Tallahassee, Florida native Dr. Terika L. Haynes has been curating luxury travel experiences for over 12 years. What started as just a secondary source of income, has now blossomed into a full-time successful business.
She created Dynamite Travel in 2008, around the same time that the last recession hit our country.
“I’ve experienced something like this before,” Dr. Haynes told Travel Noire. “Of course, this current pandemic has hit a little different and has presented new challenges.”
Her business caters to groups as well as individuals, looking to see and experience the best of the best while on vacation. One of her mottos, ‘if I deserve the best, then my clients deserve the best too.’
Unfortunately, as borders around the globe began to close, 90-95% of her scheduled bookings ended up being canceled. While trying to keep business afloat has been a challenge, Dr. Haynes has found a way to pivot until things can pick up again.
“We’ve shifted into selling more products versus travel planning,” she said. “We sell things scooters and e-bikes, as well as travel bags.”
As things slowly began to open, she is now seeing a slight uptick in clients searching for domestic luxury vacation packages. For those wanting something similar, while also maintaining the ability to social distance, she suggests three destinations.
“Arizona is a great place because there are tons of spas and luxury resorts everywhere. Also, people are looking at the Napa, California area and then some of the less-visited places in Florida such as Sanibel Island.”
Although there is no real way to predict if the travel industry will recover and return to what it once was, Dr. Haynes hopes that Black travelers won’t lose their desire and momentum to see the world once it does.
“We were just picking up steam as far as the Black travel movement. I hope that once it is safe, we can all get back out there because we need to see that representation.”
To learn more about Dynamite Travel, you can visit the website: www.sodynamite.com. You can also find it on the major social media platforms at @dynamitetravel.
