
- Vincent Vacations: Independent home-based travel agency specializing in cruises, all-inclusive resorts, and vacation packages. Comparable small-scale, owner-operated agency model with similar supplier relationships and target customer.
- KHM Travel Group: Independent travel agent host agency supporting home-based advisors selling cruises, tours, and vacation packages. Closely comparable business model and customer base to Fun in the Sun Travel.
- Travel Leaders Network: Large network of independent travel agencies and advisors offering cruise, leisure, and corporate travel services. Comparable in product breadth and the independent-advisor distribution model.
- Expedia Cruises: Cruise-specialist franchise brand (formerly CruiseShipCenters) under Expedia Group focused on cruise and resort vacation packages. Competes for the same cruise-traveler customer that Fun in the Sun Travel serves.
Others
- Expedia: Major online travel agency and indirect competitor for cruise, hotel, and vacation bookings. While not a direct peer, it represents the dominant digital channel whose commission economics pressure traditional agencies like Fun in the Sun Travel.
Broad incumbents
- American Express Travel: Established full-service travel agency and luxury travel provider offering cruise, vacation, and honeymoon bookings. A broader incumbent that overlaps with Fun in the Sun Travel's premium resort and cruise offerings but operates at much greater scale.
- Liberty Travel: Traditional brick-and-mortar retail travel agency chain selling cruise, tour, and vacation packages. Comparable in offering type (cruises, honeymoons, family vacations) but with a fundamentally different retail-store distribution model.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Fun In The Sun Travel social profiles
Digital presenceFun In The Sun Travel financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Fun In The Sun Travel leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Fun In The Sun Travel funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Fun In The Sun Travel M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Fun In The Sun Travel
What does Fun In The Sun Travel do?
Fun In The Sun Travel is an independent travel agency that sells personalized travel planning and booking services to individual consumers, couples, families, and groups. Its core offerings include destination weddings and honeymoons (specializing in Sandals/Beaches resorts), cruise bookings across major lines (Royal Caribbean and Carnival), coordinated group travel, and family vacation and tour packages. The agency earns commissions from cruise lines, hotels, resorts, and tour operators on bookings made for clients, and charges a $100 travel research deposit that is applied to a booking or retained as a service fee.
Is Fun In The Sun Travel a public or private company?
Fun In The Sun Travel is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Fun In The Sun Travel founded?
Fun In The Sun Travel was founded in 2003. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Fun In The Sun Travel based?
Fun In The Sun Travel is headquartered in Topeka, United States, in the North America region.
How does Fun In The Sun Travel make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Travel Agency Commissions are the primary driver. The others are travel Research Deposit.
Who are Fun In The Sun Travel's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Cruise Planners, Dream Vacations (CruiseOne), Avoya Travel, Vincent Vacations, KHM Travel Group, Travel Leaders Network and Expedia Cruises. Expedia is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are American Express Travel and Liberty Travel.
Does Fun In The Sun Travel have an API?
No public API is recorded for Fun In The Sun Travel.
What industry is Fun In The Sun Travel in?
Fun In The Sun Travel's product category is Travel Agency Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is THAKAFAL, Island, Beach & Resort Travel Agencies, with a secondary code of THAKAKAA, Retail Cruise-Only Travel Agencies (Leisure). Its NAICS code is 561510 and its SIC code is 4400.